There’s a new assault vehicle in town, watch out for the Marine Corp’s Assault Breacher Vehicle (ABV), AKA – “The Shredder.” Cool video below!
The Breacher is a force to be reckoned with that became operational in Dec. 2009. The Marines used it to during Operation Cobra’s Anger, an operation in northern Helmand Province Afghanistan that focused on cutting off enemy supply and communications lines to the north.
That was just the beginning. Marines headed to the Marjah battle in Helmond province with Assault Breacher Vehicles. According to Brig Gen. Larry Nicholson, Marines commander in southern Afghanistan, “This may be the largest IED threat and largest minefield that NATO has ever faced.”
When an Assault Breacher hits and detonates a mine or IED, the Breacher hardly shudders!
“The Shredder” looks similar to bulldozer and tank and weighs in at 72 tons with a length of over 40 feet. It includes a plow and nearly 7,000 pounds (3,175 kilograms) of explosives.
This $3.75 million machine is designed to safely clear minefields and improvised explosive devises (IEDs) that the enemy has planted ahead of time. Breachers have powerful capabilities like firing rockets carrying high grade C-4 explosive up to 150 yards forward, detonating the hidden bombs at a safe distance so that troops and vehicles can pass through safely.
ABVs are operated by combat engineers. Watch out – the Breacher is coming! Watch this amazing video of the latest assault vehicle! I’ve never seen anything like it!
I was walking at the beach one day, not far from where my son lived before joining the Army. He loved being near the ocean and I was thinking of him that day. So I stopped in the store and picked up a postcard and addressed it with a quick note to let him know I was at his old stomping grounds — far from the cold, landlocked, and mountainous Afghanistan that he now calls home. Fortunately I always carry stamps so I then mailed it at the post office just a block from the beach.
A few days later, I found myself wandering another beach with a friend. I was drawn again to the postcards and got one with a beautiful ocean scene, scribbled a quick greeting to my son, and dropped it in the mailbox nearby.
I repeated this several more times, even mailing one on my way to work one day. I didn’t hear anything about the postcards from my son. A few weeks went by and I asked during an Internet chat one day if he got a postcard from me.
He responded, “Yes! I love getting all the postcards. I hang them on the wall! Thank you!”
I then enlisted the help of a few friends around the country. I asked each person if they could just pick up a postcard from their city the next time they were out and mail it to my son with a brief note about the weather or anything happening that day. They agreed.
Postcards cost 30 – 50 cents and are a quick, easy way to let my deployed soldier son know I am thinking of him at a given moment in time. It’s different then a care package. It’s a little slice of home that brightens my son’s day from a 1/2 world away.
Next time you are out and about, pick up a postcard and send it your deployed son or daughter. I am sure they will appreciate a little slice of home!
Every Military Mom has a heartwarming story to share about strength, sadness, and love when their son or daughter joins the Military and especially when deployed.
Patti Correa, Published Author and Military Mom is seeking stories from Moms. It’s time to tell the mother’s side. This new book will feature stories from mothers of servicemembers coping with their sons and daughters serving this great country.
For more information contact Patti Correa at correahouse@cox.net.
Patti Correa is the author of “From a Pebble to a Rock
I want to first thank Army Mom Strong for the opportunity to be a contributor and guest blogger here. I am very excited to be reaching out to all of you this way!
I am a 2 Blue Star mom. Yikes! What are they trying to do to me? It’s enough to have one deployed, but two? I also have a younger child at home, in elementary school, and I run my own business, so my life is pretty crazy sometimes.
I am also a former Army spouse, although back then, we didn’t have Facebook, Twitter, blogs or even the Internet. It was the 1980’s and I have to say, I am very thankful for today’s technology.
Both of my sons are Airborne paratroopers, which is why I chose “Airborne Mom” as my name here. I remember the first time I had to tell MY mom that her grandsons were jumping out of airplanes… that was not a fun day.
My house can’t be missed when you come up the street. US flag, Army flag, 2 Blue Star flag, and two big yellow ribbons tied around our trees in the front… it’s the only one in the neighborhood.
As a mom of two deployed soldiers, I get asked a lot, “My goodness, you have TWO in the Army and TWO that are deployed at the same time? How do you do it?
Now, THAT’s a good question! Most days are good, some days are not so good, and others.. well, there are those days that I just cry on a whim.
And that’s why I’m here.
I know I’m not the only Army mom with two deployed soldiers. My hope is that I can help offer some insight, support, perhaps a shoulder.. for those of you who are out there in the same situation.
Hang in there, Army Moms!
Love makes such a part of what you are
More precious are you than that Renoir
You’re the Valentine beyond each dream
The glow of your heart’s a true sunbeam
Your loving care reaches from afar
When I awake you’re my morning star
These words that I use so want to say
What you mean to me each night, each day
As you serve our country with heartfelt pride
I pray that God will stay near your side
Your loyalty brings a smile to me
And I know your love shines constantly
To those who march with you, they are grand
I send each some love from their homeland
There’s one more thing that I have to write
To keep in your heart both day and night
Please know that my love is so very true
My Brave Valentine, Oh Yes! That’s You!
©2010 Roger J. Robicheau
A unique prayer effort for U.S. deployed troops is happening close to Fort Hood Texas, at Skyline Baptist Church.
About 200 churches are part of this interdenominational prayer ministry, called Pray FAST (Pray For A Soldier Team). Local congregation participate by praying for soldiers deployed from Fort Hood to Iraq and Afghanistan. Each “prayer warrior” is assigned three soldiers to pray for by name.
FAST coordinator, Cecil Wolfe goes through proper channels to ask all soldiers deployed from Fort Hood if they want someone to pray for them. If the soldiers do want prayer, they each fill out a card with information and prayer requests. This information is sent to their prayer warriors.
The desire for prayer amongst deploying soldiers from Fort Hood has spread, with as many as 85 percent requesting a prayer partner.
More churches are needed to provide prayer warriors because approximately 2,800 soldiers are still waiting for prayer partners.
In addition to volunteers, Pray FAST also needs donations of Christian literature and pocket-sized Bibles for deployed soldiers.
Churches wishing to participate in Pray FAST should select a point person to e-mail Wolfe at cecilwolfe@clearwire.net. The point person should be competent in using the Microsoft Excel computer program and will work with Wolfe to match each prayer warrior with soldiers. Pray FAST is geared to churches, he noted, to avoid being overwhelmed by e-mails from individuals.
“It’s critical to start getting names as soon as possible so that I can fulfill the requirements of soldiers,” Wolfe said.
In Afghanistan and Iraq, many U.S. troops live in tents. Tents are usually equipped with bunk beds or standard Army cots and sleep up to 40 per tent. Wall or footlockers are provided.
After the President announced that he will send 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan, the Military needed somewhere to house them all. They started building additional housing facilities, mostly in southern Afghanistan for new arrivals. They will mostly live in tents with portable toilets.
The Afghanistan countryside sports brilliantly blue skies with weather ranging from summer sand storms and 120-degree temperatures, to freezing, harsh temperatures in winter. The tents are usually heated and air conditioned as weather requires. The tents can get extremely hot inside during the sweltering summer heat.
There is no privacy for troops housed in tents and many use iPods to block out the noise from inside and outside the tents, like the roar of F-16 fighter jets if they are at a major hub airfield like Kandahar.
Tents are a soft-walled shelters made from various fabrics and textiles. The outside of the tent is stacked with sandbags for protection and insulation.
Even the MWR (Morale, Welfare and Recreation) and gym are housed in tents at many bases.
Support our troops!
I receive many questions about Internet access for deployed soldiers to Afghanistan and Iraq and hope this information will be a help.
Keep in mind your soldiers should always find out before deployment what is available at the deployment location.
Internet access in Afghanistan and Iraq is delivered via satellite broadband. The Internet signal is received through a special satellite VSAT modem which is usually set up in a building or tent.
Internet access for soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq is usually available via the following methods.
- Internet cafes - Available at some bases. Soldiers can expect to pay $5 to $10 per hour for use and spend time waiting their turn.
- MWR (moral welfare and recreation) - Most deployment locations have an MWR. There are usually a few computers for free Internet access and sometime wireless is available. Troops are allowed 20 – 30 minutes pers session and there is usually a wait. If they bring your own computer and use the wireless, they may experience the slowest Internet ever because so many people are trying to share the bandwidth.
- Personal Internet access – Soldiers can have Internet access in their living quarters. It is very expensive. The Internet access and expense is shared with other soldiers. I know of one example in Afghanistan where many soldiers share the Internet bandwidth and expense of $60 per month per person. Another situation in Iraq, each person pays $100 per month. It just depends on how many people are sharing and what the cost is per month.
With personal Internet access, each soldier has their own laptop computer and all access is wireless.The soldiers are typically responsible for getting the equipment up and running.
If your son or daughter is getting ready for deployment, they should find out ahead of time what will be available at their deployment location. Soldiers in remote outposts do not have access to Internet.
Internet access is a morale booster for deployed soldiers! We are fortunate to have Internet access available at all. In previous wars, letter writing was the only form of communication and letters were received every few weeks. I am thankful for Internet for deployed soldiers! HOOAH!
When a soldier in Iraq wanted to send his kids a gift, he was limited as to what he had access to: a couple of band aids and some sun screen! It didn’t matter too much, his kids were thrilled to received anything at all! That story is the inspiration behind “Dog Tags for Kids”!
The Dog Tags for Kids project is dedicated to helping United States Service men and women in harm’s way, to connect with their children at home. The idea is to send something to a deployed Mom or Dad that they can easily send back to their kids!
Dog tags were just perfect! Each one is engraved with “With Love From Dad, U.S. Army, Iraq 2010″. (or Mom; or Kuwait or Afghanistan). The tags are small enough to easily fit in an envelope and send home.
The dog tags must come from the parents so all dog tags are sent to Iraq, Kuwait, or Afghanistan at the request of the service members. Then the service members can send one to their child at home.
Rose Sliepka is the amazing woman behind this grassroots project that depends entirely on volunteers and donations to continue the missions. Rose actually engraves all of the tags and has volunteers in California that help bag them and box them for shipping.
Each parent soldier that is in harm’s way can receive a dog tag at no charge!
Since the project’s beginning, they have now sent over 500,000 tags to our men and women fighting in harm’s way. Soldier’s love sending them and their kids love receiving them!
How YOU can help:
- Request tags for deployed soldiers
- Make a monetary donation or learn more
- We need your votes! You can help Dog Tags for Kids win $2500 for their project which will help supply another 5000+ tags that will result in a lot of smiles! Simply click here and vote for Rose Sliepka from Lanacaster, CA who has unselfishly dedicated herself to this wonderful program. Thank you!
The national media finally picked up the news, and it ran on Fox stations across the country.
Life’s good. It’s changed, but still good. My son’s been in Afghanistan for several weeks now. Being a proud Army Mom of a deployed soldier changed everything.
I still go about my daily life but my focus is different. Sure I go to work everyday just like before. Only now I make sure all my instant message programs are running on my work computer and my cell phone is always close at hand. I chat with my son online when I should be working. I go to the market as usual but now I throw extra items in my cart to start another care package for my son. Oh, and the frequent trips to the post office! I scour the Internet for news about what’s happening in Afghanistan each day hoping that I find nothing.
I do all the normal things I always did, like walking at the beach, exercising like crazy, hiking at night, enjoying a cup of coffee with friends, and volunteering with adorable animals. I keep busy with a home business in addition to my job. I spend time with my family that I love so much. Life is good.
But now, there is a strong undercurrent of thoughts and emotion amid the flurry of activity in my life. It’s always with me.
What lies beneath the surface are thoughts of my son and the danger he faces each and everyday. Sometimes I can handle it, sometimes I cannot. The moments that I cannot result in quiet tears. When the moment passes, I carry on – the undercurrents staying just below the surface of my life. It’s the ebb and flow of life these days.
As my son the pilot takes flight daily and sometimes into the night in Afghanistan, I pray – “Lord, as he makes his way through his days and through his nights, please let his guardian angel protect his flight.”
Staying Army Mom Strong
