Freedom Rest: Iraq’s "Getaway"

Photo By Sgt. Paul Holston | An outdoor swimming pool is one of the many amenities open to service members during their stay at Freedom Rest on Camp Victory. Guests are accommodated at the three story guest hotel, which also offers many enjoyment options such as a big-screen television, video games, fishing poles, laundry room and an on-demand travel van to points of interest around the base.  

BAGHDAD, IRAQ

03.10.2011

Story by Pfc. Paul Holston 

XVIII Airborne Corps Public Affairs

BAGHDAD - "Rest and Relaxation’"is a phrase that brings positive thoughts to most service members serving their country, especially while deployed thousands of miles away from home.

Working long hours seven days a week can be tiring and stressful, but fortunately there’s a place on Victory Base Complex where service members can rest and relax during a four-day pass.

Freedom Rest, located in Building 58A on Camp Victory, can be the destination of choice for winding down and escaping the tense deployment environment. It was created for just that purpose.

“The primary mission is to offer troops a place to relax for four days away from their units, the stress, the computers, the telephones, their weapons and to kind of recharge themselves before they go back,” said Cpt. Stephen Kaminsky, from Boise, Idaho, the Freedom Rest officer-in-charge and Camp Victory Deputy Mayor from Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team.

The complex is divided into two buildings; one is a three story guest hotel that can accommodate about 36 guests on a 96-hour pass. The other building, a former boathouse, houses many of the activities that keep service members entertained and occupied during their stay.

“Freedom Rest is a good place because it allows soldiers to relax and unwind,” said Pfc. Kristopher Daggett, from Petersburg, Va., a combat medic from Company C, 299th Brigade Support Battalion, 2nd BCT, 1st Infantry Division. “While there are many activities, they are all optional, depending on what the individual soldier wants to do.”

For entertainment, many amenities are open to guests, including a billiards room with two pool tables, a fully equipped gym with a beautiful view of the lake, furnished patios with free Wi-Fi, a large movie theatre with comfortable, leather couches, an Internet café and a video game room with an assortment of gaming systems.

If guests desire to take a dip, there is an outdoor swimming pool where they can hang out and enjoy themselves with no time restrictions.

Freedom Rest was first opened on March 30, 2010, and since then, its primary focus has changed a bit. Although the complex is currently available to all service members, priority of reservations was once based on those who worked away from the larger main bases.

“Originally it was designed for soldiers in combat units to come over here and relieve stress,” said Kaminsky. “Now that it’s for everyone, it offers a unique opportunity for soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines to get away from their units and enjoy their time here.”

Kaminsky said he believes that when the service members go back to their units, they will be able to perform at a higher level feeling
refreshed.

“The best thing about Freedom Rest is when you come here you don’t have to carry a weapon and you are allowed to wear civilian clothes,” said Kaminsky. “The ability to be able to take off the uniform, relax and be like a civilian for a couple days is always nice, especially here. I believe many others would agree.”

Daggett apparently agrees. He said that he would recommend it for his fellow soldiers because it’s a good chance for them to have some good downtime with no real set schedule and with no real worries about their job or supervisors.

For more information about Freedom Rest, including contacts, standard operating procedures, reservation request forms and DA Form 31 Leave Request, visit the United States Forces - Iraq intranet portal at https://
forces.iraq.centcom.mil/pages/default.aspx and click the Freedom Rest icon on the lower left side of the homepage.

• Date Taken: 03.10.2011
• Date Posted: 03.12.2011 08:38
• Story ID: 66932
• Location: BAGHDAD, IQ