Courtesy Photo | Maj. Barry Hafer (left), a Marshall, Texas, native, helps review population perception...... read more read more
By Spc. April Campbell
Multi-National Division - Baghdad
CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq – Unlike most National Guardsmen who train and mobilize together as a whole unit before deploying to Iraq, some guardsmen deploy individually and are attached to active duty units.
Such is the case for Maj. Barry Hafer, a Marshall, Texas, native, and a member of the 5th Battalion, 112th Field Artillery Regiment, 36th Infantry Division, Texas Army National Guard, who serves as the Red Team leader with the 4th Infantry Division and Multi-National Division – Baghdad.
In early 2007, the 4th Infantry Division initiated plans for the first division-level Red Team, a team designed to work with different staff sections performing critical reviews and challenging cultural assumptions. The position on the Red Team caught Hafer's attention, and he volunteered for the job.
"I thought it was a great opportunity," Hafer said. "It's a leading edge concept."
With having a civilian job in industry and manufacturing, the ability to get to root causes and bring up the sensitive questions along with helping to find solutions interested him very much, Hafer added.
At the time, Lt. Col. Mike Runey, an Exeter, N.H., native, who now serves as the chief of plans with the 4th Inf. Div. and MND-B, was asked to lead the team and help choose two guardsmen who would best fit the role.
"There were several candidates put forward by the Texas National Guard at the time," said Runey. "They thought Maj. Hafer would be a good fit, and we thought so too. It worked out well for us."
With less than a week notice, Hafer began training for the new position. In April, he attended the University of Foreign Military and Cultural Studies at Fort Leavenworth, Kan. There, he met the other two Soldiers, including Runey, comprising the division's Red Team. This would be the first step in Hafer's deployment.
While he had initially planned upon deploying with the 4th Inf. Div. shortly after completing the course, the division's initial deployment date was later pushed back until November. Hafer went to Fort Hood and trained with the Ivy Division until that time.
While Hafer has spent many long hours working to accomplish his mission during this deployment, the hard work with the division is not the only sacrifice he has made. Hafer, a family man, businessman and leader in his community, had to put his civilian life on hold without much preparation time.
"I left a lot of good people with almost no notice, and everyone in Marshall stepped up and was incredibly supportive," said Hafer.
Hafer was actively involved in the Marshall Rotary Club, the Marshall Chamber of Commerce and the Harrison County Manufacturing Council. He was also the director of operations for Mecar USA, a military ammunitions manufacturer, he added.
While he and his wife did not know when or where he would deploy, being a Soldier in the National Guard, Hafer said he knew he most likely would deploy. This helped to mentally prepare the Hafers for the deployment.
"We talked a lot. Career wise, I knew I would be deploying," he said. "As a family, we were ready. Not everything was taken care of, but we were ready."
Hafer also received support from his employer.
"Mecar USA supported me with no notice and has kept in contact with me and my family since I've been gone," said Hafer.
Hafer makes sure that he does his part as well to keep in contact with his loved ones and community back home. As is the case with many Soldiers deployed to Iraq, this correspondence with those at home helps to lift Hafer's spirits.
"Staying in touch with his family and community back home has been key to keeping his morale up," said Runey. "Maj. Hafer is one of the hardest working guys I've seen."
Hafer will soon be able to reconnect with his family and friends back home when he redeploys in July.
The homecoming, though long awaited, will be bittersweet, as Hafer will be leaving many new friends here in Iraq. He said he will not soon forget his deployment with the Ivy Division.
"I think it was a great opportunity to work with an extremely professional active duty unit with a great reputation," Hafer said. "I've learned an immense amount just being here – being around this unit, the people and the professionalism."
| Date Taken: | 05.15.2008 |
| Date Posted: | 05.15.2008 09:22 |
| Story ID: | 19429 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 284 |
| Downloads: | 268 |
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