Issue 100 Apr. 21, 2012
Serving the Soldiers, Civilians and Families of 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div.
Warhorse Soldiers returning home information you need to know
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oldiers will begin arriving to Fort Carson in the last week of April and will continue to flow-in through the first week of June. Times and dates for welcome home ceremonies will be made public, but the flight times will not. Times/dates for ceremonies will be announced about 48 hours prior to the event. Of course, changes will occur as flights can be delayed.
The list of Soldiers on each flight will not be made public. Rather, we will speak in terms of “Main Body” numbers. For example, “Main Body 3 (MB3) welcome home ceremony will be at XXXX on XX May.” Note that the first flight will be called “ADVON.” Soldiers will know which Main Body flight they are on and will be encouraged to inform friends and families.
Like flights, a Soldier’s Main Body can also change based on several factors. Below is the window for each flight to return to Fort Carson. If you plan to travel to Fort Carson to greet your Soldier, you must be flexible with your time and money. Returning home can be a stressful process. Open communication can relieve some of the anxiety.
Main Body 4 Main Body 5 Main Body 6 Main Body 7
Main Body 8 Main Body 9 Main Body 10 Main Body 11
Flight and Ceremony window ADVON Main Body 1 Main Body 2 Main Body 3
April 20-27 April 30- May 7 May 2-9 May 4-11
Facebook: Ceremonies will be held at the Fort Carson Special Events Center and times will be posted on Facebook. www.facebook. com/2bct4id vFRG: The only place one can find actual manifests is on vFRG. To gain access to vFRG, your Soldiers had to provide your name and email address to their chain of command before deploying. eArmy Messaging: Battalions have created a database of phone numbers and email addresses. eArmy Messaging allows units to blast mass texts and emails. These notifications will contain Main Body numbers and ceremony date/times. Unit Hotlines: The brigade has established a dedicated phone number you can call to find
May 6-13 May 8-15 May 10-17 May 12-19
May 14-21 May 19-26 May 23-30 May 28-Jun 4
the ceremony times for flights. The number is: 719-503-2633
2BCT FRSA: Valarie Adams, 524-4797, valarie.a.adams.civ@mail.mil
****This line will not be answered. It is strictly for Rear Detachment to leave a recording regarding the Welcome Home Ceremony times and locations. Please do not leave a message on this number. If the line is busy, please try again. If you need to talk to someone about a specific need, please contact staff duty, your Rear Detachment, FRG Leader or FRSA.
2STB: Pam Smith, 503-2602, pamela.a.smith104.civ@mail.mil
FRSA: Each battalion has a paid Family Readiness Support Assistant. They can help you get access to the systems above and answer questions. Please call them during business hours. They are not designed to answer questions about ceremony times. The numbers to each FRSA are:
1-10 CAV: Francy Arvizu, 526-2051, francy. arvizu.civ@mail.mil 2-8 IN: Ursula Pittman, 526-0727, ursula.t.pittman.civ@mail.mil 1-67 AR: Val Mansapit, 526-1946, valerie.j.mansapit.civ@mail.mil 3-16 FAR: Dyanne Beckman, 526-1635, dyanne.m.beckman.civ@mail.mil 204th BSB: Barbara Young, 526-4172, barbara.a.young84.civ@mail.mil
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Warhorse Pride
Issue 100 Apr. 21, 2012
MPs, firefighters come together for greater good of Kandahar City Story and photos by Sgt. April York 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div., PAO
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oldiers with the 58th Military Police Company attached to 385th Military Police Battalion, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, reached out to share their knowledge about fighting fires and first aid to members of the Kandahar Fire Department. The relationship between the MPs and the KFD developed not because of a previous partnership from their predecessors, but from mutual interest. “We saw the fire department out and about responding to a request for assistance and we just struck up a conversation with them and realized that we fell under their sub district,” said Capt. Megan Spangler, 58th MP Company commander. “Here was an opportunity, if not a responsibility to the greater Kandahar City, that we could partner with these guys and give them someone they could talk to and see if we could help. The foundation of our relationship is friendship.” There have been two different opportunities for the 58th MP Company Soldiers to
train with the KFD. 1st Lt. Jeffrey Parrott, chief of information operations for 1st Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, volunteered to assist during the training and put his four years of expertise as a volunteer firefighter to good use. “Together we trained on initial fire attack, using buddy teams to move to a fire and to egress from a fire, and we shared tips on best practices to include scene recovery and hose recovery,” Parrot said. Due to increasing heat in the spring months, a medic with the 58th MP Company also went over instructions for preventing heat casualties and how to treat the symptoms. The KFD is the only fire department in Kandahar. They respond to fires and more commonly reports of possible improvised explosive devices throughout the city. Many of the firefighters are certified Afghan Uniformed Police officers. They have approximately 50 fire fighters and are equipped to put out the types of fires that occur throughout the city. “People call us, and we respond quickly,”
Staff Sgt. Vern Grilliot (front), a military police officer with the 58th MP Company attached to 385th MP Bn., 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div., and 1st Lt. Jeffrey Parrott (behind), chief of information operations for 1st Sqdn., 10th Cav. Reg., demonstrate how to properly control the hose to firefighters from the Kandahar Fire Department at their firehouse.
Warhorse Pride Col. John S. Kolasheski...................2nd BCT Commander Command Sgt. Maj. Ralph Delosa..............2nd BCT CSM Maj. Kevin Toner................................................2nd BCT PAO Sgt. Seth Barham..................................................PAO NCOIC Sgt. Ruth Pagan......................................Layout and Design Sgt. April York.........................................Layout and Design
The Warhorse Pride is produced in the interest of the Soldiers of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division. The Warhorse Pide is an Army-funded newsletter authorized under provision of AR 360-1. Contents of the Warhorse Pride are not necessarily the view of, nor endorsed by the U.S. government, Department of Defense, Department of the Army or the 4th Infantry Division. All editorial content of The Warhorse Pride is prepared, edited, provided and approved by the 2nd Brigade Combat Team Public
Firefighters from the Kandahar Fire Department practice proper hose handling techniques during a training class provided by Soldiers from the 58th MP Company attached to 385th MP Bn., 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div. at their firehouse.
said Nasir Ahmed, an AUP who works as a firefighter. “We get phone calls every day and sometimes we get phone calls just to verify that this is the right number for the fire department. People really appreciate what we do and that makes me feel proud.” According to several fire fighters, word of mouth has spread, and citizens throughout Kandahar City are familiar with the fire department and know the number to call. Recently, the KFD has had to change the way they take requests. Citizens would just be able to call the fire department, but due to an overload of calls, citizens now have to visit an AUP checkpoint to have the fire brigade respond to the scene. Training side-by-side with the KFD has been a great opportunity for the 58th MP Company to branch out. “(The KFD) have done very well, and it has been interesting to watch them over the past couple of months and see leaders step forward and take charge of every situation,” Parrot said. Affairs Office. The Warhorse Pride welcomes articles, commentary and photos from readers. The Warhorse Pride reserves the right to edit submissions selected for the publication. All issues of The Warhorse Pride can be viewed online from your home computer at www.facebook. com/2bct4id Submissions should be e-mailed to the editor: seth.barham@afghan.swa.army.mil