CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE ADDER, Iraq – Educating children might not be the first thing Americans discuss when the subject of Iraq comes up.
Yet, for the Soldiers of Task Force Pathfinder, helping the next generation of Iraqis obtain a basic education is a critical part of their mission. In order to leave a safe, stable nation when American Soldiers depart, Iraq must develop the social infrastructure required to sustain the progress made.
In past years, Soldiers trained to perform conventional military tasks, whether serving as riflemen, tankers, or cooks. When they leave for deployments, they depart confident in their abilities due to sustained training in their field of expertise.
The Soldiers of Task Force Pathfinder took their training one step further, adding a range of Civil Affairs and project management skills to their pre-deployment preparations.
Since arriving in Iraq, they have adapted to a new role. They now provide military support to civil capacity operations, combining their movement and security expertise with a broader understanding of economic and social development as part of the Army’s first ‘advise and assist’ brigade.
An important component of the advise and assist mission is supporting civil capacity. In Southern Iraq, this means working alongside the U.S. State Department’s Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRT), assisting efforts that range from providing clean drinking water to repairing damaged hospitals.
Among these many efforts, educating the children of Iraq is an important, though rarely noticed, facet.
“We have made great progress in this country,” said Lt. Col. Michael Eastman, Commander of Task Force Pathfinder. “Sustaining those gains beyond an American presence here requires that the next generation of Iraqi leaders have access to a basic education.”
More than simply delivering school books and supplies, their efforts include improving and expanding the existing infrastructure by renovating damaged buildings, building new schools in remote locations, providing electrical access, and equipping them with supplies and furniture.
In the province of Al Muthanna alone, the Soldiers of “Able” Company, an infantry unit assigned to the taskforce, provided project oversight and security for the construction of two new, four-room schools, one school renovation and three corresponding electrical extensions. By adding electricity to the schools, they have created a learning environment safe from the elements and capable of bringing increased exposure to outside information.
Based on this initial success, the assigned Army Civil Affairs team assumed responsibility for an additional three schools and the corresponding electrical extension projects.
“We see it as an investment in Iraq’s next generation and pivotal to long term sustained national growth,” said Walkertown, N.C. native Capt. Michael Martin, “A” Company, 1st Battalion, 77th Armor Regiment attached to Task Force Pathfinder, when asked to describe how his soldiers view the progress they’ve made towards the province’s education system.
Staff Sgt. Danillo Martinez from San Diego, Calif., added, “Positively affecting the life of one child is what makes it all worth it.”
