574th QM Company opens Supply Support Activity Warehouse to train, support

Courtesy Photo | Sgt. Camille Warde, who works as a stock control noncommissioned officer in charge and is a native of Brooklyn, N.Y., and Pfc. Christina Perez, who works as a receiving clerk and is a native of Dallas, christen the new supply support activity warehouse.  

GRAFENWOEHR, GERMANY

04.01.2010

Courtesy Story

21st Theater Sustainment Command

By 1st Lt. Jennifer Dyrcz
18th CSSB Public Affairs

GRAFENWOEHR, Germany –The 574th Quartermaster Company opened the doors to its fully functional supply support activity warehouse April 1 after 90 days of preparation.

"This is a great opportunity to get Soldiers back to their specific jobs by helping support units and unit readiness. These Soldiers can come to work with a purpose in mind and know they are having a positive impact with the work they do," said Col. Keith Sledd, a native of Roff, Okla., who is the 16th Sustainment Brigade commander.

The SSA is a multiclass and multiple item warehouse that is designed to receive, store and issue various military items and components in order to support the military customer units within the Grafenwoehr and Vilseck areas.

The SSA does not function as just a warehouse, but is key to the 18th CSSB's training readiness plan for its Soldiers. The operations the Soldiers practice in the SSA are designed to give them the lessons and tools needed to take them throughout all future missions and endeavors.

"Late nights, hard work and in the end it was all worth it. It was a great accomplishment at the end when we were able to present our newly set up SSA to the battalion and Grafenwoehr," said Pfc. Cristina Perez, a native of Dallas who works in the SSA as an automation logistics specialist.

"The success of the ribbon cutting ceremony really showed all the long hours paid off. Getting the authorized stockage list situated from Schweinfurt to Grafenwoehr was a challenge, but my Soldiers did it with a 99 percent accuracy rating. But the long days gave the Soldiers the opportunity to come together as a team, platoon and SSA to perform their jobs as automation logistics specialists. Before the 574th QM Company SSA they did not have that chance," said Staff Sgt. Vincent Robinson, a native of Port Arthur, Texas, who works as the SSA warehouse noncommissioned officer in charge.

"This accomplishment is a credit to the motivated Soldiers of the company, to the warrant officers from battalion, and to U.S. Army Europe and is a credit to their determination and warrior spirit," said Lt. Col. Reed Hudgins, the 18th CSSB's battalion commander and a native of Reisters Town, Md.

"We should have had you guys in Iraq. I was over there to advise the Iraqi army and the biggest challenge I had was in the warehouses and supply sectors. We could have used a team like yours to help with the partnership and training of the Iraqi army Soldiers. It is great to have this capability in Grafenwoehr, and I see this as a part of the transformation of Grafenwoehr from a training area to a military community," said Brig. Gen. Steven Salazar, a native of San Jose, Calif., who is the commanding general of the 7th Joint Multinational Training Command.

• Date Taken: 04.01.2010
• Date Posted: 05.05.2010 09:11
• Story ID: 49155
• Location: GRAFENWOEHR, DE