Soldier Takes Citizenship Oath in Iraq

By Army Spc. Kandi Huggins U.S. Division North CONTINGENCY OPERATING SITE WARRIOR, Iraq, July 7, 2011 - Swearing the oath to support, defend and serve the United States while serving in the Army was not quite enough for one soldier deployed to Iraq with 1st Infantry Division's 1st Advise and Assist Task Force. Army Spc. Angie Schaefer accepts a U.S. flag from U.S. Ambassador to Iraq James Jeffrey during a naturalization ceremony at Victory Base Camp, Iraq, July 4, 2011. Schaefer, a Colombia native, took her oath to become an American citizen at the ceremony. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Daniel Stoutamire  Standing before a host of soldiers July 4, Army Spc. Angie Schaefer, a petroleum supply specialist with the task force's Company A, 101st Brigade Support Battalion, now had the opportunity to raise her hand and swear another oath she has wanted to take since high school: the oath that would make her an American citizen. Schaefer said she came from a very close-knit, traditional family and attended private school in her native Colombia. "It was definitely a different experience after I came to the states," she said. Schaefer said she was 7 when her grandparents moved to Miami, where she was able to get a free education. She said she had wanted to join the Army since participating in Junior ROTC in high school. She was able to enlist based on her permanent resident status in the United States. Two years later, Schaefer found herself in Iraq with U.S. Division North, supporting Operation New Dawn. "She's always working with a smile on her face," said Army 1st Lt. Jesse Dean Swanzy, a quartermaster officer and Schaefer's platoon leader. "Specialist Schaefer constantly contributes by volunteering to go on missions to supply our outlying forward operating bases. She leaves her mark on [Operation New Dawn] by helping her country through literally supplying the advise, train, assist mission." As a member of the 1st Platoon "Road Warriors," Schaefer drives supply trucks to bases around Contingency Operating Site Warrior. Fellow soldiers helped to prepare Schaefer for the naturalization test required to become a U.S. citizen, Swanzy said, adding that the unit really supports soldiers. During the ceremony, Schaefer smiled as she shook hands with Army Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, commander of U.S. Forces Iraq, who congratulated and welcomed her as a citizen of the nation she serves. "I'm excited," Schaefer said. "Becoming a citizen makes me feel accomplished, because I will be the first one in my family to become a citizen – not just a permanent resident – and I will have more stability in everything I am doing and plan to do." After the citizenship ceremony, Schaefer said she wants to attain her security clearance and go to college through Green to Gold, an Army program that allows soldiers to go to college and become officers through ROTC. "I know it will be a challenge," she said, "but I know I can do it, and I welcome whatever the future holds for me."

Related Sites: U.S. Forces Iraq

Sailor Leads Volunteer Efforts

By Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg
Submarine Group 2 Public Affairs

GROTON, Conn., July 1, 2011 – Sailors of the Pre-Commissioned USS Mississippi have amassed 782 volunteer hours, equal to the ship’s hull number, by volunteering throughout the New England area while their ship is under construction.

Sailors assigned to the Virginia-class submarine USS Mississippi being constructed in Groton, Conn., volunteer their off-duty time to assist during one of many community service projects the submarine's command has sponsored throughout New England. Courtesy photo

Volunteer coordinator Navy Petty Officer 1st Class James Pearson has led the boat’s community service since October 2010.

“When I transferred to PCU Mississippi a couple of other sailors stationed aboard collaborated on a community service program,” Pearson recalled. “After discussing it further with our chief of the boat, the plan was approved, essentially allowing our vision to take shape.”

Pearson said that part of his plan for their command’s community service was to inform the local community about the U.S. Navy, and in particular, PCU Mississippi.

“We wanted our volunteer program to emphasize our interest in Connecticut and our desire to offer our assistance wherever necessary,” he said.

Since October, the sailors aboard PCU Mississippi have assisted with countless projects from cooking for veterans in the local area to educating students about the military at John B. Stanton Elementary School to packing boxes for deployed Connecticut service members.

The command’s community service in the New London area has impacted more than 10,000 people, Pearson said, and also has had a positive impact on the community’s impression of the local military community.

One of their more recent volunteer projects was conducted on June 24, when PCU Mississippi sailors and Electric Boat employees packed more than 400 care packages in their off time for deployed Connecticut sailors.

A PCU Mississippi sailor knows of their generosity firsthand. “When I was deployed, I was truly grateful to receive care packages from Electric Boat,” Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Randy Hall said.

Hall’s positive feedback has served as a catalyst among Electric Boat employees and PCU Mississippi sailors to continue supporting deployed service members from Connecticut.

“He volunteers more than I do and really emphasizes to the command what an impact this program has on troops stationed overseas,” Pearson said of Hall.

To date, PCU Mississippi sailors have assisted in 36 projects throughout the New England area.

“We want all of the branches of the military service to know what they do for our country matters,” Pearson said. “Their service is respected and appreciated, and our effort here in Connecticut to show them is just a small token of our appreciation.”