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Civil affairs troops help open new school

RAMADI, Iraq — The sight of Jolly Rancher candy drew the children to the civil affairs soldiers and Marines assigned to Task Force 2-37.

As the children got the goodies, Sheikh Taher Sabber Bdeywi of the Ramadi area’s Al Jassim tribe and Marine Maj. Derek Horst cut the ribbon on the neighborhood’s newly remodeled school. After two months and $41,000 worth of rehabilitation work, the pink single-story, 12-classroom school was ready for its students Tuesday. Between 200 and 300 primary school students go to the school.

Horst and the sheikh cut the ribbon together while soldiers stood watch and Apache gun ships roared overhead.

“It’s very important that we do this,” said 1st Lt. Stuart Barnes, with Bravo Company, 486th Civil Affairs Battalion, an Army Reserve unit from Tulsa, Okla. “It helps our image. In the war of winning hearts and minds, we need to make sure the people understand we’re here to help the Iraqi people help themselves.”

Soldiers from the 486th fall under the command of TF 2-37 at Camp Blue Diamond, as do Horst and his Marines from the Marine Reserve’s Team 3, Detachment 3, 4th Civil Affairs Group in Washington, D.C.

After Tuesday’s school opening, the civil affairs soldiers and Marines, moved on to a nearby clinic, accompanied by a handful of Iraqi soldiers from 3rd Company, 1st Battalion, 7th Iraqi Army Division.

They dropped off 12 boxes of medical supplies, including pain medicine, immunizations and antibiotics. The medicine was worth about $6,000, officials estimate.

The Al Haitham clinic desperately needed the supplies and it was short on medical staff, Barnes said. While visiting there, an Iraqi army medic treated a few of the neighborhood kids.

Money for both projects came from the Commander’s Emergency Relief Program, and all of the work was done by local residents, Barnes said.

“All the money stayed local,” he said.

Staff writer Michelle Tan and staff photographer James J. Lee have just begun their two-month embed in Iraq. Their other coverage:

A ride along with soldiers training Iraqi police