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America's Military Charity® 501(c)(3)
2022 Goods and Services Delivered $30,000,000 (est.)
2022 Overhead: Less than 5%
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Providing assistance to and promoting support
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America's Military Charity® 501(c)(3)
2022 Goods and Services Delivered $30,000,000 (est.)
2022 Overhead: Less than 5%
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Serving Those Who Serve

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[caption id="attachment_3445" align="alignleft" width="290"]AmmoTechEarns09092010 Marine Corps Lance Corporal Brent A. Smith goes through ammunition clips to ensure they all have the same and correct number of rounds, Aug. 9, 2010. Smith is the first Marine to be named Marine Corps Ammunition Technician of the Year. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Kentavist P. Brackin[/caption] CAMP SCHWAB, Japan – An ammunition technician with Ammunition Company, 3rd Supply Battalion, Combat Logistics Regiment 35, 3rd Marine Logistics Group, 3rd Marine Expeditionary Force, is the first Marine selected to receive the Marine Corps Ammunition Technician of the Year Award.
"I was kind of shocked really when I heard I was receiving this award,” Lance Cpl. Brent A. Smith said. “I kind of felt like I was up there with ‘Chesty’ Puller." The late Lt. Gen. Lewis Burwell “Chesty” Puller was a combat veteran of World War II and the Korean War, and the most-decorated U.S. Marine in history.The Ammunition Technician of the Year Award is designed to recognize Marine Corps ammunition technicians, private through sergeant, who have set themselves apart from the rest of their peers through hard work, dedication and sound decision making, officials said."It is a great honor to have an ammo tech from 3rd Supply Battalion represent the company here on Okinawa," said Marine Corps Chief Warrant Officer 2 Christopher Deering, officer in charge of Ammunition Company, who recommended Smith for the award. Smith works with several other ammunition technician Marines to issue ammo to units across Okinawa, giving out anywhere from 50,000 to 100,000 rounds of various types of ammunition in a day. "Ammunition technicians seem to be overlooked sometimes," Smith said. "No one notices when their ammunition is delivered on time, but they sure notice when they are on the gun line and there is nothing to put downrange. You can go a few days without food, maybe a couple of days without water, but you wouldn't last a minute without ammunition." Deering said the new award is good for the ammunition community in the Marine Corps. "I am excited to see how this award will transform our community in the future," he said. "It is a great program, and I think that through recognition, Marines may become more competitive. We all like bragging rights." Smith said he’s proud to be the first Marine to receive the award. “I know that I have set the bar for myself and for other Marines who push for this award in the future," he said. Sept. 9, 2010: By Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Kentavist P. Brackin- Marine Corps Bases Japan

By Army Sgt. 1st Class Brent Hunt American Forces Press Service December 1, 2008 CAMP TAJI, Iraq, Dec. 1, 2008 – Troops on the ground in Iraq have an “eye in the sky,” thanks to soldiers like Army Spc. Rodolfo Delatorre in the 4th Infantry Division’s Combat Aviation Brigade, who launches, recovers and maintains the Shadow unmanned aerial system. Delatorre, who serves with Company G, 2nd Battalion, 4th Aviation Regiment, hails from Fresno, Calif. “I refuel, add oil, change spark plugs and change filters,” he said. “I perform services on the Shadow to ensure it stays in the air.” [caption id="attachment_3584" align="alignleft" width="250"]foddelatome-9999h-001 Army Spc. Rodolfo Delatorre, unmanned aerial system maintainer, 4th Infantry Division’s Company G, 2nd Battalion, 4th Aviation Regiment, Combat Aviation Brigade, Multinational Division Baghdad, wires the propeller of a Shadow unmanned aerial system before launching the surveillance aircraft. Delatorre is responsible for launching, recovering and maintaining the high-tech Shadow at Camp Taji, Iraq. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Brent Hunt[/caption] Delatorre is attached from the 4th Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team as a member of the “Iron Eagle” company, which launches and recovers the Shadow surveillance vehicles day and night. Shadow maintainers perform takeoff and landing procedures from their facility, using a pneumatic launcher for takeoffs. The soldiers recover the vehicles by using an arresting hook and cable system similar to the ones used on aircraft carriers.Delatorre is attached from the 4th Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team as a member of the “Iron Eagle” company, which launches and recovers the Shadow surveillance vehicles day and night. To keep the fleet of surveillance aircraft in the air, maintenance, quality control and production control are of high priority. Double- and triple-checking all maintenance procedures is commonplace. “Once one is launched, there is another one coming down. Once it has landed, we do maintenance on it,” Delatorre said. “I like this job because it is a lot of hands-on. I like to work with my hands. It gives me a lot of satisfaction when everything is launching well and there are no problems with the UAS.” The Shadow provides commanders on the ground the ability to see the entire battlefield with its high-tech cameras and communications equipment. Since the inception of unmanned surveillance aircraft more than 10 years ago, the “eyes in the sky” have become an integral part of the modern battlefield. Commanders have come to depend on the Shadow’s ability to give them surveillance footage from the sky; maintainers here ensure the “overhead edge” continues on the battlefield for Multinational Division Baghdad troops. “His job is extremely important to the overall mission,” said Army Staff Sgt. Daniel Lovell, Delatorre’s supervisor at the UAS company. “We have a high [operational tempo], and if it wasn’t for guys like Delatorre, we couldn’t support the overhead mission for MND-B. “He is a stellar soldier,” he continued, “and I tell other soldiers to emulate him. He is one of those soldiers who make my job a lot easier.”

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