Photo By Sgt. Brian Johnson | When complete, this new dining facility facility will seat over 150 Soldiers, here, at...... read more read more
By Spc. Brian Johnson
BAGHDAD, Iraq— Joint Security Station Suj, on the northeastern edge of Baghdad, has very few of the comforts of a larger U.S. base.
Engineers from the 16th Engineer Brigade have been hard at work to try to change that.
Home to Paratroopers of 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, and soon to be home to troops of the 10th Mountain Division, the location is getting a much needed upgrade, starting with a new dining facility.
Soldiers from the 1434th Engineer Company began construction on the new dining facility in late Oct. 2009.
"Right now, the eating environment here is primitive," said Sgt. Thomas Johnston, of North Adams, Mich.
"We need to give the Soldier a better eating environment, one that is more sanitary, and doesn't require food to be hauled into the chow hall from a distance to be served," said Johnston.
At JSS Suj, food preparation is done in mobile kitchen trailers that have no air conditioning. Once the food is prepared, it is transferred to the current dining facility where it can be served.
Once completed, the new facility will allow for all food preparation and serving to be done under one air conditioned roof.
Johnston stated that this entire mission has been a cross training mission for all of the Soldiers on the job site. Plumbers and electricians have become carpenters, and carpenters have become electricians. The cross training has allowed the building to go up very quickly.
Spc. Scott Vaughn, of Gratton, Mich., is a plumber with the 1434th. During the construction operation, there is little plumbing work, so Vaughn has had a chance to learn some basic carpentry skills.
"For me, this is a whole new experience," said Vaughn. "I have had to learn a lot on the job site, because this is not something that I have been trained to do."
Making a few mistakes, Vaughn has been able to catch on pretty easily to some of the basic carpentry skills.
For Sgt. 1st Class Ted Blanford, of Toledo, Ohio, this facility has special meaning.
"I wanted to have at least one meal in the new [dining facility] before [the 82nd Abn. Div.] head home," said Blanford, himself a former paratrooper.
"The 82nd Soldiers that were stationed here had a rough year and worked hard. The building may seem like a small thing, but a new building to eat in makes an impact on Soldier morale," Blanford said.
Pfc. Demetrius Green, a Paratrooper from Fayetteville, N.C., expressed excitement when speaking of the new facility.
"When we heard that a new facility was going in, the other cooks and myself were excited. It's a much needed upgrade from what we are currently working with," said Green.
For Green and others within his unit, the completion of the new facility will be a bittersweet sight. His unit will have finished their tour in Iraq and be heading home by the time the new dining facility begins operations in late November.
| Date Taken: | 11.08.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 11.08.2009 05:50 |
| Story ID: | 41262 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 593 |
| Downloads: | 354 |
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