Civil Affairs Soldiers support orphans

Photo By Bryce Dubee | Iraqi orphans gather around a table to examine the toys and treats they received during a humanitarian assistance drop at the Jamia Support Council, March 29. Members of the 422nd Civil Affairs Battalion and Company F, 52nd Infantry Regiment, 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, delivered supplies to roughly 75 area orphans.  

BAGHDAD, IRAQ

03.29.2010

Story by Sgt. Bryce Dubee 

4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division

BAGHDAD — The orphans waited patiently, roughly 75 of them, as the U.S. Soldiers set up a security perimeter and brought their truck full of supplies into the Jamia Support Council building.

While most waited in orderly lines, one group of children performed a song welcoming the members of 422nd Civil Affairs Battalion and Company F, 52nd Infantry Regiment, 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, who were there to deliver humanitarian assistance goods March 29.

The delivery was part of an overall shipment of 20 tons of humanitarian assistance goods to 422nd, donated by a stateside nongovernmental organization.

"It was a big success," said 1st Sgt. Joe Winchester, first sergeant for Company B, 422nd CA Bn., explaining that the mission was the result of several months of planning and hard work.
Shaykh Majid from the Jamia Support Council was involved in providing material support to local orphans and approached the civil affairs Soldiers about the possibility of getting some supplies for the children.

However, Winchester explained that process was easier said than done.

"It's not a simple thing to say we're going to go on in and deliver some [humanitarian assistance]," he said.

During his last deployment, Winchester had worked with a U.S. based NGO, Operation Give, which had provided humanitarian assistance supplies to his unit. Contacting them again, he was able to arrange for 20 tons of supplies to be donated and sent to Iraq for distribution.

Some of those humanitarian supplies were divided into care packages, broken down by age and gender, boxed up and handed out to the orphans at Jamia Support Council with other supplies handed out at other locations.

But the mission was about more than just handing out supplies this one time, Winchester explained.

"Today established some credibility that we are able to deliver," he said. "What we're doing here is trying to develop some follow-on support."

During the humanitarian drop, Winchester was able to meet with members of an Iraqi NGO that, if properly vetted, could be able to work directly with U.S. based NGOs like Operation Give through something known as the Denton Program. Under the program, he explained, the U.S. government will pay for the transportation of humanitarian supplies between credentialed NGOs. This would enable the orphans and other Iraqis in need to continue receiving aid long after Winchester and other U.S. Soldiers have left Iraq.

"I can step back and know when we're leaving there's still a steady stream of supplies coming in to those in need," he said.

• Date Taken: 03.29.2010
• Date Posted: 04.12.2010 12:17
• Story ID: 48018
• Location: BAGHDAD, IQ