Photo By Zachary Mott | From left, Michael Triozzi, with the Department of State's religious, cultural and...... read more read more
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When Operation Allies Refuge/Operation Allies Welcome (OAW) rolled out in August 2021, two Fort McCoy organizations were especially important in dealing with public interest: the garrison Public Affairs Office (PAO) and Religious Support Office (RSO).
In mid-August, as word of Fort McCoy's pending OAW mission spread, the PAO immediately became the lightning rod of public inquiry.
As manager of the installation's public-facing phone number, website and social media pages, the public affairs staff immediately became inundated with calls and messages of all types.
“From the minute the news dropped and throughout that first month, the phones rang nonstop. Emails and social media messaging were constant. For that first week, it really was 24/7 queries; people were surprised to find us answering phones at 7 a.m. or p.m. when they called,” Fort McCoy Public Affairs Officer Tonya Townsell said. “Our office logged thousands of inquiries, mostly positive, from people who were looking to help and donate to our guests.”
While most of the inquiries were positive, a few calls were from people who were not as supportive of the mission. “While I didn’t yet have access to the information they wanted to know, they did, overwhelmingly, express their appreciation for the efforts of the whole Fort McCoy workforce,” Townsell said.
“I wasn’t surprised by the outpouring of support because the Fort McCoy and its workforce has a great reputation. Even the people who were hesitant about the mission itself had great things to say about Fort McCoy.”
In addition, there were many requests from people looking for information on Afghan friends and relatives as well as formerly deployed service members looking for “their translators.”
At the beginning, the mission did not have its own public affairs assets, which meant double duty for the Garrison PAO until Task Force McCoy was formed and a public affairs element added. Garrison PAO staff continued to collect information to pass along to the task force when they were able to take over.
The office’s existing relationships with local and regional news outlets as well as community leaders proved valuable in getting information, once approved for release, correctly disseminated to local residents, Townsell said.
“By the time the task force was in place, and the operation became a whole-of-government mission, most of the media and public already had our office information,” Townsell said. “The majority of calls still came to our office for the first few months, until the appropriate task force and federal agency offices were in better positions to receive the queries themselves.”
The installation's Facebook and Twitter social media pages initially were the sole resource for information for those who were interested in donating to the Afghan guests and their constantly evolving needs. Even as the mission evolved, and news organizations started providing information, the social media pages continued to serve as essential venues disseminating information to the public, especially regarding donations.
“It was a challenge to keep up with the changing mission organizations and donation needs,” Townsell said. “The generosity of our local and regional residents and businesses was amazing, and we wanted to make sure they were receiving the most up-to-date information on a daily basis. There were a lot of changes — volunteer agencies as well as donation requests — as the mission advanced, and it was humbling to witness the outpouring of warmth and generosity of spirit.”
Although the installation's Commemorative Area closed at the beginning of the mission so staff could focus on the Afghan support mission, it was later opened on an as-requested basis to help provide a brief escape for Operation Allies Welcome staff to learn about Fort McCoy's rich history and traditions. Several civilian agency and task force personnel took advantage of the opportunity.
Townsell acknowledged staff members who were at the forefront of dealing with members of the public.
“Kaleen Holliday and Aimee Malone were indispensable during this time — constantly taking phone calls and vetting email queries. They worked countless hours sifting through calls and messages,” she said. “The tempo was very stressful for a few weeks, but our whole staff came together and adapted to the new mission requirements in a very professional manner.
“I saw that across the whole garrison workforce: People knew this was going to be a historic mission, and they worked together to assist these evacuees on the road to their new lives in America and as future American citizens.”
RSO received a great many inquiries, too, primarily from local religious and faith groups. In addition, the office’s staff immediately began preparing to support the Afghan guests and Soldiers supporting them. They began by identifying buildings that were suitable for prayer rooms or worship spaces and working with Department of State (DOS) and nongovernmental organization (NGO) employees to get additional supplies, such as prayer rugs and copies of the Quran.
As members of Task Force McCoy arrived, RSO staff members passed the responsibility of caring for the Afghan guests to their team, serving instead as a support element for the Soldiers who came to work on the task force, said Chaplain (Maj.) Robert Rand, garrison chaplain.
“The Religious Support Office established working relationships with the NGOs, DOS, and local faith groups to coordinate and generate donation streams,” Rand said. “The RSO staff fielded calls and requests for information from willing supporters across the country.”
RSO continues to coordinate meetings among the local faith community, government organizations, and NGOs. RSO has also hosted a weekly lunch meeting with behavioral health experts, military family life counselors, Army Substance Abuse Program employees, and task force religious support teams to help coordinate support for the spiritual and mental wellbeing of Soldiers.
Rand said he’d like to thank Sgt. Antoinette Wolliston and Dale Gibson for their support during the mission. The two were instrumental in “coordination and promoting the use of the RSO to support morale and spiritual wellbeing of the Soldiers, contractors, and NGO members.”
For more information about OAW, visit https://www.dvidshub.net/tags/news/operation-allies-welcome.
(Article prepared by the Fort McCoy Public Affairs Office.)
| Date Taken: | 02.09.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 02.09.2022 17:06 |
| Story ID: | 414375 |
| Location: | FORT MCCOY, WI, US |
| Web Views: | 101 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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