U.S. troops wear aloha well
By William Cole
Advertiser Military Writer
Lt. Col. Mike Lerario figures what Afghanistan needs is some aloha spirit.
Mike Lerario photo via Aina Hawaiian Tropical Products
"Afghanistan is a land of diverse cultures, kind of like Hawai'i, but it has been at war for the last 20 years," said Lerario, commander of a 750-soldier task force built around the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment.
Members of the US Army's 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne, don some Island attire to bring a little aloha to Afghanistan. Lt. Col. Mike Lerario, who was stationed at Camp Smith a few years ago, ordered the aloha shirts from a company in Hilo.
"If any place on the planet can use a little aloha right now, Afghanistan is it."
Lerario, who was stationed in Hawai'i at Camp Smith from June 1999 to June 2001, ordered some aloha from Aina Hawaiian Tropical Products in Hilo: more than 40 shirts with bird of paradise flowers on them for officers with the task force.
For the unit of the 1st Brigade and 82nd Airborne Division out of Fort Bragg, N.C., it was a way to stand out.
But the display also symbolizes what the task force is trying to bring to Afghanistan.
"Mike believes that showing the aloha spirit in Afghanistan could in some way help," said Steven Parente, who is with Aina Hawaiian, and has traded e-mails with Lerario. "He says the people there have come a long way in expressing themselves although there are many different belief systems, (and) they have a long way to go.
"In one e-mail, he said that in Hawai'i, there are so many different peoples, religions and beliefs, and yet everyone lives together in peace."
Lerario and his wife plan to return to Hawai'i some day for an extended period, if not for good, and when he took the job commanding a battalion at Fort Bragg, he joked that he traded paradise for paratroopers.
The battalion task force operates in northern Afghanistan, and has been based out of Bagram Airfield since January.
Lerario said by e-mail the task force's mission is to find and destroy or capture remaining al-Qaida or Taliban anti-coalition militants, and help the government of Afghanistan re-build the country.
"From the people that were here last year, I understand that there has been a lot of change and improvement," Lerario, 42, said.
Many of the people who left the country during the Taliban regime have come back to try to make a living, he said.
"There is still a threat of al-Qaida and Taliban, especially in the areas along the Pakistani border. I'd characterize this as an insurgency against the current government and anyone who supports it, including us."
Every day, the task force conducts a mix of combat, security and humanitarian missions.
Most of the soldiers live in tents with wooden floors at bases where hot water and showers are available. At fire bases farther afield, access to phones is limited, and there are no Internet connections.
Lerario said daytime temperatures are in the 80s and 90s, but soon will be in the 100s. The summer months are known as the "Winds of 120 Days," with winds of 25 miles per hour or greater on most days.
The task force commander said that unfortunately, his soldiers get to wear their aloha shirts only during "off-duty" time, which isn't much, or during gatherings of the officers.
"We'll probably wear the shirts for a 4th of July barbecue," he said.
For a group photo, task force officers got together with their aloha shirts. They even have a bodyboard — even though there's not a use for it for hundreds of miles.
"It was left behind by someone that was here at Bagram and returned to the States," Lerario explained. "I don't know who or why, but it was in a big puddle of water near my tent one morning when I woke up following a night of terrible storms. I consider it fate that it ended up on my doorstep."
Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-5459.
