LEBANON, Pa. – Approximately 20 Soldiers of the 828th Financial Management Support Detachment, 28th Management Support Unit, 728th Combat Support Sustainment Battalion, 213th Regional Support Group, Pennsylvania National Guard, were honored during a welcome home ceremony at the Lebanon Readiness Center Feb. 7.
The 828th FMSD was deployed to the Middle East in support of Operations Spartan Shield, Freedom’s Sentinel and Inherent Resolve and provided finance support in Qatar to U.S., Joint, and multi-national forces.
Since 9-11, the Soldiers of the 28th Financial Management Support Unit are the most deployed Soldiers in the Pennsylvania Army National Guard.
Due to the location of the deployment, one aspect of the 828th FMSD’s mission was to serve as the permanent duty finance office for active duty Soldiers stationed in Qatar.
“We worked a lot with them and we worked a lot with civilians, more than normal,” said Staff Sgt. David Stankiewicz, the Readiness NCO for the 828th FMSD and a Lockhaven native. “It was a whole new dynamic and very diverse compared to other deployments.”
The 828th FMSD also supported the Morale, Welfare and Recreation program (MWR) by participating in outreaches, including outreaches with children and working with local animal shelters.
“We had the opportunity to help the shelters by walking the animals, working with children,” said Stankiewicz. “It was fun and exciting and actually made a difference.”
During their tour, the 828th FMSD’s Disbursing Section conducted cash collections in access of $1.2M and the MILPAY Section conducted finance in-processing briefings for over 700 Service Members.
“These Soldiers displayed a remarkable amount of dedication to various missions in a difficult environment,” said Cpt. Rajvir Singh, commander of the 828th FMSD. “They encountered changes daily, but adapted quickly.”
Although the pandemic added an extra layer of challenge to the deployment, the Soldiers of the 828th FMSD accomplished their mission.
“The greatest thing about the National Guard is the dynamic that we bring to the battlefield with the diversity of our Soldiers because of their civilian occupations and their education,” said Stankiewicz.
Date Taken: | 02.08.2021 |
Date Posted: | 02.08.2021 08:07 |
Story ID: | 388569 |
Location: | LEBANON, PENNSYLVANIA, US |
Web Views: | 49 |
Downloads: | 0 |
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