FORT HOOD, Texas – Several local community leaders recently spent a day here with Division West, learning about the unit's mission and how Division West soldiers train tens of thousands of mobilized Army National Guard and Army Reserve soldiers every year.

“Today is a great day to get some of our Fort Hood friends and Good Neighbors and even our Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army to take a look at North Fort Hood, take a look at some of the training that we do here in First Army, and really give them an experience of all the activity that goes on at North Fort Hood,” said Division West commanding general, Maj. Gen. Perry Wiggins.

Guests for the “Friends of Division West” tour included chamber of commerce leaders from Gatesville, the division’s community partner.

“We at First Army get to appreciate the relationship we have with Gatesville, and our partnership, and this gives some of the Good Neighbors an opportunity to see how that has expanded and grown,” Wiggins said. “It’s really special for us to be able to share that.”

Tour guests started off at Fort Hood's Engagement Skills Trainer, where they learned to fire M4 machine guns inside a virtual range, then visited the 120th Infantry Brigade's Mobilization and Demobilization Operations Center at North Fort Hood and had a lesson in IED detection. A stop at Longhorn Airstrip with the 166th Aviation Brigade and an opportunity to get inside a CH-47 Chinook helicopter was followed by a tour of a Combat Support Hospital training facility hosted by the 479th Field Artillery Brigade.

Fort Hood is busier and bigger than she imagined, said Denise Mooney, president of the Gatesville Chamber of Commerce.

“[The tour] builds awareness of what actually goes on – the training and all that goes on out here. I don’t think most people have a clue,” Mooney said. “I’m glad for the opportunity to come out today and see all the different training facilities and the Chinooks. It’s been an unbelievable day.”

Jean Shine, civilian aide to the Secretary of the Army and Fort Hood Good Neighbor, said she came on the tour to get a better understanding of how Division West trains soldiers.

“The experience is much, much more complicated than I ever thought it could be,” Shine said. “It makes us feel better as civilians knowing about the training the soldiers are getting and seeing that they’re so well-prepared.”