Name: Steve Rice
Job title: Acting Transportation Division Chief
Assigned: Logistics Readiness Center Ansbach, 405th Army Field Support Brigade
Location: Katterbach Kaserne, Ansbach, Germany
Experience: I’ve been working as the acting chief of LRC Ansbach’s Transportation Division since September. Before this I was a traffic manager and transportation specialist at LRC Ansbach since February 2018. I was previously at LRC Ansbach in the Transportation Division from 2004 to 2016 before rotating to the U.S. and being assigned to LRC Fort Gordon, Georgia, for two years. I started out as a Drivers Testing and Training instructor and moved up to Transportation Motor Pool vehicle control officer. And at Fort Gordon, I worked as a quality control inspector.
Other Service: I served in the Army for 18 years and accepted an early retirement option the Army was offering in 1997. I retired as a Staff Sergeant and a ground maintenance, light wheeled vehicle mechanic.
Hometown: My hometown is Hustonville, Kentucky, but Ansbach, Germany, is definitely my second home. I’ve lived in the Ansbach area on and off since 1982, for a total of 28 years.
Family: I’ve been married to my wife, Claudia, for 37 years. We have a son and two granddaughters, ages 4 and 1.
Q: Can you explain your responsibilities at LRC Ansbach?
A: I provide assistance to our personal property officers and our motor pool team as well as our Drivers Testing and Training Station. I am responsible for producing multiple reports – for example the Logistics Readiness Review and the Installation Status Report – reporting how many customers we counsel, how many shipments we process and book, how many shipments coming inbound and outbound that are inspected, our shuttle bus ridership numbers, number of dispatches we process, and more. I also process all the exception to policy requests.
Q: Why is the LRC Ansbach Transportation Division’s mission so important?
A: We are responsible for ensuring the Soldiers and Families stationed in the U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach area of operation receive their household goods shipments containing their personal property in a timely manner. Without us, they wouldn’t be able to ship their personal belongings and property when they receive their assignment orders to come here. We help to make their assignment here their home away from home. In most cases we don’t run into any issues, but if an issue does arise we are here for them. For example, if there is a delay in receiving a shipment, we can point the customer in the right direction and assist them with filing an inconvenience claim. In most cases, the transportation service providers will provide some type of monetary supplement so they can go out and purchase some things they need until they receive their personal property. Our shuttle bus service is also extremely important to our community. The Ansbach military community is spread out. We have three different housing areas at three different locations. In the Katterbach area we have two kasernes, which are both about 10 kilometers away from Barton Barracks in Ansbach. We have a medical treatment facility that is located on another installation. Basically, we have a lot of facilities spread out across a wide area, so our Soldiers without personally owned vehicles rely on our shuttle bus service. The Drivers Testing and Training Station is here for Soldiers and Families coming to Ansbach who have shipped a vehicle or plan on buying one when they get here. They assist our community members in getting licensed and legally able to drive in Germany and Europe.
Q: What do you enjoy about your job, and what motivates you?
A: I’ve lived in this community for many years, and I know many people here, especially from our local national workforce. They are very professional. If they encounter an issue, they’ll make it their responsibility to follow it all the way through the process until the issue is resolved. They do it for the Soldiers, and I respect them for their dedication and support. Also, I love the transportation field. Being overseas we have to know the international and host nation laws and regulations. I enjoy researching information and providing that information to our customers so they better understand why things are the way they are.
LRC Ansbach and 405th AFSB: When it comes to providing day-to-day installation services, LRC Ansbach directs, manages and coordinates a variety of operations and activities in support of USAG Ansbach. LRC Ansbach reports to the 405th AFSB, which is assigned to U.S. Army Sustainment Command and under the operational control of the 21st Theater Sustainment Command, U.S. Army Europe and Africa. The brigade is headquartered in Kaiserslautern, Germany, and provides materiel enterprise support to U.S. Forces throughout Europe and Africa – providing theater sustainment logistics; synchronizing acquisition, logistics and technology; and leveraging U.S. Army Materiel Command’s materiel enterprise to support joint forces. For more information on the 405th AFSB, visit the official website at www.afsbeurope.army.mil and the official Facebook site at www.facebook.com/405thAFSB.
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