Photo By Staff Sgt. Kenneth Hatten | From left, Master Sgt. Purvis Gray, non-commissioned officer in charge of the KAF...... read more read more
KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan - The Kandahar humanitarian assistance yard provides food, clothing and essential supplies to families in need throughout Afghanistan.
The yard was established in 2009 as part of a program to provide assistance in the wake of natural disasters, as well as supporting the Afghan people during the reconstruction efforts by furnishing them with much-needed supplies.
“We have two programs at the yard, which are CERP [Commander’s Emergency Relief Program] and donated,” said Air Force Staff Sgt. Bianca Gravitt, a humanitarian assistance team inventory controller. “The CERP program is mostly made up of food and related supplies, and on the donated side, we have school and hygiene kits that are provided by various charity and community groups back home.”
The yard has approximately 150 Conex shipping containers set up to receive and store the various types of supplies, and from here, the HA yard staff count, sort and prepare bulk packages for delivery to local communities.
“The supplies are ordered by the individual units in the field,” said Master Sgt. Purvis Gray, HA Yard non-commissioned officer in charge.“We assemble the packages and then set up transportation for them by air or ground assets. The unit can also come and pick the supplies up themselves.”
All of the service members who work at the yard take part in all stages of preparation, from sorting, packing and verifying that all requested items are in the packages, all the way to getting them loaded on the trucks.
“I organize transportation to get the supplies out to the people in need,” said Senior Airman Tessa Rodriguez. “I order trucks to pick up and transport the supplies, as well as arranging air transport. It’s very involved process, but we make sure that everything is packed and ready to go on a moment’s notice.”
The yard has seven service members on the staff, as well as 11 local nationals who help assemble the packages and pass them out to the local communities. The yard operates seven days a week, and is ready to provide assistance as needed in the event of natural or man-made disasters.
“The work hours depend on the mission,” said Gravitt, “and when the items are needed. My job is to ensure that all of our CERP supplies are up to date and accounted for.”
The humanitarian assistance items are normally replenished on an as-needed basis, and many of the supplies are purchased from local vendors, which helps to stimulate the local economy as well as build partnerships between JSC-A and the Afghan people.
“It takes forever to build roads and schools, but we have supplies here that we can get to the war fighters right now,” said Staff Sgt. Christopher Breaux, replenishment non-commissioned officer in charge. “That way, they can make an immediate effect on the quality of life in Afghanistan.”
“The mission of the yard is super, and I couldn’t ask for a better job,” said Breaux. “Instead of bullets, we’re shooting out beans, rice and flour to people in need.”
| Date Taken: | 02.02.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 05.08.2011 08:54 |
| Story ID: | 70052 |
| Location: | KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, AF |
| Web Views: | 147 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
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