Subject: Apache Update - 28 APR 05
Family and Friends,
We were honored last week to have a
visit from Major General Shellito, the
Adjutant General for Minnesota.
Command Sergeant Major Boone, the State
Command Sergeant Major and Colonel Kelly,
the State Chief of Staff, were
with him. They came to our forward
operating base (FOB) via helicopter
and visited with soldiers for about six
hours. While they were here, we
gave them a briefing on our mission, ate
lunch with soldiers in our chow
hall, toured the FOB, talked with
soldiers, and held a promotion and
recognition ceremony.
The highlight of the day was the
promotion of Master Sergeant Ron Klug to
Sergeant Major. Major General Shellito and Command Sergeant Major Boone
pinned Sergeant Major Klug. Sergeant Ternet, the
junior NCO in our
company, read the Non-Commissioned
Officer's Creed. Sergeant First Class
Schmitz, First Sergeant Lepowsky, and I each spoke about Sergeant Major
Klug's career
and his impact on each of us and the Minnesota National
Guard. Finally, Sergeant Major Klug spoke and thanked everyone who was in
attendance. He also mentioned his
only regret being that his wife and
family could not be present to celebrate
this day with him. However, like
First Sergeant Lepowsky
said during his remarks, we all know they are back
home safe and very, very proud.
In addition to the promotion, the
Adjutant General and Command Sergeant
Major recognized four of our soldiers
for their achievements. Specialist
Watson was recognized for his skill and
professionalism as a gunner,
Sergeant Kraus for his significant
contributions in maintenance, Sergeant
Cuadros for
saving the life of an Iraqi National during a car accident,
and Staff Sergeant Sills for his
ingenuity at a separate accident scene
that saved another Iraqi National's
life. Major General Shellito
presented each soldier with the Adjutant
General's Coin for Excellence.
Command Sergeant Major Boone also recognized
the 16 Apaches who have
re enlisted since we've deployed.
Seeing those soldiers standing together
in front of formation was a great
testament to the pride our soldiers have
in their unit and in serving their
country. Each soldier received a newly
minted Minnesota State Quarter.
It was a great visit and really boosted
the morale of the soldiers. Major
General Shellito
is a soldier's soldier and the Apaches were happy his
schedule allowed him to visit our
FOB. He commented on how impressed he
was by the professionalism and
discipline of our soldiers. He told our
soldiers they make him so proud and help
remind him that his 36-year
career has been worthwhile. Major
General Shellito commented on the
remarkable strides our National Guard
and Army have made over the years.
We also had our first taste of truly hot
weather late last week. It was
around 107 on Friday and then it hit 115
on Saturday. There is no good
way of describing what those
temperatures feel like, especially when you
are wearing body armor, a helmet, and
carrying all of our required
equipment. They say misery loves
company. Sometimes all you can do is
laugh, drink more water, and deal with
it.
Fortunately, we have had a break in the
heat this week. It actually
rained on Monday, which is very unusual
for this time of year. The
temperatures have been back in the 90's
this week and that actually feels
comfortable in comparison to the 107 and
115 from a week ago. At this
time of the year, any day the
temperature stays under 100 is a blessing.
There won't be too many more of them
until September or October.
The news has been reporting that attacks
are on the increase again in
attacks have been predominately against
Iraqi Military and Police Forces
because the insurgents believe they
inflict more damage and terror than
when they kill American forces. We
are all safe and doing well. We
continue to take measures to constantly
improve the security of our FOB
and surrounding area. We also work
hard every day to ensure we stay sharp
and don't take anything for granted.
The next edition of our newsletter will
be out within the week. I've
heard that many people are having a
difficult time opening the newsletter
due to the size of the file. SFC Mjoen will forward the link for a free
download of Adobe Acrobat Reader with
the next newsletter. In addition,
we are going to have the soldiers back
in Brainerd add the newsletter to
the Battalion Web page so it can be more
easily accessed.
I've attached a picture from Major
General Shellito's visit to this e-mail
and more will come out in the
newsletter. The picture shows Major General
Shellito
standing in front of one of our Armored Security Vehicles (ASV)
with Staff Sergeant Friederichs,
Specialist Dunbar, and Specialist Remick.
God Bless,
Mike Pazdernik
Captain, Armor
Commander, A CO, 1-194 AR
