KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany –
Adrienne Miller lives a pretty normal life. She has a home she shares with her husband of 37 years in a small town not far from Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, and the Logistics Data Analysis Center where she works. And she has a 33-year-old son who is a school principal and lives close by. Everything is pretty normal for her. Except one. She’s currently deployed to Europe.
Miller is an Army Expeditionary Civilian Workforce deployer assigned to Army Field Support Battalion-Mannheim. The battalion is in the process of redesignating to Army Field Support Battalion-Poland and taking command of the new Long Term Equipment Storage and Maintenance-Complex in Powidz, Poland, and Miller is the battalion’s human resource specialist and acting adjutant.
And if that wasn’t enough, during her 11-month tour as an AECW deployer that ends in February, Miller also worked at the 405th Army Field Support Brigade headquarters in the Installation Logistics Directorate helping to establish and standup the newly activated Logistics Readiness Center Poland.
“I arrived at the 405th AFSB in March, working the ‘Pivot to Poland’ project and assisting LRC Poland Director Chanteen Violette and the ILD director with standing up LRC Poland,” said Miller. “The ILD team was wonderful – very welcoming and willing to share their experiences, and it was a great opportunity to work with Chanteen on staffing before the LRC officially activated.”
And now Miller is doing something similar with AFSBn-Mannheim as it assumes its new mission and redesignates to AFSBn-Poland.
“The AECW program has given me so many opportunities to grow and develop personally and professionally,” said Miller, who has been working in the human resources field with the Army for over 11 years as a civilian, plus 4.5 years more as a personnel specialist and active duty Soldier.
“I think the AECW program gives people the opportunity to add so many different things to their tool bags, whatever their chosen field might be,” said Miller, who has seen AECW personnel be assigned to her battalion as supply specialists, quality assurance specialists, HR specialists and more.
In her specific field, Miller said there are many HR requirements overseas that aren’t part of her duties stateside – things like overseas extensions, relocation incentives and the overseas recruitment process.
“A lot of this stuff is new to me,” said Miller, who also worked as a logistics management specialist for eight years. “To have this opportunity and to be a part of a new battalion moving into a new region is really exciting.”
Miller, who has a master’s degree from Texas A&M in science and business administration, became an Army civilian employee in 2004 as part of Army Materiel Command’s Fellows Program. She’s done a lot in her nearly 20 years of civilian service and learned much. She said people should treat AECW as an opportunity.
“I think some people might be afraid to volunteer for AECW, but it's a wonderful opportunity and the AECW staff are really there to support you,” Miller said. “Any question you have – no matter how major or minor – they want to help. They want to make sure that not only are you a benefit to the organization you're supporting, but also you're receiving something in return.”
The AECW program has deployment opportunities in a temporary duty status for six, nine, or 11 months available for Army civilians worldwide, to include many with the 405th AFSB in Europe. The program offers overseas assignments at a variety of locations with no change to an employee's permanent grade or position of record. The grade level listed for an AECW position is suggested, and employees can be plus or minus one grade interval from what is listed.
Army civilians who are interested in applying for the AECW program may submit a resume, recent SF-50, DD214 (if former military) and a signed request for deployment form found here: www.dcpas.osd.mil/policy/expeditionarycivilians/deploymentopportunities. They should submit these documents through their supervisory chain and human resources department. For more information, contact the AECW program office at usarmy.in.hqda.mbx.aecw-deployments@army.mil.
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 AMC’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.