I'm back

After a wonderful week in Qatar, I’m back at work here at ISAF HQ in Kabul. I haven’t written since my return a week ago because there were a dozen projects on my desk when I walked through the door. I’ve been super busy, but the stress is gone and I’m ready to start tearing things up again.

In my absence, three members of the team packed up and rolled out. Gone are Tech Sergeant Laura Smith, Tech Sergeant Latisha Cole and Cpl. John Rafoss. These three did an outstanding job shooting pictures, video and telling the ISAF story. At the bottom of each of their departing awards states, “Their documentation during this deployment serves as an invaluable historical record of international assistance and cooperation in support of the Afghan people and their government. Their outstanding performance of duty within a combat zone reflects great credit upon themselves, the United States military and the Department of Defense.”

Truer words could not be said to describe these three and their efforts here in Afghanistan.

And while three are now gone, three replacements have arrived. Our newest team members are Master Sergeant Chris, Tech Sergeant Cristal and MC1 Terry. Last names are being withheld for security reasons. It’s great to have some fresh enthusiasm in the office and I’m sure all three with rise to the level of their predecessors in no time.

As I said earlier, I have a dozen new projects on my desk. The two biggest include a 12-minute video on NATO’s efforts in Afghanistan over the past eight years… and outfitting our new studio. The video will take some research, but it shouldn’t be too difficult as producing videos is what I do best. But it’s the studio I’m most excited about. I wrote a month or so ago that if I could get ISAF PAO a studio before I left, I would consider the second half of my deployment as successful as the first. Well, the studio is now a reality. All that’s left to do is build a couple sets and move the DVIDS system to its new location. This studio will make life 1,000% easier for everyone who follows in our footsteps here at HQ.