CAMP ATTERBURY, Ind. – In an effort to touch the spiritual side of soldiers with the 205th Infantry Brigade, Brigade Maj. Michael Lozano, chaplain, hosted the brigade’s first prayer luncheon at the Atterbury Room in King’s Hall.
The theme of the luncheon was “Living in a Mickey Mouse World.”
“While I was trying to put this together, I realized, ‘Hey, I’m going on leave, and we’re going to Disney World, so what can I do with this’,” explained Lozano. “It got me thinking about not only this kind of leave, but who was Walt Disney himself and his life and struggles? Because, I will confess that I’m a closet Mickey Mouse fan.”
“It came to me late in life actually, about 15 years ago, when I got married. We had our honeymoon at Disney World, and I really got into Walt Disney -- where you can kind of just sit back and relax,” he said.
As the brigade soldiers eagerly sat and listened to the chaplain’s sermon, Lozano correlated Walt Disney building Disney land for his children to soldiers’ struggles with personal hardship.
"A person should set his goals as early as he can and devote all his energy and talent to getting there,” he said. “With enough effort, he may achieve it. Or, he may find something that is even more rewarding. But in the end, no matter what the outcome, he will know he has been alive."
Lozano’s message to the group was about dealing with their personal issues such as expenses, successes and failures.
“Whatever crises we’re going through now, it will pass and a better day will come,” he said.
"All the adversity I've had in my life, all my troubles and obstacles has strengthened me,” Lozano said. “You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you."
Lozano closed the prayer luncheon with everyone singing “Amazing Grace.”
According to Lozano, “The need for prayer luncheons is part of the religious support program that coincides with the commander’s Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program for soldiers.”
“By supporting the resiliency of spiritual fitness, we can offer a chance for people to come together in prayer and fellowship to hear some words that might inspire hope [that’s part of that resiliency],” added Lozano.”Sometimes we just need to be told that we can all get through adversity.”
A prayer luncheon is planned to be established quarterly for brigade soldiers to maintain the spiritual side of comprehensive fitness
The 205th Infantry Brigade executes readiness oversight, post-mobilization training and validation operations in accordance with Army Forces Generation, to provide trained and ready forces to the regional combatant commanders for the full spectrum of operations in multiple theaters of operation.