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SEATTLE -- The Army is in the early stages of establishing a third Stryker brigade at Fort Lewis as it nears its goal of creating seven of the units named for the eight-wheeled armored vehicles.
About 200 senior leadership members for the newly named 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division have been arriving at the Army post south of Tacoma since September, said Joseph Piek, a spokesman for the post.
The Daily News-Miner has created a new section on their website featuring homecoming photos for the 172nd SBCT.
Newsweek concludes its coverage of the 172nd's extension with the following article.
Nov. 30, 2006 - For Staff Sgt. Duane Leventry, the culture shock hit him full force in an Anchorage, Alaska, supermarket. Shortly after returning home from 16 months in Iraq, he found himself staring at an aisle full of steak sauce and marinade, paralyzed by the sheer volume of choices. “I must have stood there for 10 minutes trying to figure out what to get,” says Leventry, who arrived home in Anchorage last Saturday, Nov. 25, to his wife Kelly and 3-year-old daughter Alexia. “Do I want this? Do I want that? It took us about two hours to get out of the store.”
MICHAEL GILBERT; The News Tribune
Fort Lewis soldiers stationed in Mosul are headed south to join their Stryker comrades working in the embattled Iraqi capital, a news service reported Wednesday.
Citing unnamed Pentagon sources, The Associated Press reported that the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division would be leaving Mosul as part of the U.S. military’s plans to beef up its presence in Baghdad.
The Pentagon is developing plans to send four more battalions of U.S. troops to Iraq early next year to boost security in Baghdad, senior defense officials said Wednesday. Meanwhile, a closely watched bipartisan commission studying U.S. policy in Iraq said it would release its report next week.
The extra combat engineer battalions of reserves to be sent to Baghdad would total about 3,500 troops, officials said. They said the units would come from around the United States and have already done a tour in Iraq, but they said there has been no final decision on which battalions will go.[...]
By Margaret Friedenauer, Daily News-Miner
A combination of immediate and long-term growth on Fort Wainwright Army Post has Army officials pushing for more housing in the community and borough officials promising the needs will be met.
The short-term housing dilemma has been caused in large part by the four-month extension of the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team in Iraq. The brigade was scheduled to return to Alaska in August but instead had its tour extended so the unit could be moved to Baghdad to help quell violence there.
A handful of images are also included with this article if you follow the link.
By Brian Lepley and Spc. L.B. Edgar, AFPS
FORT RICHARDSON, Alaska, Nov. 27, 2006 – Two days after Thanksgiving, the families of the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team had a lot to be thankful for as three planeloads of the “Arctic Wolves” returned from a 16-month deployment to Iraq.
Fort Wainwright welcomed more than 620 soldiers and Fort Richardson welcomed another 215 troops Nov. 25. More flights through this week and next were expected to get more than 3,720 Stryker soldiers back home by Dec. 5.
Think of it as a super-charged paintball gun. That’s what some soldiers in Iraq are toting these days to deal with troublemakers on the streets of Baghdad. But there’s nothing fun about being on the receiving end of the FN 303 Less Lethal System. The semi-automatic launcher shoots a .68 caliber projectile at 300 feet per second using compressed air. The fin-stabilized projectiles have an effective range out to 100 meters.
It’s not designed to kill, but it packs a potent sting.
CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq (Army News Service, Nov. 27, 2006) - The Arctic Wolves are returning to Alaska after 16 consecutive months of operations here.
The Soldiers of the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team cased their colors in a Nov. 24 ceremony outside the Division Morale Welfare and Recreation complex. The ceremony marked the official end of combat operations for the unit deployed primarily from Fort Wainwright, Alaska, and partially from Fort Richardson.
The following is an audio report from NPR station KUAC. Follow the link and click the "Listen" icon. Description:
Morning Edition, November 27, 2006 - Members of the Army's 172nd Stryker Brigade have finished an extended tour of duty in Iraq. After 16 months away from Alaska's Fort Wainwright, the soldiers arrived home to waiting families. Libby Casey of member station KUAC reports.
The Anchorage Daily-News has a nice photo gallery that includes many photos from this past weekend at Ft. Wainwright.
Blog-Ah! has published the latest column from David Hardt, a soldier serving with the 3/2 SBCT in Baghdad.
By Beth Bragg, Anchorage Daily News
Ten-year-old William Crowley and his 6-year-old brother, Xavier, thought they had come to Buckner Physical Fitness Center on Saturday morning to hang decorations.
Each carried a poster bearing colorful welcome-home messages for their dad. They knew he was coming home from the war. They just didn't know he was coming home Saturday.
Their mom knew. But Kerrie Crowley hadn't told the boys because she wanted to protect their little hearts, broken this summer when their dad's yearlong tour in Iraq was extended by four months just as homecoming plans were being made.
Welcome home to the first group of 172nd soldiers!
By MARGARET FRIEDENAUER and AMANDA BOHMAN, Daily News-Miner
It was 32 below zero on Fort Wainwright, a 102-degree difference from Baghdad, where hundreds of soldiers with the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team arrived from Saturday. But even with foggy and icy windows on the buses they rode from Eielson Air Force Base, all the soldiers knew was the warm welcome of friends and family.
Before the soldiers arrived at Fort Wainwright, Col. Robert Ball, deputy commander of U.S. Army Alaska, briefed the anxious and excited crowd of family and friends.
“Go easy on them. They’re tired and a little chilly,” Ball said.
Jennifer Thomas scrawled her sentiments about the upcoming week in white paint across the windows of her car Friday morning.
“It’s about time,” the letters read. “Welcome home. Finally.”
“I wanted to write ‘It’s about damn time,’” Thomas said. “But I thought for when the kids ride in the car and all, I shouldn’t.”
Still, the extra punch of that word reflects Thomas’ jumbled emotions, ranging from excitement to anxiety about the coming days when her husband returns from 16 months in Iraq.
By Seth Robson, Stars and Stripes
VILSECK, Germany — A drop-in center here will soon allow 2nd Cavalry (Stryker) Regiment soldiers to relax, watch sports, play video games, read and listen to music in a nonalcoholic, smoke-free environment.
This week, Chaplain (Maj.) Samuel Lee, along with unit spouses, renovated a 4,500-square-foot former hospital building to serve as a coffeehouse.
By TATABOLINE BRANT, Anchorage Daily News
Angelina Estrada and Shena Johnson are really glad they met each other two years ago at church. But Thursday they didn't have much time to talk about it.
It's Thanksgiving, after all, and their hands, as usual, are full. The two 28-year-olds have three kids each -- all under the age of 8. Both of their husbands are gone to Iraq.
Estrada's husband, a staff sergeant in the Army's 172nd Stryker Brigade, has been gone for 16 months. He's due back Saturday. Johnson's, a sergeant first class in Fort Richardson's new airborne brigade, left last month. He won't be back for a year.
Cindy McGrew is a good friend of this site. She has helped a number of Stryker families. To learn more about her organization please visit the Operation Second Chance website. I hope those responsible are found.
GAITHERSBURG, Md. -- A woman trying to do a good deed for a soldier wounded in Iraq is stalked and robbed at Lakeforest Mall in Gaithersburg on Monday.
Cindy McGrew runs Operation Second Chance, a business that helps wounded soldiers being treated at Walter Reed. On Monday night, McGrew was buying presents for a soldier to take home to his children. She bought an xBox 360 and a PlayStation Portable, but when she took the items to her truck at about 7:30 p.m., she was attacked.
By Margaret Friedenauer, Daily News-Miner
The 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team ended its combat operations in Baghdad on Monday, essentially bringing to a close its major work in Iraq, an Army official said Tuesday.
Col. Robert Ball, deputy commander of U.S. Army Alaska, made the announcement at a Greater Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce luncheon.
By TATABOLINE BRANT, Anchorage Daily News
After a year-long tour in northern Iraq and a dangerous and controversial four-month extension in Baghdad, the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team is finally coming home, military officials said Tuesday.
The 3,800-person unit, which has lost 26 soldiers in the 16 months it has been gone, is scheduled to return to Alaska in waves starting Saturday, U.S. Army Alaska spokesman Maj. Kirk Gohlke said.
Most of the troops will be flying into Fairbanks, where the brigade is stationed at Fort Wainwright. About 200 will return to Fort Richardson. Officials hope to have all the soldiers back by Dec. 5, Gohlke said.
Here is another article from Newsweek focusing on families from the 172nd.
By Karen Breslau and Catharine Skipp, Newsweek
Nov. 21, 2006 - They are daring to hope. As the hours count down, Jodi Velotta and other U.S. Army wives are beginning to think that this time it might really be true—their men are headed home from Iraq.
“It's a lot to know that the day is coming and I didn't wake up to that e-mail saying, ‘We've been extended,’” says Jodi, whose husband, Capt. Brad Velotta, commands a company in the 4-23 infantry battalion of the 172nd Stryker Brigade, based in Fort Wainwright, Alaska. “I'm like a kid everyday, thinking ‘One day closer, one day closer.’”
This press release from the US Army Alaska Public Affairs Office provides details regarding the brigade's redeployment ceremony scheduled for December 12, 2006.
US Army Alaska, November 21, 2006 (PDF file)
FORT WAINWRIGHT, Alaska – The 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team will hold a redeployment ceremony Dec. 12 at 2 p.m. to honor the soldiers returning from Iraq after 16 months and recognize them for an exceptional tour of duty.
Officials will hold a ceremony unveiling a Wall of Honor dedicated to those who gave their lives in Iraq at 9:15 a.m. Dec. 12. There is no seating available for this ceremony, and space is extremely limited.
The following editorial was written by the wife a soldier with the 172nd SBCT.
By JULIANA DAPICE, Anchorage Daily News
During this time between Veteran's Day and Thanksgiving, I am feeling both pensive and thankful. My beloved husband, Rob, currently serving with the 172nd Stryker Brigade, is among our nation's newest veterans. He deployed to Iraq from Alaska in August of 2005.
It is with mixed emotions that I look forward to this Thanksgiving. Because of the infamous extension of the 172nd Stryker Brigade, 15 months have passed since the day they left in August. Another Thanksgiving will soon be here and our husbands are still away. The yellow ribbons I tied around the trees this summer in anticipation of their homecoming have barely weathered the harsh change of Alaska seasons. In fact they are so ragged I must just tie new ones before they return.
By TATABOLINE BRANT, Anchorage Daily News
After a yearlong tour in northern Iraq and a dangerous and controversial four-month extension in Baghdad, the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team is coming home.
The 3,800-person unit is scheduled to return to Alaska in waves starting Saturday, military officials said today.
U.S. Army Alaska spokesman Maj. Kirk Gohlke said all the troops are scheduled to be home by Dec. 5. Most will be flying into Fairbanks, where the brigade is based at Fort Wainwright, he said. About 200 will return to Fort Richardson in Anchorage.
The 172nd left Alaska for Iraq in September 2005. Their departure was and remains the largest war zone deployment of Army soldiers Alaska has seen since Vietnam.
Update 11/21/06: Parts 3 & 4 have been published.
The LA Times is running a four-part series of articles featuring the 4-23 INF (Tomahawks), 172nd SBCT. Provided below are links to each article, which also contain photos and audio. Full access to the content requires registration. Description:
Times staff writer Doug Smith spent seven days in October on patrols in Baghdad with two platoons of the 4th (Tomahawk) Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team. The platoons were investigating the kidnapping of at least 22 Iraqi men from a meatpacking plant in southwest Baghdad.
By William Cole, Honolulu Advertiser
The Army is asking U.S. District Judge David Ezra to lift a temporary injunction to allow it to proceed with "critical" Stryker brigade training.
In court papers, the Army has said a 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision halting training with the 19-ton armored vehicles "is impairing the ability of the (Stryker) 2nd brigade to accomplish its military mission with a minimum of American combat-related casualties, a paramount national interest."
WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Nov. 20, 2006) - Following successful field testing last summer, the Army is planning to deploy its new Land Warrior System within the year, bringing the Army a giant step closer to electronic networking of the battlefield.
The wearable, computerized system includes lasers, navigation modules, radios and other technologically advanced equipment to help Soldiers shoot, move and communicate more accurately on the battlefield. Ultimately, it will improve their ability to fight effectively and survive.
Everyone who works the street wears sunglasses—the job requires it. If the sun’s glare impairs your vision, you won’t see to drive, look for crimes in progress or defend yourself from attack. The criminals we face know we need vision to avoid, evade or counter danger. During my 30- year career, my eyes were attacked on numerous occasions. You never know when the distressed little old lady will turn into a raving lunatic and try to poke you or the teenager smoking a joint will decide to throw dirt in your face. I defended myself against such attacks by keeping people at a distance, always a good idea, but closing in on other people remains unavoidable. Our soldiers, sailors and Marines fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan also face this necessity and the inherent risks, and they do something about it by wearing safety glasses at all times. Yes, I know that for American law enforcement officers to adopt this practice, the glasses must look good. Fortunately, the makers of Revision Military Eyewear understand the style requirement. After all, military personnel like to look good, too.
The following article provides an update on a 172nd SBCT soldier recovering at Walter Reed after being seriously injured in Baghdad.
By Christy Strawser, Daily Tribune
HAZEL PARK -- Julia Chandler cannot describe what it was like to see her son on a stretcher with holes in his body.
"It was too much," she said. "There are no words. My son was in pieces with all these stitches; he was out of it; there were tubes coming out of him."
Infantry soldier William Isaac Chandler, 23, a 2001 Hazel Park High School graduate, was on a tank in Baghdad City, Iraq, on Oct. 5 when a sniper's bullet tore through his chest just outside his protective body armor.
Blog-Ah! has published the latest column from David Hardt, a soldier serving with the 3/2 SBCT in Baghdad.
MATT MISTEREK; The News Tribune
The Defense Department announced Army troop rotations Friday that include a Fort Lewis Stryker brigade among five combat brigades that will go to Iraq early next year.
But a Fort Lewis spokesman said the timetable hasn’t changed for the local unit, the 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division. It’s still preparing to leave for Iraq next summer.
In fact, this team of Strykers isn’t set to do its final big training in the Mojave Desert until February or March, and the 4,000 soldiers won’t be certified to deploy until they complete it, said Joseph Piek, a post spokesman.
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Spc. Justin R. Garcia, 26, of Elmhurst, N.Y., died Nov. 14 in Baghdad, Iraq, of injuries suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle during combat operations. Garcia was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Lewis, Wash.
Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends and fellow soldiers. Additional information will be added to this entry as it becomes available.
By Spc. L.B. Edgar, 7th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment
BAGHDAD – One day in a war zone is a lifetime for some people. Now, increase that to approximately 16 months of dedicated service and you begin to understand the sacrifice of the Soldiers of the 172nd Stryker Brigade.
“We’re doing our jobs to the best of our abilities and we’re doing it until we come home,” said Spc. Virgilio Rivera, an infantryman with Troop C, 4th Battalion, 14th Cavalry Regiment, 172nd Stryker Brigade.
By LOLITA C. BALDOR, Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON - The Pentagon announced Friday that 57,000 U.S. troops, including five combat brigades, have been told to deploy to Iraq early next year — a move that will maintain current force levels there.
Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld signed the deployment orders for about 20,000 soldiers from active duty Army brigades based in North Carolina, Georgia, Washington, Kansas and Italy. Another 10,000 reserves and 27,000 active duty troops are scheduled to go to Iraq in smaller units.
Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman also said that 1,500 soldiers in the South Carolina National Guard's 218th Brigade Combat Team have been told they will deploy to Afghanistan early next year.
Here's a nice story submitted by one of our regular visitors. His son, an officer with the 172nd, wrote the letter.
UPDATE: Lindsey's teacher upped her grade and the teacher is going to write an email to Gabe from the whole class.
A co-worker's 8-year-old daughter Lindsey had a civics test. One question was "What do soldiers do on an Army base? She wrote for her answer: "they sleep." She scored 85 on the exam but the teacher deducted five points for her Army answer and went into a song and dance that was more like Ft Dix than the world today."My father's friend Gabe is in Iraq and he says they get back to the base and sleep because they are very tired," she told the teacher. The teacher didn't buy this argument. I told Gabe the story, and here is his response to the teacher:
This CBS News video features soldiers from the 1-14 CAV, 3/2 SBCT operating in Baghdad. Description:
For U.S. soldiers, it is a greater challenge getting the people of Iraqi to trust their own police than to actually train the new security forces. Lara Logan reports from Baghdad.
by Sgt. Antonieta Rico, 5th MPAD
Mosul, Iraq--- Soldiers with 2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, Stryker Brigade, were recognized for their combat actions Nov. 7 during a ceremony at Forward Operating Base Marez.
One Soldier received the Purple Heart medal and 24 other Soldiers received the Combat Infantryman’s Badge. Two Soldiers received the Combat Medical Badge and one received the Combat Action Badge. All Soldiers are with Headquarters and Headquarters Company.
On his blog Mike Gilbert of The News Tribune explores the consequences of a recent court decision to stop Stryker activity in Hawaii on the Army's other Stryker Brigades. Excerpt:
It's hard to predict what happens next in court, but in the meantime the Army will likely have to figure out some other way of training the Hawaii brigade. William Cole in the Honolulu Advertiser has been reporting that the outfit –– the 2nd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division -- is supposed to be deployable by next November. I'm told it's supposed to go into the box at the National Training Center in October.Where does Fort Lewis -- spiritual home of the Stryker program -- fit into all this?
Blog-Ah has published the latest column from David Hardt, who is serving with the 3/2 SBCT in Baghdad.
By LARRY KAPLOW- Cox News Service
CAMP TAJI, Iraq -- After 16 months at war, Alaska's 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team heads home from Bahgdad later this month with its 3,500 troops expected back at Fort Wainwright by mid-December.
It has been one of the longest tours of duty the Pentagon has imposed on any major unit since the war began.
And it has put a strain on the soldiers.
By LAUREN FRAYER, ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- U.S. soldiers, automatic rifles buckled to their body armor, filed into a community center in a dangerous Shiite neighborhood of north Baghdad Saturday and for a few hours became social workers, cops on the beat and referees between feuding tribesmen.
Tea was passed around, notes were taken, local sheiks spoke in wise tones, heads nodded vigorously in agreement and mundane problems such as garbage collection and distributing electricity generators were tackled.
Three weeks after being wounded by a roadside bomb in Baghdad, Neal Schanbeck II says he’s on his way to a full recovery and a visit to the Harbor.
“I’m feeling better. I should be in outpatient care in about a week,” the 2002 Aberdeen High School graduate said, speaking from his room in Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
Schanbeck has been at Walter Reed since Oct. 23, recovering from multiple injuries and surgeries.
SEATTLE -- Growing up, Charlie Parsons played sports, liked to travel and enjoyed learning other languages - just like his older twin brothers.
When they went off to West Point, Charlie soon followed.
Now, four months after Capt. Bill Parsons and Capt. Huber Parsons III deployed to Iraq, younger brother Charlie is again following their lead.
We would like to take a moment to thank all of the veterans, past and present, who have sacrificed so much on our behalf. Your efforts represent a debt that cannot easily be repaid, if at all. During this time of conflict let's not forget those still in harm's way, or who have been injured and are fighting to recover. A special thanks to all the families supporting each and every servicemember - you are "veterans" as well. Finally, to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice, know that you will never be forgotten. Thank you.
Provided below are additional sources commemorating Veterans Day.
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who
was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Sgt. Lucas T. White, 28, of Moses Lake, Wash., died Nov. 6 in Baghdad,
Iraq, of injuries suffered when his unit came in contact with enemy
forces while on patrol. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 23rd
Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Lewis,
Wash.
Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends, and fellow soldiers. We will add any subsequent articles we find to this entry.
Multi-National Division – Baghdad PAO
BAGHDAD – Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers seized a large weapons and munitions cache Nov. 7 while on a dismounted patrol in Rusafa, a central Baghdad neighborhood.
The Soldiers from Company C, 4th Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, discovered 35 60mm mortar rounds, two 82mm mortar rounds, 20 120mm mortar rounds, five 57mm mortar rounds, six 94mm recoilless-rifle rounds, two 120mm rocket warheads, 50 7.62mm rounds, seven rocket-propelled grenade launchers, six pounds of homemade explosives, two pounds of dynamite, two RPG rounds, two body armor vests and various bomb-making materials.
An explosive ordnance disposal team performed a controlled detonation of the weapons and munitions.
Soldier’s mom gets the unwanted phone call; son tells Jenkins assistant principal he was wounded in a firefight in Baghdad
By Ron Bartlett
On Tuesday afternoon, Linda Oliver got the phone call she had always feared.
Oliver, who works as an assistant principal at Jenkins Middle School, has a son, Alfred Jackson, currently serving with the Army in Iraq.
“When he called me Tuesday and he started talking to me, I could tell in his voice that something had happened,” she said.
By U.S. Army Spc. Jason Dangel
BAGHDAD, Nov. 8, 2006 — Someone once said, "little things can go a long way," and this is exactly what Multi-National Division – Baghdad soldiers aimed to achieve as they teamed up with Iraqi soldiers from the 5th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division, to provide a free, one-day medical screening for the citizens of Baghdad’s Al Mansour neighborhood Nov. 4.
Iraqi army doctors and medics, along with medical personnel from the 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment, 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, as well as medics and doctors from the 1st Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, rendered medical care to approximately 200 Iraqi citizens during the event.
BLOG-AH has posted an essay by Spc. Todd Selge who is serving with the 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment.
By Sgt. Antonieta Rico, 5th Mobile Public Affairs Det. (Forward)
Blackanthem Military News, MOSUL, Iraq --- It was a moment suspended from reality. Outside the war was going on. Outside there were snipers, insurgents and IED’s (improvised explosive devices). But inside the MWR tent at FOB Marez, Mosul, the only ammunition flying on Halloween night was the lyrical bullets of Strong Arm of the South, an all-Soldier hip hop group.
SAS’s beats reached into the crowd, transforming a subdued audience into energetic fans. And although the music echoed the war going on outside the forward operating base, it resonated with the crowd, managing to turn harsh reality into a hip hop beat they could embrace and move with.
Multi-National Division – Baghdad PAO
BAGHDAD – Iraqi army and Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers detained 24 suspected terrorists in Baghdad Saturday and Sunday.
Soldiers from the 5th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division, and MND-B’s 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, detained 23 suspected terrorists Sunday for their suspected involvement with death squads and setting up illegal checkpoints. All suspects were detained for further questioning.
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Spc. James L. Bridges, 22, of Buhl, Idaho, died Nov. 4 in Baghdad, Iraq, when his unit came in contact with enemy forces using small arms fire during combat operations. Bridges was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment, 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, Fort Wainwright, Ala.
Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends and fellow soldiers. Additional information will be added to this entry as it becomes available.
The following is a lengthy article that is primarily focused on the 2/25 SBCT in Hawaii, but mentions other brigades as well.
By William Cole, Honolulu Advertiser
In June 2002, two years before a military environmental study wrapped up, an Army Stryker brigade was on track for Hawai'i, court papers show.
At a meeting in Virginia of Army personnel, Col. Rick Hoefert, with the director of Environmental Programs office, told the group that planning for the then-five Stryker brigades around the country was among the Army secretary's top priorities, records state. But problems surfaced with a call to provide National Environmental Policy Act, or NEPA, documentation to support the proposal.
This article from MSNBC.com has a link on the right side to a video segment featuring one of the Stryker Brigades in Baghdad. Since I'm having trouble playing the video I can't tell if it is the 172nd or the 3/2 SBCT.
CPT Scott Smiley, who was injured serving with the 1/25 SBCT in 2005, is featured in the following story.
By Matt Millham, Stars and Stripes
With improved body armor and field medicine, U.S. troops are living through attacks that would have killed them in previous wars, many surviving with secondary injuries that might have been moot in the past.
Among these, Traumatic Brain Injury, or TBI, is the most pervasive.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 5, 2006 – Iraqi units took the lead in capturing suspected bomb-makers and a senior militia leader, officials at Multinational Force Iraq reported today.
Iraqi special forces personnel conducted a raid yesterday in the Jihad district of Baghdad and captured two bomb-makers, officials said. The unit detained seven other suspected cell members and confiscated two Iraqi uniforms.
The following is another audio report via KUAC. There is a text transcript for this segment if you don't have audio on your computer.
FAIRBANKS, AK (2006-11-04) It's been a difficult few months for families of soldiers in the 172nd Stryker Brigade, who were in the midst of planning reunions and welcome home parties when the Brigade's tour in Iraq was extended. Now the families are coping with frustration at the long deployment and fear for their soldiers' safety. KUAC's Libby Casey reports.
The following is an audio report from NPR station, KUAC. Follow the link and click the "Listen" icon.
FAIRBANKS, AK (2006-11-04) Since the 172nd Stryker Brigade had its deployment extended, there's been a lot of talk about the soldiers and when they'll come home from Iraq. Regardless of when the troops will ultimately finish their tour, the spouses left behind here in Alaska have to keep their lives going without them. As KUAC's Libby Casey reports, Army families learn to be strong and find support.
TOM PHILPOTT; The News Tribune
Service members who have household goods damaged or lost during government-directed moves will be reimbursed under a more robust “full replacement value” standard starting by at least March 2008.
Congress set the deadline in the 2007 defense authorization act signed into law Oct. 17. The National Military Family Association and other service advocacy groups had urged the action after the Department of Defense fell behind in implementing Families First, a personal property program initiative that includes a goal of full replacement value reimbursement.
News Tribune reporter Sean Cockerham and The Olympian photographer Tony Overman are on their way home from Iraq after covering the 3/2 SBCT in Baghdad and Mosul for the past several weeks. I know their consistent reports were much appreciated, and will certainly be missed. An archive of their articles and the blog they maintained are both online for you to browse.
By Sgt. Shannon Crane, 129th MPAD
RABEA, Iraq (Army News Service, Nov. 3, 2006) – It is early morning at the point of entry where two countries meet – Iraq and Syria.
Two men in different uniforms stand near a sand-colored tower. They look off in the distance and wait for signs of activity, anticipating the mass of vehicles and pedestrians who will soon attempt to gain access to one of the neighboring nations. But at this time of day, the only thing crossing the border is the occasional gust of sand carried by the breeze.
The following article also contains links to two video segments featuring the 172nd SBCT.
BAGHDAD, Nov. 2, 2006 — Soldiers from the 172nd Stryker Brigade's 2nd Platoon live in a confined world. There are no windows in their armored vehicles, and barricades ring the Baghdad neighborhood they patrol.
The Iraq War may dominate the election in the United States, but on the front lines, these soldiers from Alaska don't have time to follow the big debate back home over the war.
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Sgt. Kraig D. Foyteck, 26, of Skokie, Ill., died Oct. 30 in Baghdad, Iraq, from injuries suffered when his unit came in contact with enemy forces using small arms fire during combat operations. Foyteck was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment, 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, Fort Wainwright, Alaska.
We would like to extend our deepest sympathies to the loved ones he leaves behind. Any articles we find regarding Sgt. Foyteck will be added to this entry.
Rabiyah, Iraq- A convoy of U.S. Humvees streamed through the midnight darkness, following the border as soldiers scanned the endless flats with night-vision goggles. The thin earthen berm separating northern Iraq from Syria lay just a few hundred yards to their right, but what was out there was a mystery.
"We've lost them," Lt. Stuart Burnham, 24, of Springfield, Va., said with faint resignation, ordering the convoy to turn around and head back to the small U.S. base at this border crossing town. "Maybe next time."
According to the following article the 172nd SBCT was responsible for some of the checkpoints that were removed.
By KIRK SEMPLE, The New York Times
BAGHDAD, Oct. 31 — Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki demanded the removal of American checkpoints from the streets of Baghdad on Tuesday, in what appeared to be his latest and boldest gambit in an increasingly tense struggle for more independence from his American protectors.
Mr. Maliki’s public declaration seemed at first to catch American commanders off guard. But by nightfall, American troops had abandoned all the positions in eastern and central Baghdad that they had set up last week with Iraqi forces as part of a search for a missing American soldier. The checkpoints had snarled traffic and disrupted daily life and commerce throughout the eastern part of the city. [...]
SEAN COCKERHAM; The News Tribune
MOSUL, IRAQ – Spc. Jason Berg, 22, kept turning the newspaper over and over in his hands.
Berg, the Lightning Platoon medic known as “Doc,” was looking through a copy of his hometown newspaper from Buffalo, N.Y. There was a giant fall snowstorm in Buffalo, and his relatives sent him the coverage.
FORT WAINWRIGHT, Alaska – A Fort Wainwright Soldier was killed in Iraq Monday.
The Soldier, assigned to the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team based at Fort Wainwright, was killed by enemy small-arms fire while conducting clearing operations in Baghdad, Iraq at 5:50 p.m. Monday Iraq time, 5:50 a.m. Monday Alaska time.
No other Soldiers were injured in the incident.
Next of kin have been notified.
A welcome home ceremony is being planned for the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team based at Fort Wainwright. The Army is planning the homecoming ceremony December 12th to welcome the troops back from Iraq. The Army is expecting most soldiers from the brigade home by then.
However, Army spokesman Chuck Canterbury says the date is, "subject to conditions on the ground in Iraq." The ceremony will be followed the next day by a reflagging ceremony. The 172nd will be officially renamed the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team of the 25th Infantry Division. [...]
By William Cole, Honolulu Advertiser
With a federal appeals court injunction last week, the Army faces the possibility that it will have to train its O'ahu-based Stryker brigade at a location such as Fort Lewis, Wash., for a deployment to Iraq next year.
A host of contractors, meanwhile, now find work stopped on some of the 28 projects worth $700 million that were under way for the 328-vehicle Stryker unit — one of the biggest Army projects in Hawai'i since World War II.
The following article quotes the deputy commander of the 3/2 SBCT in Mosul.
By Josh White, Washington Post
RABIYAH, Iraq, Oct. 31 -- A convoy of U.S. Humvees streamed through the midnight darkness, following the border as soldiers scanned the endless flats with night-vision goggles. The thin earthen berm separating northern Iraq from Syria lay just a few hundred yards to their right, but what was out there was almost a total mystery.
"We've lost them," Lt. Stuart Burnham, 24, of Springfield, Va., said with faint resignation, ordering the convoy to turn around and head back to the small U.S. base at this border crossing town. "Maybe next time."