COL Richard G. Kaiser

BRIGADE COMMANDER’s CORNER

CASTLE COURIER

C A S T L E C O U R I E R V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 8

BDE CSM Pg 2

PROMO-

TIONS

Pg 2

S2 Pg 3

326TH Pg 4

HHC 20TH Pg 5

CMD GRP Pg 6

467th Pg 7

380th Pg 8

Chaplain

Contact

Info

Pg 9

Pg9

INSIDE

THIS

ISSUE:

See Sapper Eagles on pg. 4

Hello to all – I hope and trust this finds everyone well. I do know that autumn is in the air; I can almost smell “Fall” all the way over here, and I am reminded of the words of a song……. “When I feel the chill, smell the fresh cut grass,…… I’m back in my helmet, cleats and shoulder pads. Standing in the huddle listenin’ to the call……. Fans going crazy for the boys of fall……. One of my absolute favorite songs is “The Boys of Fall” by Kenny Chesney – brings a tear to my eye every time, and I am glad I don‟t have this one on an iPOD or any-thing!! At any rate, you can cer-tainly feel the change back home. You can start to feel it here at COB Adder too. Days are much cooler now, staying in the 110 degree range. Yes,…. that is still hot but it is much better than 120(+) degrees, and you can trust me on that one. There is a slow sense of movement beginning as units begin to prepare for the final phase of Operation New Dawn. In accordance with the Security Agreement be-tween the US and Iraq, all US forces are to de-part from Iraq no later than 31 December, 2011. We are still bound by that agreement. So slowly, the movement begins. If you read the newspapers, you will see that there are still over 45,000 Soldiers, 50,000 (+) contractors and over 800,000 pieces of equip-ment that must leave the country before the 31

st.

Stop and think about that for a minute – Whew! I suspect that you can see it will take a very con-certed effort to move those mountains! And slowly, the movement begins. In the next few weeks we will have better clarity on when our own engineer forces will return home. I want to remind readers that engineers will remain very

important through the very end of all operations, so I would ask that everyone remain patient while careful redeployment planning occurs. You have my word that we will not keep anyone here unless they are necessary to the successful completion of our mission. And right now,… that includes everyone!! CSM Kendrick and I are so very proud of the en-

tire team. Everyone associated with the Brigade – the BDE HQs, the 326

th EN BN, the 467

th EPBS,

Prime Power, the USACE FEST-A Teams,… everyone is just perform-ing miraculous feats day in and day out. Senior leaders every-where constantly remark about how well this team is performing – and you can thank your Soldier and Airman for that!! Even as we are drawing down slowly, construc-

tion must continue in order to readjust our footprint while keeping Troopers safe, routes must continue to be cleared from roadside bombs, and we must be ready to repair a bridge in a moment‟s notice. Next month, I think we will be able to provide pretty clear redeployment guidance. Don‟t forget,…. The 20

th Brigade has the absolute honor of

closing the last large base in Iraq. COB Adder is one of the largest bases and is the last big base to close, so the BDE team will be fully occupied and engaged heavily in October and November. So,…. As fall comes around in full swing and pump-kins replace summer foliage, just know that change is indeed coming. If you get a chance, please go to a High School football game or other Fall sport and just relish that time, and be ever so thankful for the opportunities we have in America! May God Bless you all, and thank you so much for everything you have done and continue to do for our Families and our Nation. “GET THERE!” CASTLE 6

P A G E 2

BRIGADE CSM

Happy greetings to all the Soldiers

and Family members of the 20th En-

gineer BDE! After recently returning

from R&R leave, I finally – today -

got myself back into the combat

rhythm with the TEAM. I apologize

upfront if I did not get the opportunity

to visit all the Soldiers while I was on

R&R leave. Household 7 (Mrs. Ken-

drick) took full advantage of my re-

turn home and we spent 10 days all

over the great USA. I set aside a

day for a visit to the Brigade Head-

quarters and I was absolutely aston-

ished with the staff performance,

command teams, and the appear-

ance of the Brigade‟s footprint. The

team back at Bragg has definitely

made Castle 6 and me proud of their

contributions to the Soldiers and

Families during this deployment.

Now back to work at COB Adder

in the combat zone. As always, the

team in Iraq is continuing to press for-

ward and strive for consistent perform-

ance and perfection where possible.

Upon completion of the combat tour we

will have occupied three different loca-

tions with three totally different mis-

sions. I want to publically thank SGM

Jordan - he took care of the Brigade

and handled the responsibilities of the

Brigade CSM while I was on leave.

Again, I cannot say enough about our

Soldiers during the combat operations

of Operation New Dawn. Thanks for

your cooperation, patience and loving

devotion to the Soldier‟s in uniform.

We appreciate everything you do and

we wish you the best as we finish

STRONG!

GET THERE!

Castle 7

“I set aside a day

for a visit to the Bri-

gade Headquarters

and I was abso-

lutely...”

CSM Butler J. Kendrick

SEPT BIRTHDAYS

LTC Haupt SSG Bick

CPT Haynes SSG Wallace

CW3 Walker SGT Barr

CSM Kendrick SGT Dunbar

SFC Cabrera SGT Fulmer

SFC Ingle SPC Barba

SSG Brown SPC Gibay

SSG Bick SPC Orozco

SSG Wallace SPC Saccento

SGT Barr SPC Thele

PROMOTIONS SGT Briggs

SGT Villegas

BDE S2/ADDER GARRISON S2 P A G E 3

V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 8

C A S T L E C O U R I E R

Since our arrival on COB Adder the Theater Engineer Brigade S2

section has taken on another role as the Directorate of Security. We are

still responsible for providing the Brigade and all subordinate units the

most up to date intelligence and geospatial products for mission success.

We are also responsible for providing the safety, security and force pro-

tection to the residents of COB Adder. In order to effectively accomplish

our new mission set, our shop had to be divided with two separate fo-

cuses. Part of the section continues with the Theater Engineer Brigade

Mission while the other focuses on the COB Adder Mission. Even though

our section‟s focuses are different we all continue to work as a team to

accomplish all given tasks regardless of which area it pertains to. To date,

the S2 section has produced 148 Graphic Intelligence Summaries

(GRINTSUM) and 350 Geospatial products. We have also conducted 60

Battle Update Briefings and 30 Commander‟s Update Briefings.

Our section is comprised of military intelligence personnel, com-

bat engineers, topographic engineers, a civilian contractor and a civilian

linguist. The Theater Engineer Brigade S2 section and Directorate of Se-

curity‟s Director is MAJ Owens, Deputy Director of Intelligence is CPT

Hassan, and the Senior Enlisted Advisor / Deputy Director of Security is

SFC Madison. Upon our transition to COB Adder, our section gained an-

other member, CPT Pickett who is the Anti-Terrorism Force Protection

(ATFP) Officer. SSG Boens is the Electronic Warfare NCO and is solely

responsible for ensuring that all Engineering units have the proper

counter IED measures. SSG Boens is also the blast mitigation NCO for

COB Adder. He and CPT Pickett ensure that all the units on COB Adder

are properly protected against the threat of indirect fire attacks. Their con-

tinued work and efforts have continued to improve the readiness posture

of the entire COB. The rest of the analytical and directorate team are

SSG Moore who is the senior intelligence analysts and SPC Thele. They

are the ones responsible for producing all the aforementioned products.

SPC Lopez Rios who is responsible for base access and to date has cre-

ated and renewed over 1500 memorandums for record, exemption to pol-

icy and base access for all Iraqi Air Force, local nationals (LN) and third country nationals (TCN) entering and

exiting COB Adder. Approximately 1,000 LNs and TCNs come in and out of COB Adder daily. Our Geospatial

Engineer section is led up by SSG Wheat and Geospatial analyst SPC Phillips. The products they produce are

used by our subordinate units, most units within the Iraq Joint Operational Area (IJOA) and all the way up to the

USF-I Commanding General‟s Staff. Their exceptionally high quality products make them one of the busiest

Geospatial sections in all of Iraq and those products drive all decisions concerning Engineer Counter IED. SSG

Wheat was hand selected to remain at Joint Base Balad (JBB) to continue to provide Geospatial support to the

326th Engineer Battalion.

Mr. Howard our Counter IED analyst and data collector from the Joint IED Defeat Organization

(JIEDDO), also remained at JBB, continuing to provide expert analysis to the 326th EN BN. Mr. Howard is due to

be reunited with the section once again in the very near future and we will be glad to have him back. His analysis

has greatly enhanced route clearance procedures across the IJOA. Mr. Howard has also remained in Iraq for

four consecutive years ensuring that his expertise and knowledge contributed to mission success.

Ms. Thomas is the Iraqi cultural advisor to the Brigade Commander and is his sole interface with the

Iraqi Army Headquarters Field Engineer Regiment and Bridging Regiment. Noosh provides cultural counsel for

the Brigade S2 Section, helping to ensure the safety of Soldiers within the Theater Engineer Brigade. She also

provides assistance when speaking with the local nationals, Iraqi contractors and Iraqi military personnel.

—SFC Madison

During the past month we were able to recognize

one of our own for his exceptional performance

and diligent work. SSG Keyon Boens was

awarded and Army Achievement Medal (AAM)

for his continued efforts to improve the defense

readiness posture of COB Adder. He showed

outstanding ability to coordinate with three or

more different units and contractors to accom-

plish a single mission, ensuring that blast mitiga-

tion was provided to the requesting unit to stan-

dard and as quickly as possible.

SAPPER EAGLES

they assume that any work that they need is one you can

complete without any reservations.

The main mission of the Punishers is Route Clear-

ance and they have been conducting this mission during

the entirety of their deployment in Iraq. All across Iraq the

Punishers have been granted assured mobility to all assets

that have been utilizing main and alternate supply routes.

From missions as short as one hour to missions as long as

two weeks, the Punishers have toiled endlessy in the in-

tense heat of the Arab landscape. Dangers arise daily to

meet the Soldiers from IEDs and small arms fire to vehicle

break downs and traffic jams. These are just a few of the

occupational hazards that the Punishers face, and through

it all they continue to work to clear the roads to keep every-

one over here safe from violent extremist groups.

—1LT Scheuch

There is nary a troop that is inspired by long

winded speeches. Troops are all about inspiring speeches

that last for only a few moments. If a Soldier can take away

something from the speech, and re use it, you know that

the speech went well. The 391st is well aware of this when

the Commander, CPT Strong, delivers his words to the

men. Such phrases as “shoot. Move, communicate” are

great take aways for Soldiers. Some old Punisher phrases

include: “maintain situational awareness at all times”, “use

brevity and conciseness when communicating”, and

“violence of action will increase you favor against all odds”.

Phrases are not the only things that occupies a

Punisher‟s time during this tour. From Forward Operating

Base rehearsals, extended research of missions, conduct-

ing a large variety of missions, manning odd jobs, to con-

ducting a multitude of AARs; punishers are adaptable to

anything that comes their way. That is the life of a combat

engineer, when someone hears that you are an engineer

Above: SGT Post burning the sides of a bridge, eliminating

hiding spots for IEDs.

Below: 1LT Moreno stands with his Iraqi Partners during a

normal patrol through the streets of Iraq.

MONGRELS

COMMANDER, HHC 20th EN BDE

1SG, HHC 20th EN BDE

I love the monthly reminder from LT Thomas that the newsletter is coming due, it gives me the

opportunity to reflect on the month‟s activities. The first thing that came to mind was the huge

task of closing out all of HHC‟s end of tour awards. It seemed as though my in-box never

emptied. I must commend SGT Gomez and all of the S1 Soldiers for their efforts ensuring all

our deserving Soldiers will be properly recognized.

Last month CPT Meyer and SGM Jordan along with the 380 ESC were tasked to clear the

Reeds along the COB Adder fence line that limited the fields of fire view. He designed an im-

provised incendiary grenade holder, some old worn out ACUs, and a liberal spreading of fuel.

After close examination by Mr. Lockwood, the Brigade Safety Officer, he released the pin by

standing upwind and pulling the spoon with 550 cord. They cleared most of the reeds and we

got a lot of great pictures. The only negative part was that the fire department that was on

standby did not get to use the water cannons. Another job well done by the S3.

Last month COB Adder sponsored two Level 1 and one Level 2 Combatives Classes. We

had over 15 Soldiers volunteer their after duty hours to participate. During the same time period SGT Taylor was recruiting

then for the 20th EN BDE Combatives Team and training his crew for the next tournament scheduled for the end of the

month. Looking forward to the last organized MWR activity on COB Adder.

HHC acquired a 60 inch monitor while on JBB, we brought it down to COB Adder and made a little MWR room. A couple of

weekends back, we had a “MADDEN Tournament” between the Medics, S6 and S3 we had about 14 participants. Con-

gratulations to SPC Blackwell for winning the event, hope to have more in the future.

CPT Matthews

Greetings to the Soldiers and Family members of the 20th Engineer Brigade from Tallil, Iraq. The

weather has finally started to show signs of cooling off. The temperatures are slowly starting to

descend. Our Soldiers continue to work extremely hard as we draw down and prepare to turn

over the COB to the Iraqis. Each section is going above and beyond, turning in equipment as we

prepare for the final months of the tour.

Thus far 106 Soldiers have participated in the Rest and Recuperation (R&R) Program. After hav-

ing a great time with family and friends, Soldiers return full of energy and ready to go back to

work and complete this mission here in Iraq.

We proudly acknowledged the following Soldiers for advancing to the next rank. Specialist Villegas and Corporal Briggs

were both promoted to Sergeant. Congratulations to them all on their great achievement and continued success and wel-

come SGT Villegas to the NCO corps.

We celebrated birthdays for the following: LTC Haupt, CPT Haynes, CW3 Walker, CSM Kendrick, SFC Cabrera, SFC

Ingle, SSG Brown, SSG Bick, SG Wallace, SGT Barr, SGT Dunbar, SGT Fulmer, SPC Barba, SPC Gibay, SPC Orozco,

SPC Saccento, SPC Thele . A great day as we sang happy birthday, took photos and ate birthday cake.

The brigade is sponsoring a combatives tournament. This tournament is spearheaded by SGT Taylor, the middle weight

champ from the last tournament. He has prepared the team once again and we wish them luck as they compete against

other Soldiers on the COB.

We said Goodbye to the 34th En Company, Sapper. They have performed superbly during their 12 month stay as a route

clearance company. They are headed back to Hawaii after to enjoy a well deserved break.

SSG Lee, amazed the members of the Sergeant Audie Murphy board. She exuded confidence and displayed poise and

was recommend to the next level which is the corps board at AL Asad, Iraq. We wish her the best of luck, and there is no

doubt she will represent the 20th EN BDE to the well.

We are getting closer every day. Keep all of our Soldiers in your prayers as we strive to “Get There”.

1SG McQuirter

C A S T L E C O U R I E R

COMMAND GROUP P A G E 6

September was a busy month for the 20th Engineer Brigade Command Group, with the mission focus shifting from

advising and training to base transition. COB Adder has begun to receive more units as they complete their mis-

sions in the north, and as the Adder Mayor Command Team, Command Group executed many leader engagements

and attended several working groups that centered on preparing COB Adder for a larger operational role. As

strange as it sounds, it seems as though every Soldier, KBR contractor, and SOC guard in Iraq wants to spend the

last few months of 2011, at Beautiful COB Adder, instead of heading back to their home countries. This is strange

because Beautiful COB Adder is anything but beautiful, and is quite possibly the hottest, dustiest, smelliest place in

Iraq. The only plus is the quality of the Caesar salads.

At the beginning of September, the 25th Infantry Division took over responsibility for the southern portion of

Iraq from the 36th Infantry Division. This event prefaced several visits to the 20

th‟s Headquarters from General Offi-

cers who required a clear picture of the way ahead for Adder. With help from HHC and other units on the COB,

Command Group provided three aerial tours and four briefs to various General Officers, meeting or exceeding their

expectations.

Without a doubt, COL Kaiser completed the most work in Command Group during September. LTC Morgan

spent the first two weeks whistling old parade songs in his office and the last two weeks on R&R. SGT Abbey was

on R&R for most of the month, getting engaged and cooking pancakes. CSM Kendrick also spent September on

R&R, but was cruising around “Hot-lanta” most of the time. MAJ Binetti wandered around the COB listening to the

“Top Gun” soundtrack on loop and LT Hall spent most of his time fishing in the desert, but not catching anything.

Joking aside, September was a very productive month for Command Group, with several trips around Iraq

and meetings with many distinguished visitors. It was definitely a demanding month, but we see the increased work-

load as a sign of progress.

Please be sure to send your best wishes to SGT Abbey, who was engaged to SGT Nevar Shoulders of 3/1

CAV while on R&R. —1LT Hall

The re-posturing of US Forces in Iraq requires many units to

move to other bases within Iraq before the end of mission to allow an incre-

mental base transition plan.

COB Adder‟s Facility Engineer Team (FET), as part of the 467th Expe-

ditionary Prime BEEF Squadron (EPBS), was tasked to design and manage the

project to construct the USD-C compound to include the Division Operations

Center (DOC), SCIF, Staff offices and Command Section. Because of the high

priority, some parts of the USD-C functions had to achieve Initial and Final Op-

erational Capabilities in an incremental manner, some as early as 10 days from

the initial tasking. Impeding the design was an ever changing number of USD-

C personnel that would transition to Adder. The project would need the skill

sets of many units to ensure on-time completion, including the 389th Vertical

Construction Company (VCC), the 380th Engineer Support Company (ESC),

1729th Forward Support Maintenance Company (FSMC) and KBR engineers.

With limited time, space and materials available, close coordination between all

entities involved was paramount.

The design incorporated many occupied facilities, necessitating the move of a few units including the

467th EPBS and 380th ESC. Consequently these units were forced to execute the project while concurrently relo-

cating their facilities. At the same time, the 389th was moving to their new location and had to work without their

full complement of tools and equipment. Procuring materials was the first major limiting factor that was overcome

by support from the 25th ID, collecting excess materials from bases drawing down and the 389

th, 380

th and Adder

FET expeditiously tracking down materials on COB Adder. Six new trailers had to be procured and connected to

provide the space needed for the USD-S HQ staff functions. Furthermore, an emergency Administrative Change

Letter was required to get KBR support for trailer install and power generation upgrades. Although KBR had sent

many of its electricians to another base for a different high priority project, they were able to respond quickly and

redistribute materials from other bases in the IJOA to complete their tasks on time.

The 380th ESC used their crane to move T-walls, installed

guard facility for the SCIF and removed large excess debris from the

job site. The 389th VCC constructed the DOC stage, demolished

walls and installed electrical outlets for 50 workstations. The 389th

also removed doors and walls in the SCIF, installed the SCIF vehicle

gate, installed over 1000 feet of triple and double strand C-wire and

demolished the smaller 36 ID TAC stage for a future conference

room. The 1729th FSMC brought a critical steel working capability

that was not available from the other units and fabricated gates for

the SCIF and main compound entrance.

Despite the short timeline and material limitations all the

teams involved exercised close, effective coordination and planning

and were able to meet all IOC and FOC deadlines on time and, in a

few cases, a few days early. The craftsmen of the Adder FET, 389th

VCC, 380th ESC, 1729

th FSMC and KBR proved their worth and ex-

pertise during this project enabling the timely transition of the 25th ID

and USD-C. —MAJ Sledge

“PRIME BEEF”

Army Sgt. Drew Hosteter, 20th Engineer Brigade

provides instructions on everyones roles and respob-

sibilities in repairing the guard shack behind him.

Airmen and Soldiers work together in repairing a

new building on Ali Base, Iraq, Aug. 31, 2011. (U. S.

Air Force photo/Master Sgt. Cecilio Ricardo)

Soldiers perform carpentry work on a guard shack

on Ali Base, Iraq, Aug. 31, 2011. Airmen and sol-

diers are working closely together to help transition

equipment and buildings to Iraqis. (U. S. Air Force

photo/Master Sgt. Cecilio Ricardo)

C A S T L E C O U R I E R

WAR EAGLES P A G E 8

SPC Bell and SGT Strong remove reeds from base perimeter.

We‟ve been really busy over here in the last

month! A lot of projects and missions have

come down, and first platoon has met every

deadline, goal, and objective!

The Soldiers continue to work hard to

ensure that all necessary force protection

measures are in place, and the base is ready

for transition over to the Government of Iraq.

Congratulations to SPC Robinson, who

received a „Coin of Excellence‟ from Brigadier

General Becker, the U.S. Division - Center Dep-

uty Commanding General for Support.

She was commended for her hard work, moti-

vation, and determination. Hats off to her and

the rest of the platoon who work hard every

day to ensure that every project and mission

that gets tasked to the first platoon is accom-

plished to standard and on time! -1LT Hanley

SFC Flowers and SSG Galvan set up the new platoon office.

“Nothing can stop the man with the right

mental attitude from achieving his goal; noth-

ing on earth can help the man with the wrong

mental attitude.”

Thomas Jefferson

“Success does not consist in never making blunders, but in never making the same one a

second time.” Josh Billings

“There are three kinds of people in the world, the wills, the won'ts and the can'ts. The first accomplish everything; the second oppose

everything; the third fail in everything.” Unknown

Castle Courier is published by the 20th Engineer Brigade. Some of its contents are official while others are the opinions

of the individual articles’ authors, and are not endorsed by all Soldiers/Airmen or the Department of Defense. For

questions/concerns, please contact the Brigade PAO at lamario.thomas@us.army.mil.

“GET THERE!...

...ALL THE WAY!”

P A G E 9

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Chaplain’s Corner THE SAND & STONE

Two friends were walking through the desert. During some point of the journey, they had an argument;

and one friend slapped the other one on the face. The one who got slapped was hurt but without saying

anything wrote on the sand: “today my best friend slapped me on my face.” They kept on walking, until

they found a river where they decided to take a bath; the one who had been slapped got stuck in the

mire and started drowning, but the friend saved him. After he recovered from the near drowning, he

wrote on a stone: “today my best friend saved my life.” The friend who had slapped & saved his best

friend asked him, “after I hurt you, you wrote on the sand and now, you write in a stone, why?” The

friend replied; “when someone hurts us we should write it down in sand, where winds of forgiveness can

erase it away. But, when someone does something good for us, we must engrave it in stone where no

wind can ever erase it.” Learn to write your hurts in the sand and to carve your benefits in stone. They

say it takes a minute to find a special person, an hour to appreciate them, a day to love them, but then

an entire life to forget them.

“Do not value the things you have in your life, but value who you have in your life.”

CH (MAJ) Dino Besinga