69th ADA wins FORSCOM Field Connelly, will compete at DA level

Photo By Capt. Robert Holmes | Spc. Julio Morris, a food service specialist with Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, prepares food for Soldiers July 16, on Fort Hood, Texas during the U.S. Army Forces Command Philip A. Connelly Competition. Morris, a Jasper, Ind., native, and the other Soldiers on the brigade’s team won field category of the competition and will compete at the Department of the Army level next year. (U.S Army photo by Capt. Robert Holmes/69th ADA Bde. Public Affairs Office)  

FORT HOOD, TX, UNITED STATES

08.18.2015

Story by Staff Sgt. Kimberly Hackbarth 

69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade

FORT HOOD, Texas – The team of food service specialists from 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, a part of 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command, recently took first place at the U.S. Army Forces Command (FORSCOM) Philip A. Connelly Competition in the field category.

The unit competed in the competition in February and was chosen to represent III Corps and Fort Hood at the FORSCOM level of the competition, which took place here, July 16.

Now, the team will compete at the Department of the Army (DA) level early next year.

While being a part of a team with a winning streak can be exciting, it is also nerve-wracking, according to Sgt. Brenda Geiger, a food service specialist with Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 69th ADA Bde.

“It’s nerve-wracking to me because now we’re actually going for DA level,” she said.

Though added pressure comes with representing all of the food service personnel in FORSCOM at the next competition, the win is still welcomed by Geiger and the rest of the team, she said.

“It’s exciting to know that we actually beat out all the other competitors in something this big,” the Atlanta native, explained. “It says that we’re hard workers, we’re dedicated and we’re definitely ready to fight and accomplish any kind of mission we’re thrown into.”

Only the noncommissioned officer in charge of the team had ever competed in the field category of the Connelly Competition before, said Geiger.

Though he had never participated in the competition before, Spc. Julio Morris, a food service specialist with HHB, 69th ADA Bde., said he was previously on Fort Hood’s culinary arts team, so he felt he could contribute to the brigade’s team for the Connelly Competition.

Morris has endured many changes since his first competition earlier this year.

During the first competition, Morris said he worked in the outside feeding tent, but began working in the mobile kitchen trailer (MKT) during the second competition.

The other Soldier he worked with in the MKT left the unit, so he will have a new partner during the DA level competition.

Regardless of all the changes, the Jasper, Indiana, native, said he hopes to use his experiences to help the team win at the DA level, since the team has worked so hard to get where they are.

“We all came together to get the mission done,” he explained.

Geiger said that she and her team would not have been as successful without the support from their brigade.

“It feels nice to know we have people who have our backs,” she said.

The recognition the team has received from the brigade, Fort Hood and FORSCOM helps bring attention to the good work that the food service people do, since they do not usually get a lot of credit, Geiger said.

“Anybody could read and cook,” she said. “In the field, anybody can pour a bag into a pot and heat it up, but most people don’t know what exactly (our food service Soldiers) do.”

Morris agreed, adding that the recognition helps fellow Soldiers understand that their team is the best and they can cook meals in a field environment and do it well.

“It shows that we have pride in what we do,” he said. “We’re enhancing the meal to make it better.”

Preparing for the DA level competition will be different for the 69th ADA Bde. team since there is a larger gap between competitions and the Soldiers on the team have since returned to their duties at the Patriot Inn Dining Facility (DFAC).

Both Geiger and Morris said returning to regular garrison DFAC operations will make them prepare for the next competition more meticulously, since field food service is different than working in an already established facility.

The team will have to set up their field feeding site again, which requires knowing exact distances between feeding tents, latrines, handing washing stations, and many other pieces of the site.

They will also take what they have learned from the last two competitions and apply it to the next competition, said Geiger.

For Geiger, preparing her Soldiers for the weather is equally as important as preparing them on the technical aspects of the competition, she said.

“All I want is to make sure my Soldiers are well taken care of and that they’re ready for the cold, the long hours, and anything that gets thrown to us,” she said.

Morris said his goal is to take first place and have fun with the team he competes with in the next competition.

• Date Taken: 08.18.2015
• Date Posted: 08.18.2015 14:17
• Story ID: 173495
• Location: FORT HOOD, TX, US
• Hometown: ATLANTA, GA, US
• Hometown: JASPER, IN, US