Photo By Staff Sgt. Katharine Schmidt | Culinary specialists with the 908th Field Feeding Platoon, Iowa Army National Guard,...... read more read more
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Camp Ripley, Minn. - A team of culinary specialists with the Iowa Army National Guard’s 908th Field Feeding Platoon towed a mobile kitchen trailer (MKT) complete with an assault kitchen into the dense woods of Camp Ripley, Minnesota in July 2024. Seven Soldiers from the platoon were tasked with establishing feeding operations during an eXportable Combat Training Capabilities exercise to support the 185th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 734th Regional Support Group, IANG, and the 1544th Transportation Company, Illinois Army National Guard, during the three-week exercise.
The team needed three simple elements to run an MKT: fuel, water and power - which the team did not have.
“Our generators weren't working,” said Spc. Ellis Montgomery, a culinary specialist from Ankeny, Iowa. “Our water buffalo had a hole in it, so it was kind of just pouring out. We ended up not even taking it out of the staging area for the convoy.”
With the pressure of 150 hungry service members expecting a hot dinner, the cooks worked together to acquire the necessary utilities before dinner.
First was the easy task of “tactically acquiring” water. The Soldiers lugged five-gallon water cans to fill the steamer box in the assault kitchen and the three sinks in the MKT, totaling 55 gallons.
Next came the fuel. Army regulations state if a culinary specialist touches fuel, they are forced to return to cantonment to decontaminate. The team bypassed this requirement by rigging a light medium tactical vehicle to the assault kitchen to provide power.
Finally, after jumping through several hoops, a functional generator was loaned to the 908th FFP, allowing their sinks to be powered for sanitation.
There were smiles all around that evening as the culinary specialists dished out hot chow into paper trays.
“A good cook has to have the right attitude and has to be able to adapt on the fly,” said Montgomery. “They have the all-around knowledge of the equipment being used, too.”
As a newly established unit, the culinary specialists of the 908th FFP united to tackle anything XCTC threw at them.
The 908th FFP was instituted in 2021 with a structure and mission unique to the conventional National Guard structure. Roughly 50 culinary specialists are stationed in five teams across the state of Iowa, attached to different units. Prior to the 2024 XCTC rotation, the 908th FFP had only one consolidated drill.
The platoon organized into two teams to rotate at the halfway point of the large-scale exercise. Each rotation supported two garrison dining facilities and one field kitchen site. Approximately 1,100 hot meals were served to 750 Soldiers daily. It is estimated 22,000 meals will be consumed by the end of the exercise in August.
“I like the tradeoff of knowledge and experiences,” said Sgt. Michael Novitske, a culinary specialist from Davenport, Iowa. “Seeing everybody else's styles of running the kitchen, cooking experiences and knowledge, it brings to light the way I've been doing things could be done easier.”
Novitske joined the Iowa National Guard in 2008 with a passion for food. His favorite element of his career is learning and collaborating with his teammates. The experienced culinary specialist led the 908th FFP to victory at the Iowa National Guard Golden Spoon Cooking Competition for best team in 2023.
When you look at a dinner plate, it’s not one cook’s work reflected, it’s the success of the team combined on that plate.
“Without all of us working together and communicating, we wouldn't be able to get a whole meal out,” said Montgomery. “We'd only be able to get one thing out. So you have to focus on everything that's on the plate.”
During XCTC, IANG units operated around the clock, conducting live-fires and countless situational training exercises that simulated combat environments. Soldiers walked off the ranges sunbaked and exhausted. Field rations, like Meals-Ready-to-Eat, contain the required nutrition to sustain a human, but try telling that to a group of infantrymen going on their second week of the rotation, stuck out in the elements without showers and clean uniforms.
“Morale boost is what I see as the most important thing as a [culinary specialist],” said Novitske. “When you're out in the field and you've been hot and sweaty all day, and there's a philly cheesesteak ready, you just dig in.”
What most Soldiers don’t realize is the legwork it takes for the team to prepare a single meal in a sweltering kitchen. Their duties also require forecasting and picking up rations, coordinating personnel and other essential tasks to keep the food logistics running smoothly.
That’s why a portable Bluetooth speaker is a staple in every kitchen.
“If you don't have music or you don't have somebody doing something ridiculous, it's not worth it,” said Novitske, “If you actually watch [culinary specialists] work, they will seriously dance around each other and pick up slack where it needs to be picked up. And it's honestly like a work of art. Music just helps.”
The 908th FFP demonstrated remarkable resilience, teamwork and adaptability under challenging conditions at XCTC. From overcoming equipment failures to meticulously coordinating logistics and dishing out morale-boosting meals, these Soldiers exemplified the spirit and dedication that characterize the best of the Iowa National Guard. As they continue to refine their skills and foster camaraderie within their unit, the 908th FFP stands as a testament to the critical role of culinary specialists in sustaining the force and maintaining high spirits in the field.
As a newly established unit, the culinary specialists of the 908th FFP united to tackle anything XCTC threw at them. Five separate teams came together for the first time to participate in the large scale exercise. The 908th FFP was faced with setbacks and obstacles, but the culinary specialists adapted and worked together to achieve the missions.
| Date Taken: | 07.27.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 07.28.2024 09:19 |
| Story ID: | 477181 |
| Location: | CAMP RIPLEY, MINNESOTA, US |
| Hometown: | ANKENY, IOWA, US |
| Hometown: | DAVENPORT, IOWA, US |
| Web Views: | 72 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Cooking up Morale: 908th FFP boosts morale during XCTC, by SSG Katharine Schmidt, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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