Meet your Defender Spc. Simona Fermano [Image 2 of 2]

TIRANA, ALBANIA

05.16.2021

Photo by Staff Sgt. Elizabeth Bryson 

U.S. Army Europe and Africa     

U.S. Army Spc. Simona Fermano, a human resource specialist originally from Florida, now currently assigned to the 569th Human Resource Company out of Baumholder, Germany, stands near an airfield at the Tirana International Airport May 16, 2021, in Tirana, Albania. Fermano was on hand to welcome incoming National Guard troops from the 53rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, also from Florida, who will be training in Albania as part of DEFENDER-Europe 21 exercises now underway here and throughout the European Theater.

“My job is to help receive these soldiers, support the incoming personnel,” Fermano said “We are just here to make sure everyone gets where they are supposed to go— and make sure they can be accounted for in this country.”

Fermano said she was eager for her fellow Floridians to get to know the Albanian people and visit the countryside here.

“It is really beautiful here,” Fermano said. “The landscape is just amazing, the mountains are beautiful… and the people are wonderful hosts. It’s very heartwarming.”

DEFENDER-Europe 21 is a large-scale U.S. Army-led exercise designed to build readiness and interoperability between the U.S., NATO allies and partner militaries. This year, more than 28,000 multinational forces from 26 nations will conduct nearly simultaneous operations across more than 30 training areas in more than a dozen countries from the Baltics to the strategically important Balkans and Black Sea Region. Follow the latest news and information about DEFENDER-Europe 21, visit www.EuropeAfrica.army.mil/DefenderEurope. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Elizabeth O. Bryson)

• Date Taken: 05.16.2021
• Date Posted: 05.18.2021 01:32
• Photo ID: 6649239
• VIRIN: 210516-A-DQ632-218
• Resolution: 6720x4480
• Size: 2.51 MB
• Location: TIRANA, AL