Photo By Sgt. Maj. Christopher Klutts | A child listens in as U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Thomas Mingo, a Baltimore native, now...... read more read more
SHOR TEPAH, Afghanistan -- Children ran ahead of the soldiers, down the clinic’s splintered, concrete walkway, holding palm sized footballs the patrol had given them across the road. As the soldiers made their way into the courtyard, a few women covered from head-to-toe, scuttled inside with their heads tilted down and away from the Americans.
A grey haired man wearing a lab coat, the same off-turquoise color as the cracked, peeling paint on the clinic’s walls, greeted the soldiers at the doorway with a tight smile, erasing the wrinkles from his face.
The children now peered from behind the legs of patients and clinic staff congregated in and around the doorway, unintentionally blocking the soldiers’ entry. Breaking through the small crowd came the doctor.
In a country where U.S. soldiers have been at war for 10 years, the amount of attention paid by the citizens of Shor Tepah is unexpected. But, for soldiers with 4th Platoon, C Company, 40th Engineer Battalion, 170th IBCT, the high level of interest has been the norm.
The soldiers are with the second U.S. Army unit to patrol Shor Tepah District. The previous unit made it up to the village of Shor Tepah four times in a year, 4th Platoon made it four times in the first two months.
The infrequency of visits is due in large part to the location of the company’s base, Joint Combat Outpost Hairatan. The village is a four-hour drive through barren desert sand and narrow village roads, neither condition hospitable to the company’s large armored vehicles. The platoon had turned around more than once as road conditions were impassable, but 1st Lt. Zachary Weigelt, the platoon leader, said they will continue to return, because Shor Tepah is their mission.
Sgt. Dantre Thomas and Pfc. Patrick Riley, medics with C Company, were the first U.S. soldiers to sit down and talk to Dr. Bahadur Ekrn, the Shor Tepah District medical clinic’s physician, about the needs of his facility April 14.
“We have no EKG and no X-ray and no ultrasound, and we deliver babies in the next room,” Dr. Bahadur Erkn told the Soldiers in broken English, unexpected in a district where the majority of inhabitants speak the language of neighboring Uzbekistan.
The medics nodded their heads in unison as dust blew in the window on a cool breeze that ruffled the light blue curtains. The same light blue, flower patterned fabric skirted the office’s coffee table and desk, and the same fabric was anchored by bricks as a welcome mat.
The old man who greeted the soldiers earlier, walked in presenting the same grin, and pulled glass teacups caked with dust from under the coffee table. While the doctor told the soldiers a story about evacuating a sick man via motorcycle to the hospital in Masar-e Sharif, surely a three-hour journey, the man rinsed the cups with chai tea, then filled and gently placed them on the table for the visitors, as not to interrupt the doctor’s story.
Ekrn said one of his toughest challenges, outside those presented by the facility itself, is educating a mostly illiterate population in preventative medicine practices and the importance of taking prescribed medications.
Thomas listened intently throughout the meeting. He repeatedly said he would take the doctor’s concerns back to the C Company commander, and urged Ekrn to be patient as help would take time.
Weigelt, a Missouri Valley, Iowa native, said the clinic is an integral piece of the district’s infrastructure. They couldn’t promise anything, as projects and funding have to be approved through military channels, but he added 4th Platoon Soldiers still want to help any way they can.
“Right now, the presence of our soldiers may be of some benefit, especially allowing our medics to assist the doctor during checkups,” said Weigelt.
After the meeting and a short tour, the medics, now accompanied by Weigelt, made their way to the door. What was a pit-stop on a mission to link up with their Afghan Uniformed Police counterparts became an opportunity for soldiers with 4th Platoon to help a fellow helper.
| Date Taken: | 04.14.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 04.21.2011 11:13 |
| Story ID: | 69103 |
| Location: | SHOR TEPAH, AF |
| Web Views: | 125 |
| Downloads: | 3 |
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