Troopers make deployment feel more like home

Photo By Sgt. April de Armas | Army Sgt. 1st Class Matilde Figueroa with the Puerto Rico National Guard, waters flowers and plants outside her Bay Hill barracks. Figueroa spends time in her garden as a way to relax. Joint Task Force Guantanamo conducts safe, humane, legal and transparent care and custody of detainees, including those convicted by military commission and those ordered released. The JTF conducts intelligence collection, analysis and dissemination for the protection of detainees and personnel working in JTF Guantanamo facilities and in support of the Global War on Terror. JTF Guantanamo provides support to the Office of Military Commissions, to law enforcement and to war crimes investigations. The JTF conducts planning for and, on order, responds to Caribbean mass migration operations.  

GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA

03.20.2009

Story by Spc. April de Armas 

Joint Task Force Guantanamo Public Affairs

GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba – Deployments are a way of life for most troopers in any branch of military service. They are never easy and they take the trooper away from home and out of his or her comfort zone. It can be lonely to be placed in unfamiliar territory.

Many deployed troopers try to find ways of bringing touches of home with them. Some do this by hanging family pictures on their barracks walls, buying comfortable bedding, or adding throw rugs to the floors for color and comfort in unfamiliar surroundings.

Troopers at U.S. Naval Station Guantanamo Bay are no exception. However, there are some who have decided to take their homey additions outside of their temporary surroundings.

At the Bay Hill community, located on the hill behind the Navy Exchange, Sgt. 1st Class Matilde Figueroa with Joint Task Force operations is one of many adding personal touches to the yard outside her barracks.

Figueroa said she got the idea from a neighbor who lived on her block when she first got to Guantanamo Bay three months ago.

"It makes me feel good to plant and I feel like I'm at home," she said.

Figueroa said she is trying to encourage everyone on her block to do some improvements to their space. She said it represents people coming together with teamwork and shows they are family.

"It brightens my day when I come home from a hard day's work to see the plants and flowers; it's not so dull," said Figueroa.

Not only is she working on her own area, but she also has been adding her own touch to others around her.

Sgt. 1st Class Luis Perez, Joint Task Force warehouse non-commissioned officer in charge, is a neighbor of Figueroa. He said he likes that it makes him feel more like he is at home and thinks it is important to find a way to stay active.

"It's a good way to relax your mind from a stressful day at work," he said.

Perez said he has plans to join Figueroa's efforts by working on his own yard.

Sgt. 1st Class Tomas Carreras, Joint Task Force property book NCOIC, another neighbor of Figueroa, shares the same sentiments as Perez. He says he likes the decorations and plants and likes the home-like feeling it brings to the area.

Figueroa has plans to add a small spice garden to her already bountiful flower garden. She would also like to add a few vegetable plants, like tomatoes.

The beautification efforts made by Figueroa, her peers, and those before her seem to have an effect on all who get to enjoy the view. She is taking initiative and going above and beyond the call of duty to not only provide a more comfortable place for herself during her deployment, but to share the beauty with others around her.

Thanks to many of the residents at the Bay Hill community, Guantanamo Bay now has one more place of interest for those who like to sightsee and enjoy garden-like qualities one might see at home.

• Date Taken: 03.20.2009
• Date Posted: 03.26.2009 15:16
• Story ID: 31649
• Location: GUANTANAMO BAY, CU