Fort McCoy’s food-service team has busy August supporting 2023 CSTX, XCTC training efforts

Courtesy Photo | Troops load food on to a truck outside the Fort McCoy Logistics Readiness Center Supply Subsistence Management Office in mid-July 2023 during the Wisconsin National Guard’s 2023 eXportable Combat Training Capability (XCTC) exercise. According to the Fort McCoy Food Program Office, 1,391 Unitized Group Rations — the equivalent of 69,550 meals — and more was provided to troops in XCTC by the Fort McCoy food-service team. (Photo by Andy Pisney/Fort McCoy Logistics Readiness Center)  

FORT MCCOY, WI, UNITED STATES

09.05.2023

Story by Scott Sturkol                                                                                         

Fort McCoy Public Affairs Office           

Fort McCoy Food Program Manager Andy Pisney has often said that “food service is a training enabler.” During July and August 2023 at Fort McCoy, it surely enabled thousands of troops as Pisney and his team provided tens of thousands of meals for troops training at the installation.

Though July was very busy, August was likely the busiest training month Fort McCoy has seen in some time with thousands of troops training at the installation for the Wisconsin National Guard’s 2023 eXportable Combat Training Capability (XCTC) exercise as well as the 86th Training Division’s Combat Support Training Exercise (CSTX) 86-23-02.

“For XCTC we supported their Class I requirements only,” Pisney said. “We didn’t feed them in the dining facility.”

Pisney said the XCTC exercise received support from the Logistics Readiness Center (LRC) Food Program Management Office and LRC Supply Subsistence Management Office that included 5,757 cases of Meals, Ready-to-Eat (69,084 meals); 96 cases of Halal Meals, Ready-to-Eat (1,152 meals); 1,391 Unitized Group Rations (69,550 meals); 975 cases of milk (26,325 individual milk containers); $15,000-plus of food enhancements (cereal, fruit, salad mixes, and dressings); and 6,374 20-pound bags of ice.

The support for CSTX was even greater, Pisney said.

“For CSTX, we supported them in Dining Facility 1672 which fed 31,102 meals for those participants on the cantonment area,” Pisney said.

Pisney said the CSTX received support from the LRC Food Program Management Office and LRC Supply Subsistence Management Office that included 8,892 cases of Meals, Ready-to-Eat (106,704 meals); 33 cases of Kosher Meals, Ready-to-Eat (396 meals); 154 cases of Halal Meals, Ready-to-Eat (1,848 meals); 2,250 cases of Sun Meadow Meals (40,500 meals); 2,366 Unitized Group Rations (118,300 meals); 4,380 cases of milk (118,260 individual milk containers); $71,000-plus of food enhancements (cereal, fruit, salad mixes, and dressings); and 8,022 20-pound bags of ice.

“Meal kits are just a complete meal that requires no food-service preparation,” Pisney said. “The Unitized Group Rations require food-service capability — a food-service specialist — to prepare. These rations are configured in 50-person modules and contain meat, starch, vegetables, condiments, and beverages.”

Pisney said his team always works hard to meet mission requirements and wants the troops to always have what they need for food service and support.

“We don’t ever want it to be a distractor,” Pisney said in a previous article about supporting mission requirements. “The mission always comes first, and if we can support the mission without distracting from it — that’s perfect.”

Following are some of the people he said who are crucial to the success of the entire program.

— Food Program Management Office and LRC Supply Subsistence Management Office: Pisney, Mary Hardie, Jim Gouker, Nancy Brown, Katie Olson, Kris Miner, Bill Weekley, Eric Devine, and Scott Molle.

— Food service contractor, DCT Incorporated: Karyl Habeck, Amy Ely, Bryon Schuster, and the rest of their Warrior Restaurant management and staff.

— Veterinary Services Soldiers at Fort McCoy: Staff Sgt. Josue Vargas Perez, Sgt. Renthia Wreh, and Pfc. Courtney Williams.

“I appreciate everything this team does. We are here to support. It’s our mission, and we always try to do the best we can,” Pisney said.

Fort McCoy’s motto is to be the “Total Force Training Center.” Located in the heart of the upper Midwest, Fort McCoy is the only U.S. Army installation in Wisconsin.

The installation has provided support and facilities for the field and classroom training of more than 100,000 military personnel from all services nearly every year since 1984.

Learn more about Fort McCoy online at https://home.army.mil/mccoy, on the Defense Visual Information Distribution System at https://www.dvidshub.net/fmpao, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” and on Twitter by searching “usagmccoy.”

Also try downloading the Digital Garrison app to your smartphone and set “Fort McCoy” or another installation as your preferred base.

• Date Taken: 09.05.2023
• Date Posted: 09.05.2023 23:07
• Story ID: 452789
• Location: FORT MCCOY, WI, US