Photo By Maj. Charles An | Spc. Zachary Cregle, 379th Combat Blood Support Detachment, prepares a patient in...... read more read more
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FORT HOOD, Texas – The 15 soldiers of the 379th Blood Support Detachment will embark on a new journey as they leave for the unit’s first deployment to Afghanistan. This nine-month deployment also marks the unit’s first deployment since Operation Desert Storm in 1991.
The 379th BSD is an Army Reserve unit out of Newtown Square, Pa., and have spent four weeks at Fort Hood since January to prepare for their deployment, but the efforts to get to this point stretches beyond those four weeks. The efforts to get to them ready for deployment in itself was a journey which began with a new lieutenant assigned to rebuild a unit that was nonexistent when she took command and stood the unit up just over two years ago, and a legacy that reaches over 20 years into the past.
During their four weeks of training at Fort Hood, the 379th BSD received a visit by Brig. Gen. John Donnelly III, Deputy Commanding General for the 3rd Medical Command Deployment Support. Donnelly made the visit to Fort Hood to see the progress of the unit, and to wish them well before their deployment.
“It’s a real special privilege for me to come and see you guys,” said Donnelly speaking to the 379th BSD. “I commanded this unit back when it was the 379th Blood Bank Headquarters from ’88 to ’92, went to Desert Storm/Desert Shield, came back and folded the flag in ’92.”
It was not until Nov. 11, 2011, when the 379th BSD became a unit again since the unit went away in 1992.
“I read the orders and stood them up,” said Lt. Col. Lesley Watts, commander of the 424th Multifunctional Medical Battalion during that time.
Watts brought in 1st Lt. Tonia Lowe, a microbiologist, to stand up the 379th BSD and command the unit. “Lieutenant Lowe was the detachment commander, and she built that unit up from the ground,” added Watts. “She had everyone sent to school and MOS qualified.”
Having all soldiers trained in their Military Occupational Specialty, or MOS, is a task that must be met for units to be ready for deployment. Those requirements are met during a timeline known as Army Force Generation, or ARFORGEN, and for the Army Reserve the cycle is a five-year cycle of readiness training to prepare for deployment.
“We are in our AFORGEN cycle training year two. We all worked hard to be MOS qualified, trained and ready to be deployed in record time,” explained Capt. Peter Martin, current commander of 379th BSD.
Martin, an Army blood banker from Cucamonga, Calif., took command of 379th BSD on April 1, 2013. Lt. Col. Watts noted the dedication from Martin by saying, “he flew in on a monthly basis” to Pennsylvania.
Being trained and ready to go, Martin has a familiar concern for their deployment. When asked what challenges he sees on their upcoming deployment, Martin’s response was “safety concerns for the troops and staying in constant communication with Kandahar Air Field.”
Main operations for 379th BSD will be split between Bagram Air Field where Martin will be, and at Kandahar Air Field which will be led by 379th BSD Executive Officer Capt. David Spring.
The soldiers spent part of their four weeks of training at Fort Hood to fine-tune their skills in drawing, preserving and maintaining, and the transportation and transfer of blood. The 379th BSD will provide much needed blood to hospitals and surgical teams in their perspective areas of operation in Afghanistan during their nine-month deployment.
As the members of the 379th BSD begin their deployment to Afghanistan, they will restart and continue a long-lasting legacy that will help save lives, and the road getting there is one that all can be proud of.
| Date Taken: | 03.01.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 03.01.2014 10:47 |
| Story ID: | 121367 |
| Location: | FORT HOOD, TX, US |
| Hometown: | NEWTOWN SQUARE, PA, US |
| Hometown: | RANCHO CUCAMONGA, CA, US |
| Web Views: | 975 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, 379th Blood Support Detachment continues legacy in upcoming deployment, by MAJ Charles An, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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