Rahid District Baghdad, Iraq-? A large number of soldiers serving with the 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry MNF Division were pleased and amused to be able to observe a special event last week.
The special event was hosted by the local Iraqi government and Iraq Security Forces, and it was a morale building event all in all. Members of the local orphanage gather at the Jihad NAC Hall, sang songs, gave thanks and spoke poetry dealing with patriotic and encouraging messages.
The Hall is in the Rashid district of Baghdad, and in the past was the site where a lot of different insurgent and terror forces holed up. Now, it has been reborn, and is a local community hall where positive things happen, benefiting the local Iraqi community, as well as being a beacon of hope and a symbol for all Iraqi people.
The celebration was performed mostly by the children in the orphanage, and served to show support both for their Iraqi Soldiers and for the Coalition Soldiers that have brought peace and stability to their land.
?We hope more of these little celebrations will help build rapport and break down bridges between the community, the Iraqi Security Forces, and the Coalition at large,? said Lieutenant
Jason Behler.
Lieutenant Behler is the platoon leader from the Armored C Company, 1st battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment.
