by Sgt. 1st Class Jen Schwind
129th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment
CAMP AS SAYLIYAH, Qatar - Soldiers from the South Dakota-based 129th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment recently traveled to Iraq to report on the work of transition teams.
Among them were Sgt. Shannon Crane, Spearfish, S.D., and Sgt. Nicholas Pavlik, Columbus, Ohio. Both are members of the South Dakota Army National Guard.
During their five weeks in Iraq, the 129th members collected video, took photographs and conducted interviews to produce 11 video and print stories for a variety of media. To accomplish this, they participated in missions, convoys, and patrols with National Police Transition Teams, Border Transition Teams and Military Transition Teams throughout Iraq. These transition teams are embedded with Iraqi Security Forces, to mentor and advise, so the Iraqis can eventually assume control of the security of their own country.
"I gained a higher level of respect and admiration for all of the Soldiers currently serving in Iraq," said Crane, who was a National Guard recruiter before this deployment. "I was especially impressed with the members of the transition teams. They are the embodiment of professionalism."
"Plus, all of the team members seemed to be excited about their mission and proud to be serving in such a capacity," she added.
Working with these transition teams also gave the 129th journalists a chance to interact with Iraqis. Pavlik, an Ohio State University student who minors in Arabic, said he will be able to take some of his experiences and carry them over to his school work.
"I learned about the culture of Iraq, and how different it is from ours," said Pavlik. "You can hear about them on the news as much as you want, but until you actually see a third-world country with your own eyes, you truly don't understand how lucky you are to live in the United States."
"I now have a larger appreciation for the freedom that the United States offers," added Pavlik, "and the opportunities we have in the States should not be taken for granted."
Although Pavlik, a broadcast journalist, recently returned from another month-long public affairs mission in Afghanistan and Crane spent a year deployed to Kuwait during Operation Desert Storm, this was the first trip to Iraq for both Soldiers.
"I got to see just how much of a positive impact is being made in Iraq. It is impossible to judge what's going on over there without experiencing it first hand," said Crane, a print journalist for the 129th. "What I've seen on the news doesn't paint an accurate picture of what's really happening there."
"Transition teams are doing a difficult job over there, and it's very important to get their stories told," she added.
Pavlik agreed. "Even if we only reach one person with the stories we did in Iraq, then that will be one more person who knows the great things that we are doing to help the citizens in Iraq who are in great need," he said.
The 129th members received accolades for their exceptional work, positive attitudes and can-do spirit, according to 2nd Lt. Dan Murphy, Bismarck, N.D., officer in charge of the detachment in Qatar. They were "coined" by the brigadier general whom they worked for, and received authorization to wear the 1st Infantry Division combat patch.
"I have never been more proud of a group of Soldiers -- their courage, professionalism and dedication to the mission," Murphy said. "This month-long mission to Iraq was an excellent opportunity for everyone on the team. They proved over and over they are exceptional at what they do."
The 129th MPAD was mobilized in April, 2006, and trained at Fort McCoy, Wis., for approximately three months before beginning their year-long tour in support of U.S. Central Command Public Affairs. The unit has Soldiers based out of Tampa, Fla., Atlanta, Ga., and Doha, Qatar.
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