The Warrior Exchange at Afghanistan’s Bagram AB reopened Aug. 23 after taking a direct rocket hit during the early morning hours two days before.
The store was closed and no one was inside when the rocket struck the store about 2:21 a.m. Aug 21. Four concession employees from Subway and Green Beans restaurants were in the building next to the store but were not injured.
Associates are ‘heroes’
Exchange Director/CEO Tom Shull praised the team at Bagram for such quick action. He said he was thankful there were no injuries.
“Our team of associates at Bagram and Warrior are our heroes,” Shull said. “There is no greater honor than serving those who serve, especially at the tip of the spear. No retailer in the world could come close to doing what we do for our Warfighters and their families.”
Europe/Southwest Asia Region Senior Vice President Jason Rosenberg thanked the Exchange team as well.
“I applaud the tremendous effort by General Manager Robin Chetri and his team, who worked closely with command and installation partners to get the store back to serving the best customers in the world,” said Jason Rosenberg, senior vice president of the Europe/Southwest Asia Region. “Like our VP John Burk said, ‘A rocket is not going to slow this team down!’ He was very right!
“I thank God that this incident did not occur during the day. Had it been during the day while the store was open, this would have been a catastrophic event. This is a very busy store, so you can imagine the amount of folks who come through the store daily.”
Plenty of help
Rosenberg issued special thanks to teammates from Logistics, Loss Prevention, Information Technology and Facilities Management who jumped in to help repair the store. Area Support Group-Afghanistan Commander COL Jacob Peterson and his team of experts also won praise from Exchange managers.
“I thank God that this incident did not occur during the day. Had it been during the day while the store was open, this would have been a catastrophic event.”
-Jason Rosenberg, senior vice president, Europe/SW Asia
Besides structural damage, the rocket destroyed all cash registers, coolers and other equipment. Associates, managers and installation workers made the necessary repairs to get the store ready for opening at 8 a.m. Aug. 23. Fifteen Airmen from the 1st Expeditionary Civil Engineer Group showed up with brooms and dustpans to help clean the mess left by the rocket.
“I had the honor of serving them just three weeks ago in Qatar,” Chetri said. “We had to turn away volunteers because we had so many.”
‘Steadfast loyalty’
Exchange Senior Enlisted Advisor CMSgt Luis Reyes expressed his appreciation for the support team.
“As military members, our jobs require us to put ourselves in harm’s way to support of our nation,” Reyes said. “The same can be said of Exchange associates deployed to support our warfighters in the combat zone. Our mission, ‘We go where you go,’ is not just a motto, but a true testament of our associates’ steadfast loyalty to continue serving the best customers in the world.”
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