Living and Working in Schweinfurt

Schweinfurt means pig town or pig ford actually, and they stick to their love of pork. It is hard to find other things to eat. Pork every way you can think of it. The DFac here on base has German cooks and the offerings are hardy and always pork. You can get chicken, but it is usually fried in the DFac. It is all good, but I do get a little tired of it. We did find an Italian restaurant and a Mexican one too. I said I wouldn't go to a Mexican restaurant in Germany, but pretty quickly changed my mind. It is no Yolanda's, but I was able to have beef there! Actually the menu is nothing like Mexican. There are salads and steaks. They also have ostrich steaks. I tried to talk to the guy in Spanish and he told me no, he's Greek!



The base here is divided into 4 parts - each has different things to offer. I live on CONN - there is the Bradley Inn where I live, a DFac, lots of barracks, a burger king and a gym. Then a few miles away are the other 3. They have other things to offer: library, laundry, food court, px, bowling alley, school, boys and girls club, military clubs, etc. The thing is each one is a separate facility, so I have to go through a gate at each one. Often I have to get out and open the trunk and hood for the guards. The guards are from a German security company. I was surprised at all the Germans working on base. I travel from location to location all day. I have a meeting at one and then have to go to another to meet with clients. So, I am driving quite a bit.



My work here has parts which are very similar to the work I did at 9/11. That part is hanging out with the soldiers and talking with them. Then, I give a little talk to those coming back from the war zone. I also attend things that are offered here - parenting classes, etc. Then soldiers or their spouses call for appointments. I see them 3 times to do short term, solution focused work. Sort of like "these are the 3 things you need to do this week." Most bases have 2 MFLC (that is what I am) and they have weekends off. But Schweinfurt is different. There are four of us here because we have to have someone working every day. Schweinfurt has the black hawks and lots of infantry. Those folks are really young with really young spouses and families. It used to be that they soldiers would come back from the war zone and they could be sent right back. That has changed. Now they are there 12 months and then here 12 months. But the 12 months they are here is only 3 months here with their families. After 3 months they go out in the field in Germany for training. So they don't have much time with their families. And the young wives are alone with a couple of babies for long periods. And most of the wives seem to be pregnant and a lot are foreign, so there are cultural issues in the marriage too. The divorce rate in the military is 75 percent as compared to 50 percent in the general population. It is not an easy life. Now, the soldiers are home for 12 months at least before they go back to war zones. At other bases it usually is longer than 12 months home. Schweinfurt has the fastest turn around - they are deployed right at 12 months.



In the service generally there is a lot of stress. Suicide rate is way up. That is one of the main reasons the program I am in was started. We don't write a single note. There is no record of anyone seeing me. Traditionally soldiers would ruin their careers if they saw a counselor (I am told that is not the case now, but I don't think anyone believes that) So, they can feel safe coming to me. And we are not counselors. We are "consultants." At some bases consultants give workshops on Stress, parenting, etc. But we don't do that here. There seems to be a lot of politics at play with the different folks in charge. And each base is very different. I am learning a lot and having a very interesting experience at the very least!