Photo By Spc. Jazz Burney | Sgt. 1st Class Carlos Martinez, now the senior foods operations sergeant, with...... read more read more
FORWARD OPERATING BASE KUNDUZ, Afghanistan - After hours of conducting combat patrols in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, most soldiers look forward to three basic morale boosters: a hot shower, high-speed internet access and hot chow.
Food service soldiers with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 18th Infantry Regiment, 170th Infantry Brigade Combat Team work vigorously to provide hot chow for soldiers by teaming up with Afghan employees to keep soldiers fed, motivated and able to continue their mission.
The average soldier at Forward Operating Base Kunduz conducts combat operations five days a week. These operations may include hours of combat patrols, pulling guard duty on entry and exit control points on the base, or spending days rebuilding and maintaining other fighting positions around several of the battalion’s areas of responsibility. At times, these seemingly daunting tasks certainly leave the mightiest of warriors with a growling, empty stomach.
“Food service is a basic morale issue. We have many of our soldiers going outside the wire for a couple days, weeks, some even a month and haven’t eaten a hot meal in just as long,” said Staff Sgt. Marc Williams, a Yonkers, N.Y., native, now a food service non-commissioned officer with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2-18 Infantry Battalion. “Once the soldiers return and see hot meals, it motivates them and reminds them, often times, of being back home.”
The number of workers at the Forward Operating Base Kunduz dining facility had dwindled due to soldiers being sent out to provide meals at the battalion’s satellite outposts in Kunduz. With personnel being stretched thin at the battalion dining facility, or DFAC, leaders hired the help of a local food service company called Nashir Naib to provide soldiers with additional manpower. Nashir Naib allotted the soldiers eight employees, whose job titles include a head and assistant cook, and six DFAC employees who help with cleaning and other chow hall duties.
“Our head Afghan cook speaks very good English which helps me with the language barrier that our soldiers and the other civilian workers have,” said Sgt. 1st Class Carlos Martinez, the senior foods operations sergeant with HHC. “I strive to ensure the Afghan workers know that they are a part of my team, by holding group meetings and telling them exactly what is going on with our operations. They are very professional and are hard workers. Seriously, these guys are a pleasure to work with.”
When time permits between the high work-tempo of the day, the employees share their culture and the history of their country with DFAC Soldiers, said Sgt. Leonard Brumfield, a New Orleans native, now a food service NCO with HHC.
“I really enjoy being able to work and provide for my family and also learn from the American soldiers about their country here at the DFAC,” said Ziktullah, a Kunduz native, now a civilian employee at the battalion chow hall.
Dining facility employees follow a daily production schedule and creatively strive to break up the monotony of serving similar meals each day. This is done by having meal nights with a specific cultural theme as the main dish.
“The soldiers on the base have something to look forward to each day when they enter into the DFAC. Despite the long hours, my reward is to see them content with their meals,” said Martinez.
“The fact that we are serving these soldiers who have been at various checkpoints for days with three hot meals instead of only giving them the option of a [Meal-Ready-To-Eat], causes them to be grateful regardless of what we place before them,” said Brumfield.
For soldiers who return to the base after normal dinner hours, heating containers with large quantities of food are conveniently placed out for the soldiers to eat at their leisure.
“As this deployment continues, we will continually put out the best meals possible for all soldiers, not just the Soldiers of 2-18, but for whoever may come to the FOB, period,” said Brumfield.
| Date Taken: | 03.24.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 03.27.2011 11:04 |
| Story ID: | 67808 |
| Location: | FORWARD OPERATING BASE KUNDUZ, AF |
| Web Views: | 231 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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