Life-changing moments

Photo By Sgt. Jesse Smith | Sgt. Mousa Dassama runs back to place a fuel hose down Jan. 7 at the helipad on Camp Stanley in South Korea. He had just finished refueling an OH-58 Kiowa helicopter.  

PYEONGTAEK, 41, SOUTH KOREA

01.07.2015

Story by Sgt. Jesse Smith 

2nd Combat Aviation Brigade

CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea – During the Liberian Civil War over 200,000 people died. Strife and famine devoured the country. People were killed day and night while boys younger than 15 were called on to fight.

The horridness would eventually lead to intervention from U.S. Soldiers and one African boy’s life would be changed forever.

That 17-year-old boy was Sgt. Mousa Dassama, originally from Liberia and now a horizontal construction engineer with the Co. A, 602nd Aviation Support Battalion, 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division.

“I was really amazed by what they did,” Dassama said. The Soldiers came in and stabilized the country so quickly he said. “I saw that with my own eyes.”

Dassama said that at that moment he decided he wanted join the U.S. Army. He did so in 2007 when he joined the U.S. Army reserves, but in 2008 he wanted to go active and did as a construction engineer.

Dassama is now in a unit with 12 petroleum supply specialists, also called fuelers, on Camp Stanley in South Korea. This unit is in charge of a key fuel point for the 2nd CAB’s mission on the Peninsula. Although he is an engineer, Dassama said he decided he couldn’t just sit around and watch his battle buddies work.

“I have to cross-train,” Dassama said. “I have to work with this team.”

He said that he has learned a lot from working with fuelers and has actually been training his team on his own job as well. He has taught them how to drive heavy equipment and how to move the snow on the helipad.

“Working with the fuelers has been really amazing,” Dassama said.

He said that his team works 12 hours and then have 24 hours off. They also work over holidays and weekends do to the high requirement for fuel.

Dassama said that the unit issues over 440,000 gallons of gasoline a year and around 500 total vehicles receive gas from it a month.

The 13 Soldiers on Camp Stanley work hand-in-hand with 12 Korean Service Corps workers. Some of which have been working there for over 30 years and they work tirelessly just as the Soldiers do.

Dassama said he is currently working toward a bachelor’s degree in emergency management and has already obtained in associate’s degree in general studies. He has a wife and four kids waiting for him back home in the U.S.

Dassama said that he joined the Army so that he could make a difference just like the Soldiers did for him when he was a boy.

“With two deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan I think that I have done that,” Dassama said.

It has been several years since the First Liberian Civil War and from its tragedy came a great opportunity. Dassama has been in the service for over seven years now and he said he plans on retiring from the Army and is proud to be called a United States Army Soldier.

• Date Taken: 01.07.2015
• Date Posted: 01.09.2015 00:38
• Story ID: 151571
• Location: PYEONGTAEK, 41, KR