Photo By Staff Sgt. Michael Pryor | Maj. Gen. David Rodriguez, the 82nd Airborne Division's commanding general, answers...... read more read more
Subscribe
By Staff Sgt. Mike Pryor
2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division Public Affairs
BAGHDAD – This Christmas, paratroopers in Iraq received a visitor from a cold and frozen place.
No, not the north pole.
Maj. Gen. David Rodriguez, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division, took time off from directing the operations of U.S. troops in eastern Afghanistan to visit paratroopers from the division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team at two outposts in northeast Baghdad, Dec. 23.
Rodriguez arrived by helicopter with Command Sgt. Maj. Thomas Capel, the 82nd's senior non-commissioned officer, to spend the morning with the "White Falcons" of 2nd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, at Coalition Outpost Callahan in the Sha'ab area of Baghdad. In the afternoon, they flew to COP War Eagle in the Rabi area to meet with the "Black Falcons" of 2nd Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment.
At COP Callahan, Rodriguez swore in 28 'White Falcons' during a mass re-enlistment ceremony. He also recognized 16 troopers who earned the Purple Heart on this deployment and returned to duty. At War Eagle, Rodriguez and Capel presented coins to 30 outstanding 'Black Falcons.' At both outposts, Rodriguez and Capel spent time meeting and talking to the paratroopers one-on-one in their living quarters and in the dining facilities.
While Rodriguez and Capel were the VIPs, the spotlight, they said, belonged on the paratroopers themselves for their successes on this deployment. Among their achievements, paratroopers from the 2nd BCT were the first to arrive in Iraq as part of the surge of U.S. ground forces at the beginning of 2007, and among the first to push out into Baghdad to set up bases and live among the people - a major shift in strategy that some observers have credited with the dramatic improvement in the city's security situation.
In his remarks at COP War Eagle, Capel said that the paratroopers had taken part in a historic turning point in the history of Iraq.
"You have done some amazing stuff here, some stuff people would never have believed could happen before you put boots on the ground over here," Capel said.
Rodriguez told the paratroopers that the sacrifices they were making in Iraq were keeping friends and family back home safe during the holidays.
"There are 300 million people back in the United States of America who are having a nice vacation this holiday season because of people like you," Rodriguez said.
Paratroopers at COP Callahan said they appreciated the visit, especially given the time of year and the fact that Rodriguez and Capel could be elsewhere.
"Being that it's the Christmas holidays, the fact that they're out here with us really means a lot to myself and the other paratroopers serving with the White Falcons," said 1st Lt. Derrick Syed, a platoon leader from Jersey City, N.J. Syed was recognized by Rodriguez for returning to duty after being shot in the shoulder by a sniper while on patrol.
Sgt. Clifford Beard of Cottage Grove, Minn., a squad leader with Co. B., 2nd Bn., 325th AIR, said it was important for top commanders to get out and visit with the troops.
"It shows the troopers that there is someone from that upper echelon that supports what they do out here," Beard said. "It lets us know that we're all one team, one fight and everybody's in this together."
| Date Taken: | 12.26.2007 |
| Date Posted: | 12.26.2007 16:32 |
| Story ID: | 15017 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 1,158 |
| Downloads: | 944 |
This work, A Christmas visit from the brass: 82nd Airborne commander visits paratroopers in Baghdad, by SSG Michael Pryor, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT