Ch, CPT Randy Curry is nearing the end of his assignment at Ft Polk, LA, the site of the Joint Readiness Training Center. Here troops are brought in for several weeks of specialized training before being deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan. Iraqi and Afghani “villages” have been set up, and civilians living in the Ft Polk area are hired to come in and act as villagers. The battalion to which Ch Curry is assigned acts as insurgents that must be “flushed out” and neutralized by the soldiers who have come in for the training. Maneuvers are videotaped and critiqued to fine tune tactics. This serious operation causes soldiers to evaluate their readiness for the mission and can nudge them towards seeking out the chaplain in quiet moments.
