Jeff Giles

Lt. Commander Jeff Giles [USN] of the 30th Naval Construction Regiment stands in the snow on a hillside at Al Taqqadum, Iraq. Giles penned a poem describing the conditions and the feelings being endured by our men and women overseas during the Christmas season.

No one knows that better than Lieutenant Commander Jeff Giles from the 30th NCR.From his shack at Al Taqaddum, Giles supplies repair parts for all the Seabees in western Iraq.It's an unglamorous but vital job for a force that relies on a dizzying variety of heavy equipment.

Giles says that, whenever possible, he gets parts locally or from Kuwait.But most of what the Seabees need is available only from the States."My biggest challenge is sourcing parts from the U.S.," he admits.

There's just no easy way to get anything-men or material-from North America all the way to desolate Al Anbar province, where the roads prickle with improvised explosive devices (IEDs), and the weather routinely grounds helicopters.To protect the ground convoys that are the most reliable mode of transportation, the Seabees have their own convoy escort teams mounted in up-armored Humvees.One such team is manned by the 22nd's reservists, many of whom are policemen in civilian life and who "take their jobs ,in Iraq, very seriously," according to Romero.Attacks on convoy escorts have injured four Seabees in recent months.

Giles says that when it comes to shipping the Seabees vital spare parts, for the initial legs at least, he relies increasingly on commercial package services such as DHL or FedEx.He credits these companies with reducing his logistics lead time considerably in recent months.
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For his part, Giles describes a career spanning decades and continents.Perhaps his most memorable assignment took him to the Ethiopian-Eritrean border as a U.N. observer of the ceasefire between these warring countries.For months Giles lived in a hut with observers from all over the world, braving roving murderous thugs, pesky monkeys and aggressive snakes, and doubling as a member of an ambulance crew for the impoverished local community.

Commander Jeff Giles is back home.

Giles returned to Adair County on April 2 after spending three months in the Persian Gulf fighting terrorism.

"It's good to be back," Giles said."I'm definitely glad to be back home."

Giles spent the majority of his time on the U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt.

"While we were there, over 11,000 missions were flown off the aircraft carrier," he said."We also tracked the maritime interdiction program, which involved personnel boarding vessels to see if any Taliban or al-Qaida forces were being smuggled out."

Giles said it appears the war on terrorism in Afghanistan is nearly over.

"We've pretty much destroyed all there was to destroy," he said.

During the next year and a half, Giles could be recalled.Whether he is or not, Giles said his experience was memorable.

"During the short time I was there, I got to experience about all the Navy had to offer and it was truly an experience I'll never forget."Adult, juvenile charged with burglaryCASEY COUNTY - Two Casey County people, including one juvenile, have been arrested and charged with first-degree burglary.

Jeff Giles is now a USN Commander

2006-05-21 - Iraq - Photo by Giles collection.

At left, then LCDR Jeff Giles in combat gear in Iraq.

Columbia's Jeff Giles promoted
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Commander Giles is now serving with the United States Navy in Iraq.He was one of 31 who were selected, out of 140 who were eligible for the promotion.

The change in rank came through the Secretary of Defense, acting for the President of the United States after approval of the reports of the selection board which recommended the promotion.

Jeff is a graduate of Lindsey Wilson College, BA, and has a Western Kentucky University MBA, and serves the local business community as Chamber of Commerce Board Member.His family attends the Good Shepherd Catholic Church.Giles is a Little League Baseball Coach and continues to follow the news of the Adair County Little League.

Prior to his current tour of duty in the war zone, Commander Giles had served as as a member of the US Naval Reserves attached to the United Nations Peacekeepers in Ethiopia/Eritrea.

Jeff Giles, USN READ MORE

No one knows that better than Lieutenant Commander Jeff Giles from the 30th NCR.From his shack at Al Taqaddum, Giles supplies repair parts for all the Seabees in western Iraq.It's an unglamorous but vital job for a force that relies on a dizzying variety of heavy equipment.

Giles says that, whenever possible, he gets parts locally or from Kuwait.But most of what the Seabees need is available only from the States."My biggest challenge is sourcing parts from the U.S.," he admits.

There's just no easy way to get anything-men or material-from North America all the way to desolate Al Anbar province, where the roads prickle with improvised explosive devices (IEDs), and the weather routinely grounds helicopters.To protect the ground convoys that are the most reliable mode of transportation, the Seabees have their own convoy escort teams mounted in up-armored Humvees.One such team is manned by the 22nd's reservists, many of whom are policemen in civilian life and who "take their jobs [in Iraq] very seriously," according to Romero.Attacks on convoy escorts have injured four Seabees in recent months.

Giles says that when it comes to shipping the Seabees vital spare parts, for the initial legs at least, he relies increasingly on commercial package services such as DHL or FedEx.He credits these companies with reducing his logistics lead time considerably in recent months.
...
For his part, Giles describes a career spanning decades and continents.Perhaps his most memorable assignment took him to the Ethiopian-Eritrean border as a U.N. observer of the ceasefire between these warring countries.For months Giles lived in a hut with observers from all over the world, braving roving murderous thugs, pesky monkeys and aggressive snakes, and doubling as a member of an ambulance crew for the impoverished local community.

Jeff Giles, U.S. Navy

Lt. Commander Jeff Giles, an officer in the U.S. Navy, wrote it while being stationed in Iraq.

LCDR : Jeff Giles, USN