COSCOM G-1 provides valuable services

Photo By Sgt. Spencer Case | Willie Wilson, a senior human resources specialist and 1st Lt. Kerrie Hoffman, verify imputs inot the Deployed Soldier Accountability Software for 3rd Corps Support Command, Feb. 28.  

03.16.2006

Courtesy Story

207th Public Affairs Detachment

When Lt. Col. Karen Rosser, the 3rd Corps Support Command G-1, is not working in the Joint Operations Center, she often stops by the hospital to visit sick and injured troops, sometimes bringing candy to cheer them up.

Rosser said that her visits are an extension of the philosophy of helping Soldiers that she applies to her work every day with the rest of the G-1 staff.

"We take care of Soldiers, it's all about Soldier care, we do awards, we process actions, we play a major part in the overall scheme of everything," Rosser said.

The G-1 Soldiers are responsible for more than collecting information about Soldier statuses for the 3rd COSCOM commanding general, Brig. Gen. Rebecca Halstead.

One of the biggest ways the Soldiers in G-1 help troops is by making sure every unit is properly staffed to accomplish its mission. Soldiers working in the strength management section track Soldiers through four kinds of reports, said 1st Lt. Kerrie Hoffman, the enlisted strength manager for 3rd COSCOM.

If a unit is undermanned, the G-1 will meet with the O-6 command S-1 within 30 days of the unit arriving in theater to see if they can manage with the resources they have. If the unit can't function without more Soldiers, the G-1 will request more Soldiers from a home station, or in the case of National Guard or Reserve, from the mobilization station. If that fails, they can request for someone to be reassigned within theater.

"If it's anything related to the strength of a unit, it comes through us," Hoffman said.

When most Soldiers think of G-1, two things come to mind: awards and Rest and Recuperation (R&R). Both issues are handled by Soldiers in the operations office, which acts as a liaison between major subordinate commands (MSCs) and Multinational Corps-Iraq, said Sgt. 1st Class Neil Van Cura, the NCOIC of the operations office. MNC-I relays the number of R&R slots available to the G-1 operations office, which makes sure they are distributed evenly to the MSCs.

The operations office also processes all awards in the MSCs. They approve Purple Hearts, Bronze Stars, Meritorious Service Medals and Army Commendation Medals for battalions that are not connected to O-6 [command] groups. Since they arrived in theater the operations office has processed nearly 2,000 awards, including 1,055 Combat Action Badges, 552 Bronze Stars and 63 Purple Hearts, Van Cura said.

"We're here to help the Soldiers, to serve the Soldiers," Van Cura said, "and we do everything to make sure their R&R, or pass, or award goes smoothly so they can get the recognition they deserve."

While the operations office is processing awards and R&R forms, Sgt. 1st Class John Savard of the casualty cell deals with a much darker side of war, tracking injuries and illnesses from inception until the Soldier is returned to duty or is placed in a stateside (level 5) hospital.

"Our job is to keep the general and MNC-I aware of injuries and illnesses affecting Soldiers and civilians," Savard said.

Though the job is important, it is not glamorous, he said. "It's not a good job when we're busy," Savard said "When I'm busy, Soldiers are getting hurt."

Battle injuries are classified in three phases: not serious injuries, serious injuries and very serious injuries. At the level of serious injury, the person's next of kin must be informed. The injuries are further classified according to how they happened, as combat injuries or non-combat injuries. The casualty cell receives reports of injuries from the Air Force Theater Hospital and forwards that information to the Casualty Area Command, Savard said.

In addition, the casualty cell is also the forwarding point of letters of condolence, starting from lowest level to highest in accordance with AR 600-8-1.

Rosser credits her Soldiers for being able to come together to seamlessly accomplish the broad range of tasks.

"I couldn't ask for a better group of Soldiers, noncommissioned officers, enlisted and officers," Rosser said.

• Date Taken: 03.16.2006
• Date Posted: 03.16.2006 10:16
• Story ID: 5754