FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. -- It is a fortunate Army recruiting company that is located near one of the Army's power projection installations.
Beyond the amenities these posts offer Soldiers and families on recruiting duty, the presence of units, facilities and equipment allow for Future Soldier training that goes beyond PT in the recruiting station parking lot.
Fayetteville Company of the Raleigh Battalion has embraced its proximity to Fort Bragg, creating a quarterly Future Soldier training event on post with units of the 82nd Sustainment Brigade called "Adopt a Station."
"This has been a great success with positive feedback from all our Soldiers and the NCOs from the 82nd Sustainment Brigade units," said Lt. Col Jack Hunt, commander of Raleigh Battalion. "They all really look forward to the event. We really see positive feedback from the Future Soldiers. The training provides them a great feeling of accomplishment after the event. The Future Soldiers really love the event."
Hunt realizes that few recruiting companies are close to an installation with the resources of a Fort Bragg, but establishing a relationship with local Army Reserve units and ROTC departments is an alternative.
"The most critical steps to success for this type event are contacting the unit's training section, getting the unit commander's buy in and planning," said Hunt.
"The person who oversees this program for the battalion is our master trainer, Master Sgt. Joseph Seidel," Hunt said. "He is a seasoned recruiter, former first sergeant and a great master trainer."
Seidel's counterpart at the 82nd Sustainment Brigade was Master Sgt. Eddie Lomas, who recently took a first sergeant position in the brigade.
"I took hold of this because I wanted to show these Future Soldiers what they will learn, what they will know, what they will do in the life of a Soldier," Lomas said. "It's enjoyable to see these young people, to talk to them about their MOS and tell them, 'I see you doing that in the Army.' We tell them this is not a job; this is what we do every day."
The company's last event was Feb. 3. Bus transportation to and from Fayetteville to post and the dining facility lunch is arranged through the installation commander's staff. Future Soldier training includes physical training graded by active duty Soldiers, equipment displays and drill and ceremony.
"We also have Army Community Services brief them on the programs that will help them and their families," Lomas said.
The day's schedule resembles what the Future Soldiers will encounter in basic training.
A 7:30 a.m. formation at a recruiting station is followed by bus transportation to Fort Bragg. The morning consists of PT, a PT test, and static displays with briefings. After lunch at the dining facility, the Future Soldiers get a rotation of classroom instruction.
"We show them they will work with the world's best equipment and bring out the explosive ordnance suit, the explosive ordnance device robot. We got the chemical company to bring out the Fox [chemical detection] vehicle," Lomas said. "We know the Army is short airborne Soldiers so we have the Golden Knights give a demo. We have the riggers come out and show how to pack a parachute. We put some of the young people in the harness."
Hunt completes the event's life cycle with an after-action report. Then the battalion and company get to work on the next event, planned for May 4, which will involve ROTC cadets.
"By getting our Future Soldiers exposed to this training, they will have an easier transition to their initial training status and better integrate into the Army when they depart for training," Hunt said.
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