3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs

Story by Spc. Sharla Lewis

MOSUL, Iraq — 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division recognized its Soldiers with Army Commendation Medals and Bronze Star Medals near the close of its 2009 deployment to Ninewah province, Iraq.

As troops packed and inventoried equipment, manifested flights and planned family reunions, the brigade ensured that Soldiers received their end-of-tour awards before redeploying to Fort Hood, Texas.

"We found there were many awards that were lost last tour in the transition back to Fort Hood and had to be rewritten and resubmitted," said Cpl. Martin Perez, the brigade's awards specialist and a native of Mission, Texas. "So this time around, we wanted to get them done earlier to ensure the Soldiers get the awards they deserve."

The human resources office started processing the awards in May for one battalion, 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division who worked under 3rd HBCT until they redeployed in August. In June, Cpl. Perez and his team began reviewing awards for the Greywolf Brigade's own redeployment.

Cpl. Perez said that recognizing the Soldiers in 3rd HBCT for their hard work and dedication was rewarding and the reason that he enjoys his job.

1st Lt. Meghan Schrader, the assistant logistician for 3rd Brigade Special Troops Battalion and a native of Virginia Beach, Va., said that her Bronze Star Medal symbolized the hard work and motivation she put into being a platoon leader and assistant logistician in combat.

"The first six months of the deployment, we were out in the city on patrol every day, so motivating [my Soldiers] wasn't as hard," she said. "They could see exactly what they did every day. They could see fitting into the big picture, and they felt accomplishment just by going on missions."

"The hard part is trying to motivate the Soldier that works in an office with no windows every day for a year of their life not knowing whether they have made a difference," 1st Lt. Schrader said.

Spc. Charles Brenay, a truck driver with F Forward Support Company, 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment and a native of Ocala, Fla., said that earning the Army Commendation Medal was a team effort that he was proud to share the honor with his unit.

"The unit as a whole helped each other earn the medal. We accomplished a lot over here. I'm proud to have the opportunity to serve my country and I'm happy to be coming back home," he said.

Spc. Brenay said that receiving his medal showed that he was another step closer to returning home.

"I'm very excited to be going home. The first thing that I'll probably do when I get home is grab my wife and swing her around," Spc. Brenay said.

Before returning to Fort Hood, 3rd HBCT will have honored 4,873 Soldiers with end-of-tour awards, ensuring Soldiers in the brigade were recognized for their efforts.

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