FORT PICKETT -- NATO-member forces have been deploying to Marcala over the past several days, augmenting U.S. military efforts to restore order to the war-torn country. Sgt. Beverly Shrimpling, from the United Kingdom’s Territorial Army (TA), joined members from Maryland’s 129th Signal Battalion which are providing communications support from the Division’s Tactical Operations Center.

Shrimpling, who comes from the town of Middlesbrough in the northeast region of the island nation, is a member of the TA’s 34th North Signal Regiment, a unit with approximately 130 soldiers. Her 10-year career includes full-time service in the Regi ment’s training center.

The TA is the British reservist equivalent of this country’s National Guard but, as Shrimpling explained, attendance at the weekly drills is voluntary. "It falls to the leadership to motivate the soldiers to attend, but they (the soldiers) hav en’t been told they have to do it."

Similar to the changes that swept this country’s military with the implementation of the Total Army concept, since 1994, reserve forces in the United Kingdom have been taking on an increasingly important role in support of the regular military. "We had m assive cutbacks in the regular army," said Shrimpling. "Now they’re looking to the TA to back up regular postings. When I look back, we have become so streamlined -- militarily -- in the last 10 years."

In Shrimpling’s perception, the approach her country takes to training has some advantages. "We exercise in the field once every five weeks," said Shrimpling. Her Regiment participates in multi-unit training several times each year. "It’s got to be an advantage communication-wise," she said.

Shrimpling explained that her Regiment, with four squadrons in each company and three to four regiments in each brigade, trains at the brigade level three times a year. She pointed out, however, that the logistics of staging exercises on that scale are made easier by the small size of the island.

Since deploying with the 29th to Marcala, the unit has been engaged non-stop providing radio support to the elements of the 10th Corps. Even with the grueling workload, Shrimpling noted an important aspect of the American military she plans to take with her to United Kingdom. "The way that you look after the soldiers in hygiene, safety, shiftwork -- the emphasis is on taking care of the soldier," she said.

For Shrimpling, the conflict has given her a big-picture view of the way in which units like hers would fit into large-scale operations. "We’ve got staff and we’ve got communications and we have staff to get the communications to," she s aid. "This helps you see the whole point of being here in the first place."