FORT STEWART, Ga. - Soldiers and Family Members from 3rd Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 1st Heavy Brigade Combat Team, spent hump day a little differently this week; most swapping their uniforms for either sweatshirts and jeans or Halloween costumes to celebrate Fall with a festival that offered something for everyone.
"In the [Family Readiness Group] steering committee we decided we wanted to have regular events, so about once a month we try to do something," said 3rd Brigade Special Troops Battalion Commander Lt. Col. Jason Garkey. "For this month of October we decided we would host a fall festival."
The festival was geared toward Families and single Soldiers, with stations like face painting and a bounce house for the children, and the "trunk-or-treat" competition that any Soldier could participate in to try and win a four-day pass.
It has worked out really well that the steering committee is actually doing things for the battalion; they don't just treat it like a monthly requirement, Garkey explained. Getting the Families involved raises morale and builds battalion camaraderie.
Holding the festival mid-week also helped with Soldier morale.
"We wanted to host this on a Wednesday to do something a little bit different," he said. "We figured this was a great way to break up the middle of the week."
Rosa Washington, the FRG leader for Company C, said ensuring all the companies participated really helped make the event that much better.
"I brought the face paint, some of the cakes, and my husband helped decorate," she said. "The Families and kids getting together is great because there are so many other children for them to mingle with."
For Washington, that is all that matters.
"It's all about the kids; anything for the kids I am on board for," she added with a smile.
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