SCHWEINFURT, Germany -- The pitcher has the catcher. The quarterback has the wide receiver. And the guard has the forward. Two members of a team come together to complete the play, close out the game - or finish a deployment.
"I don't really feel like it's cooperation. I feel like it's one big team," said Maj. Andrew Allen, the Schweinfurt-based operations officer for the 172nd Infantry Brigade.
"It seems like when you say 'cooperating,' it's like two people working together but it seems like we're part of the same team," Allen said, referring to the USAG Schweinfurt and the brigade reintegrating Soldiers recently returned from a yearlong deployment to Iraq.
The USAG Schweinfurt and the units it supports are well-tested at the seven-half-day reintegration process, during which Soldiers begin the week with classroom instruction and administrative matters, before moving on to medical, family, dental, agency, and unit-specific reintegration stations.
"It helps enable the Soldiers who are coming back from downrange to effectively, efficiently, and as smoothly as possible reintegrate back into the community and their family," said Steve Watts, USAG Schweinfurt Directorate of Plans, Training, Mobilization and Security.
"A lot of things changed while they were gone, so we're updating them administratively, personally," Allen said.
Every Soldier spends either the morning or afternoon conducting business, allowing him or her to spend time the other part of the day with family or friends, according to Watts.
"It gives Soldiers the flexibility to accomplish their unit mission and to link back up with their families," he said.
"The family is very important part of this, in order for the Soldier to transition back from being deployed, with their Soldier family, to reintegrate back into their home, the community family," Watts said.
The Blackhawk Brigade continues its redeployment to Schweinfurt and Grafenwoehr over the next several weeks. For photos of the welcome-home ceremonies and seven-half-day reintegration, check out the Flickr photo stream at http://www.flickr.com/photos/schweinfurtpao
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