Name: Letizia Silicani
Job title: Directorate of Maintenance Program Analyst
Assigned: Army Field Support Battalion-Africa, 405th Army Field Support Brigade
Location: Leghorn Army Depot, Livorno, Italy
Experience: I started working for the U.S. Army in 1985 right here in the same place I work today. Over the years the commands and command names have changed, but I’ve been here the entire time. When I started I was a clerk typist in contracting, and then I was a supply clerk in maintenance, then a supply technician, then a management assistant, and now for the last 21 years I’ve been working as a program analyst – always at Leghorn Army Depot, always in the directorate of maintenance and always at the same desk.
Hometown: Marina di Pisa, Italy
Family: I’m married to my husband, Alessandro, since 1986, and we have a son named Elia, who is 32. We all work here in the directorate of maintenance, AFSBn-Africa, 405th AFSB. My husband and my son are both mechanics here.
Q: Can you explain what you do and what you are responsible for at AFSBn-Africa?
A: Every day I track funding that is granted to the maintenance directorate for purchasing repair parts, repair equipment and any items needed to support the mechanics during daily operations. I also prepare local procurements, and I am a $25,000 government purchase card holder. I do research and analysis for the maintenance directorate and prepare various reports, which are presented to the commander and the command team, both at the battalion and at 405th AFSB. My position was created in 2001, and I am the first and only person to work in it. My position was created as a liaison between the directorate of maintenance and our budget office. I have really good knowledge of this place – the directorate of maintenance – as I’ve been here longer than anyone else.
Q: Why is the mission of the directorate of maintenance, AFSBn-Africa, so important?
A: The directorate of maintenance is the only operational section in AFSBn-Africa. We are conducting operations every day supporting Soldiers. We maintain and repair a full complement of vehicles and equipment pieces as part of the 405th AFSB’s Army Preposition Stock-2 program. We have the APS-2 mission, but we also have additional missions we support, as well. For example, we support customers from several units and organizations in Vicenza with maintenance and repair on their vehicles and equipment when they need it. We constantly maintain our capabilities at the highest of levels and are ready for any type of mission, event or situation.
Q: What do you enjoy about your job, and what motivates you?
A: I love my job. I have great respect for my directorate and the entire battalion. We have a lot of hard working people here, and we always try to do our best. Whenever we complete a mission successfully, we are all very happy. This is why I enjoy my job. My husband is a mechanic and a small arms repair technician, and my son is a mechanic. My whole family works here in the directorate of maintenance. The directorate of maintenance at AFSBn-Africa, 405th AFSB, is part of my extended family. I love them all.
AFSBn-Africa and the 405th AFSB: Located at Leghorn Army Depot in Livorno, Italy, AFSBn-Africa is charged with providing and coordinating receipt, transfer, storage and maintenance of APS-2 to enable commanders to conduct unified action and a full range of military operations in support of U.S. Army Europe and Africa and joint forces. The battalion also provides and coordinates U.S. Army Material Command enablers in support of U.S. Army Europe and Africa through its Logistics Civil Augmentation Program, focusing primarily on operations in Africa. The 405th AFSB 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 AMC’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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