2-32 Field Artillery: 'Iraqi Freedom' Deployment

Friday, November 9, 2007

School Supply Mission

School Supply Mission
DVIDS
Photographer: Spc. Charles Gill
Date Taken: October 29th, 2007

school supply mission

Soldiers Give Students a Head Start

Soldiers Give Students a Head Start
DVIDS
Photographer: Spc. Charles Gill
Date Taken: October 29th, 2007

soldiers give students a hand

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Iraqi Security Forces and U.S. Special Forces capture seven extremists in Baghdad raid

Iraqi Security Forces and U.S. Special Forces capture seven extremists in Baghdad raid
Blackanthem Military News
MNF-IRAQ Press Release
By Multi-National Corps - Iraq PAO
Nov 7, 2007

6th Iraqi Army Division Soldiers, advised by U.S. Special Forces, captured seven al-Qaeda in Iraq extremists during operations in Mansour Nov. 4.

Captured was the primary target for the operation, a suspected AQI leader who reportedly organizes and personally conducts kidnappings, murders, car-bombings, and improvised explosive devices attacks. He reportedly runs a criminal network thought to be behind terrorist attacks carried out in the Ahdimiyah, Al Kahdra, Al Ameriyah, Yarmouk, and Mansour districts of Baghdad.

According to intelligence reports, the suspect is believed to have ordered the murder of a family of three and the killing of eight construction workers. He is also thought to be behind the attempted murder of a Mansour City Council Chairman and an IED attack that killed three Iraqi checkpoint guards.

During the operation, Iraqi and U.S. Forces detained eight additional suspects for questioning.

No Iraqi or U.S. Special Forces were injured during this operation.

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

Dagger Brigade Weekly Slides

Dagger Brigade Weekly Slides
Dagger Brigade Combat Team Official Site
Week: Oct 29 - Nov 4
Slides: 25, 26, 27

1st Platoon, Bravo Battery Makes More Friends
SPC Brown bandages a minor scrape for a local girl.
SGT Hinna, 1LT Henson, SGT Christian, and SSG Olmeda enjoying their time in Yarmouk
1LT Henson is a favorite among local children
Bravo Battery Helps Renovate and Open Local Park
Local children help clean up the park before the Grand Opening
CPT Morgan looks on during the ribbon cutting ceremony to open the newly renovated park
Children help themselves to snacks to celebrate the park opening
SGT Levi Panting prepares to hand out soccer balls to local children
Bravo Platoon Leaders Getting the Job Done
Lt Alex Barnett scans the area during one of his first patrols as PL
Lt Pat Henson makes the job look easy after months of experience
Lt Aaron Rubin and SFC Efrain Fuentes pose outside the local Iraqi Police Station

Hateen Controlled Burn

Hateen Controlled Burn
DVIDS
Photographer: Spc. Charles Gill
Date Taken: October 26th, 2007

Hateen Controlled Burn 20071105

Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Practice Makes Perfect

Practice Makes Perfect
DVIDS
Photographer: Sgt. 1st Class Robert Timmons
October 30, 2007

practice makes perfect

Staff Sgt. Matthew S. Richter re-enlists

Soldiers Practice First Aid

Soldiers Practice First Aid
DVIDS
Photographer: Spc. Sharhonda Mccoy
October 30, 2007

soldiers practice first aid

Spc. Bobby Rodriguez
Golf Company

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Dagger Brigade Weekly Slides

Dagger Brigade Weekly Slides
Dagger Brigade Combat Team Official Site
Week: Oct 22 - Oct 28
Slides: 26, 27, 28, 29

2LT Drewelow Promoted to 1LT
LTC Mike Lawson promoted Nathan A Drewelow from Second Lieutenant to First Lieutenant. 1LT Drewelow serves as the Medical Platoon Leader for Task Force Patriot.
Alpha Battery Commander Shows Balance Daily
CPT McCall tants the competition
Alpha PSD on patrol
CPT Brian McCall accepts micro-grant applications from local residents in an
effort to spur local economic growth
Soldiers Exert All Their Energy During the Tug of War Battle
Soldiers from Alpha Battery work hard during the Tug of War event during the Task Force Patriot Organizational Week
SFC Allen gives everything he has to stay one step ahead
Patriot Soldiers Enjoy Downtime During Organizational Week
LT Chris Lowry serves like a pro during the volleyball competition with
Headquarters Battery
Patriot 6 & 7 find time to enjoy the organizational week events
A silhouetted soldier from Alpha Battery prepares to serve an Ace.

Thursday, October 25, 2007

Patriot Call: Vol 1, Iss 9

The Patriot Call
Volume 1, Issue 9
October, 2007

CHANGES THEY ARE A COMIN’: LTC Lawson

CSM CORNER: CSM William R. Huffin

ONE DAY CLOSER TO SOMEDAY: CH (CPT) Troy Parson

ORGANIZATIONAL WEEK: SGT MATTHEW WOODBURN

THE INFAMOUS ROUTE POPEYES: PFC Stephen Williamson

THE SILENT FIGHT: CPT George D. Morrison

WELCOME BACK TO PAD 10: CW2 Richard Jones

TOP OF THE TRUCK: Adam Wocjik

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Dagger Brigade Weekly Slides

Dagger Brigade Weekly Slides
Dagger Brigade Combat Team Official Site
Week: Oct 15 - Oct 20
Slides: 21, 22

Alpha Battery Spends the Day Meeting Local Youths
SSG Adam Freeman talks with a local man as Iraqi Policemen look on
SGT Nathan Vorenkamp greets an Iraqi girl
SGT Miguel Rodriguez talks with local children
SPC Garth Croft provides security as curious children look on

Alpha Battery Sets Up Hasty Checkpoint With Aid of Iraqi Army
SSG Adam Freeman and SGT Nathan Vaughn confiscate two AK-47s found during a hasty traffic inspection
SGT Vaughn uses a metal-detecting wand to search local citizens during the traffic stop
SGT Miguel Rodriguez and an Iraqi NCO during a break from the operation

Monday, October 22, 2007

Iraqi Emergency Responders Work Together

Iraqi Emergency Responders Work Together
DVIDS
MNF-IRAQ
Pfc. April Campbell
10.22.2007

Emergency Response Training

Iraqi security forces took another step toward self-sufficiency when several Iraqi security elements participated in a civil defense drill in Yarmouk, an area in the Mansour District of western Baghdad, Oct. 20.

Iraqi soldiers from the 2nd Battalion “Falcons”, 5th Brigade, 6th Division, as well as policemen from three Iraqi police stations and firefighters from the Yarmouk Fire Department planned and executed the drill. The different security elements reacted to two simulated vehicle-borne improvised explosive device explosions in a populated area.

The 2nd Battalion, 32nd Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division (Task Force Patriot) along with a Military Transition Team (MiTT) with the 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, helped to coach the different elements.

“We proposed the idea several months ago,” said Cape May, N.J., native Lt. Col. Michael J. Lawson, the commander of Task Force Patriot. “Then, the Iraqi army took the lead in planning the drill along with the Iraqi police and the local fire department.”

While coalition forces helped guide the Iraqi security forces, the Iraqis were in charge of planning and executing the drill.

“The drill enabled the Iraqis to develop an Iraqi solution to an Iraqi problem,” Lawson said. “Reacting to VBIEDs is something that they will have to be able to do.”

The exercise allowed the different response elements to understand each others’ roles as well as how they, themselves, fit into the bigger picture.

“The most important gain happened in the area of coordination between all the (security forces),” said Iraqi army Col. Ali Fadil, commander of the Falcon Battalion. “It is not just the work of (the Falcon Battalion). There is a much bigger force involved in controlling events other than just the Iraqi army.”

Different sectors of the local police and fire departments will be interacting with the Iraqi army to coordinate a response to such a terrorist attack, added Fadil.

Emergency response drills, such as this, may also help to increase the quality of life for the citizens of Baghdad. Enabling the different organizations to work together can help them develop a more systematic approach to their emergency planning.

“If (a terrorist attack) happens, (the citizens) can see that the fire department will come here and do this, the police will do this, and the Iraqi army will be doing (its) part,” said Woodbridge, Va., native Capt. Gregory Wooton, MiTT executive officer and civil military officer advisor, 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment. “They’ll start seeing who’s responsible for what.”

Through this type of training effort, Wooten said the Iraqi emergency response agencies can learn to coordinate with each other, and Iraqi citizens can gain confidence in the quality of their civil service agencies.

The Joint “Service Station”

The Joint “Service Station”
Dagger's Edge Magazine: Vol 1, Iss 23
Capt. Brad Bandy
October 2, 2007

Being a 63B Light Wheeled Vehicle Mechanic in a Field Artillery battalion serving as an infantry unit is a tough task, but rotating to Joint Security Station Torch makes being a mechanic even more challenging. At any given time, the JSS is manned by two full platoons, the quick reaction force and the force protection platoon, and numerous other patrols use the JSS as a staging point throughout the day. With upwards of 20 HMMWVs coming through the JSS every day, the mechanics have learned that it takes plenty of duct tape and shoelace quick-fixes to keep the trucks going… and this isn’t even the hard part.

With a notoriously unreliable, 20-plus year-old 100KW generator powering the lights, air conditioners, radios, computers, televisions, and security cameras at the JSS during its first six months, the mechanics quickly found themselves cross-trained as MOS 52D, generator mechanics. Of course, several field grade officers were always there to inspire and motivate them, since the generator always seemed to break during important security meetings.

Repairing generators is only one half of the 52-series’s training, so the mechanics figured why not go all the way and qualify as a 52C Air Conditioner Repairer. The JSS boasts no less than fourteen split-unit air conditioners haphaphazardly installed with as much as thirty feet of tubing and wires running between the condensers outside and the cooling units inside. They provide endless opportunities to learn how to recharge Freon and re-do the electrical wiring.

Speaking of wiring, the mechanics have become part-time electricians as well. The eleven perimeter flood lights mounted on the JSS’s concrete barrier walls are connected by hundreds of feet of cable to a switch panel featuring a combination of European, Asian, and Middle Eastern plugs and outlets, each with its own peculiar amperage and voltage. Somehow, the mechanics have made them all work together on a nightly basis.

Welding often comes into play, too. Whether it is constructing a man-size security gate, fabricating brackets to mount anything and everything imagin-able, or re-sealing the metal rooftop water tanks that constantly develop leaks, the mechanics have become artists with a welding arc. By the way… those water tanks have a whole lot of pipes running throughout the house, and a good plumber goes a long way too!

While the HEMTT wrecker dedicated to the JSS has not been used to recover any disabled vehicles yet, the wrecker and its crew of mechanics have certainly gotten plenty of work as a heavy lift asset. Whether it is repositioning barricades at the entry control point, downloading pallets from cargo trucks for the twice-a-week logistics push, or going out with the distribution platoon to emplace concrete barriers in the middle of the night, a ten-ton capacity crane with a skilled operator at the control levers is never short of work.

The mechanics’ trips back and forth from JSS duty are usually a quiet half-hour ride… usually. However, one maintenance team can boast of a slightly more exciting experience. When their escort platoon halted to conduct a dismounted inspection of a wire obstacle, AIF engaged the platoon with heavy small arms fire from the opposite side of the highway. In the twenty-five minute engagement that ensued in the early morning darkness, the mechanics-turned-gunners fired 70 rounds from their .50 caliber machine guns at enemy muzzle flashes to provide covering fire while the dismounted personnel maneuvered back to their vehicles.

This group of maintenance specialists has truly given new meaning to the term “multi-functional logistics,” and has demonstrated that every Soldier is a rifleman first. When it comes to getting the job done in, on, or outside of the JSS, you can count on a couple of good mechanics to be your one-stop service shop.

Sunday, October 21, 2007

THE INFAMOUS ROUTE POPEYES

THE INFAMOUS ROUTE POPEYES
Dagger's Edge Magazine: Vol 1, Iss 24
Pfc. Stephen Williamson
Oct 16, 2007

It was early evening in late September and I found myself appreciating the chill in the air for the first time in a long time. I sat in the gunner’s hatch scanning the rooftops as I swiveled to the right and to the left. This was our first mission since the later Ramadan curfew had gone into effect, and I was shocked to see so many people out so late. I adjusted quickly to the crowd, however, and kept a vigilant eye on them. Our mission that night was to provide security for barrier emplacement along Route Popeyes, and as I scanned my sector I noticed the huge billboard from which the road derives its name.

Popeye the Sailorman, a character created by the American cartoonist Elize Segar in the late 1920s, adorns the front of Popeye’s Coffee Shoppe, one of the most prominent structures on the road. I always found it ironic that this stretch of road was named for the rough seaman because just as he was always ready to take the fight to the bad guys with a can of spinach and his arms a-swinging, it was on this road that the men of Bravo Battery so often had to face the IEDs of the enemy in the early stages of our deployment. I will never forget hearing things like, “When we turn onto Route Popeyes the mood just sort of tightens up,” or “We just cross our fingers and push through.” Remembering these eye-opening comments as I sat in my turret, often made by hardened veterans, I looked out at the crowds of people and thought of how far this area had come in the past seven months.

Thanks to the steadfast commitment of the Bravo Battery Bulldogs and the rest of Task Force Patriot, the Yarmouk neighborhood of western Baghdad has experienced a myriad of successes since our arrival here in March. From the countless reconnaissance patrols to combined training operations with the Iraqi Army personnel who man checkpoints along Route Popeyes, we have all put in long hours in this area and many others like it throughout the Patriot sector.

Whether you work in the motor pool maintaining the vehicles, in the TOC tracking the battlefield, at the Aid Station providing for the health and welfare of the Soldiers, or on patrol providing security for the Iraqi people, we must all remember that successes like the crowd along Route Popeyes are the reason that we are here. Thanks to us, the Iraqi people can sit at their coffee shops enjoying a cup of chai. Thanks to us they can come to their businesses to work and shop without fear. Thanks to us they can move to and from the Al-Showaf Mosque, a prominent mosque on Route Popeyes, in safety. And for giving the Iraqi people the opportunity to do all of these things, we members of Task Force Patriot can all truly feel like Proud Americans.

Friday, October 19, 2007

Brigade Reports Progress in Northwestern Baghdad

Brigade Reports Progress in Northwestern Baghdad
Army.Mil:News
BY Master Sgt. Dave Larsen
Oct 15, 2007

CAMP VICTORY, Iraq (Army News Service, Oct. 15, 2007) - A reduction in violence in neighborhoods on Baghdad's northwest side and an improved security situation is allowing reconstruction efforts and economic gains to flourish, the commander of the brigade which has patrolled the area for nearly a year said during a press conference Oct. 12.

Col. J.B. Burton, commander of the 2nd "Dagger" Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, met with members of the Pentagon press corps for a briefing via satellite. He highlighted the progress made in his area of operation, which spans most of northwestern Baghdad.

"In order to stop the cycle of violence we set about to defeat sectarian expansion by Shia Extremists, while simultaneously defeating Al-Qaeda and denying their access to the population," said Col. Burton, a native of Tullahoma, Tenn. "In short, we had to get out into the city, live among the citizens, fight alongside the ISF, and deny insurgents, criminals and extremists access to the population."

The implementation of the Baghdad Security Plan, Operation Fardh Al-Qanoon allowed the Dagger Brigade to move into neighborhoods with a permanent presence, Col. Burton added, with the end result being an 85 percent reduction in violence in the area since May.

"Of our 95 'Mulhallas,' or neighborhoods-58 of them are now considered under control, 33 remain in a clearing status with violence continuing to go down, and four remain in a disrupt status," Burton noted. He said murders in the area, which a year ago occurred more than 150 times each week, are down to an average of five a week.
He said a major contributor to the improving security situation in northwestern Baghdad is the commitment of concerned citizens, who have stepped forward to aid Coalition and Iraqi Security Forces provide safe neighborhoods and put a stop to sectarian violence and terrorist acts in their midst.

"These volunteers are actively providing security in partnership with our combined forces and concurrently increasing the citizen's confidence in the Iraqi Security Forces as a whole," Col. Burton said. "To date, we have a total of 1,772 volunteers and recruits who are fully screened and ready to attend academy for integration into the ISF, with 500 scheduled to attend (the police) academy this month."
With an increased confidence in the security efforts in their neighborhoods, Col. Burton said each of his 14 joint security stations have seen an increase in tips from residents, helping to thwart terrorist activity. Likewise, he said residents are becoming more involved in the local governmental process, addressing community issues together.

"Further, we are focused on extending the reach of the government by providing businesses access to financial capital and through the development of public works substations that employ locals in local areas to deliver essential services within their capacity," Burton told the media members. "Our Embedded Reconstruction Team and Joint Project Management Office are helping us achieve these effects."
Col. Burton's brigade headquarters is slated to return to its home base in Schweinfurt, Germany beginning next month. The Dagger Brigade commander said he is pleased with the progress he's seen during his year in the Iraqi capital.
"We leave an area of operations that has shown significant improvement in terms of reduced violence, improved essential services, improvement in the task of daily governing, Iraqi Security Forces that get better each and every day," Col. Burton concluded. "And most importantly we are seeing citizens who are rejecting extremist organizations and standing up and volunteering to help improve the security and well-being of their families and their neighbor's families."

(Master Sgt. Dave Larsen serves with 1st Cav. Div. Public Affairs)

Saturday, October 13, 2007

LTC Gadson to be Featured on Sesame Street Special Production

Children’s show films Belvoir Soldier
Belvoir Eagle
By Julia LeDoux
Thursday, October 11, 2007

Sesame Street came to Fort Belvoir last week, as producers of the children’s show interviewed an Army family about how they are coping with their Soldier’s war wounds.

Lt. Col. Greg Gadson, 41, lost both his legs when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle in Baghdad around 9:30 p.m. May 7. The force of the blast threw the 1989 West Point graduate from his vehicle, leaving his legs seriously injured and him bleeding badly. Four days later, after being airlifted out of Iraq, Gadson was undergoing treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, where doctors determined his left leg had to be amputated above the knee. Gadson and the doctors decided to amputate his right leg, which he said was not going to be any use to him, shortly after that.

“We are still working through this,” Gadson said. “Communication is very important. We have to take care of each other.”

Gadson, his wife, Kimberly; daughter, Gabriella; and son, Jaelen; are a tight-knit family whose bonds have only been made that much stronger as a result of his injury.

“I have a lot more time to spend with them now,” Greg Gadson said.

Sesame Workshop, the non-profit organization that produces the hit kids’ show, is working on a DVD that will be distributed to military families, which is designed to help injured veterans talk about their disabilities with their children.

The Gadsons spent a couple of hours filming their portion of the DVD at their home last Thursday.

“It does help sometimes to talk it out,” said Gadson. “It cleanses it out of you.”

The DVD is expected to be available in January, a Sesame Workshop spokeswoman said. Military families will be able to download it at no cost from http://www.militaryonesource.com.

While he was in the hospital, Gadson had plenty of visitors, including his West Point classmate, Mike Sullivan, who is now a New York Giants receivers coach. Sullivan, in turn, told Giants head coach Tom Coughlin that the team might benefit from hearing Gadson speak. On Sept. 21, the former Army football player spoke to the New York Giants on the eve of their 24-17 win over the Washington Redskins.

Gadson currently spends about three to four hours a day working out and plans to be at Fort Riley, Kan., when his battalion returns from its deployment.

Gadson also served in Bosnia and Afghanistan and fought in the first Gulf War.