FORT POLK, Louisiana – The 103rd Quartermaster Company, an Army Reserve unit, is providing support sustainment operations for over 4,000 U.S. Army Soldiers and Allied partners during rotation 16-04 at the Joint Readiness Training Center Fort Polk, Louisiana.
The 103rd Quartermaster Company, an Army Reserve unit, is providing support sustainment operations for over 4,000 U.S. Army Soldiers and Allied partners during rotation 16-04 at the Joint Readiness Training Center Fort Polk, Louisiana.
Although the unit is only in the middle of the rotation, the Reserve Soldiers were put alongside their active duty counterparts to simulate a deployment like environment.
“These kinds of partnerships or operations are beneficial for the Army as a whole, as we move forward as a force,” said Capt. Jared Grant, the Officer in Charge of the Intelligence Cell for the 17th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion.
“This is how we deploy,” said the Central Maine native, who previously deployed with his unit last year to Afghanistan and fell under command of a Reserve unit downrange. “As the Army gets smaller on the active duty side, these relationships are going to be essential moving forward.”
Falling into a leadership role, Soldiers from the 103rd Quartermaster Company provide critical supporting elements during the JRTC rotation that range from water purification services to fueling services for Soldiers located within the exercise.
“We’re trying to alleviate the burden for the guys in the box,” said Spc. Brandi Jayroe, a unit supply specialist for the 103rd Quartermaster Company. “It’s a little less for them to worry about, so they can focus on getting the mission done and taking care of what needs to be taken care of.”
The quartermaster company executes five of the seven different Quartermaster War-Fighting Functions during this particular rotation of JRTC.
“We’re distributing supply, subsistence, fuel or petroleum, water and other field services to the Soldiers located within the box,” said the Houston native, who describes how these services are essential to maintain operations located within the exercise area of JRTC.
“It gives us the bigger picture experience of it.” said Jayroe. “We’re actually seeing everything kind of happen right in front of us. As a Reserve unit we’re in our own little world, and we’re there once a month; but seeing this every day, watching it happen, watching it move around us. It opens our eyes and it really broadens our horizons.”
Other Soldiers in the 103rd Quartermaster Company are learning the value of teamwork among their active duty colleagues.
“Our MOS’s don’t save our lives but that basic Soldiering [skills] do,” said 1st. Lt. Whitney Jackson, the Company Commander for the 103rd Quartermaster Company. Who went on to describe how her Soldiers learned from their active duty counterparts.
“My youngest Soldiers were actually very ecstatic about [working with active duty Soldiers],” said the New Orleans native. “The active duty component made sure they were open for [our] Soldiers to learn what they do on a daily basis.”
Jackson went on to say that some of her Soldiers do their Army jobs in the civilian world and provided a different perspective, or a different way to accomplish the same goal for their active duty counterparts.
“Even though we are Reserve [Soldiers] and they’re active, at the end of the day we all wear U.S. Army on our uniform and that’s the only thing that matters,” said Jackson.
| Date Taken: | 02.18.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 02.20.2016 11:28 |
| Story ID: | 189469 |
| Location: | FORT POLK, LA, US |
| Hometown: | HOUSTON, TX, US |
| Hometown: | NEW ORLEANS, LA, US |
| Web Views: | 111 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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