Photo By Spc. Jennifer McFadden | Richard Williams, a Southern Baptist preacher from Enid, Okla., stands in front of his...... read more read more
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By Sgt. Sarah Scully
40th Public Affairs Detachment
KUWAIT— Adjusting weapons on their uniformed shoulders, dozens of troops filed into the Camp Buehring Chapel for Sunday morning services, recently.
Back home, they would never think of taking a gun into a church. But it's a necessity out in the desert of Kuwait, miles from the Iraq border.
With stained-glass windows painted onto the walls of the warehouse-turned-church, this is the last chapel the troops have for religious services before heading across the border into Iraq.
"I give thanks that through all this craziness and war, we still have a place to worship," said Spc. Timothy Klibbe, a Soldier with 130th Infantry Battalion, out of Fort Stewart, Ga.
With his M16 lying beneath a pew, he offered up his prayer to Chaplain (1st Lt.) Richard Williams.
"They've got a lot on their mind, and they're looking for something that can give them hope in the midst of this trial that they're going through," said Williams, a Southern Baptist preacher from Enid, Okla., stationed at Camp Buehring with the Aviation Task Force.
Other service members asked to pray for all the Soldiers traveling up north, for safe training, for all the families back home and for troops to make the right choices.
Some of the troops said they felt closer to their families when they went to church.
"It means a lot that even though we're thousands of miles away from our families to come worship God, we know our families are back home in church as well," said Staff Sgt. Nathan Hunt, from Omaha, Neb., currently serving with 3rd Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment.
"It gives us a bit of comfort."
Troops of all military branches, ages, ranks and backgrounds find their way to the chapel for services offered throughout the week.
With Camp Buehring as a training ground and transitory place for service members going to Iraq, the number of individuals who need guidance can vary from a few dozen to a few hundred.
"It's either feast or famine," said Williams. "There's always a lot of issues or there's nothing – but when you're needed, you're needed."
"I think they're looking for strength for the trials that come ahead."
| Date Taken: | 05.30.2007 |
| Date Posted: | 05.30.2007 11:21 |
| Story ID: | 10578 |
| Location: | KW |
| Web Views: | 428 |
| Downloads: | 311 |
This work, At Camp Buehring, Soldiers pray before heading into Iraq, by SGT Sarah Scully, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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