Photo By Staff Sgt. David Strayer | Pfc. Anthony Richardson, an infantryman serving with Company A, 2nd Battalion, 12th...... read more read more
CONTINGENCY OPERATING SITE WARRIOR, Iraq - For one infantryman serving with 1st Advise and Assist Task Force, 1st Infantry Division, working alongside Iraqi counterparts during Operation New Dawn proved to be a profound experience.
Currently on his first deployment to Iraq, Pfc. Anthony Richardson, Company A, 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, 1st AATF, trains and conducts operations with the Kirkuk expanded Combined Security Force – a unit comprised of Iraqi Army soldiers, Kurdish Regional Guard and Iraqi policemen.
“On a daily basis we work with the CSF,” said Richardson, a native of Marion, Ohio. “We load up and head out to the training areas, or we gear up to go out on a combined patrol with them; there usually isn’t a day that goes by where we aren’t with those guys. We have been together so much that working with the CSF guys is really not any different than working with my platoon-mates now.”
Working with the Combined Security Force is a unique and momentous tasking, especially since the CSF expanded into a battalion-sized element, said Spc. Raul Verduzco, Company A, who serves as Richardson’s team leader.
Richardson said the eCSF trains on the same tactics that U.S. forces train on, including basic rifle marksmanship, small unit tactics, first aid and counter insurgency operations. They respond to the training well, he added.
Many people respond to the rigors of a yearlong deployment in a variety of ways. Some read, some go to the gym, others immerse themselves in reflecting upon their missions.
“This is his first deployment, and I’m sure like most of us, he didn’t really expect to be doing this type of [advisory] mission,” said Verduzco, a native of Brooklyn, N.Y. “Working so closely with the CSF, however, has really had an impact on him. For a guy his age to be working in such a significant position, on such a unique mission, it’s pretty life-changing.”
“Instead of just trying to do his deployment time and go home, Richardson has really adapted to the mission and embraced it,” said Verduzco. “It has helped him mature, and I believe that he is a much better soldier and a better person as a result.”
After nearly a full year of training, instructing and conducting operations with members of the expanded Combined Security Force, Richardson’s time in Kirkuk province is nearly over.
Richardson said the measure of success in the mission will be seen in the future of the eCSF units he and his company helped train.
“They are pretty much going to be operating completely independently from us, and it is extremely gratifying to see them get to this point and to know that I personally had a hand in it,” said Richardson.
“We were here to not only witness, but also help facilitate the expansion and the growth of the original CSF company into a battalion-sized element that works alongside U.S. forces with its own operational footprint on COS Warrior,” said Richardson. “I have learned a lot over the course of this tour, not only about myself, but about the people and culture of Iraq.”
Richardson said he feels a great part of himself was invested in the growth of the eCSF, and a great part of the eCSF provided him personal development.
“It’s an experience I will carry with me for a long time,” he said.
| Date Taken: | 07.20.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 07.21.2011 07:44 |
| Story ID: | 74057 |
| Location: | CONTINGENCY OPERATING STATION WARRIOR, IQ |
| Web Views: | 88 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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