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Marines taking steps to counter combat stress in IraqSubmitted by: 1st Marine DivisionStory Identification #: 20046263550Story by Cpl. Macario P. Mora Jr. CAMP AL ASAD, Iraq (June 24, 2004) -- Navy doctors in Iraq are fighting an enemy just as debilitating as hostile fire. It's called combat stress and measures taken to reduce the effect of combat stress on today's Marines in Iraq are unlike that of any previous campaign. Essentially, Marines should expect to encounter two types of extreme stresses in Iraq, said Navy Lt. Cmdr. Gary B. Hoyt, a psychologist for Regimental Combat Team 7. They are...

Soldiers ‘Band’ Together for RelaxationBy Spc. Bryan D. Kinkade1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs      FORWARD OPERATING BASE HEADHUNTER, Baghdad, Iraq – Some guitars, a drum kit and somebody to blare out vocals is all it took for five members of this coalition base camp to get things started. What they started was their band, called Headhunter Main. “Not only is it a morale booster for us to play, it’s a morale booster for everyone on the FOB,” said Spc. Travis Conway, from headquarters company, 1st Battalion, 9th Cavalry Regiment.     The band started up a month and a half ago and...

Donation to Baghdad R&R site is music to Soldiers’ ears Story and photo by Sgt. Shauna McRoberts 1st Armor Division PAO BAGHDAD, Iraq – When Brian Freshley was 18 months old he picked up a toy tennis racket and tried to play it like a violin, using a plastic golf club as a bow. Amused, his maternal grandmother gave him a violin that once belonged to his grandfather, a World War II veteran. His parents had the violin restored and put it away in a closet until Brian was old enough to play it. But Brian, a native of...

<p>TIKRIT, Iraq (AP) -- There's a 24-hour gym with aerobic classes, an indoor swimming pool and even a driving range. And for troops who over exert themselves, a masseur is on hand to soothe aching muscles.</p> <p>U.S. soldiers stationed at a riverside palace complex here that once belonged to Saddam Hussein face constant danger from Iraqi insurgents whenever they leave the base.</p>

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Behind tall concrete barriers and rolls of razor wire, the United States Army has converted a former Iraqi Republican Guard officers' club here in the heart of Baghdad into a little American oasis for war-weary soldiers. The sprawling complex has been stripped of portraits of Saddam Hussein and Baath Party paraphernalia. It now serves as the First Armored Division's version of a five-star hotel for as many as 100 soldiers at a time who are lucky enough to get a three-day, two-night pass. More than 1,800 troops have cycled through since the hotel opened in mid-October.Called Freedom...

January 11, 2004 G.I.'s Enjoy Plush Respite of Iraqi Army By ERIC SCHMITT AGHDAD, Iraq — Behind tall concrete barriers and rolls of razor wire, the United States Army has converted a former officers' club of the Iraqi Republican Guard into a little oasis for weary G.I.'s. The sprawling complex here in the heart of Baghdad has been stripped of its portraits of Saddam Hussein and its Baath Party trappings. It now serves as the First Armored Division's version of a five-star hotel for as many as 100 soldiers at a time who are lucky enough to get a three-day,...

One of Indiana's own heroes is back from Iraq for a little R&R. Sergeant Jeramey Butler of Cloverdale has been injured twice while serving at the front line since the war began and took part in the attack on Saddam Hussein's sons. Butler is only 22 years old, but he says he has seen the best and the worst the world has to offer. “Some of the things that I've seen, I wish not to talk about because I would not want any person in the world, even my worst enemy to see it,” he said. Sgt. Butler leads a...

WASHINGTON - In an effort to bolster military morale, the Pentagon (news - web sites) soon will begin paying travel expenses for troops to get all the way home on leave from Iraq (news - web sites) and Afghanistan (news - web sites).

Lt. Christian Dietz, on his way to rejoin his unit in Iraq after two weeks R&R with his family in Washington Township, Mich., assumed he would miss Thanksgiving. Lt. Dietz, 26, was walking to buy a sandwich at a fast food restaurant at BWI Airport yesterday when an employee from Southwest Airlines directed him to an employee's lounge. There Lt. Dietz and his fellow soldiers were given plates piled high with generous portions of turkey, stuffing and all the trimmings. "This is great," said Lt. Dietz, of the 40th Engineering Battalion, as he worked on his food. "This is the...

President Grants Extra Time Off for War on Terror Returnees American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Nov. 20, 2003 -- Federal employees returning from Guard and Reserve duty in the terror war are receiving an extra five days' "uncharged" civilian leave. President Bush directed the move in a Nov. 14 memorandum issued to the heads of all executive departments and agencies. "As we welcome home returning federal civil servants who were called to active duty in the continuing global war on terrorism," the president wrote, "we recognize the contributions they have made in the defense of freedom. "Whether they served...

Let it be known to all Freepers that Army Specialist Pudgeless of the Illinois National Guard's 333rd Military Police Company has returned to Freeport for R&R. Tomorrow night Rambette66 and I will be attending a reception in his honor, and I would love to bring him a printed FR thread of messages for him and his unit. When you leave a message, please include some indication (one sentence or so) of who you are and (if you're comnfortable doing it) where you're posting from; Despite the cool callsign, he's not a Freeper and would have no bleedin' idea who any...

As the automatic doors leading out of customs at BWI Airport swung open, a loud, sustained cheer rang out. The troops just off the plane from Iraq -- looking gritty in their desert camouflage uniforms -- stopped short. "Welcome back. Good to have you home," said Bill Self, a Vietnam War veteran, extending his hand to each soldier arriving for two weeks of home leave. Beyond him, a second line of veterans was waiting with telephone cards allowing the soldiers to make free calls across the country. At the end of the gantlet stood Ray Shipley, 75, a Korean War...

Veterans Welcome R&R-Bound Troops By K.L. VantranAmerican Forces Press Service BALTIMORE, Nov. 14, 2003 - The moonlight dances with the lights on the tarmac at Baltimore-Washington International Airport as the winds blow rustling leaves across the runway. It's 4 a.m., or "oh-dark thirty" as those in the military like to say. Inside, custodians busily mop floors around passengers who have sacked out on airport chairs. The area is silent, save for a handful of people quietly talking as they wait for the next flight from Iraq in the military's rest and recuperation leave program. Bill and Carolyn Self move...

The writer and his wife live in LA and both work for Uncle Sam. A Day at BaltimoreAirport Dear Friends and Family, I hope that you will spare me a few minutes of your time to tell you about something that I saw on Monday, October 27. I had been attending a conference in Annapolis and was coming home on Sunday. As you may recall, Los Angeles Internat'l Airport was closed on Sunday, October 26, because of the fires that affected air traffic control. Accordingly, my flight, and many others, were canceled and I wound up spending a night in...

Chinook Tragedy Won't Deter Troops' R&R Program By Gerry J. GilmoreAmerican Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Nov. 3, 2003 – The Nov. 2 downing of a U.S. military helicopter that was flying troops en route to stateside leave won't affect a recently expanded rest and recuperation leave program, according to U.S. Central Command. "The (R&R) program remains active," declared CENTCOM spokesperson Air Force Maj. Mike Escudie, who added, "Flights are leaving Kuwait daily." In fact, Escudie noted, the R&R program for service members supporting operations in Iraq was expanded Nov. 2 to handle 470 troops a day headed for two...

NEWS RELEASEHEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES CENTRAL COMMAND 7115 South Boundary Boulevard MacDill AFB, Fla. 33621-5101 Phone: (813) 827-5894; FAX: (813) 827-2211; DSN 651-5894 October 31, 2003Release Number: 03-10-04 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MILITARY TO EXPAND REST AND RECUPERATION LEAVE PROGRAM MacDill AFB, Tampa – U.S. Central Command has approved an expansion to the Rest and Recuperation Leave program for service members supporting operations in Iraq beginning November 2. The Coalition Forces Land Component Command-Forward (CFLCC-FWD) at Camp Doha, Kuwait, will execute the expansion from approximately 270 soldiers a day to approximately 479. Soldiers will begin departing Iraq on October 31 and...

R&R Program for Troops in Iraq Expanded By PAULINE JELINEK .c The Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) - The home leave program for troops serving in Iraq is being expanded to fly more people out of the region every day and bring them to more U.S. airports, the military said Friday. Beginning Sunday, some 480 soldiers, up from 280, will leave daily from the Kuwait facility where troops are gathered for departures. ``The expansion of the R&R leave program is an opportunity to get even more of our heroes serving in the region a deserved break,'' said the U.S. Central Command....

NEWS RELEASEHEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES CENTRAL COMMAND7115 South Boundary BoulevardMacDill AFB, Fla. 33621-5101Phone: (813) 827-5894; FAX: (813) 827-2211; DSN 651-5894 October 31, 2003Release Number: 03-10-04 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MILITARY TO EXPAND REST AND RECUPERATION LEAVE PROGRAM MacDill AFB, Tampa – U.S. Central Command has approved an expansion to the Rest and Recuperation Leave program for service members supporting operations in Iraq beginning November 2. The Coalition Forces Land Component Command-Forward (CFLCC-FWD) at Camp Doha, Kuwait, will execute the expansion from approximately 270 soldiers a day to approximately 479. Soldiers will begin departing Iraq on October 31 and arrive at Atlanta...

Weary Travelers Support Operation Iraqi Freedom Troops at BWI By Donna Miles American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Oct. 31, 2003 — Nearly everyone has experienced it at one time or another: an airport bogged down by bad weather, delayed and cancelled flights, and cranky, overtired travelers wanting nothing more than to get to their destinations. That's exactly what Will Ross, an administrative judge for the Defense Department's Office of Hearings and Appeals in Los Angeles, encountered Oct. 27 at Baltimore/Washington International Airport. But what he witnessed that day, he said, "made me proud to be an American, and also...

Delta, Southwest Let Passengers Donate Miles to Soldiers on R&R; Other Airlines Consider IdeaBy Wiley Hall Associated Press WriterPublished: Oct 22, 2003 BALTIMORE (AP) - Travelers will have an opportunity to donate some of their frequent-flier rewards to help troops on leave from Iraq reach their hometowns. A congressman whose district includes Baltimore-Washington International Airport started "Operation Hero Miles" and asked airlines to help set up the pool of frequent-flier miles. Delta Air Lines said Wednesday it would participate. Southwest Airlines, the No. 1 carrier at BWI, will let passengers donate tickets earned through the airline's reward system, said Christine...