Photo By Sgt. Benjamin Kullman | Soldiers from 60th Ordnance Company, 68th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 43rd...... read more read more
By Capt. Adrian Rosado
Commander, 60th Ordnance Company, 68th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 43rd Sustainment Brigade
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The 45-member 4th Infantry Division food services team competed in the Philip A. Connelly Awards Program for Excellence in Army Food Service field kitchen category at the III Corps level April 1, 2015.
Led by the 60th Ordnance Company, 68th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 43rd Sustainment Brigade, the team worked in a field environment for almost 30 days. During the evaluation, the team cooked breakfast and lunch.
The Connelly competition represents a personal challenge to the individual Soldiers competing, said Sgt. 1st Class Francis Orcutt, food services NCO in charge, 60th Ord.
“We hit ground on (March 7, 2015), and have been going ever since,” said Orcutt. “We’ve really been pushing the Soldiers, and they have really been pushing themselves to get this done. We’ve done two months’ worth of work in probably three weeks’ time.”
The field kitchen was evaluated on supervision and training; dining facility administration; headcount procedures; requisition, receipt, and storage procedures; food safety and protection; command support; appearance and attitude of food service personnel; serving and troop acceptability; equipment and facilities; and food preparation quality.
The program is regulated within Army Regulation 30-22 and named in honor of Philip A. Connelly, who the U.S. Army Quartermaster Corps website describes as a man who worked diligently and earnestly throughout his life to promote professionalism in food service, in both the civilian industry and military services. The competition encourages and recognizes deserving units for superb performance.
“Overall, with the short time suspense we had to do it, the Soldiers went above and beyond,” said Master Sgt. Willie Poole, 43rd SB chief food service sergeant. “To … get chosen for the (Connelly competition) was based on their previous accomplishments. They had already demonstrated their excellence.”
Orcutt believes that facing the elements out in the field were the most difficult aspect of the setup, site preparation and evaluation. The field kitchen staff members rushing to replace supports and tents blowing over by the winds were a common occurrence.
“The most difficult part is maintaining (the site) with the high wind velocity we have here at Fort Carson,” Orcutt said.
Established in 1968, the Army’s preeminent food service competition recognizes excellence in Army Food Service. The Connelly Program, co-sponsored by the International Food Service Executives Association, the Department of the Army and the National Restaurant Association, is intended to improve the professionalism of food service personnel thus providing the best quality food service to Soldiers across the world.
“This is something I’ve always wanted to do,” said Orcutt. “I had the opportunity, so I just jumped in with both boots and started marching forward.”
The III Corps evaluation is the first tier of the competition. The next level will be conducted by U.S. Army Forces Command in June and then the Department of the Army in August.
“We picked the right team for it,” said Poole. “If one Soldier says, ‘I learned something’ from that situation then the objective was achieved.”
| Date Taken: | 04.01.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 04.22.2015 16:46 |
| Story ID: | 160852 |
| Location: | COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, US |
| Hometown: | COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, US |
| Web Views: | 55 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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