Vol. II, No.

"PERSHING IN EUROPE "

Schwoeb1$Ch Gmuend, Germany
-,. . ..~.. . .,... .
'

Friday, April 18, 1975,

,._

3/84 Crosses the Main River; Page 2

I

''
I

A Conversation
With
BG Robert Hankins

.see Pages 4 & 5

GIANT

Page 2

Friday, April 18, 1975

800 Run for the Handicapped

NEU ULM - Eight-hundred
members of the 1st Battalion,
81st Field Artillery, ran a mile
and showed they cored In the
1975 " Run far the Special Olymplcs" held March 11 here.
The run began In Munich on
March 16 and ended at RheinMain Air Base March 26. Using
secondary roads, runners passed
through the major cities of
Augsburg, Neu-Ulm, Stuttgort,

Hellbronn, Heldelberg, Worms,

Mainz ond Wiesbaden carrying
the Olympic flame.
In each city that the run went
through, soldiers and civilians
could participate by donating
,even OM for a medal ond run a
mile along with the runner carrying the flame.
Sponsored lntemotlonolly by
the NCOA and the Joseph P.
Kennedy Jr. f:oundatlan, It Is

LEADING THE ~A.CK - St1"11tC1nt Dennis Norton ltods Hie "Slf.

Pffmtll" of Service 8Cltttry In the "Run for the Special Olympics," Moreb 11 at WIiey BotTOdls. Eight hundred ffletl of Hie 1-11, t partldpated In this wwfd.wldlt nm to aid mentouv nttarded
and tlondic:apped d1Hclren.

envisioned that "Runs" around

the world wlll generate thousands of dollars to old mentally
retarded and handicapped chll
drn. In Get-many, 40 p41rcent of
the money collltdltd will b4t
turned over to Aktlon SOrgenklnd, on agency that provides old
for mentally retarded children.
Handlcoppec:I Afflfflcan chll
dren In. Eurot)e(ln commands
wlll olso benefit from the rvn.

Another 40 percent of the proceeds wlll be given to a special

committee, composed of U.S.
Army, Navy and Air Force representatlvn. They will r1tvlew
requests for assistance In any
progral1'1$ which deal with helpIng of handicapped children.
The remaining 20 percent of
the money will be given to the
Joseph P . Kennedy Jr. Foundation.

GETIING TOGETHER - German soldiers frem the Bund411W9fr ........... cause, as ...., run DIOIIII wlfll lfflHllllerS of HHB, 1..1st FA
Ill tM ''Runfortlle 5"dal Ofvmplcs''.

A Pershing First

3/84 Crosses
Main River
Mtmbln af the ffll Combat Engineer Battallon are s!laWft htrl as
tlley dledt for problems on the pontoon bridge.
.
. , 1111
NECltAllSULM - Wba1 bu I wbeell,
wlsJII 23 tms. and lloell ec:nm Ille Main
river? 11'1 a Pa'lblnl mlalile aa a ~
brld&e, taking put ID a ,-it 3rd Balla).

Ont of the problems facing tht mn ftom tht 3-Mttl was scraping
bumpers on the hug 757 Which pulls the Pershln, mlnlle. Shown here
Is a tractor lnchin, its way up the ramp.

loa, i4tb Field.Al1illerytacllcal ~

.
Seventy-five vd1lclel of all shapes and
li18 went over the river ID Ille ~
cperatlon. The brldei:, pul toeeci- unilff
cover of darkma ~ the Ith Cclmbal Enpneer Banalion. ltJ'etClled acrws Ille Naill
near Ktwngen. A pall\.OGII bridp the ti,nl&ht, It wa1 broken down Into nha t the
leCOftd nlght's Cl'Olllling.
"1bt1 ls the tint time I Pershing unit
has been Involved in a combined anna tacdeal river crossln&." said 3-Mth OpentioM Officer, MiJor Joseph Slraco.
"There's a large number of river ob51ades
In Elll'Ope. During wartime oonditlans. we
would have to have the ass!SllnOe of the

f'r-*1dl
combat.np,eento~tethem."
Problem In erecting the bridge during
tbe first nlp11 delayed the actual cross!n&
liU put daWII. Detpile the late hourS and

cold weather, the crossing went off witll0<1t

&bitch.
1be second nl&hl's rail crculllg went
just u 1moothly - wltb 1mall problem: as one 757 tractor was 81!ffing off the
raft. the raft slipped, oending the back
ule Into the river. The driver, Specialist 4
Dan Smith lamented, 'Only the tint w~I
went In 11 flnt. but then another guy tried
to get II out, and about half of ll went In
dlffl I'" The vehicle wu ftnally pulled out
with a wrecker.
"It wu deflnitely a sua,ea," cmduded
MaJor Slraco, " Both from the monlinatioo
and training level, right down to the actual
crossln& by the troop penonnel."