Pete's Place

I'm sitting in Pete's Place - a nice relaxing place in Manas AB, Kyrgyzstan. They have a bar that serves REAL beer from all over the world, pool tables, ping pong, lots of TV's and free high speed Internet! It's a real pleasure to be able to check my email and other websites in the normal time - just a few min! No hassles and no waiting! And - my iTouch is working well also! My room accommodations are well above my expectations - good thing they weren't this nice BEFORE we went into Bagram - I would have been in complete shock! :-)

It's FRIDAY - and as many of you know - I love Friday's! This one is particularly nice because it will be my LAST Friday in the AOR - hopefully, and most likely, forever.

I'm very relaxed and just waiting now for confirmation of our flight out of here.

Soon I will make my last post to this blog and this chapter in my life will be complete. I want to thank you all for everything that was done to support me, my family and the entire team here for the last 8+ months since going on orders back in JAN. Through CST in FEB and 6 months at Bagram, I have really appreciated all the cards, letters, packages, etc - but again, most importantly, your prayers.

We are very fortunate that nobody was seriously injured during our time and nobody got into any major trouble. We accomplished a significant amount of work and as a team, we made a vast improvement to the enduring operations on Bagram. Our major accomplishments include a new Blackwater tank farm which initiated operations the day we left BAF! This alone will reduce the amount of trucks entering and leaving the installation by some 500 vehicles daily and the result is a huge increase in force protection and reduced traffic flow.

We also completed major construction in several buildings including a redesigned HVAC (Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning) system in the main communication facility for Afghanistan! The folks there had added several new servers and the HVAC system was under sized and not nearly adequate enough accommodate the new equipment. There was a serious risk of overheating and the entire network was in jeopardy - meaning communications (both secured and unsecured) would have been affected. Our team performed emergency modifications to the existing system allowing a sufficient amount a time to design and install a new system that is now cooling the facility to a chilly 65 degrees - even during the peak temperatures we experienced this summer of more than 115 degrees Fahrenheit!

There were several other major projects and countless minor projects not including the maintenance "favors" we did to improve the many different facilities on Bagram. Our team improved the life, health and safety of coalition forces on BAF now and well into the future. I am VERY proud to have been part of this team and all their accomplishments.

The new team is lead by LtCol Parkinson and CMSgt Torres from Hickam AFB in HI. They were very appreciative of all the work our team did to try and ensure a smooth turnover of projects, equipment, and living quarters. I wish them the very best and I hope their tour will exceed all their expectations. I pray for the team and leadership that they are all safe and are able to execute God's plan and all return home to their families when their mission is complete.

I am really excited to return home in the next few days and promise to keep you up to date on my locations as they change - provided I am able too (no communication issues). I don't expect any.

See you all soon!

Mark.