Brig. Gen. Oscar Hilman, commander of the 81st Brigade Combat Team at Logistics Support Area Anaconda, Iraq, cuts the ribbon to open a new military working dog kennel at the base. (Ron Jensen / S&S)
LOGISTICS SUPPORT AREA ANACONDA, Iraq — As the kennel was being built to house the military working dogs at LSA Anaconda, Capt. William Allen Jr. was struck by a bit of inspiration.
The kennel, he believed, should be named for a military policeman, Staff Sgt. Arthur S. Mastrapa, killed at the base during a rocket attack in June.
“We responded to the attack. He died at the scene,” said Allen, commander of the 362nd Military Police Detachment, a reserve unit from Ashley, Pa., but made up of soldiers from several states.
Mastrapa, 35, was not part of Allen’s unit, but the kinship between military cops made the link an easy one. Plus, Allen said, there was something he saw in the news coverage of Mastrapa’s funeral in the States.
“His daughter was clutching a puppy near the casket,” Allen said. “It just kind of … I don’t know.”
The kennel opened Thursday afternoon as the sun set on Veterans Day. In a short ceremony, prayers were offered, Mastrapa’s biography was read, and Brig. Gen. Oscar Hilman, commander of the 81st Brigade Combat Team, cut the ribbon.
Allen’s unit was the first to have military working dogs at this base. The dogs are capable of detecting bombs and drugs or can be used for simple patrolling.
“It’s a prestige job to have,” said Allen, because the military spends a lot of money training the dogs before placing them in the hands of a soldier.
Hilman called the dogs a “combat multiplier” in the effort against insurgents. Because of security concerns, the exact size of the kennel could not be released, according to military officials.
Mastrapa had been an MP while serving on active duty in the 1990s. He joined the reserves on June 16, 2000, and worked as a mailman in civilian life in Altamonte Springs, Fla.
He was assigned to the 351st Military Police Company from Orlando, Fla., and worked as a driver and gunner during Operation Iraqi Freedom. After his death, he received a Bronze Star Medal.
He and his wife, Jennifer, were parents to Marisa and Reece.
A plaque will be placed on the kennel to honor Mastrapa’s memory.
Allen said he spoke with Jennifer Mastrapa about the kennel dedication. She told him it was a good thing to do.
“She said she felt like the Army hadn’t forgotten her,” he said.
