SMA: Fight against terrorism extends to Korea
Army News Service
Release Date: 4/27/2004
By Sgt. Carmen L. Burgess
SEOUL, South Korea (Army News Service, April 27, 2004)- Soldiers in Korea may not be in a desert combat zone, but they are nonetheless battling against global terrorism, said Sgt. Maj. of the Army Kenneth O. Preston.
"Unless a person has been assigned here, it is easy to forget what lies north of the border," Preston said at the end of a weeklong visit with Soldiers across the Korean peninsula.
Preston, who has been in his position since Jan. 15, still refers to himself as "the new guy" in the Pentagon. Although he has never been stationed in Korea, he said that the assignment has always been on his wish list.
"This was the first big trip that I have had the opportunity to take," he said, "and Korea was the first place I wanted to visit."
The 13th sergeant major of the Army met with hundreds of Soldiers in dining facilities, gyms and town hall meetings throughout the peninsula to field questions about uniforms, the Noncommissioned Officer Education System, rotations for Operation Iraqi Freedom and one of the Army's 17 focus areas --- force stabilization.
The focus area force stabilization would leave Soldiers and their families in place for up to seven years to form unit cohesion, and to allow family members to invest more time and finances in the community.
Preston pointed out the advantages of spending the majority of one's career at the same duty station.
"I have friends who spent 25 years at Fort Bragg, N.C.," he said. "They were able to buy homes, get involved in the community and retire close to Army facilities."
He said that they were able to get time away from that station to spend time as recruiters or drill sergeants. If a Soldier doesn't want to stay at the same station, he or she can opt to re-enlist for a different location, Preston said.
One topic that he focused on repeatedly was transformation - that of the Army and of the individual. Preston pointed out that the Army is going through its most significant change since World War II.
"Remember that transformation is good," he said. "It will provide predictability and stability for families and Soldiers."
Preston drove the point of individual transformation home by describing the new combat warrior uniform slated for issue to those participating in OIF-3 and quizzing troops on the Soldier's Creed.
"We are now living in a 360-degree battlefield," he said. "That is why we have this creed."
During his visit, the former tanker and cavalry scout was apprised of several topics specific to Soldiers stationed in Korea - the relationship between Americans and Korean Augmentation to the U.S. Army Soldiers, or KATUSAs, the
Assignment Incentive Pay program, which gives Soldiers who re-enlist to stay in Korea $300 more a month, and the threat of communist North Korea. He also asked troops about their quality of life and morale while stationed on the peninsula.
"I wanted to see that transformation is going on here," he said. "With what is going on in Operation Iraqi Freedom, (the Army leaders) are up to make some tough decisions. It is important for me to see where you live and work."
Preston said that a first-hand visit to troops in South Korea helped him to better understand the Army's mission on "freedom's frontier," the demilitarized zone that separates troops from the north.
He said that Soldiers here should be proud of what they are doing because they are continuously providing for a real-world mission.
"I appreciate all the sacrifices Soldiers and leaders here are making," he said. "Even though you may not be serving in Iraq, you are not forgotten."
(Editor's note: Sgt. Carmen L. Burgess is a member of the Office of the Chief of Public Affairs.
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