Southern California's National Training Center is one of two Army sites in the States that plunges units into elaborate deployment scenarios, complete with role-players, who play civilians or enemy combatants. Units are evaluated 24 hours a day by veteran soldiers called observer-coach-teachers, or OCs. NTC trains the soldiers by conducting force-on-force and live-fire training for ground and aviation brigades in a joint scenario across the spectrum of conflict, using a live-virtual-constructive training model, as portrayed by a highly lethal and capable Opposing Force and controlled by an expert and experienced Operations Group. 

The 3-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 7th Infantry Division, at Joint Base Lewis-McChord has been at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif, since the beginning of the month. There aren't any fixed bases. There isn't a focus on capturing the enemy. Instead, the focus is centered on large-scale, conventional warfare training with offensive and defensive operations.

Staff Sgt. Justin A. Naylor of the 17th Public Affairs Detachment is embedded with the 3-2 SBCT. Naylor adventures have landed him in Cpl. Charles Wamsley's domain, a communication specialist with the 3-2. While at NTC, Wamsley is spearheading a program that connects communication equipment that was previously unable to communicate. The Lacey resident, and computer freak since childhood, has an interesting history.

Wamsley ... has been serving in the Army for just over five years. Things have changed a lot for him. Before joining the service he was a high school dropout working several dead-end jobs and had his second child on the way.

Read Naylor's full feature on Wamsley here.

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