RAYMOND, Maine -- Engineer soldiers from the Maine Army National Guard turned a slope into a flat base for a multipurpose field as part of their annual training during a June 16-28 project at the Raymond Elementary School here.
Members of the 262nd Engineer Company (Horizontal) practiced their skills during an endeavor that will benefit the school and surrounding community.
“I’ve been running the excavator and grater, and I’ve also had the opportunity to train some younger soldiers who don’t have licenses on equipment yet,” said Army Sgt. Kory Peckham, a heavy construction equipment operator with the 262nd. “This has been a great opportunity for me to use my role as a noncommissioned officer and also use my civilian engineer training.”
The engineer were responsible for the first phase of building the field. The unit’s goal was to complete this part efficiently so the Raymond Elementary School can move forward in the process.
Training Opportunity
“When we are given the opportunity to take on a project of this caliber it’s important to train soldiers, but it’s also important to have a finished product at the end of the training period,” Peckham said. “If we meet our goals and expectations, there’s potential for us to get more projects down the road and more opportunities.”
The engineers hauled-in over 500 loads of gravel for the project.
They raised the ground up to subgrade, and leveled it out where there was previously a steep decline. This required a lot of compacting. For every eight to 10 inches of lift they had to compact and aerate the material so that during heavy rains it won’t slide or enter Panther Pond just behind the school.
“Overall, this is a training event. It’s great to see how other operators work and find out what our strengths and weaknesses are as a platoon or company. To me it’s a personal pride to get above where we were before this,” said Army Staff Sgt. Brian Babbage, the noncommissioned officer in charge at the worksite.
A civilian engineer company will be contracted to complete the project. The project’s anticipated completion date is the fall of 2018.
The project was excellent training for the engineers, Babbage said.
“It’s very rare that we have all this equipment on one site,” he said. “So, having the opportunity to get experience on equipment gets us ready for any movement in the future, whether it’s a drill weekend, next year’s [annual training] or future deployments.”
He added, “The big equipment we have and man hours we can put in it will help the students be able to utilize this field much faster.”
Show of Gratitude
Babbage said the school’s teachers and students were thankful for the National Guard’s help.
“The kids came out on their last day of school and thanked us, as well as making over a hundred cards. And, that means a lot.”
Alissa Messer, the playground project manager who has two children attending the school, said the old playground was overcrowded and unsafe for the 200-plus children who used it.
The new field, she said, will include a boundary that prevents strangers and wildlife from entering the playground, and also removes an electrical panel that was in the middle of the playground.
“As a parent, it’s wonderful to know that our kids are safe,” Messer said. “It’s going to be a great place for them to play and get energy out, which leads to better learning.”
Building Good Relations
The unit’s involvement with this project brings awareness of what the National Guard actually does, said Army Cpl. Jeffery Taylor, a heavy construction equipment operator with the 262nd.
Everyone will be able to use the new multipurpose field, Taylor said.
“And, that’s part the reason why I joined the National Guard -- to do projects like this,” he added.
Deborah Hutchinson, the school’s assistant principal, said she believes the community will make use of the new field for basketball games, baseball games, physical education classes, connections to a trail network and more.
“I’m retiring at the end of this year, and it was my goal to get this project under way before I retired,” Hutchinson said. “I’m so happy that this has started and that within the next two years there will be a safe and wonderful place for the children to play.”
Messer said she loved having the National Guard involved in this project.
“When I told the kids that the soldiers coming were all Mainers, they thought that was amazing,” she said. “There is something really special about the fact these people are their neighbors who are sacrificing their time for us.”
Maine Army National Guard Sgt. Kory Peckham, a heavy construction equipment operator with the 262nd Engineer Company (Horizontal), operates an excavator at the Raymond Elementary School in Raymond, Maine, June 24, 2017. The engineers turned a slope into a flat base for a multipurpose field as part of a training project that will benefit the school and surrounding community. Maine Army National Guard photo by Sgt. Sarah Myrick