'Civilians Down Range' group to improve deployments for civilians

By Lauren Poindexter, Picatinny Arsenal Public AffairsFebruary 20, 2015

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1 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – George Van Why Jr., is shown during a 2006 deployment to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan. Why worked in a Mobile Parts Hospital attached to the Army Field Support Battalion. He designed and manufactured this weapons mount to support a specific mission. ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
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2 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
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3 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Rose Michaels is currently deployed to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan. Michaels was previously an ARDEC employee, but transferred to the Defense Management Contract Agency to acquire a deployable position. She performs audits and inspections of equipme... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
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5 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Mark Woolley (far right) is shown during a 2013 deployment at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan. He deployed as ARDEC's subject matter expert in science and technology. He was part of a team that conducted rapid prototype efforts for parts needed by Soldi... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

PICATINNY ARSENAL, N.J. (February 20, 2015)--Deployment is a familiar word within the military environment. Usually, it is associated with active duty Soldiers, but more than 70 civilians have deployed in support of Soldiers since 2007 from Picatinny Arsenal's Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center, or ARDEC.

Kevin Caska, an ARDEC product quality manager, deployed individually for over a year.

He describes it as "One of the most rewarding types of work you can do to work directly with the Soldiers. You have the ability to directly impact the success of the mission, and potentially, even save lives."

Civilian deployment can also be stressful when faced with the traumatic events in a war zone and the extended time away from family.

"There is a big difference between civilian and Soldier deployment," said Caska.

One major difference between Soldier and civilian deployments is that civilians can be deployed individually.

In contrast, Soldiers often are deployed as a part of a company or battalion. These Soldiers work closely with each other and live together in the same communities.

Soldiers often know each other prior to, during, and after deployment. They have shared experiences and can lean on each other through hard times. They have a support network that is inherent to the Army structure.

However, civilians don't typically have this support environment. When they return from a deployment, they are likely to be surrounded by people who may not understand what they experienced, or they may have limited options to talk about the effects deployment had on their health, family or other matters.

"After my deployment I had some issues and I couldn't really get the help that I needed quickly, through the resources that were available," said Caska. "I thought, there has to be something better for civilians that deploy but there wasn't."

This led Caska and a group of supporters to launch the Civilian Down Range initiative or CDR. Established a year and a half ago, CDR intends to build a network of peers comprised of civilians who have deployed, are deployed and those who may deploy in the future.

The group also plans to improve the overall deployment experience for civilians by bringing to light and addressing issues civilians face in all three deployment phases; pre-deployment, deployment and post deployment.

To cultivate a network of peers, the group met with leaders of the research center Jan. 28 to discuss future plans, which included the announcement of the official CDR Facebook group page that was created in July 2014, but with limited publicity.

The group decided to use Facebook because it is viewed as the best platform to connect people and encourage interaction. Anyone who wants to support deployed civilians can be a part of the group by requesting membership. The page's group setting is private for security purposes, so potential members must request access to the page.

The group currently has a member deployed in Afghanistan, and the group has been able to support and encourage the employee via Facebook.

A policy change issued to the garrison last year also has resulted in an increase of deployment briefings and lunch and learn seminars. There are also plans to have civilians attend resiliency training after returning from deployment and before returning to work.

In addition, Caska encouraged members to volunteer their time with others as an act of continuous service and stressed the need for unity.

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ARDEC, one of the U.S. Army's premier research and engineering facilities, is the largest organization at Picatinny Arsenal. The center helps develop superior armament technologies for the Army and other branches of the nation's military.

The research center, also known as ARDEC, is the largest organization at Picatinny Arsenal, which is a major employer in northern New Jersey. The center has acquired a reputation for quality improvement and plays a vital role in developing superior armament technology for the U.S. Army and other branches of the nation's military.

ARDEC is one of the largest employers in northern New Jersey, employing 3,378 people on site here, with an additional 377 at other locations. More than 2,481 ARDEC employees are scientists or engineers.

By designation of the Secretary of Defense and an act of Congress, Picatinny Arsenal is the Department of Defense's Joint Center of Excellence for Armaments and Munitions. Picatinny's portfolio comprises nearly 90 percent of the Army's lethality and all conventional ammunition for joint warfighters.

A 6,500-acre military installation located in Morris County, the Arsenal contributes more than $1.3 billion to New Jersey's economy.

Related Links:

Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center (ARDEC) homepage

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Picatinny on Facebook

ARDEC on Facebook

Picatinny on Flickr

Picatinny on YouTube