Afghanistan My Last Tour

They start their classes at 0600 hrs in the morning.  Despite not having any electricity, running water, or windows, the students are very eager to learn.  They know that an education will give them an opportunity to pursuit a good paying job instead of toiling in the fields like their parents.  Today’s mission was a visit to an urban elementary/high school.  In conjunction with the ANA we loaded a pickup truck full with beanie babies, soccer balls, school supplies, etc.   The team leader would meet with the principal to discuss other humanitarian and infrastructure concerns.  The school was built in 2003 as a joint project between the Islamic transitional government of Afghanistan and the coalition joint civil military task force.  It took three months to construct the school.  Since opening its doors, the school provides an education to more than 5,500 students daily.  They accommodate the children, by having 3 different rotational shifts.  Each shift lasts approximately 3-4 hours.
The principal stood out in his lavender suit, silk tie and his black plastic sandals.  His office was one of the few rooms that still had windows intact.  His chipped desk was made of cheap particle board and his room was adorned by several vases of bright red flowers.  Ironically he was a teacher at this school before recently being promoted to principal.  He holds one of the most difficult and dangerous jobs in Afghanistan.  The Taliban are fervently against education, especially for females and this past month destroyed several schools in the southern provinces.  Frequently the Taliban will kill the teachers and the principals who struggle to provide an education to thousands of enthusiastic children.
Initially the children peered from behind the broken panes of glass and watched our armed team with caution.  But after pieces of candy were handed out, they saw we didn’t pose a threat and became quite friendly.  Several of the children were attracted to my Nikon camera and kept jumping up in front of the lens when I tried to take a picture.  Fortunately being 6’3” has some advantages and this was one of those times.  Everyone wanted their picture taken, except for a few shy girls who shunned my camera.
The principal gave us a grand tour of the school yard and the 3 classroom buildings used to educate the students.  They cram 50-60 students in each classroom and 97 teachers serve as their educators.  He said they are only supposed to put 30 students in each classroom, but due to lack of teachers, he has no choice but to double up.  We went to his office and drank a customary cup of chai and discussed some of his concerns.  After being on the VMO mission I was able to identify several students who had the Leishmaniasis disease.  He said the disease is prevalent in the school and he would try to provide us a list of the students’ names who suffer from it so they could possibly receive medical treatment in the near future.

Filed under: Missions, Uncategorized Tagged: | Afghanistan, education, ETT, humanitarian mission, mil blog, news, photos, Taliban, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Army, war