Photo By Staff Sgt. Shejal Pulivarti | U.S. Army Reserve Cpl. Scott Rogers, shower/laundry and clothing repair specialist for...... read more read more
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LOS ALAMITOS, Calif – Cpl. Scott Rogers marched down the street with his fellow soldiers of the137th Quartermaster Company Saturday during the Torrance Armed Forces Day parade and was humbled by what he saw.
“It was my first time marching in a parade and the tremendous support shown by the community was unbelievable,” said Rogers, an 11-year veteran and Riverside, Calif., native. “I think it’s important for the public to be able to interact with the military, as opposed to what they see and hear reported by the media.”
Rogers, who works as a marketing specialist for a civilian ambulance company, serves as a shower/laundry and clothing repair specialist for the 137th in the U.S. Army Reserve. However, he began his Army career more than a decade ago as a combat engineer.
Rogers sometimes still yearns for his days of being in the mud with the engineers.
“I miss being out in the field working with demolitions and explosives,” said Rogers. “It was something I always wanted to do growing up and was definitely a fun job with all the training we would do.”
However, after being out-of-state, he returned to Southern California to find there were no combat engineer units, and he had to switch career fields.
“It was definitely a culture change going from combat-arms to support,” said Rogers. “Being on the support side allowed me to see how everything works logistically, which opened up a whole new perspective of the Army for me.”
Rogers didn’t have the opportunity to deploy as an engineer, but went to Iraq with his current unit in 2008-09. He quickly realized how vital support soldiers are in providing combat units with the supplies and services they needed to sustain the fight, he said.
“One of our main missions in theater was to run [logistical] convoys for the company and to move equipment around from one place to another,” said Rogers. “We were always out on the road and we encountered improvised explosive devices and small-arms fire. I’m glad it provided me with the experience, so now I can pass it on to my soldiers.”
Coming from a combat background, Rogers joined the support element as a corporal, which is rare in non-combat military occupation specialties.
“As a corporal, I’ve had noncommissioned officer responsibilities, which has helped me gain support and be entrusted,” he said.
Although a corporal is an E-4, they are charged with responsibilities higher than their rank. Rogers is one of only two noncommissioned officers in his unit and assists in leading, training and mentoring the more junior soldiers.
This year his unit received the opportunity to take part in the Torrance Armed Forces Day. Rogers realizes what a privilege it was to participate in the parade.
“It’s good to see people appreciate what we do,” he said. “The response and support of the community was great.”
| Date Taken: | 05.18.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 05.21.2013 02:59 |
| Story ID: | 107293 |
| Location: | LOS ALAMITOS, CA, US |
| Hometown: | RIVERSIDE, CA, US |
| Web Views: | 134 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Clean break: Former combat engineer finds new calling, by SGT Scott Akanewich, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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