SOUTHWEST ASIA - Spanning across nearly every facet of the 380th Expeditionary Force Support Squadron, nine Airmen deployed from the New Jersey Air National Guard support morale, welfare, recreation and fitness operations for the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing here.
The team, which includes Airmen 1st Class Patricia Arias, Andre Jackson, Senior Airmen Darnell Holmes, Levar Kinard and Abdul Montaser, Staff Sgt. Heather Bartlett, and Tech. Sgts. Jeremy Berry, Lauren Holba and Taylor Holba, are deployed from the 108th Force Support Squadron's 108th Air Refueling Wing at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J.
All of the New Jersey team members are services Airmen. In the 380th EFSS, services support programs range a myriad of areas and each of the New Jersey Air National Guard team members support any one of them.
Montaser said being on the team and on this deployment has been a great experience.
"I enjoy being in services," he said. "I learn a lot every day by just being out here on deployment. As I always say, we all have one mission. All the jobs revolve around each other.
"Regardless if its services getting food for aircrews or aircrews supporting Marines and Soldiers on the ground in Afghanistan, we all have a critical job and mission that has to be accomplished day-in and day-out."
In supporting the 380th AEW, the nine New Jersey Airmen support the morale and welfare of more than 1,900 deployed personnel, who in turn support operations Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom, and the Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa.
Although they will be completing their deployment in June, Montaser, who is a native of Brooklyn, N.Y., said he speaks for each of them when he says they are all proud to be a part of the deployed team.
"We are all one team, and it's a team we are proud to be a part of," he said.