275th Quartermaster Company Soldiers staying tactically and technically trained

Photo By Sgt. Blake Essex | Soldiers of the 275th Quartermaster Company supervise the packing of equipment after preforming laundry and shower operations during WAREX 91-16-02 at Fort Hunter Liggett, Cali., Apr 30, 2016 to May 14th, 2016. Approximately 80 units from across the U.S. Army Reserve, Army National Guard and active Army are participating in the 84th Training Command's second Warrior Exercise this year, WAREX 91-16-02, hosted by the 91st Training Division at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Cali.  

FORT HUNTER LIGGETT, CA, UNITED STATES

06.14.2016

Story by Spc. Blake Essex 

310th Expeditionary Sustainment Command

FORT HUNTER-LIGGETT, Cali.- For Soldiers to get the experiences to complete real world missions, time in the field is required. While being given the mission of providing services that keep the dirt and grime that is part of a day’s work for a Soldier in the field is important, being tasked with taking part in the same dirty training offers a whole new set of challenges.

The Army Reserve Soldiers from the 275th Quartermaster Company, 497th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 55th Sustainment Brigade, headquartered at Port Pickett, Va., provided hot showers and fresh laundry during WAREX 91-16-02 at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Cali. From Apr 30 to May 14, 2016.

But that isn’t all they did at the remote training post. While completing the unit’s mission of providing laundry and shower operations for up to 3,000 Soldiers taking part in the exercise, the Soldiers of the 275th QM Company also focused on warrior tasks and drills.

“We trained differently out here, and although we had our real time mission of laundry and shower operations, for the first time during a training exercise, we had a real emphasis placed on our warrior task training,” said Army 1st Sgt. Brenda D. Hawkins, of the 275th QM.

“We had Soldiers out defending the area, reacting to IED, performing ground perimeter defense.” Continued Hawking, “All of this at three different locations on the battlefield, along with doing our real world mission of taking care of Soldiers.”

Teams consisting of 12 Soldiers would pack up a shower system, move to a field site location, and set up to run a 12 hour shift. All while also providing security for themselves. This training in a realistic environment training reinforced rusty warrior task training with the Soldiers of the 275th QM Company, resulting in increased readiness.

“This exercise was very effective in helping our Soldiers re-focus on warrior tasks,” said Army 1st Lt. Vanessa E. Heller, executive officer for the 275th QM, “pulling guard duty out at their guard points, reacting to enemy direct and indirect fire, learning convoy operations and how to give a good convoy brief, all after a 12 hour shift during the day.”

“Our goal was to get our Soldiers to focus on battle tasks,” said Hawkins, “Basic skill level tasks such as how to defend, convoy operations, perimeter security, even something as simple as range cards, because some of the newer Soldiers don’t often get day to day training in those tasks.”

Trust within a military unit is always needed to accomplish a mission however with Army Reserve Soldiers that see each other at most times only once a month it can be difficult to build trust between the troops. Annual training exercises help bridge that gap in time that reservists have by placing them in an active duty setting.

“This was my first Annual Training, and it built us up,” said Army Pfc. Felicia M. Landry, a laundry and bath specialist for the 275th QM, headquartered in Fort Pickett, Va., “there were ups and downs, but it built our unit better as a team to work together.”

“I was on the unit jump team, and we completely moved from one field site to another, and it taught us a range of new skills,” said Landry, a native of Buccaneer, Va.,“It taught me that it’s important to pull security, convoy operations, and that we’re going to be doing our MOS in addition to these other tasks.”

Another challenge that faced the Soldiers was keeping morale up. Being in the field and living out of a tent presents its own trials, but knowing that there were always a fresh showers and clean uniforms for Soldiers bolsters the morale of Soldiers in the remote training environment of WAREX 91-16-02.

“It boosts morale a lot; there are times during training exercises, Soldiers don’t have hot showers or get clothes washed, and they usually try to bring a couple of weeks’ worth of clothing to last the span of the exercise,” said Heller.

“When a capability like ours is available, it is a real stress reducer.” Said Landry, “Out here, having clean clothes, and providing showers, it’s also a good way of infection control.”

• Date Taken: 06.14.2016
• Date Posted: 06.14.2016 14:34
• Story ID: 201100
• Location: FORT HUNTER LIGGETT, CA, US
• Hometown: FORT PICKETT, VA, US