The Delta and Charlie companies of the 432nd Civil Affairs Battalion completed a three-day training exercise, Operation Tiger, last week in Gillett. The operation earned its name because of the school mascot.
The soldiers conducted assessments of the local community from their base at the Oconto County Fairgrounds at Zippel Park. Their Humvees were parked in one, neat row outside the Expo building.
Inside, whiteboards were placed against the back wall, listing details of their missions. Computers and communication equipment filled several tables where soldiers entered data from their missions.
Gillett provided an ideal environment for the soldiers’ annual training, said Sgt. Patrick Leon, the noncommissioned officer in charge of the civil-military operations center.
“It’s a smaller community like many of the communities we would go to overseas,” he said.
It has been more than 16 months since the companies returned to the United States from their last deployment to Afghanistan. While the unit has no plans to deploy in the near future, it focused on strengthening assessment skills in order to perform more efficiently overseas.
For Spc. Nathaniel Buss, Operation Tiger provided a chance for practice and interaction with his unit.
“It’s nice to come out here and do real-world experiences and improve on your skills,” he said.
The civil affairs teams spoke with local officials and performed assessments of all aspects of the community, including its infrastructure, commercial buildings, homes and emergency services.
“Our soldiers are able to go out as small teams, four- to five-member teams, and do assessments of all these things,” Leon said.
Buss’ team interviewed Fire Chief Tom Wolfgram, and other teams interviewed Mayor Irene Drake and Police Chief Jess Keplinger. They compiled the information they collected and sent a computer-created storyboard up the chain of command.
Spc. Tom Guttenberg, a radio operator maintainer, worked with others to erect an antenna array that included 35- to 40-foot-tall poles to transmit information between the communication center in Gillett and the battalion’s home base in Green Bay. The soldiers erected an identical array in Green Bay before they left for Gillett.
Guttenberg said these arrays are used for missions overseas, and the local training provided valuable practice with the equipment.
“Some guys have never used it before, so we got to teach them how to use it,” he said.
The three-day operation in Gillett, Aug. 6-8, was part of a longer training session, Aug. 1-9, with the remaining time spent at the 432nd’s unit in Green Bay. Twenty-two soldiers took part.
The soldiers were invited to National Night Out on Aug. 6, a community event involving the Gillett Police Department. By coincidence, the event was scheduled at the park on the soldiers’ first night in Gillett. Soldiers ate the picnic meal, talked with Gillett residents and handed out MREs (Meal, Ready to Eat) to the kids.
One soldier who is fluent in Spanish spoke to Puerto Rican workers employed by Seneca Foods Corp., completing an unscheduled assessment that provided further information about the Gillett community.
Drake said involving the battalion in National Night Out was a positive experience.
“They came and had food with us and gave out MREs to the kids. It was fun,” she said. “The kids got to see the Humvees.”
Another excited group of kids came from Sunshine Child Center on Aug. 7 to see the Humvees.
“The kids had a great time. They really liked getting inside. They were all crawling around,” said Rhonda Badeau, the center’s director. Her son, Jordan, a soldier with the unit, encouraged her to bring the kids.
Buss said driving through the streets of Gillett created some attention, from both kids and adults.
“Anytime we roll out in Humvees and go through small-town America, I feel like an alien,” Buss said. “People look at you, but we get a lot of waves. A lot of kids wave at us.”
Buss said it’s good to see people showing their support.
“They’re the reason we do what we do,” he said.
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