Photo By Sgt. Marshall Thompson | Staff Sgt. Bart Rindlisbacher, the NCO in charge of the shipping and receiving point...... read more read more
LSA DIAMONDBACK, Iraq - Most Soldiers in Iraq have little interaction with local Iraqis because of security concerns, but one Soldier from the 872nd Maintenance Company has been able to work with locals on a daily basis.
Staff Sgt. Bart Rindlisbacher, the NCO in charge of the shipping and receiving yard at Logistical Support Area Diamondback, oversees a team of more than a dozen Iraqis who unload and reorganize shipments that come into the yard. He said talking with them gives him a unique perspective.
"I get more news from them then I do from military sources," Rindlisbacher said about his team. "They're glad we're here, but they're worried about elections and Saddam's trial."
Rindlisbacher, a Utah Highway Patrol Trooper in the civilian world, has been in Iraq for about six months with the 872nd out of Ogden, Utah. The local Iraqis on his team said that they were happy to work with him.
"We're not friends " we're brothers," said Yousif, a Kurdish resident of Mosul. "He's my big brother."
Yousif was in prison at Abu Ghraib for seven years while Saddam was in power. When asked why, he said, "Because I'm Kurdish."
Most of the men who work with Rindlisbacher are Kurdish, a group that has traditionally been pro-American.
"They're hardly ever negative about anything," Rindlisbacher said about his team. "They're happy now because they have freedoms they never had before. They're glad it is the way it is now, even as dangerous as it is."
In a war that requires the Army to win the hearts and minds of Iraqis, the 872nd is careful to nurture what goodwill there is.
"The Soldiers here in the 872nd understand the dynamics of the situation we are in," said Chief Warrant Officer 2 Horace Hill, Rindlisbacher's supervisor in Iraq.
"They deal with the local nationals with specific care,"he said.
Hill added that Rindlisbacher has done an excellent job as a representative of the U.S. Army to Iraqi civilians.
"He cares for his team and works well with them," Hill said.
Rindlisbacher said he loves his job, but will have to give it up sometime in March when civilian contractors from Kellogg, Brown and Root take over the yard. He said he's not happy to leave such a rewarding job.
Still, Rindlisbacher has plenty to keep him busy as he trains to run a marathon when he's done with the deployment and works with the 872nd to recover broken down military vehicles on the roads of Iraq. He said that getting the vehicles is comparable to his civilian job as a trooper.
"When we go out and pick up vehicles, it's very similar to managing a crash site," Rindlisbacher said. "We provide security, check for injuries and look for witnesses. It's the same thing, but then we also recover the vehicles."
Although he said he misses his wife and children back in Utah, he's proud of what he's doing. He even re-enlisted for an indefinite period of time on Jan. 3.
"It gives me satisfaction to say that I've been deployed and served my country," Rindlisbacher said.
The Iraqis with whom he works are glad he came to their country as well.
"Sgt. R is a good man and a good friend," said Khayri, a Kurdish resident of Mosul. "Americans and Iraqis are friends."
| Date Taken: | 02.17.2006 |
| Date Posted: | 02.17.2006 03:28 |
| Story ID: | 5416 |
| Location: | LOGISTICS SUPPORT AREA DIAMONDBACK, IQ |
| Web Views: | 245 |
| Downloads: | 41 |
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