FORWARD OPERATING BASE FALCON, Iraq — Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers never imagined they could transform their Mine Resistant Ambush-Protected vehicle into a mobile field desk that would set a standard for future stability and support operations for their unit operating in the nation’s capitol.

A little ingenuity, elbow grease and thinking “inside the box” helped Soldiers of Troop C, 7th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, maximize their ongoing efforts to sustain a lasting state of security in the Rashid district’s Abu T’shir community, located in southeastern Baghdad.

During recent weeks, Comanche Troop transformed a heavily armored hull of a vehicle, known as an MRAP, into a platform for administrative field work used to process microgrants, said Capt. Kris Howell, commander of Troop C, 7th Sqdn., 10th Cav. Regt., 1st BCT, 4th Inf. Div.

A microgrant is a small one-time contribution, funded by Coalition Forces commanders, intended for local Iraqi business owners to help revitalize commerce and foster ties within their communities, said Howell, a cavalry officer from Aurora, Ill.

“The brigade gave us guidance to make (microgrants) our primary effort,” he explained. “Microgrants stimulate the economy, and that is a good thing.”

The majority of the people will make improvements to their shops and business, but most of the businessmen said that they will use the grants to hire employees, said Howell.

“The process begins when Soldiers conduct assessments, meeting with local business owners and inspecting their shops,” he explained.
Iraqi businessmen in the Abu T’shir community can now apply for a microgrant loan in one easy step — without having to travel from their shops and business places to a combat outpost or joint security station in Baghdad, said Howell.

“It’s just a matter of forward thinking,” Howell said. “It used to be
forward, backwards, forward, backwards, traveling COP to sector, COP to sector. Now we’ve got a way to enroll all the applicants where they live and work.”

To reduce the timely process and to maximize the troop’s performance, Howell ordered his mechanics to build a desk in the troop-carrying back of an MRAP.

“Instead of having to wait to get it done, now the team on the ground can do it all at once,” he explained.

“It was actually built like a factory-made desk,” said Sgt. 1st Class Carmen Centennial, platoon sergeant, 2nd Platoon, Troop C, 7th Sqdn., 10th Cav. Regt., 1st BCT, 4th Inf. Div.

The mechanic built a workstation for the paperwork complete with a slide out drawer for the laptop computer and camera that was designed and built around the existing seats and systems so that the MRAP could carry its full compliment of Soldiers, explained Centennial.

“The MRAP with the office in the back is a great idea,” he said. “Every unit that has set up the microgrant should use that as the standard.”
The MRAP provides mobility and security while making the job easier and speeds up the process, said Centennial, who hails from San Antonio.

“We take a lot of pride in how many microgrants we can do in a day,” he explained. The highest number was 21 in one day; we could have done more than 20 per day, but we set the (limit) to 20 per day.”

Working from the back of an MRAP also allows Soldiers to interact with the local community and become directly involved in the microgrant application process, said Centennial.

Developing relationships in Abu T’shir is key to successfully maintaining stability in the predominately Shia community that is home to approximately 60,000 Iraqis, he explained.