European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - July 1, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Antalya _ Konya Adana is photos by l Emmett Lewis or. Dealing with the isolation continued from Page 13 to the states when his family reluctantly agreed to the added separation time Everly went full steam ahead. It was t easy to push myself although the tapes Are better than lectures Everly said. I used to go to the education Center for encouragement every  most service members find they need a Little extra support to survive their Remote site assignment. An Iso Aiea assignment tends to put some special kinds of pressure on people said chaplain it. Col . Stake assigned at Synop. At most places you can go get lost away from others. Here we live and work together. There is no time in the Field. We re All there  stake said about 15 percent of the site s population attend sunday services. Being Here gives them time to reflect stake said. They have questions come up and they have to make a decision. They begin to get serious As a Young adult and learn they can t be seen in the Chapel and later Cut up in the  Young soldiers usually learn to Deal with the isolation by getting More involved with Post activities. Stake s office organizes Tours that Are usually filled to capacity that visit historical areas in Turkey. In faraway Erzurum soldiers Only see a chaplain at irregular intervals but still find themselves making deep decisions. This place changed my attitude said pfc. Raffaele v. Damiano 19, a round assembler for the 27th Field arty det. In Erzurum. I was always jumpy. I guess you learn More about yourself Here. There s plenty of time to think about what you want to do with your  the soldiers stationed at Erzurum Aren t Able to go out into the City because they have to be on Post by 7 . Each Day. Erzurum a City of 400,000 population is very traditional and the people there frown upon interaction Between americans and Young turkish women. I feel kind of trapped sometimes said Damiano who is engaged to a woman in the United states. I Haven t been under a curfew since i was in sixth  another thing Daniano has been under in Erzurum is tunnels. Because of the frequent snowfall the last snowstorm of 1988 was May 1metal tunnels were built to connect the Post s facilities to limit shovelling. A sign near the orderly room reads this in t the end of the world but you can see it from  the russian Border lies about 80 Miles to the West. Weather in Erzurum is unpredictable and even As Damiano talked Hail balls popped out of what minutes before was a Blue sky and loudly bounced off the tin roofs and pavement. Mail is considered sacred in All the Remote areas so when a postal plane can t land because of heavy fog or Snow service members die a Little. Synop has mail delivery on mondays wednesdays and fridays if the c-130 postal plane is Able to land. Thick fog Rolls in at unexpected times off the Black sea and sometimes out stays its Welcome. As late As noon the Field station can be under a Cloud thwarting landings at the nearby air Field. Erzurum went 11 Days without mail this past Winter. Wintertime is hard. People cry when there s not mail for a Long time said 1st sgt. John d. Woodyard. But Young troops Here do Well. It s the closest unit i be Ever been in in 14 years. Positive peer pressure makes you fit in. I Haven t had Many come and say they could t take it he added. It s More emergency problems Back in the states that bring them to me. We be had one fight in 11 months and that s unbelievable when you be got 50 people living so close  medical facilities at most of the Sites Are limited to a dispensary and clinic with at most one doctor and one dentist. Soldiers receiving orders for a Remote site tour usually Are instructed to get major medical or dental problems cared for before reaching their assignment. Soldiers who develop major medical problems Are sent to the . Military Hospital at in Ciurlik near Adana on the Mediterranean coast of Southern Turkey. It is the Only . Military Hospital in the country. The Luckiest patients suffer a three hour flight the Hospital bus ride Danny a. Casillas Lefta chemical operations specialist has a part time Job in the Post Library at Corfu Antonio Davis right of the Corfu team starts his slide at third base As or Takoy s Walter Adams misses the Ball Volunteer do Tim Sutherland above right works at his contemporary Christian music program in the military radio station at Synop Laura Hamilton on bed and Jeanne m. Goodwin share a Barracks room at Synop. From Synop to in Ciurlik lasts a full 24 hours. Service members destined for a Remote area Are allowed 500 pounds of unaccompanied baggage coming in and 1,000 pounds going Back to the United states. Television is far from limited on most Sites. The soldiers in Synop for instance have three stations to choose from. One is a Community bulletin Board service another is a station that runs non Stop movies and the other is the air Force station can to. Admission to the Post theater is free although most soldiers see the movies on the local closed circuit station first. The radio station in Synop has a morning show put on by the Public affairs1 off ice which includes daily trivia questions. Those who Call in the right answers get to shirts. In the evening service members Volunteer As disc jockeys to spin records for a couple hours. Many of the male soldiers enjoy the activities offered around Post but the major complaint is the Lack of women. A Small number of women Are assigned to some of the larger Remote areas such As Synop and Cak Nakli and have surprisingly few problems. Most of the men Are very civilized around us said spec. Laura e. Hamilton 20, who works at Synop s Field St Ion and is one of 80 women stationed with More than 500 men including about 90 seamen. Men vie for the attention of the women said staff sgt. Jeanne m. Goodwin 38, with the Field station s operation resource management authority. Goodwin Hamilton s Roommate since february does t mind lending an ear to male gis lonely for their families or making a homemade dish to ease their pain now and then. Both have enjoyed their assignment to the Hill a nickname for Synop because it is located on top of an extinct Volcano. This satisfies my wanderlust Hamilton said. I be also saved  Goodwin agrees that Synop is an interesting place to be assigned but misses a love she left behind. Ill be glad to get my new Mazda Al Back said Goodwin. Vve re not allowed cars. They Don t have the right kind of Gas Over Here  j in Cakmak i f it. 2 Cyndi a. Barajas 19, a unit clerk with the 70h Ord co is spending her first year of marriage Ilone although she did t plan it that Way. I was supposed to be stationed in Germany and my husband was going to come Over after i checked in Barajas said. But after checking into the 21st replacement in at Rhein main a West Germany Barajas was diverted to Turkey. When she arrived in Istanbul she was again surprised. I was told during the taxi ride from the Airport that dependents weren t allowed Barajas said. When Barajas found she would be one of eight women sharing the Post with about 200 men she admits to being a Little scared. My Chain of command told me if i have any problems to come to them she said. Actually i m not hit on As bad As i thought i would be. It s like a big family Here. I can t completely say i Trust them. I just Don t let myself get in those situations where i might be taken advantage  Many soldiers feel dogs Are their Best friends on the Remote posts. Mutts sprawled on sidewalks or trotting along with a formation Are common sights. The soldiers Call them by endearing names such As bugs lady Bear and Duke. The dogs usually Are familiar with dining facility schedules and know when to be where to get leftovers from food trays. Special titbits and ear scratches Are reserved for those that know How to Roll Over or shake a Paw. Editor in Erzurum by Janet Howells Tierney staff writer maybe he Felt the urge inside one of the Snow covered tunnels connecting the pos buildings. Or maybe he was sitting in his room or working out in the gym. Wherever he Felt the itch spec. Brian Wright 24, decided to do something about it. Wright a satellite communications operator with the 27th army Field arty det 528th arty group in Erzurum Turkey began a Post newspaper soon after his arrival in september at the Remote site and appointed himself editor. I love to write and after a while that catches up with you and you have to do something about it Wright said rubbing his Brown Mustache. Using a unit computer and newspaper skills he picked up from a College publication the Manteca calif., native said he thought hard about what the Post s 50 soldiers would be interested in Reading about. Erzurum is an isolated site surrounded by Snow capped mountains and located 5,800 feet above sea level. Snow covers the ground sometimes As much As nine months out of the year so soldiers make use of Metal tunnels that connect the buildings. Wright did some research to find out what readers at such a Remote site would want to read. There had been some kind of publication at one time before but when i had a clerk find it in the files it looked More like a bulletin Wright said. That s not what i  he had been news editor of the san Joaquin Delta College paper Impact before joining the army in 1984. He also was a Stringer for the fort Bragg n.c., paper from 1985 to 1987, writing articles and taking photos while stationed there. Wright eventually collected articles from others in the unit about sports Competition results and history on the local area. He typed the stories into the computer wrote headlines and developed photos in the unit s dark room the first two Page Issue of the Rock hard times came out in november 1987 with mixed reviews. All 60 copies sold out said Wright. Of course it was free anyway. I did t get much feedback about the  everyone read it and passed it around one satisfied Soldier said. We All thought it was great to have a Post  another larger Issue came out in january 1988 and disaster struck. Before Wright could begin work on the next newspaper the computer broke Down and has t been repaired yet. Until it is fixed Wright is keeping his ears open like any editor for breaking news. He s been getting input on some International information that May be of interest to More than just his readers. For eight years Wright has been a Short wave radio Buff and since Erzurum is located about 80 Miles from the russian Border and about 154 Miles from Iran he intercepts some interesting broadcasts. I get Iran South Africa and Moscow when reception is Good usually in the morning or late evening Wright said. They Send out some transmissions in English. I be heard Iran during the persian Gulf encounters. They always stress that we re the aggressors or instigators. The stuff out of Moscow has kind of calmed Down since Gorbachev he said. Page 14 the stars and stripes Friday july 1,1988 the stars and stripes Page 15