Unit becomes stronger from diversity

Photo By Sgt. Jason Mikeworth | Spc. John Lafontaine, a driver with the 220th Transportation Company at Logistical Support Area Anaconda, works to download pannels from his truck after completing an inventory of his equipment.  

12.15.2005

Courtesy Story

207th Public Affairs Detachment

Sometimes people do get a second chance for a first impression.

The 220th Transportation Company stationed at Logistical Support Area Anaconda recently arrived in theater with a group of Soldiers from a variety of backgrounds and filled with a depth of experience. Some unit members are veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom I. Others served during Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) while some cut their teeth on Operation Joint Forge (Bosnia Herzegovina). Even the commander wears a combat patch, earned during Operation Desert Storm.

The 220th, an Army Reserve unit from Keene, N.H., drew Soldiers from across the United States in preparation for deployment to Iraq.

"We're a cross-level unit like many of the Reserve units in Iraq. We're a conglomeration of many units brought together to form a single unit," Capt. Lance Oliver, the commander of the 220th, said. "The senior NCO leadership in the company is very good. Most of them are veterans of OIF I. We built the company around their leadership experience."

Oliver said organizing the unit to meet the needs of their mission has been challenging.

"It's been a little stressful just getting started. We've had to do some reorganization in the company to create a gun truck platoon," Oliver said. "But we've been concentrating on learning our mission and "improving our foxhole.""

Spc. Nicholas Ducharme, a gunner with the 220th's guntruck platoon, said he feels the training is paying off.

"I think I take the training here a little more seriously than I would back in the States because you know it's that much closer," Ducharme said. "I've started to trust a lot more of the guys."

Trusting their leadership is an tendency that comes easily to the platoon.

"That's one huge thing you've got to have is confidence in your leaders," Spc. Paul Watkins, a gunner and veteran of OEF, said. "A lot of it is going to be learning on the fly. The preparation was great but it's still going to come down to instinct ..."

Sgt. Jonathan Daige, a gunner and truck commander who served in OIF I, said he felt confident in his leaders.

"When something comes down, we don't question it," Daige said. "We just put it together. They inform us pretty good."

Sgt. Michael Tetlow, a truck commander for the 220th, said a lot of his confidence comes from seeing the experience of other unit members being applied to the current mission. "We've got a lot of guys here that were over here before that are on their second or third tour, so it helps out a lot."

Spc. Rick Mazza, a driver and gunner with the 220th on his second tour in Iraq, said a lot has changed since his first trip during OIF I.

"The first time, we were living in tents, sleeping in dirt," Mazza said. "Now we've got a better quality of life."Mazza also noted that the mission outside of the wire has changed too.

"During the war you had to worry about small arms and rocket propelled grenades," Mazza said. "Now you have to worry about sand bags on the side of the road. You know [threats are] there, and you know you have to drive by them."

"It's just part of the job though," Daige said.

Both Mazza and Daige said they're impressed with how much the supply system and available equipment has improved.

"Supplies are great now. Last time, if you needed anything you had to wait months," Daige said. "They try to get us everything new."

Mazza added, "You need it you get it. For the most part, the equipment we get is awesome. It seems a little bit more prepared this time."

Oliver said the living conditions were a welcome relief compared to what he endured during the Gulf War.

"I was here in "91," Oliver said. "We didn't have bases in "91. We just stayed out under camouflage netting."

Watkins, who served with a Military Police unit at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba handling prisoner transport, said he feels he is seeing a bigger picture of events in Iraq here than he was seeing back in the States.

"I"d say you don't hear anything on the news [in the States] about what's really going on here," Watkins said. "Once you get here, you hear a lot more of the truth."

Sgt. 1st Class Joseph Clark, an assistant platoon sergeant with the 220th, said he thinks the unit is more than ready for the mission.

"The train-up was some of the best training I've had in 20-plus years," Clark said. "It was pretty high-speed."

Clark, who transferred through two units to join the 220th for their deployment to Iraq, said the unit is excited about its mission. He said they will transport everything from bullets to sheet rock.

Sgt. Cindy Fournier, a driver and truck commander with the 220th who served during Operation Joint Forge, said she is adjusting well to her new duty position.

"I was originally a train mechanic," she said. "I volunteered to come over. It's a little different driving a truck than a humvee, but it's not hard to figure out."

Tetlow, a former heavy equipment operator who had left the military for eight years before deciding to rejoin to support the effort to free Iraq, said the 220th sees the value of their mission to the Soldiers they support.

"Nothing happens without transportation," he noted.

Oliver agreed with Tetlow.

"That's what we do. We drive trucks and protect those who drive them," Oliver said. "Hopefully, we're providing aid and comfort to our fellow Soldiers deployed over here, as well as hopefully helping with the larger picture of creating a stable, more secure Iraq."

• Date Taken: 12.15.2005
• Date Posted: 12.15.2005 08:44
• Story ID: 4103