By Army Staff Sgt. Whitney C. Houston
Regional Command South
KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, June 9, 2014 – Marine Corps
1st Lt. Manuel Ruiz is helping Afghanistan’s national security forces learn
about accountability.
Ruiz is a Miami native who serves as officer in charge of
the NATO-based End Use Monitoring Program and as platoon commander with Landing
Support Company, Combat Logistics Regiment 37, 3rd Marine Division, currently
serving here with the International Security Assistance Force’s Regional
Command South.
“In his work, he’s honest, trustworthy, hardworking and
energetic. … He’s infectious in the way that he leads,” said Ruiz’s supervisor,
Army Lt. Col. Kevin Parrish, from Colorado Springs, Colorado, who serves as
deputy chief for the Afghan National Security Forces Development, Alpha
Company, Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 4th Infantry Division.
As an End Use Monitoring Program officer, Ruiz’s integrity
is central to his mission as he holds Afghan forces in Regional Command South
accountable for sensitive items.
“My taskings come down quarterly from NATO in Kabul,” Ruiz
said. “I make sure that equipment such as weapons, night-vision capabilities
and vehicles that U.S. and coalition forces have given them are taken care of
and not falling into the wrong hands.”
As a crucial focus in his efforts, Ruiz said, he attempts to
bring the Afghan forces up to speed by helping them convert their equipment
accountability system from analog to digital.
“Part of helping the … transition is moving all their
equipment lists from an old ledger style to a computer-based system,” said he
said. “This allows them to more freely edit, print, disseminate it, or just to
keep better accountability of it.”
Ruiz’s overall mission is to advise and assist the Afghan
forces in taking care of their own equipment and becoming more accountable and
self-sufficient.
“He doesn’t just go and do an inspection,” Parrish said. “He
goes and mentors them on procedures to make sure they’re doing a good job. He
looks at how they run their arms rooms and gives advice on how to run them more
efficiently, or how to improve security.”
Ruiz said he is confident that his efforts will yield
results, and with a bit more time, he added, he believes the Afghan forces will
be fully ready to sustain themselves.
“For the most part, the [Afghan army] is good to go.” He
said. “They maintain things, and they get the importance of accountability. I
feel they’ll do well in taking things over. There are smaller groups that still
need mentoring, but they’ll learn with time.”
Ruiz said his drive to succeed comes from a deeply rooted
patriotism he has obtained after moving with his family to the United States
from Ecuador. It has provided him and his family the resources to succeed, he
added.
“We came to the United States in ’95 from Quito, Ecuador,
when I was 9, and it has been a phenomenal place. I am a true believer in the
American dream,” he said. “My brother is an airline pilot, my sister is a
psychologist, and my little sister just got accepted to one of the best programs
for her master’s degree in Boston. This country has given us what we’ve needed
to succeed. Joining the military was the least I could do to give back.”
Ruiz said he initially had a desire to join the Marine Corps
in 2004, when he was 17 years old. His parents, Nelson and Monica Ruiz, were
concerned with his decision, he added, so they signed a waiver for the Navy
instead. He joined the Navy knowing that he would eventually have a shot with
the Marine Corps, he said.
He left for boot camp in February 2005, subsequently
finished his skill training and was stationed at Naval Station Ingleside,
Texas, aboard the USS Shrike and the USS Robin. While going through what he
described as “cranking” -- a process that all recruits go through -- he made an
important decision.
“While cranking, you’re the first one on the ship and the
last one off, and during this time I was thinking to myself that I needed to
get my education,” Ruiz said, “so I started doing college courses on base.”
Not long after he started doing college courses, Ruiz said,
he was noticed by his executive officer at the time, Navy Lt. Cmdr. Shawn
Bohrer.
“He helped me go through the process to get into the [U.S.
Naval Academy], and I got in,” Ruiz said. “Along the way, he was always
checking on me and mentoring me, and he actually came to my graduation.” Bohrer
is nearing retirement, he added, and the two have remained close.
As he wraps up his tour in Afghanistan, Ruiz said, he
believes he has made a lasting contribution. His efforts have included planning
and executing seven End Use Monitoring Program missions throughout Regional
Command South, serving in various roles for 67 combat missions, and overseeing
the transfer of more than 18,000 items valued at $1.8 million from coalition
forces to Afghan forces.
Ruiz said he plans on returning to back to his home station
in Okinawa, Japan, and eventually moving to Camp Pendleton, California.
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