Sent:
Subject: Apache Family Update - 02 MAR 05
Family and Friends,
March has arrived and we are another month closer to the
accomplishment of
our mission and reuniting with
our families and friends. Our first
three
soldiers departed a few days ago
for their two-week leave. They are our
first soldiers to return home
for 15 days of well-earned rest and
relaxation. All of our soldiers will have the same
opportunity over the
next eight months. Again, we must spread the soldiers’ leave out
over this
extended period of time to
ensure we always have enough personnel here to
conduct our required missions.
I informed the families at the end of last week about an
accident involving
three of our soldiers. The soldiers were traveling up a highway
early one
morning last week when a
civilian semi-truck crossed the center line and
struck their HMMWV. The accident was head-on and both vehicles
were
traveling around 55 MPH. The vehicle damage was extensive. The Up-Armored
HMMWV and their seat belts saved the lives of our
soldiers. One of our
first soldiers on the scene of
the accident is a Minnesota State Trooper
back home. He was absolutely amazed that our soldiers,
especially the
driver, survived a crash of that
magnitude. They actually did far better
than just surviving. They essentially walked away with nothing
more than
soreness and some superficial
scratches and bruises. The driver and
gunner
were evacuated by helicopter to
the nearest military hospital as a
precautionary measure to make
sure they didn’t sustain any spinal or head
injuries. All tests came back negative. Both soldiers are doing very well
and are already back to
work. I visited them at the hospital the
day of the
accident. I was so impressed by their positive attitude
and strength.
All of the events of the past week have made us even more
aware of the
potential dangers here. At the same time, those events have made us
more
determined and focused to do our
job right, to accomplish our mission, and
to come home safe. We will never take our mission lightly, allow
ourselves
to become complacent, and we
will never let the sacrifices of the fallen be
in vain.
I had the opportunity to attend the memorial service for
the three soldiers
from C Battery, 1st Battalion,
151st Field Artillery in
I’d like to share a few memories from the service with
all of you.
First,
the attendance was
astonishing. Leaders and soldiers from
all levels, and
all areas of
just couldn’t get everyone
inside the chapel. We have a few
soldiers who
knew one of the fallen
personally. I ensured they had a seat
inside. I
stood outside during the
service. I could not hear the words
spoken.
What
we did hear outside was the
bugle playing taps. After the service,
every
soldier, including those of us
who had been outside, were allowed to file by
individually to pay our respects
to the memorials that were set up for each
soldier. Each of the fallen had a traditional memorial
erected in their
honor consisting of a rifle with
bayonet. The soldier’s helmet sat on top
of the rifle. Their boots were placed at the base. The soldier’s dog tags
hung from the rifle. A picture of each soldier sat in front of
each
memorial. One by one, each of us filed passed, saluted
the memorials, and
offered our condolences to the
unit commander and first sergeant. This
was
very moving and also very
necessary, especially for soldiers who now have to
pick up and carry on.
I have been told of the many things being done back in
these great soldiers. I am so very proud of the people of our
communities
and state for their
support. Thank you to all of you who in
any way, not
matter how seemingly small,
continue to support the service of our soldiers.
It makes a difference.
It matters. It is part of what
makes our Army a
team and a family. Please continue to keep the families of the
soldiers in
your thoughts and prayers.
We will soon be moving our entire living area in
preparation for the arrival
of our new trailers. Our current tent area will be moved to a new
location
so engineers can come in and
prepare the ground for the trailers. The
trailers will replace the tents
we currently live in. The whole process
is
scheduled to take about two
months. So, by the middle of May, we
will all
be living in trailers. The soldiers understand the move means a lot
of work
for everyone. However, it is work that will be well worth
while when we are
living in climate-controlled
trailers instead of tents during the extreme
heat of the summer months. The new trailers will also mean that soldiers
will be living two to a room
instead of eight to ten in a tent like they do
now. It will also be healthier for the soldiers
because the trailers will
be much better at keeping out
the bugs and dust.
The first step in the process is the movement of our
entire motorpool.
The
trailers will be arrayed
differently than our current living area.
The
motorpool
has to move to make space for the trailers.
Like everything else,
our mechanics are taking the
move in stride. Our mechanics have been
doing
a remarkable job ever day. A truck comes in with a blown engine. Within
hours, a new engine is installed
and the truck is back on the road. They
work tirelessly and always amaze
me with how fast they fix things. They
have a very daunting task,
especially when you get an appreciation for how
hard we are on these vehicles
during our missions. Without or
mechanics, we
would fail our mission
here. The never complain. They never quit. Our
motor sergeant jokes that we
have a pretty good arrangement going between
the soldiers on patrol and the
mechanics. We keep breaking stuff and they
keep fixing it. The trick is trying to figure out if the
mechanics are
fixing the stuff we break, or if
we are breaking the stuff the fix.
Through it all, the mission continues. We are still out there every day
escorting convoys, providing
area security, and making sure our base camp is
secure. Many of our drivers have already driven
nearly 4,000 miles.
We’ve
conducted hundreds of combat
patrols. We’ve saved innocent lives on
the
highway, and we'll never know
how many other lives we've saved with just our
presence alone. We’ve done our jobs professionally. We’re proud of our
unit the role we have been asked
to play in the Global War on Terrorism.
We
will continue to make you all
proud each and every day until we return.
God bless you all and may God continue to bless
Mike Pazdernik
Captain, Armor
Commander, A CO, 1-194 AR