Photo By Sharilyn Wells | First Capt. Paolo Pastorino, 2nd Platoon Avvoltoi, goes over paratrooper safety...... read more read more
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FORT BRAGG, N.C. – Young at heart, 1st Capt. Paolo Pastorino, a retired commander and paratrooper from Milano, Italy, buckles his helmet and grabs a static line from the U.S. jumpmaster in front of him. He stands up, hooks up and shuffles to the door, and just as the jumpmaster yells ‘Go!’… he jumps and counts to four in his native tongue, landing in the rocks below.
Granted, it’s just a rehearsal jump, but it’s the closest Pastorino will get to reliving what he loves; the feeling of the wind on his face and the thrill of jumping from an aircraft.
“I don’t jump any more because to tell you the truth, I promised my wife not to do it any more and as you know, Family is very important in Italy,” smiled Pastorino. “But I do like it so very much to be in the atmosphere, let’s say ‘to be in the business.’”
Pastorino first jumped from an airplane in 1978 and has more than 120 jumps under his belt. He speaks fondly of the year he first earned his U.S. jump wings.
“I earned my American jump wings during a friendship jump in Germany in 1994,” he said. “I have sufficient wide experience training with other foreign armies from South America, South Africa, … and obviously around Europe.”
For his second year, he has returned here in support of the 17th Annual Randy Oler Memorial Operation Toy Drop. Hosted by the U.S. Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command (Airborne), Operation Toy Drop brings together Army, Army Reserve, Air Force, Air Force Reserve, Air National Guard, and partner nations together for combined training.
“I had the privilege and pleasure to participate in Operation Toy Drop last year and I’m so happy to have come again … and if my wife will let me, I will come again, if we are invited,” he smiled.
Italy has been a guest of Operation Toy Drop for three consecutive years and Pastorino wants the tradition to carry on.
“It’s fantastic to know that we have been invited three times [in a row] which means we get to help USACAPOC reach it’s goal, and that is what is important because we are working together to help out children,” he said. “I think it’s very important for different countries to come together not only to exchange training, procedures and experience but to also know and understand each other; the way that person lives, their country, their homes, their shops, and so on,” explained Pastorino.
As the liaison officer between his unit, the 2nd Platoon Avvoltoi based in Italy, and the USACAPOC(A) headquarters, Pastorino highlights the importance of the underlining factor in the training exercise, ‘It’s all about the kids.’
“Operation Toy Drop isn’t your normal military exercise, as in you are shooting a weapon or something,” Pastorino explained. “We are operating airborne jumps yes, but what is important is what together we are doing for the child and that is why this occasion is so special.”
Since it’s start in 1998 by then Staff Sgt. Randy Oler, Operation Toy Drop has raised almost 90,000 toys, adding over 3,000 more toys from this year thus far. Operation Toy Drop still has a week left of donations during unit tenant operations week, Dec. 7 thru 11, 2014, and donations still arriving from the community.
Toys will be delivered just in time for the holiday season to children in need around the Fort Bragg area to include, county departments of Social Services, children’s homes and children’s hospitals, totaling 27 organizations.
“I think that Operation Toy Drop is a very collaborative initiative because you get a lot of nice and beautiful things for children, you make a nice connection with the civilian world around Fort Bragg and the rest of North Carolina and on the other hand you have the friendship and coordination,” continued Pastorino. “And in my case, speaking personally, I think it’s such an honor and privilege to understand the friendship of the U.S. Army [and us]. You’re always underlining ‘oh you are guests!’ ‘It’s a privilege for us to have you here,’ ‘it’s an honor for me’ … so that’s really something. And honestly, it’s a privilege for us to be here.”
Even though Operation Toy Drop is about raising toys for children around the Fort Bragg area, the airborne operation is still an exercise in which airborne training is conducted. More than 4150 paratroopers, dozens of aircraft and six allied nations participate in the event.
Pastorino was contacted in May to start preparing for the world’s largest combined airborne operation. After initial contact, Pastorino began looking for the most qualified soldiers he has for the operation.
“The people I choose to come with me are very experienced and like to jump,” he explained. “We have lots of experience working with other countries like Russia, Portugal, Chile and more. We jump all over the world, basically just for the friendships, just for the camaraderie, just for the pleasure; to exchange wings with other people who share our passion.”
“I think this kind of event should be imitated around the world because as I mentioned before, it’s a very collaborate way to mix up military and civilian, which the U.S. knows; other countries, they are two separate worlds.” explained Pastorino. “What I like about the United States is that they all have U.S. flags in front of their homes; the people at the Super Bowl with their hand over their heart; people say to Soldier in uniform, ‘thank you for your service.’ These are things that being a military man inside and out has touched me very, very much.”
Pastorino explained the differences and similarities of the different countries training together on airborne operations, to include one of his favorite pieces of equipment.
“It's always a great opportunity for a military man to grow in his profession by working with and training with a U.S. Soldier on such a spectacular piece of equipment [speaking of the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter],” Pastorino said during the aircraft familiarization portion of jumpmaster training that also included the C-130 aircraft. “Your technology is more advanced than other countries, but on the same hand, it’s basically the same aircraft procedures that we would do on one of our airplanes.”
Even though Pastorino speaks English fluently, as it’s his second language, and he speaks French and Spanish, he elaborated on the camaraderie and friendships he has made with not only the U.S. Soldiers but with the other foreign jumpmasters from Poland, Germany, Indonesia, the Netherlands, and Latvia that participated this year as well.
“Its wonderful to see that it doesn’t matter what kind of uniform we have, it doesn’t matter what language we speak — the soul and the heart is the same,” he said. “I’m so happy to be here--I’m so proud to be here.”
| Date Taken: | 12.08.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 12.08.2014 15:23 |
| Story ID: | 149679 |
| Location: | FORT BRAGG, NC, US |
| Hometown: | MILANO, IT |
| Web Views: | 655 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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