Photos

Lance Cpl. Adam L. Schroeder (right), a 21-year-old native of Tucson, Ariz., and Lance Cpl. Dax C. Raeuchle, a 30-year-old native of San Diego, Calif., inspect a head from a Humvee prior to welding repairs to it Dec. 23, 2004 at Camp Fallujah, Iraq. Schroeder is a welder, while Raeuchle is a machinist. Both are Marines currently deployed to Iraq with Combat Service Support Company 122. CSSC-122?s welders ? six Marines in all ? worked around the clock to weld armor on more than 115 military vehicles used for convoys and patrols during the height of Fallujah combat operations. Using both pre-fabricated kits of armor and scrap metal from inoperable vehicles, these Marines have welded extra armor onto doors, back panels, gun mounts, and undersides of everything from trucks to bulldozers to help protect Marines operating inside the ?City of Mosques.?