Notes from Afganistan

[Teresa]

You are doing a great job keeping us informed Carl.
I know it takes a lot of time to post all of that with the pictures and I want to tell you again
that I enjoy them and I hope everyone else does too.

Teresa

[Janet Harrington]

Well, I'll agree with Teresa.  I have so enjoyed the letters and pictures that Carl has posted.  It makes me feel as if I am there and I so wanted to cry when Paul lost two of his team.  Keep up the good work, Carl.  I love the pictures and the letters.

[Carl Harrod]

Notes From Afghanistan - 4 SEP 05
Date: Sun, 4 Sep 2005 11:40:24 +0000
 
Dear Family & Friends,

The Kandahar to Tarin Kowt Road is finished!  When I was presented the challenge of completing this road on such an aggressive schedule I knew it could be done.  The naysayers at several levels thought the task was impossible and that I was trying to be too aggressive.  I even received an e-mail from my higher headquarters in April [Note: our BDE headquarters since May has been the 18th Engineer Brigade] telling me I was attempting an impossible task and that "all the stars would have to align" to make this happen.  I brought that e-mail in paper copy to my command and staff meeting back in April, read it to my leaders, spit on it, crumpled it up, and mashed it into the ground.  I made it very clear that we were given a mission and the mission would be complete on time.  Little did I know that the hard work and dedication of my Soldiers would have us complete the road on 2 SEP 05, two weeks ahead of my schedule.

I felt great many times in the last week because several NCOs and officers came up to me and gave me their true thoughts.  Most of them were honest and said "I never thought it was possible."  Their quick follow up was "you never stopped believing it could be done and wouldn't let us think or speak in any other manner."  It was true; I was a bit draconian and wouldn't allow anyone to speak as if it were impossible.  I just wanted them to fulfill their potential and I knew it could be done because of the support we were given and the quality of the Soldiers and leaders in the Task Force.  1LT Walker and SGT Davis would be very proud.

During the week I was able to visit each of the locations where I have Soldiers along the road.  Many of them still are stunned that we lost two very special Soldiers but most are still driving forward.  I have a new vehicle (my other vehicle was beyond repair but had some valuable donor parts), new driver, Corporal (CPL) Mercier and new gunner, Private First Class (PFC) Goodsell (aka Gunner Goodsell).  Each of our vehicles has a name and the day after I was hit I made it clear I wanted my vehicle stenciled with SGT Davis' son's name "BRAYDEN."  When I arrived in the new vehicle at FOB Pacemaker on of the officers had some tears in her eyes and I asked her if she was okay.  She softly told me that she just saw the name on my vehicle and couldn't hold back the tears.  I'm sure SGT Davis would be honored.

Our weekly journey to the FOBs previously took me close to 12 hours to get to each location.  Now I can reach the northernmost location in three hours.  I was tough to travel through the location where I was hit two weeks ago.  We travel in larger units now and have specific plans to seek out triggermen and kill them if part of our unit is hit.  During a private moment with my Command Sergeant Major I mentioned to him that I felt very unsettled as we transited through the blast location.  He immediately came back with the same comments I had.  I knew I had to get right back into traveling by ground but I only felt comfortable telling him that I was holding my breath in each area that we knew had higher risk.

While we were at FOB Tiger, I was counseling one of my company commanders and heard a loud explosion.  Immediately we all though we were under mortar or rocket attack.  Instead of running into the bunker, I ran into the operations center and asked what's going on.  I found out that the two artillery guns positioned at Tiger started firing in support of US troops in contact to the west [Note: this was the first time this happened in five months from this location].  The firing continued and I prayed each round accurately found its target and rained steel on the enemy.  I was told by the doctor that I'd have some hypersensitivity after the attack on my vehicle but I didn't feel anything until that moment.  I continued the counseling but realized my T-shirt was soaked in sweat.

I know what you've read in the newspapers about Army recruiting and retention - it's not good.  But I can tell you a different story; my unit just completed the fiscal year requirements for 2005 with over 140% of our required retention.  During the last week alone I reenlisted three additional Soldiers.  They love what they do and haven't retreated from their Army goals after our losses, they've been emboldened by them.

The tragic loss in New Orleans affected us too.  I have several Soldiers in that area and haven't heard from family.  As you can imagine, it's tough enough to be in combat but some Soldiers have had their life complicated by wondering if their family might be among the dead.  It's been very difficult because the Red Cross and most reporting agencies are trying to get their bases established after being degraded. Please keep these Soldiers in your prayers.

The week closes on a high note - the road is complete and we're going into a rest and refit period after we retrograde all equipment and Soldiers from the FOBs.  I'm almost completely healed except for the hearing loss in my left ear; I don't think that will ever come back.

Last week I mentioned that I went to a Shura and spoke to a large mass of village elders but I forgot to attach the pictures.  This week I've included those pictures along with others.

All my very best,

Paul

LTC Paul M. Paolozzi
Commander, Task Force Pacemaker
Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan

[Oldrider0808]

Carl - thank you so much for sharing your letters.   His letters are treasures and I can't wait to read the next.

Marla Ware

[Janet Harrington]

What a wonderful feeling Paul and his troops must have had when they finished that road before deadline.  WOW.  Please tell Paul that he and his soldiers are in our prayers as they continue to work to rebuild Afghanistan.  God Bless them and the USA.

[Carl Harrod]

Notes From Afghanistan - 11 SEP 05
Date: Sun, 11 Sep 2005 10:21:07 +0000

Dear Family & Friends,

The weeks pass and I have a hard time figuring out where the time goes.  At times it seems as if the time drags on and another part of me is getting excited to have the half way point pass at the end of this month.  One thing for sure, there's no time to focus on what we've done, there's only room to focus on what remains to be done to ensure we succeed for 12 months instead of six.  The plan that we've designed for the last few months may take a sudden turn because of different missions that need to be complete.  Frankly, I don't get concerned about that.  I have a limited number of engineers and days in a year - I'm excited to tackle whatever needs to be done.  It's somewhat flattering to know that after we finished the road we've had several requests for my engineers to work on the projects others think are impossible.

Early last week I had an impromptu escort mission with an Afghani general onto the road remediation near FOB Pacemaker.  The general wanted to see his Afghani engineers working with my engineers and congratulate them on their new found engineering skill.  I was happy to escort the general and show him the partnership between our forces.  We don't even use translators on site - all engineers seem to understand the language of "dirt."  Hand motions and very close individual instruction are the recipe for success.  When the general arrived, he saw American leaders and supervisors but 100% of the equipment was operated by Afghanis.  He spoke with the formation of 10 Soldiers and told them how they're making a tremendous impact on how their nation will be able to build for itself in the future.  At the end of his comments he allowed them to ask questions.  I was touched to hear that one of the first questions was from an Afghani Soldier who wanted to be deployed to the United States so they could help with the Hurricane Katrina relief.  Near the end of the visit I gave the general, his chief of staff, and one of his battalion commander's our unit crest - which they immediately put proudly on his uniform (one more Pacemaker).

I was also moved when I received a letter from a retired police inspector from Brussels, Belgium.  He didn't want anything except to express his condolences over the Task Force loss of our two Soldiers.  It helped me to understand that there are millions of people across the world that support what we do and just want to express themselves in small ways.

I think you all know that all Soldiers are authorized two weeks of leave during this deployment.  Many of them heard of the news of the attack on my vehicle through e-mail or phone calls and had to grieve their own way while at home.  It felt awkward seeing many of them as they returned to Afghanistan wanting to know more about what happened and how I was healing.  It caught me off guard - everyone else in the Task Force seemed to be moving forward at a similar pace and now we had many Soldiers arriving back from leave wanting some form of closure for the event.  Many just innocently came by my office just to know I was okay - they're a very thoughtful bunch.

I finally received the figs I wrote about a few months ago.  I'm accustomed to getting figs in a small ring with about 20-30 figs in the ring from a grocery store.  The ring I received had approximately 200 figs in it.  They're absolutely delicious.  I tried one the first day and just let it sit in my system to ensure they wouldn't make me sick.  Now I'm enjoying figs in the office.  I keep offering them to others but these poor timid souls continually refuse - they're really missing something special.

I also had a special Hawaiian breakfast prepared by our Hawaiian National Guard Soldiers.  It was a delicious meal of Spam, fried eggs, seasoned steak, and sticky rice.  Most importantly, it was made with love and it tasted great.  When I started to load up in my vehicle one of the Hawaiian Soldiers slipped me a small bag filled with fish jerky he received from home.  He was so excited to give it to me that I couldn't refuse his generous gift.  It was another occasion where I attempted to share but ended up having the whole bag to myself because of the unique odor. 

We had a remembrance ceremony early this morning for the September 11th attacks of four years ago.  I recall telling one of my young lieutenants, as we received the news that day in Kosovo, that our lives as Soldiers would forever change after this date.  Today we stood in formation in Kandahar Afghanistan, bowed our heads in prayer and I realized I was more correct in that statement that I could have imagined.

...until next week.

Paul

LTC Paul M. Paolozzi
Commander, Task Force Pacemaker
Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan

[Carl Harrod]

I received a phone call last night that was from the father of one of the soldiers in my friend's unit in Afganistan. He had some words to pass along about 1Lt Walker and a photo to show everyone. It was very enjoyable to talk with him and he has visited this site to see some of the updates. He is new to the "Army Family" and was touched by the way 1Lt Walker influenced her soldiers. Please take time to read his message and pause to reflect on what our soldiers are doing for us no matter if you agree with the mission or not.  Also to let everyone know that both LTC Paolozzi and his gunner SPC Bradley have fully recovered physically (the emotional trauma is taking a little longer).


Thank you for taking the time to chat with me last night.  Here is the photo that I was referring to.  My son is in the back next to the left post.  It is a small, low res version for emailing and web use.  If you want t higher resolution version just let me know.

My son, PFC Christopher F. Day was under 1Lt Laura Walker's command in Afghanistan.  Before the 864th deployed in the end of March 1Lt Walker assigned Chris to be her driver.  His vehicle never arrived and he was able to do the MOS for which he was trained.  Carpentry/masonry.  His lastest job was installing aluminum matting at the airfield at Salerno. 
When the job was finished he called me to tell me that the airfield was going to be named for 1Lt Walker and that there would be a dedication ceremony the next day.  I asked him to be sure to take a picture or get one taken so that I could present it to Mrs. Walker.

1Lt Walker graciously volunteered herself AND her Mother as contact people for those family members left at home while our loved ones are serving.  My wife and I took full advantage of their generosity and contacted both on many occasions of fear and discomfort.  Both Mrs. Walker and 1Lt Walker ALWAYS addressed our concerns with very prompt and comforting responses.  My wife had received a compassionate email from Laura two days before her death.

My hope is that this photograph will find its' way to the internet and the people who richly deserve to know that Laura has been honored by having the airfield that her charges finished named after her.

Please "put me in the loop" of testamonials from Afghanistan.

I pray a speedy recovery both physically and emotionally for all those blessed to have 1Lt Walker and Sgt Davis in their lives and those also injured in the attack.

Clark W. Day
301-351-6228

[clarkwdayphoto]

Carl, thank you for posting my note to you. If anyone is interested in contacting a soldier here is the information for my son:

Friends of Chris Day...

Just talked to Chris.  He was exhausted.  He's moving from the 5 star FOB in Salerno to a VERY primitive base called Sharona PRT.  Once there (in 4 days) he will be sleeping in tents until they build themselves better accommadations.  Right now he is working on a road that links Orgun-E to Sharona.  Orgun-E is on the map without the -E.  He says there is no PX or ANY nice things.  It is VERY DIRTY and VERY SMELLY.  There are hot showers but he says they are DISGUSTING.  There is NO SNACK FOOD so PLEASE get the care packages moving.  There is no landing strip so the mail, etc arrives by chopper.  Food is MRE's.

He's working "outside the wire" now so please keep the prayers coming.

Here's the address:

PFC Day, Christopher F.

TF 864th Eng. Bn.

Sharona PRT

APO, AE  09354



Thanks,
Clark

[DanCookson]

Clark, could you please post an idea of how to send a care package, and what chris likes for snack foods.  I would like to do something like that, but would want to make sure it was filled with the right goodies, if you know what I mean.

Thanks,
Dan

[Carl Harrod]

Notes From Afghanistan - 18 SEP 05
Date: Sun, 18 Sep 2005 10:43:59 +0000
 
Dear Family & Friends,

Our Nation hasn't had blood shed over the right to vote in nearly 150 years.  We struggled in the 18th Century to win our independence, fought against our selves in the mid-19th Century over states rights and to determine if we would truly allow all men the ability to vote, and then in the early 20th Century women won a bloodless victory and were allowed to exercise their right to vote.  Today is the most important day in our year-long deployment.  The week started out slow but as we closed within three days of the National Provincial and Assembly Elections the amount of IEDs we discovered increased.  The last thing the Taliban and Al Queda would want is for the Afghani People to express themselves freely in an open election.  Today the people will elect the leaders that will fill their lower house of their legislative body, similar to our US House of Representatives. 

We casually go to the polls in the first week of November - sometimes deterred because of disinterest or foul weather.  Afghan People will exit their homes today with one thought on their mind - they want to vote.  They want to exercise their right to elect their representatives.  I spoke to a few men and asked them if they would vote.  They looked at me as if I was crazy - of course they would.  It's the first time they've been allowed to vote in their lifetime and nothing would stop them.  Would you go to the polls if you knew there was a chance you would be killed or your family killed because you voted?  Coalition Soldiers no longer fight to win the right for Americans to vote; today we fight to win the right for others to vote.  I purposely wrote "Coalition" instead of American Soldiers because this morning a French Soldier lost his life in a direct-fire engagement.  We are not alone in this fight. 

http://apnews.myway.com//article/20050918/D8CMIF2G3.html

My Command Sergeant Major and I attended Catholic Mass this morning.  Father (Chaplain) Lanuevo had a special Holy Mass to recognize our Task Force.  We've been very supportive of all the Unit Ministry Teams (UMT) and he wanted to honor our unit in the Mass today.  It was humbling to bring up the elements of communion and then have both Chaplains pray over us.  I was requested to say a few words at the conclusion of the Mass.  Like it or not, I get asked to speak often and I feel pretty at ease about it now.  It never seemed to bother me but now I can come up with something quickly without too much preparation.

I've done quite a few interviews since I've been here but they were short and rather easy.  Earlier this week I had a 45 minute interview with the Tacoma News Tribune regarding the completion of the Kandahar to Tarin Kowt Road.  I enjoyed speaking to the reporter and he was very interested in what we did, how we did it, and the monumental effort it took to make it happen.  I look forward to seeing the article in the paper. 

During this week my Task Force received some special equipment.  I can't say too much here about capabilities or technology but I was very humbled to know that my unit was the first unit in the United States Army to receive this specialized equipment used to not only jamb IED signals but it gives us some additional capabilities that we didn't have before.  I'm sure we'll put it to good use as we transit the roads throughout Afghanistan.

A special "thanks" goes out to the Army NHRA racing team for the special gear they sent for my unit.  It goes without saying that Soldiers and fast cars just seem to go together.  Receiving the large box of the hats, shirts, golf items (that will wait until we get home), and coins was a real blessing.  Our Army race teams have represented the Army in more ways than just recruiting opportunities and I appreciate the gear they sent.  Thanks Tom!

I wrote Mrs. Davis, SGT Davis' wife, last week to check up on her and see how she's doing.  I would understand if she was bitter, unwilling to talk or write, or just angry with the Army but she would have none of that.  She was very open to write and made sure I knew that one of the last letters she received from her husband included his desire for her to send him some sandals because most of the children he met had no shoes.  She told me that she's sending a big box of sandals because that's what Bob wanted.  No bitterness, no remorse, just personally focused on fulfilling her husband's wishes - not for himself but for others.  I'm not surprised.

I've included a few pictures of us having fun.  As most of my Soldiers flow through KAF to rest and refit before moving into the next mission they're getting some well deserved time together.  It felt like I was at a reunion - many of my officers haven't seen each other in almost six months.  I took the opportunity to have dinner with many of the lieutenants (I have 30); contributing to the development of my most junior officers is crucial to them being strong officers of the future.  I enjoy some social conversation, speak to them about the mission and working with Soldiers, and then allow them to ask about anything on their mind.  We also had some time for Officers Physical Training (OPT).  It's never about who wins the ultimate football game but more about enjoying the spirit of being together, embellishing the events of the game in conversation afterward, and getting some exercise.  I wish I had more opportunities to get them together like this but because we're often to the "four winds" it doesn't happen nearly enough.

I look forward to next week.

All my best,

Paul

LTC Paul M. Paolozzi
Commander, Task Force Pacemaker
Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan