Photo By Zachary Mott | Sgt. 1st Class David Boots and Sgt. Ronald Aulet, both from the 88th Regional Support...... read more read more
FORT McCOY, Wisconsin – Soldiers take care of each other. That basic tenet is instilled in every Soldier from the very first day of basic training and carries through beyond a Soldier’s final breath.
Caring for a Soldier, and their family, after they draw that final breath is a duty that often falls on the casualty notification officer and the casualty assistance officer. Training for those duties is provided by the 88th Regional Support Command’s Casualty Operations section.
The Casualty Operations section regularly conducts Casualty Notification and Casualty Assistance Officer three-day training sessions at the 88th RSC headquarters on Fort McCoy and is also available to provide the training across the 19-state 88th RSC footprint and anywhere else it may be needed.
“(The training) gives you the base knowledge because it can be a traumatic thing for the person who is doing the CNO/CAO duties. It allays some of your fears (of being a notification officer),” said Sgt. 1st Class Scott Nelson, from 2nd Battalion, 411th Regiment (Logistics Support Battalion), 181st Infantry Brigade, at Fort McCoy.
Sergeant 1st Class David Boots, from the 88th RSCs Casualty Operations section, instructs many of the courses and said he looks for Soldiers who embody the Army values to serve in a CNO or CAO position.
“A mature Soldier who can be that calm, reassuring authority for the family member,” he said. “Whatever the situation is, they’re going to be able to help them out, get the mission accomplished, get them the answers they need and they help they need. Someone that’s not wrapped around themselves.”
The training focuses on the specifics of what it takes to be a casualty notification and assistance officer, Boots said. He doesn’t shy away from the difficulties that come with this duty, either. This point is echoed by the vignettes that are shown as part of the course.
“The videos for the course are very good. That makes a big difference. It kind of preps you for what you’re going to experience,” Nelson said.
In addition to the videos, Boots said he shares personal experiences from his past that help bring the reality of the duties home for the Soldiers in attendance.
“We want them to be prepped and ready for the reality of it. It’s a lot different than it is on paper,” he said.
In the end, it comes down to care. Caring for a Soldier after they have passed away is a duty that Boots and his fellow CNO/CAOs fill with pride.
“We’re trying to help these families in the best way we can and try to prepare them for the situations that they’re going to encounter,” Boots said. “It is very difficult dealing with families and giving them the best care that they can.”
| Date Taken: | 06.09.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 06.13.2017 15:40 |
| Story ID: | 237720 |
| Location: | FORT MCCOY, WISCONSIN, US |
| Web Views: | 58 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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