In May, 1991 I was assigned to 3D FSSG, Camp Kinser Okinawa. Specifically I was assigned to the programming section of the Information Management Services Office (ISMO) producing iffy programs in Clipper.
Sunday evening the MSGT X knocked on my door. This is entirely unexpected; I'm just another junior NCO in the ISMO, he's the boss.
"How would you like to get out of the inspection tommorrow?"
"Sure."
"0700 tomorrow report to the dispensary, get a full specturm of shots. 0800 report to supply, draw gear. 1000 you'll be on a plane at Kadena. You're going to Bangladesh. They need the best NCO programmer I've got. As it happens you're the only NCO programmer who can deploy so off you go."
I was on my way to Joint Task Force Sea Angel. My contribution in the final analysis wasn't great; they didn't need a programmer they needed someone who could read a book and create a flat-file database. As it happened since no one at the ISMO knew what they meant by the orders for 'the best NCO programmer you have" I ended up with a footlocker full of LAN and WAN gear, a good toolkit, massive amounts of software on floppy, and manuals.
Among the manuals was the one needed for the flat-file database application they had. I spent a few hours reading, a day coding and learning and hey presto my job was done. I spent another two days cleaning malware from the machines (anti virus software, whazzat?), then spent the rest of my time (nearly a month) as the message center's messenger.
Still .. helping people - no matter how small my contribution - felt good. It felt right being there, helping a country recover from disaster.
Why blog about this now? As near as I can recall two days from now is the fifteenth anniversary of MSGT X telling me I was going to Bangladesh. I didn't want to the let the occasion pass by with out remark.
See also this for the perspective from Bangladesh. Remembering April 29: The deadly sea and the sea angels.
Sunday evening the MSGT X knocked on my door. This is entirely unexpected; I'm just another junior NCO in the ISMO, he's the boss.
"How would you like to get out of the inspection tommorrow?"
"Sure."
"0700 tomorrow report to the dispensary, get a full specturm of shots. 0800 report to supply, draw gear. 1000 you'll be on a plane at Kadena. You're going to Bangladesh. They need the best NCO programmer I've got. As it happens you're the only NCO programmer who can deploy so off you go."
I was on my way to Joint Task Force Sea Angel. My contribution in the final analysis wasn't great; they didn't need a programmer they needed someone who could read a book and create a flat-file database. As it happened since no one at the ISMO knew what they meant by the orders for 'the best NCO programmer you have" I ended up with a footlocker full of LAN and WAN gear, a good toolkit, massive amounts of software on floppy, and manuals.
Among the manuals was the one needed for the flat-file database application they had. I spent a few hours reading, a day coding and learning and hey presto my job was done. I spent another two days cleaning malware from the machines (anti virus software, whazzat?), then spent the rest of my time (nearly a month) as the message center's messenger.
Still .. helping people - no matter how small my contribution - felt good. It felt right being there, helping a country recover from disaster.
Why blog about this now? As near as I can recall two days from now is the fifteenth anniversary of MSGT X telling me I was going to Bangladesh. I didn't want to the let the occasion pass by with out remark.
See also this for the perspective from Bangladesh. Remembering April 29: The deadly sea and the sea angels.
