HOHENFELS, BAYERN, GERMANY –
U.S. Army 1st Lt. Matthew Shafer, a Huntington, West Virginia native, and a platoon leader with Horizontal Platoon, 821st Engineer Construction Company, 1092nd Engineer Battalion, 111th Engineer Brigade, West Virginia Army National Guard made the trek with his unit to Germany for Exercise Combined Resolve 24-2, a U.S.-led, NATO and partner integrated exercise in the European Theater focused on combined arms interoperability.
According the 821st Engineers, this marks the first time a National Guard engineering unit participated directly in the bi-annual exercise.
For Shafer, this was a chance to hone his leadership and engineering skills while leading his platoon through the construction of block, fixed, turn and disrupt obstacles, that make it harder for the enemy to traverse the “battlefield” terrain. This required planning, problem-solving, communication and leadership.
Shafer’s background, with a degree in geology and a master’s degree in project management, fused perfectly to the engineering aspect of the mission.
“On the civilian side, I’m a geologist with the Army Corps of Engineers, located in the Huntington area,” said Shafer. “We do things like slope stability analysis if we’re repairing slips or landslides and also work with ground water, primarily dams and levees.”
“A lot of the engineering applications and the soil analysis correlates directly with what we do here (in the Army Guard),” Shafer said.
He explained that the time it will take to dig a trench or berm can be determined through surveying and soil analysis.
“Not every soil is the same and not every rock is the same, so it can be easier or it can be harder.” He said. “But if you have the background to know what you are dealing with, it helps in the planning aspect a lot.”
Shafer’s commander, U.S. Army Capt. Carl Boyles, III, said he felt fortunate to have Shafer, along with the expertise he brings through his civilian job, in his unit.
“He’s a very smart man,” said Boyles of Shafer.
Shafer welcomed both the intellectual and leadership challenges that arose during the two-week rotation with Combined Resolve 24-2. There is always something that can be improved on, no matter how prepared a Soldier is, he said.
“The stresses applied here, good stresses, will help hone my skills not only as a Soldier, but as a leader, which applies directly to my civilian career as a project manager and engineer,” he said. “Being able to coordinate, communicate and lead people is very, very valuable.”
Shafer plans to make a full career out of both his civilian and Army jobs. “To be able to do both is extremely fortunate,” he said with a smile.
For more information on what Shafer’s unit accomplished while participating in Combined Resolve:
WVARNG Engineers.