Ironhorse Fall Fest hosts activities, candy …screams

By U.S. ArmyOctober 29, 2014

Ironhorse Fall Fest hosts activities, candy …screams
1 / 9 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Staff Sgt. Daniel King (left), a Soldier assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 115th Engineer Brigade, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, and Alexis Hines (right), run a Willy Wonka candy booth out of their car during the Tru... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Ironhorse Fall Fest hosts activities, candy …screams
2 / 9 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Spc. August Bell (Spider-Man), a fire control repairer assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 115th Engineer Brigade, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, wrestles with Superman during the Ironhorse Fall Fest, October 25, at For... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Ironhorse Fall Fest hosts activities, candy …screams
3 / 9 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Kylia Hummer (left), the daughter of Staff Sgt. Joseph Hummer, a Soldier assigned to Company B, 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, and his wife, Veronica, gives a high-five to volunteers, October 25, a... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Ironhorse Fall Fest hosts activities, candy …screams
4 / 9 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Ironhorse Families take a chance at a terror ring toss game hosted by Soldiers of the 2nd Squadron, 12th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division during the Ironhorse Fall Fest, October 25, at Fort Hood, Texas. (U.S. Army photo... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Ironhorse Fall Fest hosts activities, candy …screams
5 / 9 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Ironhorse Families fish for candy as Soldiers of the 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division assist them by letting them know when candy has taken the bait during the Ironhorse Fall Fest, October 25, at Fort... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Ironhorse Fall Fest hosts activities, candy …screams
6 / 9 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Braydon Moyer, the son of Spc. Caleb Moyer, a medic assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, pulls the string to a miniature trebuchet during the I... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Ironhorse Fall Fest hosts activities, candy …screams
7 / 9 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Staff Sgt. Michael Cedre (Batman), an artillery mechanic assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron "Garryowen," 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division and his Family, from left to right, Matias (Superm... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Ironhorse Fall Fest hosts activities, candy …screams
8 / 9 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Spc. August Bell (Spider-Man), a fire control repairer assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 115th Engineer Brigade, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, dances and raises his arms to get more votes while competing for top spot... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Ironhorse Fall Fest hosts activities, candy …screams
9 / 9 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Ironhorse Soldiers and Families make their way through a haunted house created and hosted by the 1st Squadron "Garryowen," 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division during the Ironhorse Fall Fest, 25 October, at Fort Hood, T... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

"It's important to show that we are not just an Army that trains, that we support and bring families together through activities like these," said Capt. Daniel Davison, an armor officer and the Ironhorse Fall Fest Coordinator assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company of the Ironhorse Brigade.

Davison said events like these build camaraderie and provide a safe and social atmosphere for the Soldiers and Families who attend.

Six battalions of the brigade took part in the event that featured 23 different activities including face painting, tug-of-war, a trebuchet, and a haunted house.

Soldier and Families also decorated their cars with different Halloween themes -- from Dia de Los Muertos to a pirate ship -- for the Trunk-or-Treat portion of the fest. Children went from car-to-car getting both candy -- and scares -- from the displays and those in costume.

Andrea Wenzel, the Family Readiness Group Leader for Company G, 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment of the Ironhorse Brigade said events like this have a special purpose.

"(These events) are extremely important for our Families, especially when our Soldiers are away doing training," Wenzel said. "It gives us a chance, as the leadership and FRG and the command, to put eyes on the (Soldier's) family, know they're ok and building camaraderie with that family."

She also explained that through an event like Ironhorse Fall Fest, the units get to know and understand what is going with the families, strengthening the unit-family bonds. This information is passed forward to the troops in training, letting them know their families are being supported back home, which allows them to focus on their mission.

However, the event wouldn't have been the success that it was without the assistance of several Soldier volunteers.

Ironhorse Soldiers donated their time, labor and even costumes in supporting Fall Fest, said Sgt. Justine Levisee, a chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear specialist assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, explaining the importance of that homemade touch.

From cutting and gluing pieces of a matching-card game to building displays, Levisee said that the end results cannot be bought in stores, and neither can the togetherness it brings.

"This stuff is done by Soldiers, someone took their time to craft these events (and) make the candy bags," Levisee said. "We all sit down, we construct, we plan and we execute as a team."

With over 300 people attending Ironhorse Fall Fest, "it was definitely a success," said Davison, adding that there was another way to tell how well things went.

"I saw kids with bags full of candy," he said. "When I was a kid, a good measure of success was the amount of candy we got."