Living at Camp Lemonier

Soldiers Magazine, August, 2005 by Heike Hasenauer

SOLDIERS who live at Camp Lemonier, the former French Foreign Legion post near Djibouti City, may live in austere conditions at remote forward-operating bases, but on the camp they enjoy many of the luxuries of the Western world.

Soldiers live in climate-controlled tents, considerately divided into one-person cubicles for privacy, and complete with carpeting.

Picnic tables and chairs, and sun umbrellas, surround the entrances to some of them--as do potted plants. Flushable toilets are located in trailers and shower stalls are available in tents.

The dining facility serves three hot meals a day, each with a variety of entrees, sandwiches and desserts.

Religious Services

The camp's small chapel accommodates some 100 churchgoers, said Navy Chaplain (Capt.) Richard Pusateri.

"Everything that's offered at the camp is a mix of every service," Pusateri said. "The Army, for example, doesn't currently have a chaplain at the camp, because the senior Army chaplains are all in Iraq.

"We offer religious programs every night of the week," Pusateri added. "Many of them are provided by service members who come in and lead Bible studies or the gospel choir. One Soldier with a theological education is leading a study on the book of Exodus."

The chaplains also coordinate visits to three local orphanages several times weekly, and all service members are eligible to participate on a first-come basis.

An orphanage that houses some 40 infants is operated by Franciscan nuns and far exceeds the standard orphanages in Djibouti that are government funded, Pusateri said. "We go there to help feed the babies and just give them some of the attention they need."

The other two orphanages are Muslim-run and care for older children, one for boys, the other for girls. "We play soccer with the kids, teach them English, or sing with them," Pusateri said.

"We also give the orphanages clothing, school supplies, bedding and other items donated by familes back home," he said.

The CJTF-HOA's commander supports the orphanage visits "because he knows everyone can't participate in a mission to Kenya or Yemen," Pusateri said. "But everyone can go to an orphanage. It makes the service members feel that they're contributing to the mission, and they get to experience a whole other side of the U.S. military."

Relaxation

Morale, welfare and recreation facilities are available at two locations at the camp. Soldiers can watch large-screen TV, check out the nightly movie and enjoy fresh popcorn, borrow VHS tapes, DVDs and books, play pool and video games, access the Internet and make long-distance phone calls.

The camp boasts a small post exchange that sells toiletries, clothing, food items and electronics. There are also a gift shop and tailor shop.

A swimming pool opened in April, when the temperature had already reached 90 degrees by 9 a.m.

Soldiers can work out at a fully-equipped gym, play basketball or soccer outdoors, or make the one-hour trek from camp to the edge of the Gulf of Aden, via a trail through the desert.

After dark, an outdoor club offers ice-cold beer, live entertainment and dancing. And Soldiers are granted passes to visit Djibouti City, to check out the restaurants there.

Mail Distributors and Dog Handlers

Few things are as important to Soldiers as mail from home, and SFC Daniel Reese is part of a three-person staff from the 494th Postal Company responsible for sorting some 4,000 to 6,000 pounds of mail weekly.

"Soldiers here fall under U.S. Marine Central Command," said Reese. "But we handle all the mail, and we're loved here."

SSG Eric Johnson, from the 95th Military Police Battalion in Mannheim, Germany, is among another group of Soldiers at the camp who are highly regarded; they're the dog handlers who conduct searches through the dining facility and other areas of the camp for explosives and other contraband.

"We're also a visual deterrent for the Djiboutians who work at the camp," Johnson said. "We conduct security sweeps of the camp and perform vehicle checks."

Occasionally, too, the dog handlers assist in port operations, search baggage and mail at the airport, and assist with security operations at the U.S. embassy.

Security is tight, workdays are long and it's hotter than a steam bath most days, Soldiers at the camp say. They also know they're lucky to have so much--air-conditioning, an abundance of free water, plenty of good food, clean living and working areas and opportunities for self-expression and self-improvement.