I was finishing up my work in Kandahar, Afghanistan, Dec. 9, 2009, when I decided to write down some of my thoughts concerning the ten months I spent there.  Below are my reflections:

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Tonight, after ten months on the ground in Afghanistan, I can finally say that my work here is done. My replacement is up and running. I’ve introduced him to all of the key players here on base – people he will form professional relationships with and collaborate in the collective Public Affairs effort in Afghanistan.

I came here not fully knowing what to expect. Yes, I’ve served in Afghanistan as a Public Affairs Officer before as the director of Public Affairs for the Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan, but that was a different mission at a different stage of the War here. But then, I came to an organization that was already established, and picked up where the previous director left off. This time, I came to Kandahar where there was a minimal U.S. presence. There was no equipment to fall in on and no one to pass on the benefit of their experience.

When I lost the noncommissioned officer in charge (NCOIC) that was assigned to me before the 143d Expeditionary Sustainment Command (the unit I deployed with) left the U.S., I deployed only with my Private First Class (PFC) who is a print journalist fresh out of Advanced Individual Training (the school that teaches recruits in their military occupational specialties). But, I would later learn that she was worth her weight in platinum.

As soon as we hit the ground toward the end of February, we began attempting to produce stories and imagery using only our personal computers and cameras. It wasn’t perfect, but we were able to begin providing news products to the Army and later DoD, which would find their way into many other publications and websites around the world.

In April, the 143d ESC began operating as Joint Sustainment Command – Afghanistan (JSC-A), and was charged with serving as the lead U.S. command at Kandahar Airfield in addition to overseeing Afghanistan-wide sustainment operations. JSC-A also became the higher headquarters to some non-sustainment units in Regional Command South (RC South). Afghanistan is divided into five regions: North, East, South, West and Central.

In April, I received a new NCOIC. He was also trained by the military to be a print journalist, but he had some video skills as well acquired through college and some personal video projects he produced. In May, we finally were moved into an office and received computers and some equipment. We also received two members of the International Security Assistance Force’s (ISAF) Public Affairs operation. They reported to the ISAF headquarters, but provided some assistance and mentorship to my staff.

I was later able to obtain a satellite transmitter for feeding video products to the U.S. The Digital Video and Imagery Distribution System (DVIDS) proved to be a vital asset to our efforts. The American Forces Network sent an initial team of two broadcasters to Kandahar to set up operations. That team would later grow to four. My office enabled them to become operational within two days of their arrival, providing them assistance with everything from computer access to obtaining badges and even transportation. Their office was still under construction at that time, and they had minimal equipment. They were the most frequent users of the DVIDS system.

Video products sent to the DVIDS Hub in Atlanta, Ga., are marketed to media outlets throughout the U.S. and even to some international media. AFN Kandahar sent products through the DVIDS transmitter daily.

As more troops began to arrive in Southern Afghanistan, the command in charge of all U.S. forces in Afghanistan that don’t operate under ISAF became interested in establishing a media operations center (MOC) in Kandahar. I had a similar idea and worked with U.S. Forces Afghanistan (USFOR-A) to develop a concept and later begin the establishment of such a facility. Fortunately, the 143d ESC had tents, wood and other materials that would be needed for the MOC achieve what we refer to as an initial operating capacity or IOC.

Before the MOC was fully operational, there would be several media visits that my staff and I would have to support as we were part of the senior U.S. command in RC South. USFOR-A even relied on us to develop a plan and facilitate CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta and his production crew as they covered medical operations in RC South as part of Anderson Cooper 360’s Sept. 11 8th anniversary coverage. We developed an itinerary with vital assistance from the PAO team at the 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade or Task Force Pegasus, and coordinated with the main hospital at Kandahar Airfield and facilitated coverage of a forward surgical team at Forward Operating Base (FOB) Dwyer. The result was extensive coverage of the medical evacuation and treatment process here as well as coverage of a Sept. 11 commemoration ceremony hosted by a JSC-A unit.

My PFC, who was later promoted to Specialist, proved invaluable. During her time here, her writing has blossomed to a point where she can compete with writers from the Washington Post and New York Times. My NCOIC, who also works for a newspaper as a civilian, developed an amazing layout for our newsletter that was by far the best in Afghanistan. Together they developed relationships with the Department of Defense, Department of the Army, the DVIDS Hub and many other news outlets that facilitated the effective dissemination of news products to local periodicals in the U.S. as well as many website and blogs.

Social media is another area where we felt like pioneers in Afghanistan. We established what was likely the first Facebook page for a unit deployed here, and later began using YouTube, Twitter and Flickr to further disseminate our products. I handled most of the task of managing our Facebook presence, and my staff provided me with plenty of content to post.

I can surely say this has been a very rewarding experience. We worked hard, but we were doing a job we believed in and enjoyed. This has been a deployment I will never forget.

Related links:

Media Escort with Medivac Unit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyVg1p1xeow

143d ESC Uncasing of Colors: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_0DALbdReQ

Sept. 11 commemoration on Kandahar Airfield: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQFkZD5_O9k