Summer in Afghanistan

By MAJ Choli Ence

Welcome to our new site, a blog we affectionately call, "The Army Bards."

If you’re reading this, you’re probably already aware that the 128^th MPAD is in Kandahar, Afghanistan. We mobilized for federal service from Draper, Utah back in March, which at this exact moment seems like a really long time ago.

Back then, we sat through a couple of snow storms at Camp Williams during some lane training.  Now it's pushing triple digits and the thought of cool air is nothing more than a distant dream. But a lot more has changed besides the weather.

We finished our stateside training at Fort Dix in April, and arrived in Afghanistan in early May. We fell in under the 4th Infantry Division and supported important mission tasks like the Afghan presidential run-off election, Operation Proper Exit, and the transfer of authority of Regional Command-- South to the 1st Cavalry Division.

Since arriving in Afghanistan, we've also learned a lot about operating as a forward public affairs unit. We've created this blog to help share some of these experiences, as well as highlight some of the things we get the pleasure to see and experience.

Our job as public affairs professionals is to tell Soldiers' stories. And there are plenty to tell. The upcoming few months will assuredly be filled with lots of exciting changes as OEF transitions to a sleeker and slimmer force made up of Train, Advise, Assist, Commands and as the first democratically elected Afghan president is announced. Perhaps the most exciting part of it all is the fact the 128th MPAD gets to proclaim we are the last MPAD still standing in Afghanistan!

So stay tuned for some of the exciting content we have been and will be producing.


(Photo by SSG Whitney Houston)