Name: Jack Seymour
Job title: Transportation Assistant
Assigned: Base Support Operations Transportation (Outbound), 405th Army Field Support Brigade
Location: Kaiserslautern, Germany
Experience: I’ve been working at BASOPS Trans for three years. When I first got here I reconciled travel vouchers for about a year, and now I’ve been a transportation assistant for about two years. Before that, I was a secretary with the Internal Revenue Service in Boise, Idaho, for five years.
Other service: I’m a retired Army Sergeant First Class with 20 years in the Infantry.
Hometown: Fayetteville, N.C.
Family: I am married to my wife, Nathalie, for 26 years next month. We have two twin boys, age 17. Their names are Michael and Matthew, and they are seniors at Ramstein High School.
Q: Can you explain your responsibilities as a transportation assistant at BASOPS Trans?
A: I’m the middle man between the transportation counselors and the moving companies. I receive the counseling packets from the different locations – mainly I cover Grafenwoehr – and then I check them over and make sure everything is right before sending them to the transportation companies. The Defense Personal Property System selects the contracted moving companies, and we award the contracts. If alcohol or weapons are being shipped, we ensure the paperwork is correct before providing it to the moving companies. And if there is a missed move, the moving company will reach out to us to get preapproval.
Q: Why is the BASOPS Trans mission supporting Permanent Change of Station moves so important?
A: It’s important to have a support mechanism between the customers and moving companies to ensure everything is set up properly and everything goes smoothly. When I was in the military I moved 10 times over a period of 20 years. The Soldiers and their families have a lot on their minds, and there’s a lot of things going on during their PCS moves so it’s much easier if you have someone there to help out with the process. The entire transportation team is always there to help – the counselors, quality control specialists and people like myself.
Q: What do you enjoy about your job, and what motivates you?
A: After 20 years of being an infantryman and being outside during every possible weather condition imaginable – most of the time during poor weather – it’s nice to be inside for a change. But all joking aside, I enjoy working with the people at BASOPS Trans. The entire team is made up of good people, and the work environment is very pleasant. I enjoy being part of a team whose mission is to serve Soldiers and their families.
BASOPS Trans and 405th AFSB: With its Consolidated Personal Property Shipping Office and European Official Travel Branch, BASOPS Trans is a field operating activity under the 405th AFSB providing back office support functions for personal property shipping, official travel services and quality control disciplinary actions for Army communities in Belgium, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. The 405th AFSB is assigned to U.S. Army Sustainment Command and under the operational control of the 21st Theater Sustainment Command, U.S. Army Europe and Africa. The brigade is headquartered in Kaiserslautern, Germany, and provides materiel enterprise support to U.S. Forces throughout Europe and Africa – providing theater sustainment logistics; synchronizing acquisition, logistics and technology; and leveraging U.S. Army Materiel Command’s materiel enterprise to support joint forces. For more information on the 405th AFSB, visit the official website at www.afsbeurope.army.mil and the official Facebook site at www.facebook.com/405thAFSB.