Photo By Capt. Corissa Barton | Spc. Kurt Krizek, an U.S. Army paratrooper with 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry...... read more read more
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ADAZU, Latvia - U.S. Army paratroopers with 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade, visited students here at Adazu Secondary School, May 26, as part of a cultural exchange during the unit’s time in Latvia.
The paratroopers arrived in Latvia in April, when more than 600 paratroopers from the 173rd Airborne deployed to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland as part of an unscheduled land-forces assurance exercise to demonstrate commitment to NATO obligations and improve interoperability with allied forces.
During the visit, the paratroopers spoke with students about training with the Latvian military and what it is like to be in Latvia, many for the first time.
“You have an incredibly professional, skilled military,” said Sgt. Simon Mendoza, a paratrooper with the 173rd Airborne. “It has been great working with them. And your country is amazing. It’s just been an honor to be here.”
Linda Kalnina, an English teacher at the school, asked the visitors to describe their first impressions of the Baltic nation.
“We have been really welcomed ever since we got here,“ said 1st Lt. Ryan Johnson, a platoon leader with the 173rd Airborne. “The country is beautiful and we have loved being here.”
Three rotations of students entered the classroom as the paratroopers introduced themselves and told the students where they were from in the U.S. At the end of each class, the students were paired with a paratrooper for a game. How many Latvian words could the students teach the paratroopers in five minutes? The results brought on laughter and cheers as the Soldiers were tested.
“You guys are doing a great job and we are so happy you are here,” Romualds Kuarans, a student at Adazu, said to the men in uniform.
Kalnina said that meeting the paratroopers was a new experience for the students, and that she was very happy with what they learned.
“I am more than certain that meeting real people, real foreigners, whose native language is English, is really the best experience an English teacher can offer their students,” said Kalnina.
The 173rd Airborne Brigade, based in Vicenza, Italy, is the Army Contingency Response Force in Europe, and is capable of projecting forces to conduct the full of range of military operations across the U.S. European, Central and Africa commands’ areas of responsibility.
| Date Taken: | 05.26.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 05.28.2014 03:17 |
| Story ID: | 131270 |
| Location: | ADAZU, AIZKRAUKLES APRINKIS, LV |
| Web Views: | 283 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, US paratroopers spend Memorial Day speaking with Latvian children, by CPT Corissa Barton, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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