Photos

Gunnery Sgt. Fletcher P. Veitch, 34, 4th Civil Affairs representative and native of Leonardtown, Md., sweeps the sidewalks of the Al Madinah As Siyahiyah (Tourist Town) School in preparation of a ceremony celebrating the opening of the school. Marines with 4th Civil Affairs Group, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward), and soldiers with Able Company, 2nd Combined Arms Battalion, 136th Infantry Regiment, 1st Marine Logistics Group (Forward), accompanied Tariq and the Iraqi Army to visit a recently opened school in Tourist Town and distribute supplies to the children. During the visit, the Iraqi Army soldiers handed out school materials and the school principal accepted a $500 donation from the families of soldiers with 2nd Combined Arms Battalion to assist with the moving costs to their new building and any other expenses. The check was presented to the principal by Army Lt. Col. Gregg L. Parks, Battalion Commander of 2nd Combined Arms Battalion accompanied by Tariq.