JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. –
A group of approximately 30 Airmen with the 628th Security Forces Squadron here are making hasty preparations for a contingency deployment to the Middle East in late April after official notification was received two weeks ago.
Augmenting their local training, the team departed on short-notice April 8 for a final air base defense course held at Fort Wolters, Texas. The training is scheduled to last approximately two weeks, at which point the team is slated to deploy for approximately 179 days.
In addition to the roughly 30 Airmen deploying, 628 SFS Commander Maj. Chris Callis will join the team as the unit commander in the area of responsibility. Acting commander of the 628 SFS during the deployment will be Capt. Matthew Foisy.
Details on what to expect have been limited during preliminary mission briefs, said deploying team leadership, but Airmen have been told their primary mission is to establish base defenses at a "bare base" deployed location and provide installation security. The team has been briefed there is currently only limited security, and standing up the base's defenses as soon as possible is crucial.
To prepare for the unknown, the weeks leading up to deployment have been busy for the defenders, said Staff Sgt. Jason Dietrick and Tech. Sgt. Randall Fontenot, team leaders with the deploying group. Days have been filled with extensive weapons qualifications on small arms, preparation through a newly formed combat skills training course and medical examinations and appointments.
The sheer number of requirements to send the team out on short notice was half the battle, the sergeants said. A large portion of their appreciation, they said, goes out to the 628 SFS unit deployment manager, Tech. Sgt. Jeremy Klemme, who managed every nuance of the team's deployment preparations. The team leaders also said the support their teams received from medical and logistical personnel was impeccable.
"There was a lot to get in to those two weeks, but it went smooth," said Sergeant Fontenot. "We didn't have any issues, and it was pretty astonishing how much they were willing to work with us."
For Sergeants Dietrick and Fontenot - both of whom are family men - even something as simple as a phone call is something which will be in moderate supply during deployment, they said. Although rumors were mentioned of communications being online at the deployed location, they wouldn't know until they arrived. Breaking the news of deployment to their families wasn't easy, they said.
"It's hard to leave them," Sergeant Dietrick said. "For a while, I did a different job where I was gone a lot as a Raven. Now, this will be different because I'll be gone for a long period of time."
Because of the difficulty surrounding family separation during deployment, Joint Base Charleston strives to provide the best service and information possible to Airmen and their families, said Evelyn Knight, a community readiness technician with the Airman and Family Readiness Center here.
Unlike couples at home station, who are just a call away when the washing machine breaks, deployed Airmen and their spouses are continents away. For all the difficulties families face, a wide range of services are available to help military spouses and children through the season in a positive way.
Ms. Knight said she always encourages couples to make the best of a deployment, but for people like Airman 1st Class Matthew Baxter, 628 SFS entry controller, little convincing is needed on that point. The Airman with less than a year on base since technical school said he had big plans in store to make the most of the situation.
"I'm getting married," he said. "It worked out that my deployment was when we planned to have our wedding, so we're doing it now."
Fortunately for Airman Baxter and his new bride, a team of professions working make the Air Force family the strongest it can be is a just call away, even when a spouse is not.
For information on support programs offered by the Airman and Family Readiness Center, call 963-4406.