page 11 national guard chaplains get skills training

Thursday, December 13, 2012 Page 11Camp Shelby REVEILLE

tive duty for additional medical care,or return home and receive that carefrom hometown providers, explainedKuehl. Representatives from the De-partment of Veterans Affairs, Em-ployer Support to the Guard andReserve Program, and many othersare also available and assist in theprocess.

The 27th IBCT mobilized in Janu-ary 2012 at Camp Shelby. The unitdeployed in support of more than 25different missions and locationsthroughout the Middle East.

“Our deployment was abundantlysuccessful because we did what weget paid to do--with honor and self-less sacrifice--and succeeded inevery mission we were assigned. Ourteam rose to the demands placed andcan return to their Families, homesand civilian careers in the firmknowledge they did their jobs as gen-uine American patriots,” said Slack.

First Army Division East plannersworked hard to ensure that, as mis-sions changed, they had the correcttrainers and situational exercises.One element of 27th IBCT deployedto Bahrain to provide security at theBahrain Airport. First Army plannersworked with officials at the Hatties-burg Airport to arrange for the unit totrain there. Slack credited this levelof detail with ensuring his Soldierswere prepared for every mission.

“I firmly believe we were pro-vided world class training and sup-port while at Camp Shelby andwithout that care, attention to detailand the unyielding demand placedupon us to achieve; and at time ex-ceed the standard. Our price in casu-alties would have been far higherthat it was. First Army-East servedthe 27th IBCT well, and we must allconsider ourselves in debt to themfor their splendid assistance,” Slacksaid.

RushContinued from Page 7National Guard chaplains get skills training

By CAPT. AUDREY MATTHEWS177th Armored Brigade

Instead of weapons, chaplainscarry their faith when they deploy.But even a chaplain needs to knowhow to defend him or herselfagainst a personal attack.

While deployed, unit ministryteams work hard to provide spiri-tual guidance and increase Sol-diers’ resilience. Members of FirstArmy Division East walk a fineline when providing deployingunit ministry teams mobilizationtraining. They must ensure theynot only can provide their pastoralduties, but also survive on the bat-tlefield. Since chaplains are non-combatants -- they don't carryweapons -- their security normallyfalls to their assistants.

During recent training with the1-104th Calvary and 1-109th In-fantry Battalions, both of the 55thBrigade Combat Team, a Pennsyl-vania National Guard unit, theunits' UMTs not only receivedtheir classroom instructions onproviding pastoral care to Soldiersdown range but were also intro-duced to hands-on survivabilitytechniques.

The survivability techniques,taught by Chaplain (Capt.) DonaldThomas and Sgt. 1st ClassLQuitha Brock, of the 177th Ar-mored Brigade, included tech-niques designed, not to harm, butto allow the chaplain to escapefrom immediate danger. This in-cluded showing the deploying unitministry teams how to break vari-ous holds and get away if theywere grabbed by someone withhostile intent.

"Chaplains are non-combat-ants," explained Chaplain (Lt.Col.) Harry C. Huey Jr., FirstArmy Division East chaplain. "As

a result, there is a heavy burden ofresponsibility upon the chaplainassistant for the security of thechaplain in a deployed environ-ment. Survivability training en-ables the chaplain to bringsomething to the table that sup-ports the assistant in maintainingUMT security. Survivability train-ing also helps the assistant to thinkthrough security dynamics that heor she may not have addressed inprevious training."

Like many training units, apractical exercise provided theUMTs a chance to put their newlyacquired skills into action. Fol-lowing three days of training, theUMTs navigated a situationaltraining lane exercise, movingthrough a hostile environment tothe casualty collection point toprovide care for wounded Sol-diers.

Sgt. Timothy Wright, 1-104thCalvary chaplain assistant, led the

teams throughout the area. Main-taining a low silhouette, the teamssuccessfully negotiated the dangerzone. Before reaching the CCPhowever, the teams encounteredand reacted to two hostile role-players.

When they reached the CCP,they found five injured Soldiersand a priest needing various de-grees of care. The teams quicklyreacted and provided pastoralcare. Afterwards, the UMTs andthe trainers discussed the trainingevent, highlighting the things thatwent well and things they need toimprove.

"The hands-on practice versusthe classroom training allowed meto see blind spots and things youcan improve on," said Chaplain(Capt.) Douglas Knepp, 1-104thCalvary Battalion.

Chaplain (Maj.) Ryan Krauss,1-109th Infantry Battalion, saidmany Soldiers feel that even in the

"heat of training" things happenquickly and Soldiers need to thinkbefore they react -- himself in-cluded.

"I should take my time beforejumping in; be more deliberate,"he acknowledged.

"Unit Ministry Team training atour MFGIs is crucial to the prepa-ration of our deploying chaplainsand chaplain assistants," Huey ex-plained. "Our end state is that de-ployed Soldiers receive the bestpossible religious support no mat-ter how austere or dangerous theirarea of operations may be. Toreach that end state we have toprovide our Unit Ministry Teamswith training that prepares them tocoordinate and conduct religioussupport wherever their units maydeploy."

"Communicate. Have a plan A,B and C," emphasized Sgt. MelvinRountree, 1-109th Infantry chap-lain assistant. He suggested theUMT "hook up with the medicsfor the MASCAL (mass casu-alty)," which is another trainingexercise. Rountree felt the addi-tional training would better pre-pare Soldiers for situations on thebattlefield.

"It's not muscle memory yet butwe did good overall. We have ayear with each other for it to be-come second nature. Maybe I cancome back and teach this class,"said Sgt. Timothy Wright, 1-104thCalvary chaplain assistant.

"The First Amendment ensuresa Soldier's right to the exercise ofhis or her religious faith. Ourtraining prepares chaplains andchaplain assistants to provide forthat most basic right of our Sol-diers – no matter where they maybe deployed and no matter theconditions of that deployment,"Huey said.