Greetings from Balad, Iraq.  We are now seven months into our deployment.  It has been quite different from what I expected.

From the time we arrived, work in the Chaplain Section is non-stop.  The 49^th Transportation Battalion is involved in movement control.  That means that our battalion is responsible for all movement of personnel or cargo throughout the entire country of Iraq.  As such, there are Movement Control Teams all of the country.  As the chaplain for these men and women, it is my responsibility to see that their religious needs are met.

By the time my deployment comes to an end, I will have traveled to 19 different Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) and Combat Outposts and traveled between 5,000 to 7,000 miles.  I reach these by ground convoy, fixed wing aircraft, and helicopter.