By Brian Hill, Fort Leonard Wood Public Affairs Office

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (Nov. 16, 2023) — Fort Leonard Wood service members will get the opportunity to pick out a free, live holiday tree again this year, as the Trees for Troops program returns to the Auto Skills Center Dec. 8 and 9.

Active-duty, Reserve and National Guard service members and their spouses may reserve a pick-up time between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. Dec. 8 at Bldg. 1383, by calling the Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation’s Leisure Travel Services at 573.329.8587, or by visiting the FMWR website, FMWR Marketing Manager Nia Dickinson confirmed.

A military I.D. is required at time of pick up.

Anyone with access to the installation is welcome to pick-up a free tree on a first-come, first-served basis while supplies last between the same times the next day, Dec. 9, Dickinson noted, adding there is a limit of one tree per family.

The Trees for Troops program has delivered live holiday trees to military families on more than 80 military installations around the world since 2005, and FMWR is “so proud to be a part of this amazing program that truly epitomizes the spirt of giving, as tree farmers and individuals from across the nation donate trees in support of this program,” FMWR Director Megan O’Donoghue said.

“Many military families are not able to go home for the holidays, so we like to bring a little holiday spirit to them in the form of a beautiful, free tree,” O’Donoghue said. “Many service members blend traditions from families or locations they have been stationed at and selecting a tree is among those traditions. How can someone not smile and feel happy when selecting a tree? When that tree finds a home, it is the start of the season.”

O’Donoghue said one of her favorite things about the program are the tags hanging from many of the trees, sending thankful messages of holiday cheer from those who donated the trees to the service members receiving them.

“The day of delivery, I love to read the tags and make sure they are visible for patrons to see, as these little messages, sent from the heart, are really what the season is all about,” O’Donoghue said.

Learn more about the program by visiting the Trees for Troops website.

Media wishing to attend Trees for Troops should respond to the Public Affairs Office at 573.563.5038 no later than 10 a.m. Dec. 7, 2023.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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About Fort Leonard Wood

Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post 80 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains nearly 80,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps Detachment and Air Force Squadron on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (Nov. 13, 2023) — Fort Leonard Wood plans to hold its traditional Thanksgiving Day celebration on Nov. 23 in 10 Warrior restaurants across the installation, with meals for service members, as well as a specific time and location for Department of Defense ID cardholders, Gold Star families, retirees and their families.

According to Beverly Leggett, Installation Food Program manager, plans are set to serve more than 12,000 meals during the lunch celebration, and 30,000-plus meals throughout the day — utilizing 7,000 pounds of turkey, 1,500 pounds of shrimp, 1,500 pounds of prime rib and 2,000 assorted cakes and pies with all the accompaniments.

More than 800 food-service employees prepare the feast and serve it alongside senior leadership, Leggett said.

“I consider the Thanksgiving meal on Fort Leonard Wood to be the ‘Super Bowl of Food Service,’ which highlights the talent and commitment of food service professionals and the comradery we see displayed across the installation,” Leggett said. “Thanksgiving is traditionally celebrated with family and friends, and for every service member training here on Fort Leonard Wood, their table will look different — the faces will be different — but the warmth felt will remain the same. It is with great honor that for every slice of turkey, candied sweet potato, assorted salads and delicious festive desserts, we serve those who serve.”

The Thanksgiving Day meal for DOD ID cardholders, retirees, Gold Star families and veterans with access to the installation is from 11:45 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in Bldg. 6111, located at 6111 Indiana Ave., Leggett said.

The Bldg. 3223 Warrior Restaurant near the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence NCO Academy — commonly referred to as Tony’s — is closed through the end of January 2024, but the NCO Academy and Basic Officer Leader Course Thanksgiving meal will be served in Bldg. 630, located at 5323 Colorado Ave., from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nov. 22. Bldg. 630 will be closed on Thanksgiving — they will re-open with the breakfast meal on Nov. 27. Warrior Restaurant, Bldg. 653, will be closed only for the lunch meal on Thanksgiving.

The Thanksgiving holiday meal rate is $11.20 for all visitors, except spouses and other dependents of service members E-4 and below, who pay the discounted holiday meal rate of $8.30.

Leggett said she is grateful to be part of “an amazing team” at Fort Leonard Wood.

To serve a community on Thanksgiving shows the dedication and excellence of the staff for each Warrior Restaurant,” Leggett said. “It is that commitment which allows the spirit of Thanksgiving to shine through in service for each customer throughout the day. In the midst of an ever-changing climate, I have seen the dedication between the workforce made up of primarily active military, DOD civilians and contractors consistently driving change. Daily, I witness this community give 100 percent.”

Army Warrior Restaurant assignments, Nov. 23:

• Bldg. 653 (2nd Battalion, 48th Infantry Regiment), closed for the Thanksgiving lunch meal, open for regular breakfast and dinner meals.
• Bldg. 754 (2nd Battalion, 10th Infantry Regiment), 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Bldg. 820 (1st Battalion, 48th Infantry Regiment), 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Bldg. 836 (3rd Battalion, 10th Infantry Regiment), 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Bldg. 908 (795th Military Police Battalion), 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Bldg. 930 (787th Military Police Battalion), 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Bldg. 1010 (169th and 554th Engineer Battalions), 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Bldg. 2105 (43rd Adjutant General Battalion), 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Bldg. 1784 (Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps units), 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Bldg. 1792 (84th Chemical Battalion and 58th Transportation Battalion), 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Bldg. 6111 (6111 Indiana Ave.), 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Two dining rooms will be open to support DOD ID cardholders, retirees, Gold Star families and veterans with access to the installation.

Media wishing to attend a Thanksgiving lunch meal should respond to the Public Affairs Office at 573.563.5038 no later than 10 a.m. Nov. 22, 2023.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

-30-

About Fort Leonard Wood

Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post 80 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains nearly 80,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps Detachment and Air Force Squadron on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.

By Brian Hill, Fort Leonard Wood Public Affairs Office

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (Nov. 9, 2023) — Drill sergeants and cadre with Fort Leonard Wood’s 2nd Battalion, 10th Infantry Regiment, volunteered time Saturday morning to host a modified Army Combat Fitness Test and team-building event at Shea Gym with Wood Elementary School fifth graders enrolled in their school’s fitness club.

According to Master Sgt. Darnel Chestnut, 2-10’s NCO in charge of operations, the students were given the opportunity to try ACFT events, such as the sprint-drag-carry, ball toss and kettle-bell squats, before splitting into teams to solve memorization puzzles and perform mock life-saving procedures with a litter and bandages.

The goal of each event, Chestnut said, was to allow the children to demonstrate physical and mental toughness, while also showing them the benefits of fitness.

“This is definitely a pivotal point in their lives and a good time to show them the importance of physical fitness,” Chestnut said.

The nine children who attended the event are all enrolled in a two-week, after-school activity club centered around physical and mental health and fitness — Saturday with the Soldiers of 2-10 was the culminating event, said Kelly Caffey, a Wood Elementary School counselor and the facilitator of the club.

“They work out after school, and we’ve built up to being able to be here today,” Caffey said. “We run; we do some sort of activity, like, yoga; then, we do a sport activity — volleyball, basketball — we do an obstacle course outside on our playground. We do lots of sit ups and push ups and squats and planks and lunges and things like that. We are just teaching fitness to kids and trying to get them encouraged to do other things. So, we talk about all the things they can do as grownups. We talk about how they can use this in their everyday lives and how mental health correlates with physical activity.”

One of the students participating Saturday was Miloh Higgins, who called the event “amazing.”

“I’m so happy I got to be a part of this,” he said, noting his favorite part of the morning was showing off his planking skills (he planked for more than three minutes). “I work out with my dad. He’s a Marine here. He trains me. I put his big vest on and do push ups, jumping jacks.”

Higgins said the fitness club is great for building confidence and self-esteem — things he said he will need for his future career in the military.

“I want to join the Marine Corps, but if I can’t, I think I’d enjoy the Army,” he said.

Cheering on his daughter, Vanessa, at the event was Sgt. 1st Class Joe Lynch, a platoon sergeant with the 5th Engineer Battalion. Lynch said he was excited to see her “get out here and do what we do.”

“It’s a modified version of what we do for our fitness test,” he said of the ACFT events. “When my wife told me (Vanessa) was going to be participating, I jumped to get on this and come watch her. It gives her just some of the experience of what we do, and I think it’s amazing. I’m just glad to be here to support her.”

Caffey said two more fitness events with 2-10 are scheduled for later this year for other students in the fitness club, and she thanked the Soldiers for their time.

“It’s a great support,” she said. “It’s a great mentoring situation, where (the students) have all these adults to look up to, who are doing great things for our community, our families and our country.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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About Fort Leonard Wood

Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post 80 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains nearly 80,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps Detachment and Air Force Squadron on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.

 

 

 

 

By Melissa Buckley, Fort Leonard Wood Public Affairs Office

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (Nov. 8, 2023) — “They describe Ryan’s room as looking like a tornado had come through it, windows broken, furniture overturned and the ceiling caved in,” said Lt. Col. Jeffrey Reed, 1st Psychological Operations Battalion commander, after pinning a Purple Heart to the chest of Staff Sgt. Ryan Johnson during a ceremony Friday in Lincoln Hall Auditorium.

Reed went on to explain that on Dec. 11, 2019, Johnson and his team were in their sleeping quarters at Bagram Airfield, when a “massive vehicle-borne improvised explosive device, combined with a ground attack, occurred within 100 meters of their location.”

Showing signs of a traumatic brain injury, Johnson was medevac’d to Germany, then sent to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, and finally back to Fort Liberty, North Carolina, where he spent nearly a year recovering.

At the time of the attack, Johnson, a Psychological Operations Specialist, was deployed with Company A, 1st Psychological Operations Battalion (Airborne), as team leader of the Military Information Support Task Force – Afghanistan.

Johnson, a St. Louis native, is currently serving at Fort Leonard Wood as a drill sergeant for Company A, 701st Military Police Battalion.

It wasn’t logistically possible for all of his company’s Soldiers in training to be there, but the top performers were invited to watch the ceremony.

“I wanted them to witness something like this because it’s rare and special. It’s an event that most of them will probably never see again. I also believe it’s an experience many of them will never have to witness,” Johnson said.

Johnson describes the day of the attack as, “one of the most intense experiences I’ve ever witnessed.”

He had just woken up, when he said he felt, “a massive explosion ripped through the air, and I could hear the building’s metal framework groan and crumple under the assault of the blast wave and debris.”

“I could actually feel the blast wave surge through me, triggering a visceral sensation that the container I was living in might topple over. But it was just the raw power of the blast passing by. Suddenly, darkness enveloped us as the power failed. I hastily dressed and rushed to ensure my team’s safety,” he recalled.

He stepped outside into early morning darkness and said he can remember being hit with the overwhelming smell of diesel fuel.

“I immediately realized we had been targeted by some kind of vehicle-borne improvised explosive device. Within a minute of venturing outside, gunfire erupted. The proximity was startling. With only our pistols for defense, we relied on the building’s wall for cover — our backs against the concrete. Chaos reigned,” he recalled.

He said he didn’t realize the true magnitude of the devastation caused by the VBIED until daylight, but even then, they were still under attack and hadn’t taken time to inspect the extent of the damage.

“This intense confrontation lasted for an agonizing five or six hours. By noon, they had relocated Camp Alpha personnel to the far end, away from the hospital which the Taliban had commandeered. With everyone at a safe distance, the final stroke was delivered — a Hellfire missile, which incinerated the compromised building,” he said.

Reed said in their regimental hallway at Fort Liberty, there are sections for Soldiers killed in action and wounded in action going back to the Vietnam War.

“There are 46 names on the Purple Heart wall. Scott East is the 46th and Staff Sgt. Johnson is the 47th,” Reed said.

A few months ago, retired Sgt. Scott East, a teammate of Johnson’s, also received a Purple Heart for injuries sustained during the same VBIED explosion.

Johnson said his future goals are to attend the Sapper Leader Course and to be accepted into the master’s program at the National Defense University, where he aims to enhance his leadership capabilities and expand his understanding of national security and military strategy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

-30-

About Fort Leonard Wood

Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post 80 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains nearly 80,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps Detachment and Air Force Squadron on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.

 

 

By Melissa Buckley, Fort Leonard Wood Public Affairs Office

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (Nov. 7, 2023)— For some service members, taking the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery in high school is a vague memory, but for ones needing to raise their original scores, the Army’s Basic Skills Education Program is helping them meet, and sometimes even exceed, their goals.

According to Zanti Andriani, an education services specialist for the Army Continuing Education System at Fort Leonard Wood’s Truman Education and Personnel Testing Center, the BSEP course is geared toward service members with General Technical scores of 109 or below.

“Some service members want to reclass into another military occupational specialty that requires a higher GT score. The majority of Soldiers that take the BSEP class need to raise their GT score to at least 110 in order to apply to commission as a warrant officer,” Andriani said.

The BSEP class helps students study for the GT portion, the math and English sections, of the Armed Forces Classification Test. According to Andriani, the ASVAB is administered to new recruits entering the military and the AFCT is used to test active-duty service members.

“I have had several Soldiers come to BSEP with GT scores that are below 90 and leave with scores above 110. That is a huge accomplishment,” Andriani said. “I had a Soldier whose score was below average, but English was their second language. That can make the vocabulary portion of the test very difficult. They worked really hard and after BSEP their new score was 119.”

Andriani said the average GT score increase after the BSEP course is 19 points.

“I love seeing the excitement in Soldiers’ eyes when they see their new, higher score. They love the Army, and you can see it. They want to better themselves for their careers,” Andriani said.

Staff Sgt. Samuel Lovato is an instructor at Range 7 for the Combat Training Company. After taking the BSEP class, his score raised by 35 points, a new class record according to Andriani.

Lovato said he took the BSEP course because after 10 years in the Army, he came to the realization, “I really should have above a 110 GT score.”

He said there have been waivers for some of the opportunities he wanted, but to achieve his ultimate goal, there was no waiver — he needed a 110 GT score, “to see if I can go green to gold or go warrant officer as a backup,” Lovato said.

After taking the AFCT and finding out that he scored the highest of all the BSEP students tested on Fort Leonard Wood, “I was shocked — in disbelief. I felt like they were playing a joke on me because my highest level of education was high school 10 years ago. The BSEP class has given me the confidence to start taking college classes to earn a degree.”

The class Lovato attended this fall was a full day class for 10 days, with testing on the 11th day.

According to Andriani, the class was a half-day class until she changed it to a full-day curriculum in March.

“We had a full-day class at the last installation I worked at. I could see a difference between the scores of those who went to full day and half day. It was significant. We are putting everything in this class from kindergarten to 12th grade. We need Soldiers focused all day to meet their goals,” Andriani said.

The BSEP class is taught once a month in Bldg. 499. Andriani said each class has 15 slots.

“Sometimes, it is on a case-by-case basis. If I have a Soldier with a 110 GT score, but they need a higher score to be able to change jobs, we will consider them, too. Also, if there is space available, we will accept Marines, Sailors, Airmen and even dependents.”

To participate in the program, visit Fort Leonard Wood’s Continuing Education System website or call the Truman Education Center at 573.596.0172. 573.596.0172.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

-30-

About Fort Leonard Wood

Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post 80 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains nearly 80,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps Detachment and Air Force Squadron on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.