Strykehorse Soldiers, Iraqi Police bring supplies, joy to students

Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Brian Addis | An Iraqi policeman fills backpacks with school supplies at the Al-Arwa Ibna al-Ward primary school in Halabsa, northwest of Baghdad, Jan. 25. Soldiers from Company B "Hammer," 52nd Infantry Regiment, attached to 2nd Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment "Strykehorse," 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team "Warrior," 25th Infantry Division, Multi-National Division – Baghdad, partnered with Iraqi police from the Hammamiat IP Station to conduct a school supply drop at the primary school.  

IRAQ

01.25.2009

Story by Sgt. 1st Class Brian Addis 

2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division

By Sgt. 1st Class Brian Addis
2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team "Warrior," 25th Infantry Division

JOINT SECURITY STATION HOR AL BOSH, Iraq – Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers, along with Iraqi security forces, joined local leaders in handing out toys and school supplies at a primary school Halabsa, northwest of Baghdad, Jan. 25.

The aloha spirit showed once again that it is alive and well in Iraq as Soldiers from Company B "Hammer," 52nd Infantry Regiment, attached to 2nd Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment, "Strykehorse," 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team "Warrior," 25th Infantry Division, MND-B, partnered with Iraqi police from the Hammamiat IP Station to bring much needed school supplies to Al-Arwa Ibna al-Ward school.

Sheik Khalid and Muhammad Ibrahim, two local leaders, made final coordination with the school principal to ensure the operation went off without a hitch.

"Working with the Iraqi police is always a pleasure, and the local leaders in the area do a great job of helping us identify where we can help out," said 1st Lt. Ben Flores, a native of Fresno, Calif., who serves as a platoon leader for Hammer Co. "This school is very close to Sheik Khalid, and conducting this operation jointly with the Iraqi security forces helped bring smiles to the faces of everyone involved."

The group gave out pens, pencils, backpacks and toys. Along with the school supplies, the children were presented dolls made by students at the St. Andrews Priory School in Honolulu, much to the delight of those students who received them. The dolls have a historical as well as sentimental significance for the Strykehorse Soldiers, and especially for Lt. Col. Thomas Mackey, a native of San Bernardino, Calif., the squadron's commander. The man responsible for starting the program, 1st Lt. Nainoa Hoe, lost his life in Mosul on Jan. 22, 2005.

Hoe, then one of Mackey's platoon leaders with 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 1st SBCT, 25th Infantry Division, out of Fort Lewis, Wash. had hoped that the dolls would help bring happiness to the children of the war-torn country.

"The delivery of these precious dolls to young girls here in Iraq always brings smiles," Mackey said. "The dolls brighten up the lives of these children, who are the future here. Nainoa was definitely onto something."

This year marks the second year in which the Strykehorse Squadron has conducted an operation in which the ragdolls from the St. Andrews Priory School were handed out to the children of Iraq. Last year, students from the Falahat area received the gifts made with aloha.

"It has been our honor to deliver these dolls to needy children in Iraq, and we thank everyone responsible," said Mackey. "Mr. Allen Hoe, Nainoa's father, played a huge role in connecting the dolls to our unit and, of course, to the volunteers at Saint Andrews, who made the dolls and gave of their time and effort for such a worthy cause – Thank you."

• Date Taken: 01.25.2009
• Date Posted: 01.28.2009 13:32
• Story ID: 29379
• Location: IQ