Commander: ‘Exchange Marines’ Excelling at Bringing Taste of Home to Australia
Pacific Pride in Australia! Exchange Pacific Region Commander Col Scott Maskery, center, presents his Commander’s Coin to U.S. Marines running the mobile field exchange at Camp Robertson Barracks. From left to right: SGT Angel Mendoza, GySgt Jonah Thomas, MGySgt Christof Coleman and CWO4 Montreal Newkirk.
U.S. Marines are providing exceptional service and customer satisfaction at retail stores throughout Australia thanks to training provided to them by the Exchange.
“The Marines are doing great work providing customer opportunities, bringing a touch and taste of home to those serving throughout the country,” said Pacific Region Commander Col Scott Maskery, who toured installations and met with commanders last month. “They are ensuring the success of military exercises and the Marines’ year-long presence in Australia.”
A rotational force of about 2,500 Marines is based at Camp Robertson Barracks in Darwin for Talisman Sabre, other exercises and maneuvers as well as humanitarian missions with Australian forces and regional allies.
Since 2017, the Marines have operated a mobile field exchange (MFE) at Camp Robertson Barracks. Last month, they provided MFE support to five other camps, one being in the dense Australian bushland.
Maskery refers to the Marines running the stores as “Exchange Marines” because they are trained in logistics, accounting and finance systems and the Exchange’s point-of-sale technology after visiting HQ in Dallas before deploying.
Maskery praised the Exchange’s Okinawa General Manager Antonio Porter and retail business managers Michickia Carter and Hector Davila for working with the Marine Corps to coordinate flights of merchandise pallets from Okinawa to Australia.
Pulled together at the Okinawa Distribution Center, the pallets included health and beauty care items, drinks, food, tactical gear and toiletries.
“Hector and Michickia worked with HQ’s Merchandising Directorate in Dallas to ensure merchandise in transit was adjusted to the number of Marines at any given time,” Porter said. “This was a total team effort to support Warfighters deployed during Exercise Talisman Sabre.”
See more of Col Maskery's visit to Australia.
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