One of the most overlooked aspects of Operation Allies Refuge, as well as the Afghan Withdrawal as a whole is the role played by the Companies from the US Army's famous 10th Mountain Division. Andrew Kelly was the First Sergeant for Company C. 4/31 that had been in Afghanistan since 26 November 2020 (Thanksgiving Day). For several months, Andrew and his Soldiers supported various installations across Afghanistan until the order came to shut it all down, including the closure of Bagram Airbase on the night of 1-2 July and finally being moved to Hamid Karzai International Airport (HKIA) to support the American Embassy. At every turn, they were short on men, material, and information, but they proved to be as resourceful as any other Soldiers of the 10th Mountain Division, past or present, and laid the groundwork that undoubtedly saved countless lives, preventing a complete disaster amidst a horrible tragedy. Climb to Glory!

This will hopefully be the first of many. Elisa is the wife of Greg Frich who deployed in 2021, ending with the NEO in HKIA. She generously offered her testimony in the hopes that it will help other spouses and loved ones of HKIA veterans who may recognize some of her experiences and struggles. Despite all of that Elisa, along with Greg, are hopeful for their family and their future.

This interview was conducted by Katlin Rodriguez, a military spouse of over ten years and a valued member of OAR's Historical Research and Preservation Team. Her willingness, kindness, and fortitude have been and will undoubtedly continue to be a great help for other spouses and families. We at the Operation Allies Refuge Foundation want to bring more stories like this to light (and with better quality) so that people can know and understand what happened in the final days of America's mission in Afghanistan. Please consider supporting us by clicking on this link: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.operationalliesrefugefoundation.org/donate⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can also find more content like this at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠oarfoundationjournal.org/

Greg Frich came from a Marine family and was originally born on a base in Okinawa. For him and his brother, joining the Corps was simply a matter of when. Their father even helped them prepare for bootcamp and the other trials he knew they would face. Still, things did not play out how Greg had anticipated, but perhaps it was just another test to prepare him for what was to come. We at the Operation Allies Refuge Foundation want to bring more stories like this to light (and with better quality) so that people can know and understand what happened in the final days of America's mission in Afghanistan. Please consider supporting us by clicking on this link: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.operationalliesrefugefoundation.org/donate⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can also find more content like this at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠oarfoundationjournal.org/