thedrifter
02-06-07, 08:32 AM
Ready for new mission
Artillery battalion trains for civil affairs duty
By Trista Talton - Staff writer
Posted : February 12, 2007
MAYSVILLE, N.C. — Squeaky-clean hall floors cast reflections of the Marines walking them as the muffled sound of children singing filled the air.
When the same leathernecks with 5th Battalion, 10th Marines, first entered the elementary school, they were greeted by a smiling secretary who peppered her sentences with “y’all.”
Passing teachers bid the Marines good luck in their upcoming deployment to Iraq. Strangers told the leathernecks they’d keep them in their prayers.
There was no threat of attack, no language barrier, no reason to distrust and no question that the civil affairs mission that the battalion is preparing for in Anbar province is a far cry from what an artillery unit normally does.
“It’s very different from what we’re used to,” Master Sgt. Steven Davis said. “I think this is probably one of the most difficult jobs in Iraq; one of the most difficult, but one of the most rewarding.”
As the first artillery battalion to deploy as a civil affairs force to Iraq, 5/10 is leaving its 155mm howitzers behind at Camp Lejeune, N.C., for a yearlong deployment in March. It is replacing 4th Civil Affairs Group, which is part of the Reserve.
With a war stretching military manpower to the limit, the Corps has been forced to deploy troops to do jobs much different from what they’re trained to do. For artillerymen, that has meant pulling military police duty, base security, border security, infantry and motor transport. The civil affairs mission is just the latest.
In late 2005, most active-duty and Reserve artillery units were tasked with learning the secondary job of “civil-military operations.” Marines with 5/10 kicked off training as a civil affairs force in late August 2006.
On a bitter cold Jan. 30 morning, 5/10 Marines rolled in convoys of Humvees from an airfield into a small, rural town north of Camp Lejeune to train for the first time among civilians.
The unit split into teams, each assigned to specific places. Maysville, a sleepy southern town, greets passers-through with the sign, “The Community of Maysville Supports our Armed Forces.”
Leathernecks patrolled town blocks on foot, toting their unloaded M16s, as some teams headed for places such as the town hall and an elementary school.
Inside Maysville Elementary School, Cpl. Kevin McDonald and Lance Cpl. Spenser Schmidt tapped on classroom doors for permission to step in and take pictures.
Curious, wide-eyed children giggled and stared at spotting the Marines.
Teachers, cafeteria workers and the library aide gladly answered questions. How many children are in the school? What’s on the lunch menu? How is the food prepared? How are prescription medications administered to children?
This is the type of information the unit wants to gather in Iraq. For example, by identifying what a school needs — whether it’s more teachers or textbooks — the Marines will try to help fill those needs.
“This is needed in Iraq right now,” Schmidt said. “It makes it more comforting knowing what we’re going to do over there.”
That’s a sentiment shared by many Marines in the battalion. In fact, more than 30 Marines in the unit extended their enlistments when they found out the unit was going to deploy as a civil affairs force, battalion commanding officer Lt. Col. Christopher Mayette said.
“We’re taking Marines from a whole spread of [military occupational specialties] and putting them into one MOS, and they like it,” he said. “I think they honestly think they can make a difference. I think they feel that they have the opportunity to improve people’s lives.”
This deployment will be Cpl. Daniel Orozco’s second to Iraq with the battalion.
“At the end of the day, we’re going to get to see what we’ve accomplished,” he said.
For Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Stephen McCloskey, civil affairs work in Iraq is what will bring the troops home.
“Eventually, you want to get out of that country, and civil affairs is the way to go,” he said.
Ellie
Artillery battalion trains for civil affairs duty
By Trista Talton - Staff writer
Posted : February 12, 2007
MAYSVILLE, N.C. — Squeaky-clean hall floors cast reflections of the Marines walking them as the muffled sound of children singing filled the air.
When the same leathernecks with 5th Battalion, 10th Marines, first entered the elementary school, they were greeted by a smiling secretary who peppered her sentences with “y’all.”
Passing teachers bid the Marines good luck in their upcoming deployment to Iraq. Strangers told the leathernecks they’d keep them in their prayers.
There was no threat of attack, no language barrier, no reason to distrust and no question that the civil affairs mission that the battalion is preparing for in Anbar province is a far cry from what an artillery unit normally does.
“It’s very different from what we’re used to,” Master Sgt. Steven Davis said. “I think this is probably one of the most difficult jobs in Iraq; one of the most difficult, but one of the most rewarding.”
As the first artillery battalion to deploy as a civil affairs force to Iraq, 5/10 is leaving its 155mm howitzers behind at Camp Lejeune, N.C., for a yearlong deployment in March. It is replacing 4th Civil Affairs Group, which is part of the Reserve.
With a war stretching military manpower to the limit, the Corps has been forced to deploy troops to do jobs much different from what they’re trained to do. For artillerymen, that has meant pulling military police duty, base security, border security, infantry and motor transport. The civil affairs mission is just the latest.
In late 2005, most active-duty and Reserve artillery units were tasked with learning the secondary job of “civil-military operations.” Marines with 5/10 kicked off training as a civil affairs force in late August 2006.
On a bitter cold Jan. 30 morning, 5/10 Marines rolled in convoys of Humvees from an airfield into a small, rural town north of Camp Lejeune to train for the first time among civilians.
The unit split into teams, each assigned to specific places. Maysville, a sleepy southern town, greets passers-through with the sign, “The Community of Maysville Supports our Armed Forces.”
Leathernecks patrolled town blocks on foot, toting their unloaded M16s, as some teams headed for places such as the town hall and an elementary school.
Inside Maysville Elementary School, Cpl. Kevin McDonald and Lance Cpl. Spenser Schmidt tapped on classroom doors for permission to step in and take pictures.
Curious, wide-eyed children giggled and stared at spotting the Marines.
Teachers, cafeteria workers and the library aide gladly answered questions. How many children are in the school? What’s on the lunch menu? How is the food prepared? How are prescription medications administered to children?
This is the type of information the unit wants to gather in Iraq. For example, by identifying what a school needs — whether it’s more teachers or textbooks — the Marines will try to help fill those needs.
“This is needed in Iraq right now,” Schmidt said. “It makes it more comforting knowing what we’re going to do over there.”
That’s a sentiment shared by many Marines in the battalion. In fact, more than 30 Marines in the unit extended their enlistments when they found out the unit was going to deploy as a civil affairs force, battalion commanding officer Lt. Col. Christopher Mayette said.
“We’re taking Marines from a whole spread of [military occupational specialties] and putting them into one MOS, and they like it,” he said. “I think they honestly think they can make a difference. I think they feel that they have the opportunity to improve people’s lives.”
This deployment will be Cpl. Daniel Orozco’s second to Iraq with the battalion.
“At the end of the day, we’re going to get to see what we’ve accomplished,” he said.
For Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Stephen McCloskey, civil affairs work in Iraq is what will bring the troops home.
“Eventually, you want to get out of that country, and civil affairs is the way to go,” he said.
Ellie