Photo By Maj. Andrew Adcock | A truck maneuvers into position to unload pizzas in preparation for Super Bowl...... read more read more
KANDAHAR AIR FIELD, Afghanistan – In the middle of an active combat zone, a familiar DHL aircraft carefully lands at Kandahar Airfield. The contents of the plane are not common military supplies, but rather thousands of Chicago-style deep dish pizzas destined for U.S. service members serving at outlying forward operating bases throughout Afghanistan.
The pizzas are part of the Pizza for Patriots program, which donates pizzas to military men and women stationed around the globe. The program operates through a unique combination of corporate and individual donations.
During “Operation Pizza Bowl”, some 4,050 pizzas were transported in preparation for Super Bowl XLV festivities from facilities at Kandahar and Bagram Airfields to outlying forward operating bases throughout Afghanistan. An additional 1,950 pizzas were also distributed throughout Iraq during the same period.
“We could not have pulled this off without the dedication and hard work from our subordinate units,” said Maj. Christina L. Burton, JSC-A class one subsistence officer. “This mission was a team effort and has given a whole new meaning to pizza delivery; Troops in the field deserve this.”
Transporting the “slices from home” in a combat zone is no easy task. DHL Express volunteered their shipping services for the overseas endeavor. After the pies arrived in theater, Joint Sustainment Command – Afghanistan was tasked with coordinating the movement of the pizzas forward to individual operating bases via armored convoys. With logistics expertise from the 43rd and 101st Sustainment Brigades, stationed at Kandahar and Bagram Airfields respectively, the pizzas were delivered on-time for game day.
“The Pizza for Patriots program is an excellent morale booster to the most forward deployed Soldiers serving in Afghanistan. The soldiers are provided with high-quality pizzas that exceed the standards of quality they are normally afforded. Without a doubt, this program helps to improve esprit de corps and team cohesion,” said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Charles H. Talley Jr., 43rd Sustainment Brigade command food service technician.
This year marks the third year Pizzas for Patriots has donated pies to service members serving overseas. The organization has also delivered pizzas on Independence and Veteran’s Days. To date, the organization has shipped a total of 41,500 pizzas, enough to feed some 124,500 Troops, around the globe.
“It is our goal to make them feel they are not forgotten but remembered and appreciated by the country and residents who enjoy the freedoms that they provide for us,” said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. (Ret.) Mark Evans, Pizza for Patriots founder and CEO.
| Date Taken: | 02.06.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 02.10.2011 03:13 |
| Story ID: | 65102 |
| Location: | KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, AF |
| Web Views: | 173 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Super Bowl XLV: Pizza for Patriots, by MAJ Andrew Adcock, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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