KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan — In an effort to keep soldiers spiritually fit and to strengthen their character and values, the 3rd Sustainment Brigade hosted a prayer breakfast, Feb. 20, in Kandahar, Afghanistan.
“The intent is to strengthen and mold the character and values of soldiers so they may do their mission for the good of all men with integrity and honor," said 3rd Sustainment Brigade Chaplain (Maj.) Chris Wallace, a Hampton, Va., native. “A soldier is one person who carries many weights. To be fit you need food for physical strength, rest for mental toughness, along with prayer for spiritual fitness.”
About 50 Task Force Provider soldiers attended the event held at the Independence Dining Facility on Kandahar Airfield where prayer was on the menu. Padre Simon Chapman, a chaplain with the Royal Air Force, United Kingdom, was the guest speaker and served up a motivational sermon to those in attendance.
“The military can be an absolutely fantastic place for us to learn to work together as a team, to learn to live side by side with people that are very different from us,” said Chapman.
Chapman continued with a story about his father-in-law’s rowing team who stopped to save a capsized boat during an Olympic event. He spoke about the importance of putting others before oneself.
“I like it when people include personal stories in the speeches,” said Sgt. Jennifer Wilson, a paralegal specialist with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd Sustainment Brigade, and Lakeland, Fla., native. “It’s easier to understand the message. I felt like I needed something uplifting today, and Chaplain Chapman hit home with it: selfless service.”
Along with the Army values, the prayer breakfast fits into the Provider’s Comprehensive Soldier and Family Fitness campaign.
“This is a great day,” said Lt. Col. James Brown, the ‘Provider’ brigade’s deputy commander, and Chattanooga, Tenn., native. “We get to be together and work on our spiritual resilience and maintain balance in our lives and profession.
“Spiritual resiliency is what gets me through 95 percent of adversity in my life,” Brown continued. “I couldn’t get through it without it.”