TF 3-197 provides long haul

convoy escorts throughout Iraq

for several transportation bat-

talions that are also located in

Kuwait. This story follows one

such mission from its incep-

tion through its completion.

SPC Mark Braden, a CSC B

soldier and member of a Con-

voy Escort Team (CET), rode

along with CET 13, another

CSC B CET, and documented

their day to day lives. Some

information is left out inten-

tionally due to its classifica-

tion.

First part of the mission is

mission allocation which is

ninety six hours prior to depar-

ture. During this time they

receive an intelligence (S2) brief

which is an updated intelligence

brief of what has occurred in the

last two weeks in the area of

travel. Day before departure is

when Pre-Combat Checks

(PCCs) and Pre-Combat Inspec-

tions (PCIs) are done. PCCs con-

sist of checking that crew served

weapons are functional, commu-

nication systems are operational

and that each Caiman has Class I

which consists of water and food

to sustain them until they get to

the next Forward Operating Base

(FOB).

PCCs and PCIs are not only

mandatory but are critical to en-

sure that the convoy can be suc-

cessful and that all the CETs

equipment is functioning prop-

erly.

Just prior to SP (mission leaving)

from Camp Buehring the CET

leader links up with the convoy

commander and they update

each other on known issues,

intelligence, route information,

destination, and any other infor-

mation that needs to be dis-

cussed. After the leaders link up

they bring together all of the

soldiers in the convoy and give

a mission brief. This brief will

provide enough information so

that every soldier in the trans-

portation convoy and every

soldier with our CET know

what the mission is and can

complete it with minimal guid-

ance. (Continued on Page 2)

I N S I D E T H I S

I S S U E :

Cover Story

Continued

2

Cover Story

Conclusion

3

Ins and Outs of

Camp Buehring

4

Message from

CSM May

5

Awards and

Promotions

6

Managing

Anger

6

TF 3-197 NEWSLETTER F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 1

SSG Denes ( 377th Transpor-

tation Co.) gives the convoy

mission brief prior to SP with

SSG Johnson from B/CO TF 3-

197.

SSG Johnson of B/CO TF

3/197th Goes over the mission

plan after the S2 intelligence

brief given at Camp Buehring,

Kuwait.

TF Chaplain CPT Meher

prays with CET 13 during

their mission preparations

PFC Nicholas Lavoie of B/CO

TF 3/197th performs head

space and timing on his .50 cali-

ber machine gun during PCC’S

and PCCI’s on Camp Buehring,

Kuwait

Life on the Road With CET 13

BY: SPC Mark Braden And CPT Brian Calhoun

P A G E 2

"Going up into Iraq, it's

nice to be able to actually

travel ... and just pretty

much get a preview of the

whole country," said

Westgate, who lives in

Concord, New

Hampshire.

"The time goes by a lot

faster on the road than it

does back in the rear."

Convoy Escort on the road

in Iraq heading to Camp

Adder.

Life on the Road Continued: The fist leg of any mission

leaving Camp Buehring is

heading to K-Crossing, Ku-

wait. Travel to the next For-

ward Operation Base (FOB)

is a stressful time because

of the potential threats of

IED’s, small arms attacks

and complex attacks that

could occur during the mis-

sion. After K-Crossing the

mission is entirely con-

ducted in Iraq.

SGT Duane R. Bernier, 36,

echoed what SGT Brandon

Westgate said about seeing

Iraq.

“Going up into Iraq, it's

nice to be able to actually

travel ... and just pretty

much get a preview of the

whole country," said West-

gate, who lives in Concord,

New Hampshire. "The time

goes by a lot faster on the

road than it does back in

the rear."

Soldiers who remain on

Camp Buehring experience

what they call "Groundhog

Day" — a reference to the

Bill Murray movie in which

the same day was repeated

over and over. On the road

is truly where these soldiers

want to be. Although their

jobs are dangerous the

sense of accomplishment

and being part of a team

drives them to be ready for

anything.

"Danger is there, and we do

roll through some hot spots

once in a while, but we've

been pretty lucky — as far

as that goes," states Sgt.

Bernier of Rochester.

While most of the soldiers

of B/CO TF 3/197th have

been on multiple deploy-

ments. SGT Bernier is on

his first combat deployment

and is absorbing informa-

tion from everyone he can

understanding that there is

no substitute for experience.

SGT Bernier is now a vet-

eran of these missions and

will soon train his replace-

ment and share the knowl-

edge he has gained over the

last year.

Typically, about 12 soldiers

in four Caimans make up a

CET. Each Caiman has a

Truck Commander (TC)

that controls the actions of

his Caiman only. SGT

Westgate, a CET 13 TC,

who works at the New

Hampshire Department of

Corrections when not de-

ployed, said he has a unique

job as the flex truck in his

CET. This means he reacts

to situations by moving his

vehicle’s position within the

convoy in order to provide

the greatest amount of se-

curity. Although his CET

has experienced some is-

sues during missions it has

not experienced a roadside

bomb.

The other two members of

the truck crew are the driver

and gunner. The gunner

sits in the turret and scans

everything in his sector,

looking for anything that

seems out of place.

PFC Nicholas Lavoie, 21,

of Northwood, who works

for New Hampshire Depart-

ment of Transportation in

the civilian world, is a gun-

ner with CET 13 and puts

his job this way. .

“The Gunner has an impor-

tant job in the truck, it not

only deters threats, it is the

eyes and ears of the Caiman

and has a 360 degree view

of what is going on and

around the Caiman and

also alerts the rest of the

convoy of what is going

on.”

He uses a radio headset to

communicate not only to

his driver and TC but to the

rest of the vehicles in the

convoy. He has the best

view of potential issues and

is in constant communica-

tion with the TC and other

gunners in the convoy.

The last Soldier in the gun

truck is the driver. Every-

one licensed to drive a Cai-

man has been certified us-

ing a special program due to

the vehicle’s size and

weight. This program in-

cludes an off road portion

as well as a section on the

handling of a Caiman on

pavement and highways.

Convoy entering the gate at

FOB Kalsu. This line of traf-

fic is similar at all FOBs in

Iraq.

SGT Bernier mounting

equipment to his Caiman

MRAP prior to SP.

SPC Keane waves from

the turret as CET 13 rolls

out of a FOB in Iraq

Continued on next page

T F 3 - 1 9 7 N E W S L E T T E R

Life on the Road Continued: The driver must maintain control of the

vehicle at all times. During enemy con-

tact or any other type of incident this can

be difficult as a Caiman handles like a

bus.

The roads in Iraq are often full of un-

marked turns, exits and are covered with

potholes. These plus the threat of enemy

contact and the vehicle’s size keep Cai-

man drivers constantly on their toes.

Missions typically last 5-9 days and

between driving, weapons maintenance,

and vehicle maintenance, nights are typi-

cally around 14 hours. When not com-

pletely exhausted from the night’s move-

ment, CET teams try to enjoy the facili-

ties on whatever FOB they are currently

located on. They all offer essentially the

same features with slight variations such

as the types of Fast Food available or

the size of the local bazaar. A bazaar is

the equivalent of a flea market. They sell

everything from DVDs to rugs. The

challenge for Soldiers is not if they can

find what they are looking for but how

low they can haggle the price down to.

SSG Kent Johnson, 44, CET leader of

CET 13 who lives in Farmington New

Hampshire, said “what bonds the sol-

diers together are little things, like buy-

ing a cup of coffee at the local Forward

Operating Base Green Bean or finding

humor in everyday activities on the road

in Iraq. When you are back in New

Hampshire, you are only with them two

days a month and you don't get to know

them on a real personal basis. When we

go out on our missions, you are with 11

other guys 24-7. It's kind of our own

little family in itself."

SPC Erik Hanson, 23, a driver with the

CET who lives in Concord, New Hamp-

shire, said “on my off time from the mis-

sions on the road I like to go to the Ba-

zaars and Markets on the FOB’s and buy

movies at a really cheap price and ciga-

rettes that are cheaper here than in the

states.”

By all accounts, when on the road the

CET operates as a tight knit group who’s

primary mission is to protect one an-

other. With that comes the family like

bond which is certain to last well beyond

deployment.

SGT Brian R. Savoie, 30, a CET TC

who lives in Attleboro, Mass., summed it

up simply “the combat pay has been

good, but the time away from family and

home is always difficult..” All the sol-

diers of CET 13, and perhaps all of TF 3

-197, can understand his sentiments. The

job is good but the separation is difficult.

With their mission complete, CET 13

joins the rotation awaiting their next

mission. On this mission no enemy con-

tact was made and aside from typical

vehicle maintenance issues everything

went smoothly.

The soldiers of TF 3-197 are advised not

to talk about the specifics of attacks or

incidents that occur on mission due to

security issues. This article is being

printed to help families and friends un-

derstand our mission without compro-

mising the mission or safety of our sol-

diers.

Missions are primarily conducted at

night which makes things difficult for

the drivers.

SGT Bernier buys DVDs at Victory

Base Complex (VBC) after negotiating

the best price he could.

Soldiers from CET 13 say a quick

prayer before SP from a FOB in Iraq.

These prayers are important to the

soldiers of all CETs in TF 3-197

CET 13 passes the highway turnoff for

Mosul / Baquba.

CET 13 prior to this mission February

2011.

T F 3 - 1 9 7 N E W S L E T T E R

Inside Story Headline

P A G E 4

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P A G E 4

The Ins & Outs of Life on Camp Buehring Information and Pictures by: PFC Byron Estvillo

Life on Camp Buehring involves

long work weeks with most sol-

diers working 12 hours a day, 6

days a week. If you are not good

at doing the math in your head,

that’s 72 hours of work a week. If

you add in 7 hours of sleep a

night plus time to shower that

leaves the average soldier ap-

proximately 40 hours a week of

time to do things they enjoy.

While work does take up most of

our time there are many things to

choose from to fill our free time.

These activities offered by Moral

Welfare, & Recreation (MWR)

and the United Service Organiza-

tions (USO) are designed to pro-

vide places for soldiers of all

ages to relax. Whether you are a

video game enthusiast or a movie

junkie there is a place at Camp

Buehring for you to enjoy your-

self. The pictures in this piece are

from some of the many places our

soldiers use to relax.

While some of us enjoy the

comfort of a movie or a call

home still others take advan-

tage of the world class gym

facility, basketball courts, pool

tables, darts and foosball.

Some people may say soldiers

are competitive… We say no,

we just like winning. So

whether it’s buying a new

Harley, Chrysler, or Ford to

pick-up at a dealer when you

get home or it’s taking up a

more traditional mode of

transportation such as camel

riding, Camp Buehring offers

Soldiers plenty of ways to

spend their free time.

Harley Davidson Motorcycle

sales is located on Camp

Buehring so don’t blame us

if we buy one.

In the USO soldiers can read

books to their children by re-

cording them reading and mail-

ing the videos home.

Internet, video games, and

phones make the USO tent a

very popular place to relax.

For the musically gifted

there is a USO “Band

Room” where soldiers go to

play music.

Foosball and table tennis

are always available. There

is always someone looking

to play the winner.

Movie theater complete

with popcorn and comfort-

able seats plays first run and

older movies day and night.

TF 3-197 definitely has some

ringers when it comes to

throwing darts.

The paved basketball courts

are always busy with pick-up

games or soldiers just

shooting the rock.

Camel rides are frequently

offered to soldiers free of

charge.

Volleyball courts never have

a shortage of players or

sand.

Activities bulletin boards

are located throughout

Camp Buehring to keep

soldiers informed of events

and activities.

Aerobics, P90x, Spinning,

and other classes are of-

fered in the Aerobics tent.

T F 3 - 1 9 7 N E W S L E T T E R

P A G E 5

their first line leaders. They also get

the opportunity to hear me explain

our Battalion and Brigade Policies

and why they are important. The sol-

diers also get the opportunity to ask

me any questions. It is important for

me to understand what interests and

concerns our soldiers have so I can

make the improvements needed while

they are on a mission and when they

are on their down time. We recently

made some changes based on con-

cerns brought up by soldiers. Some

of the soldiers asked about chang-

ing some policies. I explained that

my job is the safety, good order

and discipline of this Battalion and

that our policies would stay in

place and gave them the under-

standing of why. After the soldiers

and I finished talking we brought in

the Battalion Staff to answer specific

questions. If a soldier wanted to talk

privately, staff and I were available

for a one on one after the enlisted

call. Our administration officer (S1)

LT Emerson and I answered a num-

ber of questions relating to pay, bo-

nuses, awards, R&R leave, emer-

gency leave, LOCO Parentis and

Counseling. Our Equal Opportunity

Leader (EOL), SSG Parker, was

available to review EO policies and

answer questions. SSG Parker, also

addressed education questions as well

as retention questions. SGM Beecher

addressed the different missions that

we were doing and the who, when,

where, why, and how things will hap-

pen with our training path. The PA

LT Huntington, addressed all medical

questions and concerns. Our Battal-

ion paralegal, SPC Tessier spoke

with our soldiers about dealing with

legal matters here and at home. He

also answered some questions on

Uniform Code Of Military Justice

(UCMJ). I finished up talking about

safety, Rules of Engagement (ROE),

and the rules for the use of force

(RUF). We talked about families and

where our families could go for assis-

tance while we are serving here like

the FRG, the Family Program, the

Hello Soldiers, family members and

FRG's,

Well we have made it

through the Holidays! This is typi-

cally one of the toughest times of a

deployment for both soldiers and

families. I hope everyone was able to

get some peace and joy out of the

Holiday season. I know I personally

am missing all that NH snow! Battal-

ion leadership, Unit Commanders,

First Sergeants, the Battalion Com-

mander and I enjoyed serving our

soldiers an awesome holiday meal.

Some of our soldiers participated in

caroling. LTC Baker surprised every-

one with his octave levels and notes

his voice could reach, especially dur-

ing Frosty the Snowman and

Grandma Got Run Over by a Rein-

deer. New Year’s was a good day,

because now we can say we "will be

home this year." Valentine’s Day is

always tough because it’s a day fo-

cused on loved ones. But we have

all made it through the tough times

thanks to the support of our families

and each other.

It is important for me to see

our soldiers whenever I can, whether

at the Armor of God getting ready

for a mission, at the maintenance

shops or around our billeting and

DFAC areas, but there is never

enough time in the day to see every

soldier. Holding a Battalion forma-

tion is nearly impossible; with every-

one on different schedules.

SGM Beecher and I decided

to hold seven different enlisted calls.

An enlisted call is a chance for me to

meet with every enlisted soldier that

is an E4 Specialist and below, with-

out any unit leadership around. This

does a number of things. First, it

gives me a chance to look our sol-

diers in the eye, to tell them what an

outstanding job they have done dur-

ing the first one hundred plus days of

this deployment. Second, it gives me

a short pause to sit with my enlisted

soldiers and talk. It gives me the

opportunity to explain the responsi-

bilities and expectations required in

Rear Detachment Command, and

the Rear Detachment Chaplain as

well as Easter Seals and all of their

partners.

During the next enlisted call I will

again hear soldier concerns, talk

safety, and talk about careers both

Military and civilian as we prepare

for our journey home. Our soldiers

continue to do an outstanding job on

and off mission. I am proud of all

TF 3/197 soldiers and our military

families.

Granite Steel

(Editors note)

Warrior Leader Course (WLC) pre-

pares junior leaders for future posi-

tions of responsibility. It is the first

step in career development for the

BN’s Non-commissioned officers.

TF 3-197 has done extremely well

at these courses with 25% finishing

on the Commandant’s List for

achieving excellence in the course.

CSM May Sends a Hello to Soldiers and Families

CSM May and company leadership

attend the graduation of WLC

class number 11-701 at camp

Arifjan. Photo with students.

Leadership and students pose for a

photo following the graduation of

WLC class number 11-702

pathy Development (among others).

Three books are offered free of charge

to participants: Angry All The Time,

and Rage by Dr. Ron Potter-Efron; and

Anger-Handling A Powerful Emotion In

A Healthy Way by Dr. Gary Chapman.

Soldiers from other units assigned to

Camp Buehring are also participating in

the anger group. “The class is calling

attention to anger issues,” says Chaplain

Meher, “and some Soldiers are also

asking for one-on-one counseling so

they can better deal with these prob-

lems.” The class consists of teaching,

discussion, stress reduction exercises,

and some role play and other group

processing approaches.

CPT Philip Meher

Each week, about 12-15 Soldiers at

Camp Buehring, Kuwait gather at the

Chapel Annex for a Managing Anger

Group. Facilitated by TF 3-197th Chap-

lain (CPT) Philip Meher and SSG

James Parker, the weekly group has

now met for eleven weekly sessions. “I

am trying to work on myself now” said

one participant, “So I will be a better

person when I get home.” Another

group member commented, “This is

really helping me, I talk about the top-

ics when I call my partner.” The fifteen

week class includes a variety of sub-

jects such as, The Good Side of Anger;

The Three Goals of Anger Manage-

ment; How to Increase Personal Power;

The Physiology of Anger; Thinking

About How You Think; Ten Anger

Styles; Communication And Problems

Solving Skills; Stress Management

Skills; Exploring Forgiveness; and Em-

Soldiers Manage Anger BY Chaplain Meher

The Buehring Post Chapel offers a

variety of weekly services to meet

the religious needs of TF 3-197 Sol-

diers.

TF 3-197 is made up of several units

from NH including 3rd BN 197th FA,

744th FSC, A & B COs 3643rd Brigade

Support BN, and 372nd Signal Com-

pany. It has also been augmented by

members of 1st BN 103rd FA, RI

ARNG and soldiers from the 1st BN

124th IN, FL ARNG that volunteered

to stay on for another year.

If there is anything you would like to

see in our future issues please contact

us and we will try to oblige.

BRIAN.P.CALHOUN@kuwait.swa.army.mil

Awards & Promotions

UNIT NAME PROMOTION DATE

PROMOTED

A Co. EAMES, RAYMOND PV2 to PFC 20110205

A Co. HORNBROOK, NOLAN PVT to PV2 20110202

A Co. TREMBLAY, BRANDAN PV2 to PFC 20110103

A Co. KILUK, MICHAEL SGT to SSG 20110217

B Co. JOHNSON, THOMAS PV2 to PFC 20110131

B Co. PAQUIN, ZACHARY PV2 to PFC 20110226

C Co. BARRETT, PATRICK PV2 to PFC 20110202

C Co. CURRIER, KENNETH PFC to SPC 20110104

C Co. FRAUSTO, LUIS PVT to PV2 20110205

C Co. PEACE, BRYAN PV2 to PFC 20110302

C Co. SIDMAN, ANGELIQUE PV2 to PFC 20110115

C Co. TOWERS, DANIEL PFC to SPC 20110105

C Co. WHITNEY, ANTHONY PV2 to PFC 20110205

D Co. BENSON, RYAN PFC to SPC 20110113

D Co. BRECHEEN, OLIVIA PV2 to PFC 20110303

D Co. BUNKER, JOSHUA PVT to PV2 20110111

D Co. CUMMINGS, JONATHAN PV2 to PFC 20110114

D Co. ENOKIAN, JONATHAN PVT to PV2 20110114

D Co. FORTIER, THERESA PFC to SPC 20110111

D Co. NEDEAU, JOHN PFC to SPC 20110202

D Co. PATNODE, NATHAN PVT to PV2 20110203

D Co. REYNOLDS, PETER PV2 to PFC 20110118

HHC PATRICK, STEPHEN PV2 to PFC 20110110

HHC POOLE, JEREMY PFC to SPC 20110118

CPT Brian Calhoun

HHC TF 3-197

Camp Buerhing, KU APO AE 09330

TF 3-197 Contact Information