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December 19, 2003Vol. I No. 5 Task Force 1-501st PIR, FOB Salerno, Afghanistan

The Soldiers of Task Force 1-501st

PIR know they can sleep, eat and goabout their daily routines in relativesafety thanks to their brethren who are

standing guard 24/7.Companies within the task forcetake turns manning the gates and guardtowers that surround Forward Oper-ating Base Salerno. Company B is fin-ishing up their 5-week tour of duty asthe first line of defense for the FOB.

“When the (delivery) trucks cometo Salerno we are the only ones thatcheck them,” says Pfc. Justin Pruitt,Headquarters Platoon, who has been pulling duty at the main gate. “We haveto ensure that nothing gets in that can be used to harm our Soldiers.”

The guards on the FOB’s gates con-fiscate items such as: knives, matches,signal mirrors and metal bars. Whenthe Afghanis leave the camp their itemsare returned to them.

The search of the vehicles is not al-

Soldiers guarding SoldiersStory and photos by

Staff Sgt. Jeff Troth

ways an easy task due to the size of the load and many compartments.Under the seats of some trucks Pruitthas found compartments with wooden planks covering it. So far all he hasfound in these spaces is hoses and

other vehicle spare parts.“Some of those spaces could beoverlooked, and they are perfect places to hide weapons,” Pruitt said.“You have to look as good as you can,and hope you don’t miss anything. Ido not want it to be my fault that some-thing made it on Salerno that was usedto harm any of our Soldiers.”

Approximately 7 to 10 trucks ar-rive each day at the front gate withsupplies and equipment for the task force. As a precaution, the trucks donot roll through the gate when they firstarrive. Their information and papersare checked and then verified fromBagram Air Field, where the trucksoriginate from.

To help deal with the drivers, whoPruitt said normally do not speak En-

glish, an interpreter is onhand at the gate.

“We have learned some

basic Pashto, so that wecan tell the locals to turnaround when we aresearching them, or thatthey are OK and can go,”said Pruitt. “Anythingmore than that would bevery hard without an in-terpreter.”

Besides the Soldiers atthe gates, several others

man guard towers that ring the perim-eter of the compound. These guardsare responsible for noticing anythingout of the ordinary in their sector. Forthat reason the guards pull duty at thesame tower and same time each day

“Once you have been here for a fewdays you get a feeling for the position,”said Pfc. Ivan Inouye, 1stPlatoon. “Youget to know what is supposed to be outthere and what is supposed to be goingon in front of your tower, so you know

when something isn’t right.”The Soldiers know that their con-

stant vigil serves a purpose and thatwhen they are not on guard otherGeronimos are providing that securityfor them.

“When I am on Salerno and not onguard duty I feel safe,” said Inouye. “Iknow that there are Soldiers out hereon guard and keeping a constant look-out.”

Pfc. Ivan Inouye keeps a watchful eye out for unusual

activity from the guard tower located next to north gate.

Cpl. Edgar Guzman uses a metal detecto

to determine that a truck driver is no

carrying any contraband onto the FOB.

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The Geronimo

December 19, 20032

This is an unofficial Army newsletter, authorized under the provisions

of AR 360-1, and published by the 1/501st PIR Public Affairs Office. Edito-

rial views and opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the

Department of the Army or the 1/501st PIR. All submissions to The

Geronimo are subject to editing.

The Geronimo can also be found at: www.usarak.army.mil/1501.

Questions or comments should be directed to: 1/501st Public Affairs

Office. DNVT 318-580-3067.

Battalion Commander Lt. Col. Harry C. Glenn III

Editor Staff Sgt. Jeff Troth

Salerno Happenings

Tomb of the UnknownWhen Hurricane Isabelle threatened the east coast inSeptember, Soldiers of the Old Guard assigned the dutyof guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier were given permission to suspend the assignment.

They refused. “No way, Sir!”Soaked to the skin, marching in the pelting rain of a tropi-

cal storm, they said that guarding the Tomb was not justan assignment, it was the highest honor that can be af-

forded to a service member. A guard has always been on

duty at the tomb since 1930.

Malvo ConvictedLee Boyd Malvo was found guilty Thursday of killing a

woman during last fall's sniper shootings that terrorizedWashington, D.C., and outlying areas of Virginia andMaryland in the fall of 2002. Malvo, who had claimed

insanity, could face the death penalty.

Schwarzenegger Declares EmergencyGov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared California in a fis-cal crisis Thursday and invoked emergency powers so

he could impose $150 million in spending cuts withoutthe legislature's approval."I was elected by the people of this state to lead," saidSchwarzenegger. "Since the legislative leadership refuses

to act, I will act without them."

Ichiro Stays With MarinersIchiro Suzuki avoided salary arbitration by agreeing to afour-year, $44 million contract, keeping the All-Star right

fielder and one-time AL MVP with the Seattle Mariners.He led the majors last season with 66 multi-hit games and

also ranked among the AL leaders in hits, batting aver-

age, runs, triples and stolen bases.

Beauty Queen KidnappedAfter kidnapping and robbing Venezuelan model Veruska

Ramirez, thieves asked the former Miss Universe finalist

to sign her latest calendar as a momento.

Volleyball TourneyTF Falcon/FARP are hosting a volleyball tournament Dec.27. The double-elimination contest begins at 0400 hours

Zulu. Team sign-up ends Wednesday at 1200 hrs Zulu, acaptain’s meeting will be held Friday at 1200 hrs.

The World

As I write this message, the GI Soldier has beenchosen as the Time Magazine Person of the Year. I canthink of no better individual to receive this recognitionthan all our Soldiers, Airmen, Marines, and Sailors aseach sacrifice for the Global War on Terrorism. Each of you, as members of the Geronimo Task Force, are part of

this historic crusade that our country has embarked upon.When your children and grand children are old enough tounderstand the historic significance, you will be able toexplain what your contribution was to the fight. Today,our country has returned to Orange alert. Once againthey are at the second highest terrorist warning of attack since 9/11. Remember, you stand in Afghanistan today to prevent any future attacks on our soil.

Christmas and the Holidays hold special meaning for all of us. Family, friendship, and generosity to others arehallmarks for the Season. Although we spend our Christmas in Afghanistan, remember, you are neither thefirst nor the last Geronimo to spend Christmas away fromfamily. Geronimos were laying in the snow of Bastogneon Christmas day, in the rice paddies of Vietnam onChristmas Eve, and now you patrol in the deserts andmountains of Afghanistan. You carry on the proudtradition of this Regiment.

I conclude with this Holiday Cheer: CSM Turnbull andI are proud of each one of you and honored to lead thisgreat team. Enjoy Christmas and remember why yousacrifice. Take care of each other.

Merry Christmas and Kill the Enemy!Geronimo 6

Christmas Message from Geronimo 6

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The Geronimo

December 19, 20033

Going home my first Christmas in

the Army and having my entire family

to spend it with.Spec. Chris Cayard

TF Commo

FOB facesWhat is your fondest Christmas

memory?

At my grandparents house on their

farm in Hood River, Ore., when I was 5

years old. All my aunts, uncles and

cousins were there.

Lt. Col. Randy Espinosa

691st FST

Getting to go home during basic

training and spending time with my

family.

Pfc. Fern Ramos

Co. B

At AIT I went to the Riverwalk and

fell in. Hey it wasn't the best, but it was

surely the funniest!Spec. Corey White

Bat. E, 319th FA

Visiting all of my relatives and

spending so much time with them

during the holidays.

Pfc. Daniel Haller Det. D

After 23 years I found out that I had

a sister and a niece.

Pfc. Donald Simmons

FSC

Going out to buy toys for my son,

Cameron's first Christmas and watching

him play with the paper and bows,

while he opened them.

Pfc. Joseph Roberson

Co. C

Getting to see my family after years

of separation. My father and brother

are in the Army, I am in the Marines,

and this keeps us away from home alot.

Sgt. Anthony Glenn III

MMLA-773/Reddogs, USMC

Every Christmas before the age of

13, because I actually received

presents.Spec. Jose Nino

S-1, HQ Co.

My Fondest memory was when I was 13 and when Christmas Eve came I

had no presents waiting for me. My

parents thought it was funny to have all

my gifts over at my aunt's house, and

her children were in my toys.

Spec. James Johnson

HQ Co., 10th Avn. Bde.

The first Christmas that my sister and

her husband returned home after being

away for six years.

Pfc. David Potter

Co. A

The year I received a brand new

car . The second fondest will be this

Christmas spent in Salerno.

Spec. Seth Boyles

HQ Co., 1/130th Avn. Reg.

Hanging out with the lawndarts from

Echo Battery.

Sgt. Timothy Vichko

Co. B, 3.6 FA, 10t MTN DIV

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The Geronimo

December 19, 20034

Faith in the

Word

By Chaplain(Capt.) Brad Lee

1/501st PIR Chaplain

Season’s Greetings my fellowGeronimo’s! Now before anyoneresponds with “Ba-Humbug,”consider for a moment that some of you simply need to hang around theright person to experience someYuletide cheer. For those of you in

Headquarters Company, maybe youshould try spending some time withMaster Sgt. Nordstrom. He notonly has a knack with words if youread his column, but he also bubblesover with Holiday cheer.

If you’re in Company A, Staff SgtRalston is quite the HolidayCheermeister there. For Company

B, I highly suggest 1st Sgt. Powell,I’ve actually heard him singingChristmas carols in the shower!

Unfortunately, Company C

seems to be Holiday spiritchallenged, but maybe if theymoved closer to the TOC,they too could benefit fromMaster Sgt. Nordstrom’s jovialness. Company Dlives close enough to thechapel that they experi-ence the Holiday musicand cheer emanatingfrom the chapel.

1st Sgt. Levis getsthe vote for Battery E — you know he almost has elf-likequalities. And for Forward SupportCompany, Sgt. Carr is a fine ex-ample of Christmas cheer as he isone of the few that I have seenactually make Sgt. First Class Lesch

smile!As we are but a few

days from Christmas, I

notice that most of us fallinto two groups. The firstgroup approaches Christ-mas as just another day,which is an understandableway of coping withseparation from family andloved ones.

The second grouphowever, chooses toembrace the spirit of

Christmas and make themost of what we have. I,like most of you, would prefer to be at home withmy wife, children, anddog, celebrating Christmasaround our own tree andfireplace. Be that as itmay, I am here with youthis Christmas.

But rather than mope

and pout and try todownplay the holiday, I

choose to celebrate,which I am certain that’s

what our loved oneswould want us to do

as well.And rest

assured, thereshould be no guiltin our celebra-tion. After all,and especially for those of you thatare men and

women of faith,the true Spirit and

meaning of Christmas isnot determined by where we are or who we are with.

Traveling back to FOB Salernolast week from the PAA, I wasreminded that the shepherds that Isaw tending their flock probablywere not all that different from theones to whom angels appeared

some 2,000 years ago and an-nounced, “Behold, I bring you goodtidings of great joy, which shall be toall people. For unto you is born thisday in the city of David a Saviour,which is Christ, the Lord” (Luke2:10-11).

Whether at home by the fire- place with eggnog and mistletoe,or here at FOB Salerno, the Spiritand the joy of Christmas is very

much alive if you will embrace itand celebrate it. God is with ushere just as He is with our families back home, and that is why wecan celebrate as we are boundtogether by the presence and loveof God. So from my tent to yours,may your days be merry and bright… Merry Christmas!

Grace & Peace, Chaplain Brad Lee

Spirit of Christmas alive, well at FOB

Sgt. Frist Class David Powell, first sergeant for

Company B, opens the door prize he won at the

Chapel Open House Thursday.

Photos by Staff Sgt. Jeff Troth

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The Geronimo

December 19, 20035No War Trophies

Allowed from

Iraq, AfghanistanWASHINGTON – Do

not even think about bring-

ing back to the United States

war trophies from your ser-

vice in Iraq and Afghani-

stan.

With about 140,000

American service membersdue to rotate out of Iraq and

Afghanistan, U.S. Central

Command officials are very

clear that service members

cannot bring home weap-

ons, ammunition and other

prohibited items.

A few soldiers of the 3rd

Infantry Division understand

how serious the command

is. Some soldiers tried tosmuggle weapons back

from Baghdad, and they

have gone through courts

By Jim Garamone

American Forces Press Service

martial. Others received Ar-

ticle 15 administrative pun-

ishments. “There is a whole

spectrum of punishments,

depending on the severity of

the offense,” said Maj. Rob-

ert Resnick, an Army law-

yer at Fort Stewart, Ga.

Army Gen. John Abizaid,

the commander of U.S.Central Command, has put

out the policy. Basically, un-

der no circumstances can in-

dividuals take as a souvenir

an object that was formerly

in the possession of the en-

emy. The taking of war tro-

phies goes against the coa-

lition mission in Iraq and Af-

ghanistan, officials said.

“We didn’t go into Iraq or Afghanistan to conquer

them, but to liberate them,”

said Marine Capt. Bruce

Frame, a Central Command

spokesman. “Taking articles

from those countries sends

the wrong message.”

Service members withquestions should work

through the chain of com-

mand, CENTCOM officials

said, adding that service

members will be given

ample briefings on what is

allowed and what is not. In

the case of Iraq, unit com-

manders will brief service

members on the policy be-

fore leaving for Kuwait.In Kuwait, military police

will explain the policy and

will permit an amnesty pe-

riod before

searching gear

and vehicles. In

the United

States, U.S.

Customs Ser-

vice officials

will examine

individual gear.

In Afghani-

stan, unit com-

manders will

explain the

policy, and

MPs there

also will ex-

plain it and of-Photos by Staff Sgt. Jeff Troth

fer an amnesty period be-

fore the service members

board the planes. Again

Customs will examine gear

and baggage upon return tothe United States.

The same prohibitions

pertain to American civilians

serving in the Central Com-

mand area of operations.

Other federal laws pertain

to other items. For example

service members cannot

bring back plants, animals or

other organic materials

Some Marines returningfrom Afghanistan in Apri

2002, for example, tried to

bring back the skulls o

sheep attached to their gui-

dons. The Customs agents

met the Marines as they

landed on the beach at

Camp Lejeune, N.C., and

confiscated the items.

No one can bring back

antiquities into the United

States, and of course, no

one can bring drugs or drug

paraphernalia into the

United States.

The overall prohibition

does not pertain to souve-

nirs that can be legally im-

ported into the United

States, officials said.

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The Geronimo

December 19, 20036Amber report in a day to get fuel? I mean,

come on, you know I’m missing my XO.

Sincerely, LID

Dear Comanche,

This is actually my fourth response to

this question. Can you confirm 80

gallons – or is it 50 gallons – or is it 130

gallons? Better luck next time, Airborne!MSG N

Dear MSG Nordstrom,

Although prior to the deployment we

were briefed that we would be getting

mail every 7-10 days, I heard that mail is

on every plane that lands at the FOB, but

they just don't want to deliver it.

Waiting hoping impatiently for news

Dear WHIN,

If they told you 7-10 days what makes

you think they are holding your mailhostage? When mail comes in, it is sorted

and given to your unit mail clerks. So

stop bugging the S-3 air and ALOC

everyday about mail – they don't know

anything.

MSG N

Ask MSG Nordstrom Ask MSG Nordstrom Ask MSG Nordstrom Ask MSG Nordstrom Ask MSG Nordstrom

If you have a

question for

MSG Nord-

strom, drop it

off at the

ALOC.

Dear MSG Nordstrom,What is up with our breakfast meal?

We have only had biscuits and gravy acouple a of times since we have beenhere, and to me it is a morning ritual that Imiss.

Signed Chip Beefer

Dear CB,You got one thing right son, it is

good. But you need to call it what it is.When we weren’t on the front linesfighting the Germans in Bastogne wewere filling our bellies with good ol’ SOS.And that is what most intelligent peoplestill call it. So, until you can call it what itis, fill your trap with eggs and drive on.

MSG N

Dear MSG Nordstrom,It is hard enough walking around here

at night why do we have to litter the areawith rocks and sand bags? I have almost busted my noggin open a few times.

Yours Truly, Can’t see in dark

Dear CSID,Well, well well, having trouble walking

at night? I have the perfect solution, it iscalled the LOW CRAWL. You think thoserocks are a pain now, just wait until youhave crept across the length and breadthof this base on your belly, then you won’t be complaining about walking on them.

As far as busting your head, I knowour Uncle Sam issued you the proper protection. Wear your Kevlar, and thatchin strap and better be on your chin, notunder it.

MSG N

Dear MSG Nordstrom,

I am a little frustrated with our logistical

procedures during the recent operation.

How many times do I have to call in an

Documents

Geronimo 031219