We got an email last week from Iraq about a UNC Chapel Hill graduate, Capt. Jeffrey Donaldson, who is working as part of an 11-member team of soldiers with an Iraqi infantry battalion. The team leader, a Major Steve Carpenter, sent us a photo, which I have posted on this site. But I thought I would also reprint here the full message that Major Carpenter sent to give you a sense of what they are doing. We'd like to get more photos posted here about local folks who are serving in Iraq, Afghanistan and in other places around the world. You can post them on this site yourself, or, if you need help, we can put them up. We'd like to hear, in the own words, what they are experiencing.
Dear Editor,
One of your great local citizens, Captain Jeffrey Donaldson a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill graduate, is currently serving on a Military Transition Team in Iraq as part of an eleven man team tasked with professionalizing an Iraqi infantry battalion. He performs admirably as our operations officer, as a senior mentor-trainer for our Iraqi counterparts, and as a diplomat for the United States as our military continues to make steady gains toward stabilizing a country that has seen years of turmoil.
Our mission is of strategic importance. We are helping to re-build a nation and secure its people. Specifically, Team TATANKA (Bull Buffalo) focuses on developing an Iraqi infantry battalion into a reliable and effective security force. We assess the reliability and effectiveness of our Iraqi unit in terms of their ability to provide the local population with physical security and a life without fear and in terms of their ability to conduct the humanitarian operations necessary to provide for basic human rights (the right to basic services, education, health care, a means to safely provide for their families, etc.). General Matthew Ridgeway (the commander in Korea after MacArthur) said it best. “[Our mission] is an invitation to participate in a historic initiative…to help professionalize an Army and build a stable nation.” While this quote describes the mission of the entire United States military in Iraq, the TATANKA mission contributes to this overall cause. By developing a reliable and effective Iraqi security force that serves as a positive change agent in our region, our team hopes to create an environment where the residents of the 114 villages within our area of operations see a local government that through their respective agencies are capable of providing the social and economic stability and the security necessary to encourage growth in the region. If we can assist the Iraqis in achieving this goal, long-term stability is attainable. In short, we seek to restore hope.
Why do I go into such detail? I think it is important that American citizens, specifically your readers, understand that its Soldiers are involved in an initiative that is meaningful, and that their actions, like Captain Donaldson’s actions, are in keeping with the highest traditions of not only the most powerful, but in my opinion the most generous military in the history of the World.
All eleven members of Team TATANKA are proud Americans. We are proud fathers. We are proud husbands. We are proud sons. We all look forward to the day when we are united with our families. In the meantime, regardless of the political situation back in the United States and the sometimes harsh rhetoric, eleven proud teammates are over here in Iraq making a difference everyday, and all of us are proud that someone from our team comes from your hometown.
Major Steve Carpenter
TATANKA Team Leader
