European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 22, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Focus incur like stent castles in the Sand by sue Palumbo Mediterranean Bureau a Man s a or woman s a Home is his Castle even if that Castle is made of Canvas plastic and plywood and shared with five other people. In tent City at in Ciurlik a Turkey air Force army and coalition a personnel Are learning to live and work together in close quarters for months at a time. Quot it s More like your bed space is your. Castle Quot said Squadron Leader Steve Bostock of the Royal air Force. Quot Basic privacy is hard to come . Privacy is a revered commodity for each of the 1,200 British american and French troops who live in the  about 207 tents located in an open Field on the turkish base House enlisted men and women who make up combined task Force for provide Comfort. Other than the women who live in a separate group of tents squadrons Are kept together. Some women however. Choose to occupy a tent near their units. A except for one or two who requested to live in tents most officers live in billeting rooms which they claim Are far inferior to the tents. Although they were never intended to be semipermanent housing the temperature controlled tents rival most Barracks for Comfort. No wooden crates or primitive fixtures Here. These tents come furnished with real Beds dressers and refrigerators. Quot you just have to fix it up like your room at Home Quot said senior airman Twinam Speaks. Quot i just made a Little Dresser with my mirrors and makeup and put my own Blanket on my bed. It makes me feel at Home so i Don t get  Speaks will live in tent City for 90 to 120 Days which is about average for tent City residents although some Are assigned a six month stint. There Are several people who Are on their second or third trip to in Ciurlik. Tent City is a temporary facility because the turkish government Only allows operation provide Comfort to operate on its base on a six month approval basis. That is Why there Are no permanent structures built to House or support people. Everything to do with support is located in tents a morale tent open around the Dock offers movies Pool pingpong a snack shop and telephones to Call Home. The gym is also open 24 hours and has exercise machines free weights and aerobics classes. The family service Center sponsors another tent for people who want to relax or to talk to someone about problems due to family separation or finances. Quot morale is a big Issue Here Quot said air Force maj. Kay l. Kerr tent City s mayor. Quot we have very few problems things Are kept clean and we Are constantly trying to improve what we have. The draw Down has helped because As bases close they Send us books and gym  tent City also has its own chaplain who holds regular Church services. Quot we re meat and potatoes Here not appetizers or desserts Quot said air Force maj. De Fedor the chaplain. Quot services Only last fifteen to Twenty minutes so people can get on with their . The chaplain s tent is also open for religious gatherings and socials and has a private worship area. Fedor said he plans to install a tape player so people can View religious videos. About the Only comforts of Home that Don t come with the tents Are private bathrooms and a Kitchen. The Only complaint from residents is that they Don t like leaving Home to go to the bathroom Shower or shave. Provide Comfort was never Given approval for a Kitchen and the base dining facility cannot support the Odd hours personnel Are forced to keep so everyone. Receives funding for food. Barbecuing is both a necessity and a favorite pastime for tent City residents who eat most of their meals grilled microwaved or at the various. Fast food joints on base. Microwave ovens Are available in the first sergeant s tent. Socializing Over a Barbecue Grill adds to the atmosphere of a mass Camhout. An 11 . Curfew in nearby Adana Means everyone is Home Early. Most squadrons were furnished with materials and built their own morale facilities often called pooches. Beer soda and snacks Are sold for a nominal Price and. Bartenders work for tips. A Barbecue Grill out Back is a prerequisite. Saturday nights seem to be the big party night because sunday is the Only Down Day for residents. Quot when these Guys get off work they need an outlet Quot said air Force master sgt. Dan Barbeau of fighter Squadron 22. The pooches give them a Safe place to go and at the same time give them a Way to make some  Barbeau said that in addition to using their Money to sponsor several parties and trips the Squadron made donations to local orphanages charities and assisted one of its members who went Home on emergency leave. Despite the Long work hours and cramped living conditions residents of the City Are surprisingly Jovial. Elaborately painted doors on the tents Are testimony to the camaraderie inside. The plywood doors Are painted with Squadron insignias nicknames and cartoon characters. Many expressed regret that one Day the tents will come Down and All that will be left is a gravel Patch in the Middle of a Field. Is 3u Palumbo airman first clan irk Carvan above of the 410th civil engr so of Sawyer fab mkh., and senior airman Jay Cook of the 60th Mieng so of Travis fab calif., erect a tent. Quot it s kind of sad to think that some Day nothing will be left of the entire City Quot said chief master sgt. David Dalphonse tent City s first sergeant Quot that s Why we came up with the Calendar. We went around and took pictures of All the door Art a there Are some real Nice ones a and put them in a Calendar that we give to everyone As they leave. Quot it s something they can pull out and look out when they re old and Gray and Tell their Gran kids about the time they lived in a tent Quot a amps Sua Palumbo \ v a a a a a a Street in Andrlik s tent City. Air Force sgt. Darrell Ewing of the Harvest Falcon unit repairs a. Fear in a tent. A amps Sua Palumbo attention to detail pays off for tent maintainers h a a Ard Core campers who turn Down Cabins in a a favor of roughing it in a tent would have h. A the Best of both worlds in tent City. The Harvest Falcon tents Are 16 feet wide and 32 feet Long and come equipped with a h most of the comforts of Home including a a a Cooling and heating unit. I i on a recent october afternoon the Tan coloured tents were Cool and comfortable despite the 95-degree weather outside. Trying to maintain that Comfort level without layers of insulation in t easy. Quot the secret is the pocket of air Between the lining and the top of the tent and the tent and the Fly Over it Quot explained master sgt. Alfred Robinson. Quot it kind of acts As a Buffer to keep the Cool or warm air  Robinson and his two person team keep a constant Vigil Over the tents to ensure they Are weatherproof. The a amps Gary Millar tech. Sgt. Philip Stencel Steps his Way to fitness in tent City s gym. Smallest tear in the Canvas or crack in the plastic could Compromise the durability of the tent and Render the Cooling units useless. Harvest Falcon personnel based out of Holloman fab n.m., make weekly inspections of All 207 tents checking for ripped or worn Canvas damaged or incorrectly fastened ties. Quot there is a lot of user maintenance that needs to be done by the people who live in them Quot said staff sgt. Dana Briseno who teaches tent living to newcomers. Quot most of the time it is the Little things that make the difference a like rolling the tent flaps wrong which lets the rain  Robinson admits that worrying about rips and tears May sound trivial but without that attention the tents would not have lasted through three years of perpetual use. Most of the tents were also used during desert shield desert storm. Damaged tents Are either patched on the spot or the Section is removed and replaced so it can be repaired by sgt. Darrel Ewing a Parachute and fabrication specialist. Each tent is made up of several pieces fastened with velcro patches that can be taken apart separately to avoid having to take Down the entire tent. Quot repairing them is fairly easy the hardest part is putting up with All of the dirt and dust on the Canvas Quot said Ewing. Quot i have to clean and Oil the sewing machine.  even with the constant repairs Robinson said he has had to order additional tent sections and to have some pieces made especially for tent City. Most of those Are for hallways in the larger support tents. The Fly pieces above the tents take the Brunt of the abuse from the elements and Are the ones most often replaced. Luckily it is rare that entire tents have to be put up or taken Down. It takes a six Man team approximately four hours just to put one up a not counting the time it takes to Lay the flooring. Base Engineer Force prime beef personnel Are the ones who put up the tents maintain the heating Cooling units and do any construction needed. Quot you have to be inventive in this Job Quot explained 1st it. Rob Sackett As he Shook wet Cement off his pants leg. Sackett said his people came up with the idea of portable sidewalks to compensate for the intense rain in Ciurlik receives. Quot otherwise we d just have an empty Field with a Bunch of sidewalks leading nowhere. The idea is to leave it just like we found it As if we were never  a sue Palumbo 18 the stars and strikes monday november 22.1��3 Thi stars and stripes 19