AUAB CHuRP manages, distributes supplies for evacuees

Photo By Staff Sgt. Kylee Gardner | Airman 1st Class Eliase Quaye, 379th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron materiel management technician, organizes boxes of supplies Sep. 3, 2021, at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar. Since the first evacuees arrived at the installation, members of the Materiel Management Flight have augmented the Centralized Humanitarian Resupply Point. While facilitating the CHuRP, they were responsible for providing necessary items to the evacuees during their time here at Al Udeid AB and transporting items to other bases who were also housing evacuees. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Kylee Gardner)  

AL UDEID AIR BASE, QATAR

09.21.2021

Story by Staff Sgt. Kylee Gardner 

379th Air Expeditionary Wing

Since the beginning of Afghanistan evacuation operations at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar on Aug. 14, 2021, many evacuees arrived to the installation with very few personal items; some with only the clothes on their back.

Members at Al Udeid AB were quickly able to find resources and ways to provide necessities for thousands of evacuees. However, once the items were on the installation they needed to be stored somewhere. There was also a need for a process in which to get the essentials to each operating location where evacuees waited to depart for their next destination.

That’s when the Centralized Humanitarian Resupply Point (CHuRP) was activated and members of the 379th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron Materiel Management Flight were pulled from their regular job to help facilitate.

“The CHuRP was stood up to respond to the evacuation operations,” said Master Sgt. Samantha Sturino, 379th ELRS materiel management inventory section chief and member of the CHuRP. “Our team managed and distributed humanitarian aid supplies to operating locations in order to provide our guests with the daily essentials for life.”

With the amount of evacuees that passed through the base, there were a lot of items the CHuRP team was responsible for sorting through and distributing.

“The CHuRP stocks a wide variety of goods including hygiene items, blankets, pillows, soap, clothes, shoes, shampoo, toiletry items and cleaning supplies,” said Sturino. “We also stored baby items, such as formula, diapers, baby clothes and wipes.”

The CHuRP received roughly 2.17 million items, totaling over 120,000 pounds, filling 185 orders across the different operating locations.

Not only did they support Al Udeid AB’s operations, they also prepared and shipped 26 pallets weighing 97,000 pounds with excess items to stateside locations that hosted evacuees.

“The CHuRP hit the ground running from the onset,” said Lt. Col. Lauren Guibert, 379th ELRS commander. “They consolidated and inventoried all existing humanitarian supplies at our warehouse and then developed a real time inventory that on-site logistics representatives throughout the base could access via SharePoint, facilitating their ability to provide orders based on on-hand quantities.”

Although the team of Airmen worked long hours in hot weather conditions, they knew what they were doing meant they were helping save lives.

“The team we put together to get this accomplished was amazing,” said Sturino. “Every one of them wanted to help in any way they could; many of them mentioned that being able to provide some sort of comfort to the people traveling was extremely rewarding. Sharing a few kind words with the evacuees, who were more than thankful for the items provided made all of this hard work worth it every day.”

• Date Taken: 09.21.2021
• Date Posted: 09.21.2021 00:35
• Story ID: 405658
• Location: AL UDEID AIR BASE, QA