Photo By Cpl. Rebecca Elmy | Marine spouses sit through a brief before entering the combat convoy simulator during...... read more read more
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CAMP HANSEN, Japan — Suited up in their spouses flak jackets and Kevlar helmets, Marine spouses climbed into a seven-ton truck to start a day in their Marines’ boots.
Marines and spouses with 3rd Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment, participated in a Jane Wayne Day Sept. 26 at Camp Hansen and Camp Schwab.
During the event the spouses got the chance to experience some of the training all Marines go through.
“We brought 23 (spouses) in from all the different sections of Headquarters Battery,” said 1st Sgt. Christopher Taylor, the first sergeant for Headquarters Battery, 3rd Bn., 12th Marines, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force. “We sent them through a combat convoy simulator and also an indoor simulated marksmanship trainer.”
For some of the spouses, this is the first time experiencing what it is like to be on a convoy with loaded weapons responding to enemy fire. Their mission was to communicate with the other vehicles in the convoy by radio and suppress the mock enemy with simulated machine gun fire.
“The simulation was much more realistic than I realized,” said Kristy Taylor, 1st. Sgt. Taylor’s spouse. “Our adrenaline was pumping, and it was a good time.”
After the convoy, they went to the ISMT on Camp Hansen where they fired inert shoulder-fired, multi-purpose assault weapons, AT-4 light anti-armor weapons, M2 .50-caliber Browning machine guns and MK19 40 mm automatic grenade launchers in the controlled simulation.
After firing simulated rounds, the spouses boarded the seven-ton trucks to get to their last event of the day: firing live rounds with M4 and M16A4 service rifles at Camp Schwab’s rifle range.
“The seven-ton truck ride was the worst part,” said Kristy, from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. “It is hot, it is hot in Okinawa. It was pretty miserable and wearing all the heavy gear; that was the rough part.”
As the day went on, the spouses continued to see what their Marine does from day to day.
“Whether they are out on training missions or spending the day on the rifle range, we are just looking for them to get a better understanding of what their active-duty spouse does,” said Lauren Bell, the family readiness officer for the regiment. “It’s also to build camaraderie among the spouses and with some of the Marines.”
With their spouses gear weighing down on their shoulders in the midday heat, the spouses gained more of an appreciation for some of the challenges faced by their Marines during a deployment.
“We come home and talk about what we do in the field or in combat but today they got to do a small piece of that; from the combat convoy simulator that simulated driving down the streets of Fallujah, to actually pulling the trigger out at the range,” said 1st Sgt. Taylor, from Choctaw, Oklahoma.
The spouses were tested physically and mentally during their training day as a Marine.
“All these things just amount to a greater understanding and a greater appreciation for what their (spouse) does,” said 1st Sgt. Taylor. “That is going to translate to the home, with better communication and better understanding.”
| Date Taken: | 09.26.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 10.21.2014 02:31 |
| Story ID: | 145597 |
| Location: | CAMP HANSEN, OKINAWA, JP |
| Hometown: | ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Hometown: | CHOCTAW, OKLAHOMA, US |
| Hometown: | OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA, US |
| Web Views: | 100 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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