My Coins - DSTB

This coin marks the last coin I got before I set out on my second deployment to Iraq. It was presented to me by my Battalion Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Matthew T. Tedesco. I took a course that taught me how to be an instructor in the Army's new Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Training program. The program is designed to give Soldiers and their families tools in which to make themselves more resilient during tough times. It was LTC Tedesco's policy that anytime a new instructor taught his/her first session, then he would present them with a Battalion coin.

One side of this coin features the Battalion's crest in its center. The crest has a clinched armored fist with lightning bolts, signifying the power and might of the Battalion and it has an ivy leaf, denoting that the Battalion belongs to the "Ivy Division," a nickname for the 4th Infantry division. On either side of the crest are small versions of the crest (right side) and the 4th Infantry Division patch (left side). Above the crest appears the 4th Infantry Division's motto: "STEADFAST AND LOYAL." Above that are the words "4TH INFANTRY DIVISION." Below the crest are the words "DIVISION SPECIAL TROOPS BATTALION." The other side of the coin is a little more ornate. The bottom of the coin features 3/4 of the 4th Infantry Division's patch with a harp in the center that recognizes the 4th Infantry Division Band, which is part of the DSTB for administrative purposes but is actually operationally controlled directly by the Division Headquarters. Above the patch is 3/4 of a green circle. Inside the circle are the icons of the other companies in the DSTB: D Co, C Co, B Co, A Co, and Headquarters Support Company (HSC). Around that three-quarter circle are the words of the Warrior Ethos: "I WILL ALWAYS PLACE THE MISSION FIRST, I WILL NEVER ACCEPT DEFEAT, I WILL NEVER QUIT, I WILL NEVER LEAVE A FALLEN COMMRADE." Around the entire outside are the company mottos: "HAVOC HOUNDS" for HSC, "ATTACK" for A Co, "BISON" for B Co, "COYTE" for C Co, and "IRON HORSE" for the 4th Infantry Division. The Band and D Co do not have mottos represented on the coin. Between each of the mottos is an ivy leaf, again a symbolic representation of the 4th Infantry Division.

A couple of interesting things to note: C Co has changed its motto from "Coyote" to "Cobra" since this coin was designed and the Battalion has since made a new coin to commemorate its latest deployment to Iraq. I am hoping to score one of those coins before I finally leave the Battalion next spring.

While this coin again holds no deep emotional sentiment for me, it is still a neat coin and it is yet another token of recognition from leadership that I highly respect.