FORT DRUM, N.Y. (Sept. 21, 2017) -- In honor of its 60th anniversary, the 10th Mountain Division Sustainment Brigade's 10th Headquarters and Special Troops Battalion hosted a "Week of the Workhorse" celebration on Fort Drum, Sept. 11-15, using sporting events and competitions to build unit pride and esprit de corps.
Each day, the battalion hosted a series of athletic and skill-oriented tournaments, from dodgeball and basketball to Army combatives and a daylong "Workhorse Challenge" event, which tested company teams' physical endurance as well as basic soldier skills. Each event counted as a certain number of points, and winning teams and individuals were recognized during the week's culminating event, the 10th HSTB Gala, on Sept. 15.
"It's like the Olympics of the battalion," said Cpl. Carolyn Martinez, a financial management Soldier with 33rd Financial Management Support Unit. "It's a big deal; it's something we look forward to every year because it's bragging rights for the rest of the year."
Ultimately, Martinez's unit earned those bragging rights as 33rd FMSU won the overall championship, taking home most of the individual event awards.
Soldiers from the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 510th Human Resources Company, 226th Signal Company and 33rd Financial Support Management Unit used the competitions as time to not only bond with their own peers and leaders, but to get to know others in the battalion and come together as a cohesive unit.
"I loved it, honestly," said Pfc. Christian Pena, a multi-technical transmission system operator / maintainer with 226th Signal Company. "The competition, the sportsmanship, just all around it brought the most out of people and the battalion as a whole."
Command Sgt. Maj. Mike Bostic, battalion senior enlisted adviser, said he enjoyed seeing the units come together to leverage their Soldier training and athletic abilities in a fun, family-friendly setting.
"It was a great testament to the way we train Soldiers, how they can showcase their main talents while capitalizing on their soldier skills training," he said. "It was an extremely positive event for our battalion, and we received great feedback."
Lt. Col. Edwin Chilton, battalion commander, said that the events of the week increased teamwork and camaraderie in the unit, but also emphasized the lineage and history of the 10th Headquarters and Special Troops Battalion.
"Most importantly, this week has been about remembering our lineage and those tough Mountain Soldiers who never gave up and continued to climb and push forward until the mission was accomplished," he said.
The battalion originated in 1957 as the 10th Infantry Division Trains, formed from the alpine infantrymen and the pack mule trains of the Mountain medical, quartermaster and ordnance maintenance battalions, and returned to active service with the 10th Mountain Division (LI) as the 10th Support Brigade Troops Battalion on Sept. 16, 2004. The battalion honors that lineage and history annually.
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