Photo By Ismael Ortega | Soldiers assigned to 197th Field Artillery Brigade, New Hampshire Army National Guard,...... read more read more
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The unit will serve as the force field artillery headquarters for U.S. Central Command, coordinating all fi re missions within their area of responsibilities as well as building and maintaining relationships with partner nations across the Middle East. Additionally, the mission will include theater security operations.This deployment is in support of Operation Spartan Shield and Inherent Resolve and will be the third time the 197th FA Bde. has been to CENTCOM’s area of operations.
The 197th FA Bde. deployed previously from 2004 to 2005 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and again in 2010 to 2011 support of Operation New Dawn.
“Morale remains awfully high … We’ve got a great group of people. I’ve got a lot of older Soldiers. I only have (a few) that have never deployed before,” said 1st Sgt. Michael Lestage, battery first sergeant, 197th FA Bde. “Having the maturity of the people who’ve deployed before has made it a lot easier to get through this, they’ve really helped guide those Soldiers who haven’t been on a deployment yet.”
To prepare for this deployment the unit dedicated weeks to refi ning their Army warrior tasks, battle drills, weapons and live-fire qualifications in their home state, McGregor Range, New Mexico, and here. Building team cohesion was another focus during their time together and the command staff thanks their noncommissioned officers for establishing the current level of camaraderie.
“A lot of people came together in a short period of time,” Lestage said. Once overseas, the unit plans to further relationships within CENTCOM, utilizing a High Mobility Artillery Rocket System team to conduct training exercises with the Jordanians. The headquarters element will also conduct key leader engagements along with exchanges and seminars on artillery or fi re support related issues with their multinational partners.
“I talked to my Soldiers about maintaining a positive and ethical command climate, a lot of the reasons why Soldiers get in trouble in theater is because a loss of focus and (complacency),” Col. John LeBlanc, commander, 197th FA Bde. said. “I really emphasize that as well as setting goals while they’re over there, working on their physical fitness, working on college courses, working on their professional education. I think that will keep them fully engaged.”
Having been in previous deployment with the 197th FA Bde., Command Sgt. Maj. Victor May, command sergeant major, attributes Soldiers’ focus and morale to family issues. He makes an effort to talk to Soldiers about their families and informs them of programs such as Family Readiness Groups and Family Assistance Centers. These programs help them stay connected and assist the families while the Soldier is overseas so the warfighter can remain focused on the mission.
“I feel fortunate to be part of the 197th FAB, I feel fortunate to have the leaders in place,” May said. “They are true believers in taking care of Soldiers so that the mission could get done.”
| Date Taken: | 04.07.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 04.08.2016 11:40 |
| Story ID: | 194801 |
| Location: | FORT BLISS, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 191 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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