Veterans Salute

A Salute to Veterans 2011

Honoring heroes

The Eagle Sunday, November 6, 2011

Texas Engineering Extension Service salutes our veterans!

Salute to Veterans 2011

TEEX VA Approved Programs

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Recruit Fire Academy  Basic Peace Officer  Unexploded Ordnance  Emergency Medical Services  Certified Safety & Health Official

The time has never been better for military veterans to further their training. The Texas Engineering Extension Service (TEEX) is committed to helping veterans make the best choices possible while attaining the maximum assistance, guidance, and support using the GI Bill and other programs. Qualifying veterans may use Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits for certain TEEX programs.

Texas Engineering Extension Service 301 Tarrow • College Station, TX 77840 877.833.9638

WWW.TEEX.ORG C12.5583.10

ACKNOWLEDGING OUR VETERANS This year, ar, tens of thousands of our military neighbors, ar friends and family members will be returning to Central Texas. We are here to support those troops returning home.

Scott & W White Military Homefront Services was designed and implemented by Scott & W White Healthcare and the Central Texas Fort Hood Chapter of the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) (A to provide individual, family and group counseling to those who have served and are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Records are confidential, allowing military members to access mental health services without fear of damaging their careers. These services are at no charge to our military families.

Scott & W White would like to thank ALL area veterans for their dedicated military service on November 11, Veterans Da We are grateful to those members of the military who Day. are also Scott & W White staff or volunteers.

To find our more about Scott & W White Military Homefront Services, or to donate to this community program, go to homefront.sw.org ont.sw ont.sw.org .

And to view a listing of all of the Scott & W White Veterans who we are honoring this day day, go to the homepage of our website.

sw.org

Salute to Veterans 2011

Because our mission is to serve militaryy ffamilies during difficult times, we seek to provide counseling services to suit the needs of everyy ffamily amily.. W amily Wee offer individual and marital counseling, as well as family counseling with a licensed therapist. Family workshops include resilience rejuvenation, skills training, relaxation and fun, marriage enrichment, family team building and community support.

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INSIDE For some families, Veterans Day is honored every day: The service man or woman might not be thanked daily, but those close to them know the sacrifices they made or are making, and they recognize the critical nature of the job.

Most of the public also appreciates United States military personnel, both active duty and retired, along with

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•V Veterans Day Events • War’s end gets little response

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Acting on instinct World War II veteran shares his story

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Valor in the face of the enemy Veteran fought on the front lines of the Korean War

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•V Veteran’s Affairs handbook •T Top 5 closest VA offices

Page 10 List of fatalities from the &11 Afghanistan and Iraq wars whos list hometowns in Texas Page 12 Endeavors of merit Vietnam veteran was trained as Chinese interpreter

those in the reserves.

Nov. 11 officially has been set aside as a national holiday since 1938 to emphasize the importance of those who serve our country. Today, we thank and honor the scores of men and women across the Brazos Valley who have worn and wear a military uniform, along with the 1.43 million other Americans serving now.

Page 14 An experience to learn from Desert Storm veteran prepares others to fight Page 15 • Department of Defense 101 • Interactive exhibit to honor veterans Page 16 A different look at life Veteran was on front lines when troops enterd Iraq Page 18 Military museums bring history to life Page 19 Returning to civilian life Veteran resumes college classes

Salute to Veterans 2011

Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 937 Serving the Brazos Valley

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Meets 4th Thursday of each month except December at C&J BBQ on Texas Ave. at 7 pm.

For more info visit http://www http://www.vva.org/VV .vva.org/VVAChapter937 .vva.org/VVAChapter937 or email vva937@gmail.com Building the local memorial for the local service “Ne ver members who lost their aga in w lives in Vietnam or as a ill o ne g result of service in ene rati Vietnam. on of v eter ans aba ndo n an oth er.”

President: John Hince (979) 778-1835 Vice President: Mike Mik Vela (979) 224-1017 Secretary: Bill Powell (979) 774-3158 Treasurer: John Withers (979) 775-4021 AV Representative: June Withers (979) 775-4021 AVVA

Anchor Foundation Repair Proudly Salutes

rant Officer Craig Tripp Chief War

A quiet famil family man of honor fr from om Aggieland Aggiel and re returns turns in July July,, after many years of military service, to a family business in College Station, Anchor Foundation Repair Repair.

Craig is a 1996 graduate fr from om Consolidated High School.

In 2000 he graduated fr from om West Point Military Mili tary Academy Academy..

While attendi attending ng We West st Point met and marri married ed his lovel lovely y wife Kim, a commissioned commi ssioned offi officer cer in the servi service. ce. They have thr three ee beautiful beautiful childr children en Joshua, Zoey and Audr Audrey ey and will make their home in College Colle ge Station.

• Commissi Commissioned oned to the 75th Ranger Regime Regiment nt • 160th SOAR - Specia Speciall Opera Operation tion Aviation Av iation Regimen Regimentt • Chino Chinook ok Helicopter Curr Currently ently stationed statio ned in Afgha Afghanistan nistan

979-690-2020

2924 Ca Cain in Rd • Co College llege St Stat ation at ion

An Invitation to Families of Wartime Veterans and Surviving Spouses

Isle at Watercrest-Bryan 4091 Eastchester Drive Bryan, Texas 77802

Thursday, November 10, 2011 11:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Lunch will be prov pr ided Integrated Senior Living

RSVP by November 5 866-938-0801

Join us for a V Veteran’s benefits education day featuring Jerry Loden, professional member of the AAWV AAWV. WV. Learn about VA benefits, the application process, and how to become eligible even if you exceed the limits.

Salute to Veterans 2011

“Aid and Attendance Benefit” Seminar

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VETERANS DAY EVENTS Monday • 2:30 p.m. — Downtown Bryan: Veterans Parade begins; expected to last about half an hour.

11-11-11 • 8 a.m. — TTAMU Campus, Military Walk: Remembrance Day Roll Call begins, where names of those who died in Afghanistan and Iraq will be read aloud.

• 9 a.m. — TTAMU Campus, Spence Park, Vice President’s home: A recognition breakfast for all faculty, staff and students who are military veterans.

• 3 p.m. — V Veterans Park: Dedication of the Korean War Memorial on the Lynn Stuart Pathway • 4 p.m. — V Veterans Park: Reading of the names at the Veterans Memorial in Adams Plaza • 4 p.m. — Sam’s am’s Club: Special veteran event with coffee Wall ll of Honor and cake and a Wa displaying photos of local veterans • 5 p.m. — V Veterans eterans Park: Veterans Day Ceremony emony begins at the American Pavilion

The Brazos Valley thanks you, veterans Those interested in putting a name on Brazos s V Valley Veterans Memorial, go to bvvm.org.

The cost is $100 and the names are added each year on Veterans Day. The organization’s website also has a master list of all the names on the wall, which is at the Veterans Park and Athletic Complex in College Station.

War’s end gets little response

By DENNIS YUSKO Times Union SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Iraq war changed the lives of millions of people at home and abroad, sent the American military into overdrive and deepened the political divide across the United States.

But public reaction to the recent announcement that all U.S. troops would be withdrawn by Christmas has been mute ted. d. Afte Af r more than eight ig ight years of combat, counterinsurgency operations and nation building, no ticker-tape parades are planned. Big homecoming parties are unlikely.

“The one thing I am struck by is the relative lack of response,” University at Albany historian Carl Bon Tempo said. “It passed fairly without event, and I think that’s because the country’s attentions have turned inward to a huge economic crisis.”

While fierce opposition marked the start of the war under President George W.

Bush, interviews with local service members, veterans and peace activists reveal concerns with strong President Barack Obama’s policy to end it. Their views also signal uncertainty about the war’s legacy.

Some who invested their lives in Iraq view the withdrawal, which the President had promised, warily.

They’re worried it could reverse hard fought gains.

“Really, it’s mixed feelings,” retired Army Sgt. Chris Paiser of Plattsburgh said.

“Mission accomplished to a certain extent, but I don’t believe the Iraqi government is strong enough to survive on its own. We should still have a base over there.”

Paiser, 42, who landed in Iraq in 2004, recalled tense foot patrols of villages near Balad. On June 16, 2004, as he en yed a rare day of enjo off in the desert, a bomb from an insurgent exploded near him outside a military PX. He was blinded by shrapnel.

Former Gov. George Pataki pinned a Purple Heart on

Paiser in Albany. The retired soldier comes to Albany for medical appointments. A fformer correction officer, he now helps raise four children ages 10 to 16.

“If you’re just going to pull out and leave, did I just lose my eyesight for nothing?” he said in an interview.

The U.S. invaded Iraq in March 2003. The Bush administration went to war asserting that Iraq’s dictator, Saddam Hussein, had weapons of mass destruction and connections to terrorists.

Neither of those reasons was verified.

The remaining 39,000 American troops will arrive home because the Obama administration and Iraqi leaders were unable to agree on a deal giving U.S. military personnel legal immunity in that country. Meanwhile, The New York Times reported Sunday that the Pentagon plans to maintain an American military presence in the Persian Gulf, possibly in Kuwait, after it withdraws from Iraq.

Saluting Our Veterans

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Salute to Veterans 2011

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Acting on instinct World War II veteran recalls time, guard duties spent in Germany

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oon after the United States entered World War II, James Wade was exempted from the draft not just because he was a student, but he ran a dairy farm.

And the agriculture business was an important one for the country.

But several years later, the country remained at war and in need of military manpower, and Wade was drafted out of Brazos County and into the Army to join other young American men in Nazi territory.

At 20 years old, Wade said, he was sent to Fort Bragg for seven weeks of artillery field training.

Wade and 22,000 others crowded the 2,900-passenger Queen Elizabeth headed to New York, taking turns sleeping on bunks and then on the deck due to lack of space. The ship was the second of the two superliners.

Wade, 87, said the ships’ course was changed every five minutes to prevent German submarines from having the chance to get a ffix on the boa boat wit ith atorpedo.

“You could sit on the back and see the zig-zag pattern in the water,” he recalls.

Wade and his 99th Field Artillery Battalion were trained to work a switchboard before being sent overseas. Once in Germany, his crew had one phone and took turns running the lines to the command post, battalion headquarters, and howitzer positions.

Two months after they entered Germany, the war was over. He was stationed in Germany an additional 10 months as part of the occupation. Wade said he was transferred to another division where he worked guard duty in n ffour diffe if rent iffe locationss ffor hospitals, at road blocks and guarding prisoners.

The last assignment he hadwas in Hersbruck, just east of Nuremberg. Wade said it wasn’t until he’d returned to the states that he learned the witnesses he and his battalion guarded

“It’s a ffunny situation. You don’t think about the danger. It’s just connected with it.

You’ve been trained to do this or that and so you just went about doing what we did every day and never gave it any thought that the next bullet could get you.”

James Wade World War II veteran were the ones attending the Nuremberg trials.

“We just knew there were trials were going on. We had no idea what was taking place or anything,” he said.

Shortly after the war ended, he worked guarding a hospital where the patients were members of the S.S., an elite corps of combat troops formed within the Nazi party.

From midnight to 8 a.m., he and his battalion guarded the hospital. One particular night stood out, Wade said.

At 2 a.m., there was a knock on the door, he said.

Wade, who was corporal of the guard at the time, said, “Come in,” not expecting what was awaiting him.

“The door flew open and there stood this prisoner, with just shorts on, covered in blood,” Wade said. “He’d slashed himself on hiss fforehead, his throat, his face, his whole body, he’d slashed it.”

Wade said he drew his .45 and shouted at the Nazi, who was carrying a dulled, bloody knife in his left hand, to leave “or I’ll shoot.” However, the prisoner only encouraged him to fire his weapon.

“I figured really quickly he’d tried to take his life and couldn’t and he wanted help,” he said, adding he’d decided he wouldn’t help him do that. “But then he made a lunge at me. I shot twice and one of the bullets got him in the hip and he went down.”

Wade said he was

Eagle photo by Dave McDermand Brazos County resident James Wade was drafted into the Army during Worldd W War II. Unknown to him at the time, his battalion was on assignment to guard witnesses attending the Nuremberg trials.

informed by another commander that someone would be coming to investigate.

“That was 65 years ago and no one’s ever showed up,” he said, laughing.

The prisoner was taken into surgery and lived. The doctor later brought the slug dug out of the prisoner’s hip to Wade.

“It’s a ffunny situation.

You don’t think about the danger. It’s just connected with it,” Wade said.

“You’ve been trained to do this or that and so you just went about doing what we did every day and never gave it any thought that the next bullet could get you.”

Wade said he was engaged to his wife, Dorothy, during a 10-day delay before being shipped overseas.

“We agreed we would not get married until after the war,” he said.

She waited. They were married 56 years before she passed away almost nine years ago from leukemia.

Salute to Veterans 2011

By CASSIE SMITH cassie.smith@theeagle.com

Special to The Eagle The Worldd W War II national veterans memorial in Washington, D.C., was completed and opened to the public in 2004. Six million served in the U.S. armed War II. forces during Worldd W

Wade said he worked for the railroad d ffor a while, then for a cattle auction barn in Cameron before returning to College Station to work for a construction company building power lines.

After three years of retirement, Wade said, he was ready to get back to work.

He’s been with the universi-

ty 10 years doing environmental work with Geochemical Environmental Research Group.

Wade continues to live in the same place he was born, in the home his grandfather built a street over from city limits. He has two daughters that hope to one day grow old on that land as well.

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Valor in the face of the enemy Korean War veteran received Silver Star for his actions in combat Bob Middleton was a member of the Corps of Cadets while a student at Texas A&M University. After University graduating, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant and served on the front lines during the Korean War.

By CASSIE SMITH cassie.smith@theeagle.com

Salute to Veterans 2011

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ob Middleton remembers the breath-stopping chill of the winter air in Korea and the barrage of constant bullet fire like it was yesterday.

As a member of the Texas A&M University Corps of Cadets, Middleton had already signed a contract to serve in the Army after graduating. The nation was a year into the Korean War when he received a bachelor’s in mathematics, and he was soon commissioned as a second lieutenant and sent to Georgia and California for training.

After a ffew brief months, the 81-year-old College Station resident said, he found himself on the front lines of war in Company K of the 160th Infantry Regiment, 40th Division.

“From that point on we were under fire the entire time,” he said. “Even though it was a long time ago, it’s like it was yesterday sometimes.”

Middleton said he was in charge of a 55-member platoon in Mundung-ni Valley west of where the Battle of Heartbreak Ridge took place.

“You were in constant sight of the enemy,” he said, describing how they were surrounded by high ground.

They spent six months in that position, taking turns patrolling for enemy campgrounds.

“Quite often we found each other,” said Middleton.

For actions taken while in the Mundung-ni Valley, Middleton received a Silver Star.

He said his platoon was on patrol one night when the group came across enemy fighters.

“We saw each other about the same time and there was a large firefight,” he said. “One of my guys went down and we had to back away from him. I crawled back up and drug him back.

Turns out he was dead but we didn’t know that.”

He was 22 years old at the time.

Eagle photo by Dave McDermand

“It’s hard to talk about,” he said. “I don’t know why they gave me the medal. I didn’t do anything different than anybody else would have done. You do things in combat that you wouldn’t normally think you would do otherwise. Things you do, they have to be done.

Especially if you’re leading something, you feel like you’re responsible for everything that happens. If things go right, you’re responsible. When things go wrong, you’re responsible. When somebody needs help, you go help them.”

Middleton said his platoon was eventually replaced by the 45th Infantry Division.

But it wasn’t long until they were needed elsewhere.

There was a prisoner-of-war uprising on Koje Island, off the coast of South Korea.

The prisoners were able to capture a commanding general, he said.

“We were pulled to help quell the rise,” he said.

The prisoners had been placed in compounds too large to handle, he said.

Once his platoon arrived, Middleton said, they reduced each prisoner comA plaque as part of the national memorial in honor of Korean War veterans and those who were killed in action is inscribed with “Our nation honors her sons and daughters who answered ans the call to defend a country they never knew and a people they never met.” met.

pound from 5,000 men to 500.

One thing that stands out in his mind about his time in Korea was watching the river that cut through the

“It’s hard to talk about. I don’t know why they gave me the medal. I didn’t do anything different than anybody else would have done.

You do things in combat that you wouldn’t normally think you would do otherwise...”

Bob Middleton Korean War veteran valley freeze over during the winter. The platoon would have to cross over

See VETERAN, Page 9

FREE ADMISSION for active-duity service members and their immediate family.

bushlibrary.tamu.edu/military NOW ON EXHIBIT

Special to The Eagle

1000 GEORGE BUSH DRIVE WEST COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS 77845

979.691.4000 bushlibrary.tamu.edu

VA handbook meant to help Top 5 closest veterans get best of benefits Veteran Affairs Eagle Staff Report Those who have dealt with the Department of Veterans Affairs know it’s a complicated system, which is why officials created a handbook to highlight even smallest the details.

The handbooks are tailored to provide enrolled veterans with the most relevant health benefits information based on their own specific if eligibility. ific In essence, each handbook is written for the individual veteran.

“These handbooks will give veterans everything they need to know and leave out everything that doesn’t apply to them,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. “Our veterans will now have a comprehensive, easy to understand roadmap to the medical benefits they earned with their service.”

In addition to highlighting

each veteran’s specific health benefits, the handbook provides contact information for the veteran’s preferred local facility, ways to schedule personal appointments, guidelines for communicating treatment needs and an explanation of the veteran’s responsibilities, such as co-payments when applicable.

“Enhancing access isn’t just about expanding the kinds of services VA provides. It also includes making sure we do everything we can to ensure veterans have a clear understanding of the benefits available to them so they can make full use of the services they have earned,” Shinseki said.

The handbooks should be available now after going through a yearlong pilot program.

For information, go to www.va.gov/healtheligibility or call VA’s toll-free number at 1-877-222-VETS (8387).

offices

• Bryan-College Station CBOC 1651 Rock Prairie Rd, Suite 100 College Station 77845 979-680-0361 or 979-680-0361 • Conroe VA Outpatient Clinic 800 Riverwood Court Suite 100 Conroe 77304 936-522-4000 or 800-553-2278 X 1949 • LaGrange OutReach Clinic 890 E Travis Street LaGrange 78945 979-968-5878 • Central Texas Veterans Health Care System 1901 Veterans Memorial Drive Temple 76504-7451 254-778-4811 or 254-778-4811

VETERAN: Would like to visit Korea to see change Continued from A8 the river on the ice during the colder months.

“It was the coldest place I’ve ever been,” he said. “I worked in Norway three years and I’ve never been so cold as I was in Korea.”

After serving, Middleton went to work in the oil industry. He and his wife, Bobbie, moved to College Station in 2003 to be closer to their four grandchildren, who at one point all were attending Texas A&M. Bobbie and Bob will have been married 60 years on

• Central Texas Veterans Health Care System Olin E T Teague Veterans' Center 1901 Veterans Memorial Drive Temple 76504 254-778-4811 or 254-778-4811

Dec. 26.

Middleton said he came back to College Station on Christmas leave before leaving for Korea. During that time, he married his wife, whom he’d been dating.

Bobbie was a student at Sam Houston State University when they met, he said.

“We used to go over there and find girls,” he laughed.

Middleton said he’s always wanted to return to Korea for a visit.“I understand it’s changed so much,” he said.“It wasn’t nothing but mud huts then.”

A granite wall near the Korean War memorial reads simply “Freedom is not free.” free.

Special to The Eagle

Thank You from all your friends at College Station Medical Center.

We proudly salute America’s veterans and active-duty military for their drive and dedication, contributions and courage. Their commitment to our country and our freedom eedom has protected us for generations, and we owe them a debt of gratitude that can never be repaid. This Veterans Day, please join us in honoring the brave men and women of our Armed Forces who have fought, sacrificed and serve ved their countr country with pride.

Salute to Veterans 2011

American Veterans

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Those who died As of late last week, the United States Central Command confirmed 6,276 casualties in the Global War on Terrorism since 2001, and another 148 battle deaths during the Persian Gulf War in the early 1990s.

The following are the military personnel who listed cities in Texas as their hometown:

Salute to Veterans 2011

IRAQ

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James B. Wilke ★ Estevan Altamirano ★ Steven L. Talamantez ★ Glenn M. Sewell ★ Nicholas P. Bellard ★ Corey C. Owens ★ Esau S. A. Gonzales ★ Richard J. Jordan ★ Sean L. Caughman ★ Adriana Alvarez ★ Bradley Espinoza ★ Matthew R. Courtois ★ Johnny Roosevelt Polk ★ Brandon T. Lara ★ Joshua L. Hazlewood ★ Joshua W. Soto ★ Matthew Houseal ★ Christopher D. Loza ★ Sean P. McCune ★ John J. Savage ★ Miguel A. Wilson ★ Heath K. Pickard ★ Geoffrey G. Johnson ★ Reuben M. Fernandez III ★ Corry A. Edwards ★ Anthony L. Mason ★ Julio C. Ordonez ★ Robertt V Vallejo II ★ Sidney J. Marceaux Jr. Jr ★ Wesley R. Durbin ★ Javier Perales Jr. Jr ★ Thomas F. Duncan III ★ Jonathan D. A. Emard ★ Quincy J. Green ★ Alex D. Gonzalez ★ Jeffrey F. Nichols ★ Lawrence D. Ezell ★ Clay A. Craig ★ David P. McCormick ★ Mark A. Stone ★ Timothy W. Cunningham ★ Adrian M. Campos ★ Jason L. Brown ★ Shaun P. Tousha ★ Jeffrey L. Hartley ★ Matthew T. Morris ★ Joshua A. Molina ★ Steven I. Candelo ★ Jose A. Rubio Hernandez ★ Gregory D. Unruh ★ William D. O'Brien ★ Dustin C. Jackson ★ Donald A. Burkett ★ Scott A. McIntosh ★ Orlando A. Perez ★ Conrad Alvarez ★ Christopher J. West ★ Michael A. Norman ★ Garyy W W. Jeffries ★ Rowdy J. Inman ★ Jeremy E. Ray ★ Samuel E. Kelsey ★ Benjamin J. Garrison ★ Peter H. Burks ★ Jermaine D. Franklin ★ Brandon W. Smitherman ★ Eric T. Duckworth ★ Joseph B. Milledge ★ Randell Olguin ★ Aaron J. Walker ★ Christopher M. McCloud ★ Omar L. Mora ★ Thomas L. Hilbert ★ John C. Stock ★ William T. Warford III ★ Javier G. Paredes ★ Rodney J. Johnson ★ Tracy C. Willis ★ Matthew S. Medlicott ★ Garrett I. McLead ★ Paul B. Norris ★ Kamisha J. Block ★ Juan M. Lopez Jr. Jr ★ William L. Edwards ★ Dustin S. Wakeman ★ Braden J. Long ★ Eric D. Salinas ★ James H. McRae ★ Bobby L. Twitty ★ Rhett A. Butler ★ Ron J. Joshua Jr. Jr ★ Jeffrey R. McKinney ★ Andrew T. Engstrom ★ James L. Adair ★ Jimy M. Malone ★ Chris Jr ★ Juan F. Campos ★ Chadrick O. Domino ★ Bacilio E. Cuellar ★ Jonathan A. Davis ★ Danny R. Soto ★ Johnny R. Strong ★ Timothy B. Cole Jr. Jr ★ Markham ★ Kile G. West ★ Emmanuel Villarreal ★ Michael J. Jaurique ★ Mathew P. LaForest ★ Kristopher A. Hidgon ★ Oscar Sauceda Jr. Michael W. Davis ★ Ryan D. Collins ★ Marquis J. McCants ★ Joshua G. Romero ★ Anselmo Martinez III ★ Roy L. Jones III ★ Dan H. Nguyen ★ Anthony M. Bradshaw ★ Kenneth N. Mack ★ Larry I. Guyton ★ Glenn D. Hicks Jr. Jr ★ Eddie D. Tamez ★ Ray M. Bevel ★ Ryan A. Bishop ★ Robert M. McDowell ★ Lance C. Springer II ★ Ryan P. Green ★ Marieo Guerrero ★ John S. Stephens ★ Forrest J. Waterbury ★ Cory C. Kosters ★ Anthony Aguirre ★ Travis Wayne Buford ★ Allen Mosteiro ★ Nickolas A. Tanton ★ Gilbert Minjares Jr. Jr ★ James Rodney Tijerina ★ Terrence D. Dunn ★ Timothy A. Swanson ★ Darrell W. Shipp ★ Hector Leija ★ Gary S. Johnston ★ Sean E. Lyerly ★ Allen B. Jaynes ★ Jacob H. Neal ★ Russell P. Borea ★ Collin R. Schockmel ★ Paul T. Sanchez ★ Ryan R. Berg ★ Richard A. Smith ★ Dustin R. Donica ★ Nathaniel A. Given ★ Aaron L. Preston ★ Stephen L. Morris ★ John Barta ★ Kyle A. Nolen ★ Robert J.. V Volker ★ Brian L. Mintzlaff ★ Paul Balint Jr. Jr ★ Luke C. Yepsen ★ Philip C. Ford ★ Yari Morki ★ Troy D. Cooper ★ David M. Fraser ★ Michael C. Ledsome ★ Joshua C. Alonzo ★ Michael T. Mutz ★ Miles P. Henderson ★ Jose A. Galvan ★ Eric J. Kruger ★ Luke B. Holler ★ Carl A. Eason ★ Nathaniel A. Aguirre ★ Daniel W. Winegeart ★ Jonathan J. Simpson ★ Johnny K. Craver ★ Thomas J. Hewett ★ Benjamin S. Rosales ★ Joe A. Narvaez ★ Jose A. Lanzarin ★ Edward C. Reynolds Jr. Jr ★ Aaron A. Smith ★ Ryan A. Jr ★ Michael C. Lloyd ★ Brian J. Kubik ★ George M. Ulloa Jr. Jr ★ Blake H. Russell ★ Kenneth I. Pugh ★ Omar Flores ★ Miller ★ Ruben J. Villa Jr. James P. Muldoon ★ Virrueta A. Sanchez H Benjamin C. Williams ★ Reyes Ramirez ★ Kristian Menchaca ★ Ryan T. Sanders ★ Brett L. Tribble ★ James A. Funkhouser ★ J. Adan Garcia ★ Benito A. Ramirez ★ Daniel E. Holland ★ Matthew W. Worrel ★ Aaron P. Latimer ★ Bryant A. Herlem ★ Jason B. Daniel ★ Stephen Joseph Perez ★ Richard P. Waller ★ Andres Aguilar Jr. Jr ★ Israel Devora Garcia ★ Walter M. Moss Jr. Jr ★ Amy A. Duerksen ★ John D. Fry ★ Tina M. Priest ★ Anthony R. Garcia ★ Christopher R. Morningstat ★ Simon T. Cox Jr. Jr ★ Jerry M. “Michael” Durbin Jr. Jr ★ Brian McElroy ★ Johnny J. Peralez Jr. Jr ★ Richard Matthew “Matt” Salter ★ Benjamin T. Britt ★ Johnnie V. Mason ★ Samuel Tapia ★ James C. Kesinger ★ Michael C. Taylor ★ Robert Alexander Martinez ★ William D. Richardson ★ Donald J. Hasse ★ Javier A. Villanueva ★ William B. Meeuwsen ★ Miguel Terrazas ★ Dominic Joseph Hinton ★ John M. Longoria ★ Christopher M. McCrackin ★ William J. Byler ★ Michael T. Robertson ★ George T. Alexander ★ Jacob D. Dones ★ Russell H. Nahvi ★ Tommy Ike Folks Jr. Jr ★ Howard E. Babcock IV ★ Lorenzo Ponce Ruiz ★ John R. Stalvey ★ Sean B. Berry ★ Timothy J. Roark ★ Steve Morin Jr. Jr ★ Shawn A. Graham ★ Robert D. Marcum ★ Christopher L. Everett ★ Ivica Jerak ★ Hatim S. Kathiria ★ Roger D. Castleberry Jr. Jr ★ Ernest W. Dallas Jr. Jr ★ Steven P. Gill ★ Hoby F. Bradfield Jr. Jr ★ Rafael A. “T.J.” “T Carrillo Jr. Jr ★ Christopher R. Kilpatrick ★ Robert M. Horrigan ★ Tyler S. Trovillion ★ Jonathan R. Flores ★ Mario Alberto Castillo ★ Roberto Arizola Jr. Jr ★ Theodore S. Westhusing ★ Albert E. Smart ★ Wesley R. Riggs ★ Samuel Tyrone Castle ★ Aaron N. Cepeda Sr. Sr ★ Lance Tanner Graham ★ Garyy W W. Walters Jr. Jr ★ Aaron M. Hudson ★ Francisco G. Martinez ★ Juan M. Solorio ★ Danny L. Anderson ★ Trevor D. Aston ★ Clinton R. Gertson ★ Ray Rangel ★ Jeremy O. Allmon ★ Daniel Torres ★ Nazario Serrano ★ Orlando A. Bonilla ★ Taylor J. Burke ★ Dexter S. Kimble ★ Tony L. Hernandez ★ Lyle L. Gordan ★ Paul C. Alaniz ★ Rhonald Dain, Rairdan ★ Fred L Maciel ★ Saeed Jafarkhani-Torshizi Jafarkhani-T Jr ★ Jesus A. Leon-Perez ★ Javier Marin Jr. Jr. Jr ★ Viktar V. Yolkin ★ Paul C. Holter III ★ Matthew W. Holloway ★ Juan Rodrigo Rodriguez Velasco ★ Joseph E. Fite ★ Julio C. Cisneros-Alvarez ★ Barry K. Meza ★ Franklin A. Sweger ★ Hilario F. Lopez ★ Todd Clayton Gibbs ★ Kyle A. Eggers ★ Michael L. Boatright ★ Zachary A. Kolda ★ Jose Guereca Jr. Jr ★ Brian K. Grant ★ Louis W. Qualls ★ William L. Miller ★ Sean P. Sims ★ Jose Al Velez ★ Byron W. Norwood ★ Wesley J. Canning ★ Gene Ramirez ★ John Byron Trotter ★ Russell L. Slay ★ Travis A. Babbitt ★ Horst Gerhard “Gary” Moore ★ Thomas J. Zapp ★ Michael Battles Sr. Sr ★ Josiah H. Vandertulip ★ Michael S. Weger ★ Eric L. Allton ★ Timothy Folmar ★ Adam J. Harris ★ Foster L. Harrington ★ Mathew D. Puckett ★ Dominic C. Brown ★ Jason T. Poindexter ★ Lauro G. DeLeon Jr. Jr ★ Chad H. Drake ★ Tomas Garces ★ Ryan Michael McCauley ★ Nicholas Perez ★ Jr ★ Michael S. Torres ★ Nickalous N. Aldrich ★ Jacob R. Lugo ★ Seth Huston ★ Mark Anthony Zapata ★ Andrew R. Houghton ★ Juan Calderon Jr. Brian D. Smith ★ Pedro Contreras ★ Todd J. Bolding ★ Rene Ledesma ★ Isela Rubalcava ★ Jeffrey G. Green ★ Aaron C. Austin ★ Ruben Valdez Jr. Jr ★ Clayton Welch Henson ★ Christopher Ramirez ★ Daniel R. Amaya ★ Wesley C. Fortenberry ★ Adolf C. Carballo ★ William C. Eckhart ★ Elias Torrez III ★ Matthew E. Matula ★ Michael B. Wafford ★ Gerardo Moreno ★ Scott Quentin Larson Jr. Jr ★ Shane Lee Goldman ★ Israel Garza ★ Jr ★ James A. Casper ★ Jason C. Ludlam ★ Robert R. Arsiaga ★ Dustin M. Sekula ★ Michael G. Karr Jr. ★ Doyle M. Hufstedler ★ Leroy Sandoval Jr. Ricky A. Morris Jr. Jr ★ Joe L. Dunigan Jr. Jr ★ Armando Soriano ★ Ervin Dervishi ★ James D. Parker ★ Kelly L. Hornbeck ★ Larry E. Polley Jr. Jr ★ Roland W. Moore ★ Ray J. Hutchinson ★ Clarence E. Boone ★ Ariel Rico ★ John W. Russell ★ L. Castro ★ Ernesto M. Blanco ★ Rey D. Cuervo ★ Stuartt W Gary L. Collins ★ Keelan L. Moss ★ Michael Paul Barrera ★ John P. Johnson ★ Stephen E. Wyatt ★ Joseph C. Norquist ★ Analaura Esparza Gutierrez ★ Richard Arriaga ★ James C. Wright ★ Henry Ybarra III ★ Zeferino E. Colunga ★ Daniel K. Methvin ★ Hector R. Perez ★ Jonathan D. Jr ★ Robert L. Frantz ★ Joseph D. Suell ★ Jose A. Perez III Rozier ★ Christian C. Schultz ★ Melissa Valles ★ James Curtis Coons ★ Tomas Sotelo Jr. ★ Joe Jesus Garza ★ Andrew Todd Arnold ★ Eric Bruce Das ★ Anthony Scott Miller ★ Jesus Martin Antonio Medellin ★ Chad Eric Bales ★ Scott Jamar ★ George Andrew Fernandez ★ Phillip Andrew Jordan ★ Edward John Anguiano ★ Johnny Villareal Mata ★ James Michael Kiehl ★ Ruben Estrella-Soto ★ Brian Matthew Kennedy

Fallen heroes Brazos Valley has lost seven soldiers in the Global War on nT Terrorism — the youngest was 20, the oldest 32. We honor: Scott H. Burgess, 32 4 April 2011 Rank: Sergeant Branch: U.S. Army Hometown: Franklin

Jacob C. Leicht, 24 27 May 2010 Rank: Corporal Branch: U.S. Marine Hometown: College Station *1000th fatality: Born July 4 (AP Article)

Timothy W. Cunningham, 26 23 April 2008 Rank: 1st Lieutenant Branch: U.S. Army Hometown: College Station

Bobby L. Twitty, itty, 20 itty 22 July 2007 Rank: Lance Corporal Branch: U.S. Marine Hometown: Bedias, Texas

Larry I. Guyton, 22 5 May 2007 Rank: Private 1st Class Branch: U.S. Army Hometown: Brenham

Glenn D. Hicks Jr., Jr 24 28 April 2007 Rank: Sergeant Branch: U.S. Army Hometown: College Station

James D. Parker Parker, 20 21 January 2004 Rank: Private 1st Class Branch: U.S. Army Hometown: Bryan

★ BENJAMIN WHETSTONE SCHMIDT ★ DAVID PAUL A. RIVERA ★ HOUSTON M. TAYLOR TA DA A. DRAKE ★ ★ ★ ★ ANDRES ZERMENO RODOLFO RODRIGUEZ JR. BRIAN K. LUNDY MICHAEL C. ROBERTS ★ JESSE W. DIETRICH ★ CHARLES L. PRICE III ★ STEPHEN MATTHEW MA MILLS ★ BENJAMIN A. STEPHENSON ★ JACOB MOLINA ★ MARK R. GOYET ★ JOHN F. FARIAS ★ OSUE IBARRA ★ BRADLEY J. GAUDET ★ JOSHUA D. POWELL ★ ANTHONY M. NUNN ★ ANDREW M. KRIPPNER ★ RILEY S. ★ NATHAN SP SPAULDING NA J. NYLANDER ★ JOHN P. CASTRO ★ JOEL A. RAMIREZ ★ CHARLES J. WREN ★ JEREMY D. SMITH ★ SCOTT H. BURGESS ★ ROBERT TF F. WELCH III ★ BRYAN A. BURGESS ★ ★ ZAINAH C. CREAMER ★ OMAR MECOLUS C. MCDANIEL ★ CHAUNCY R. MAYS MA ★ OMAR SOLTERO SOL ACEVES ★ IRA B. LANINGHAM ★ TEVAN TEV B. NGUYEN ★ JOSE L. MALDONADO ★ COLTON COL W. RUSK ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ JASON A. REEVES DEVON J. HARRIS KYLE M. HOLDER PEDRO A. MALDONADO JORGE VILLARREAL JR. ★ CARLOS A. BENITEZ ★ CODY A. BOARD ★ CALVIN CAL B. HARRISON ★ DANIEL R. ★ ALEXIS V. MALDONADO ★ BENJAMIN G. SANCHEZ ★ DIEGO M. MONTOYA MONTOY ★ JESSE INFANTE INF CHISHOLM ★ JOSE L SAENZ III ★ JOHN E. ANDRADE ★ KYLE B. STOUT ★ JASON E. HOLBROOK ★ SHANE R. MARTIN ★ JAMES J. OQUIN ★ LESTON M. WINTERS ★ SHAUN M. MITTLER ★ JESSE W. AINSWORTH ★ JEROD H. OSBOURN ★ EDWARDO EDW LOREDO ★ MARIO RODRIGUEZ ★ MICHAEL P. ★ BRANDON C. BURY ★ DEREK HERNANDEZ ★ JACOB C. LEICHT MA R. CATLETT CA FLORES ★ MATTHEW ★ ZARIAN WOOD ★ JEFFERY W. JOHNSON ★ KENNETH B. MA MAY JR. ★ CHRISTOPHER RANGEL ★ GARRETT W. GAMBLE ★ BOBBY J. PAGAN ★ PAUL PENA ★ NICHOLAS K. UZENSKI ★ MARK D. JUAREZ ★ JAMES M. NOLEN ★ JOSEPH M. LEWIS ★ SHAWN SHA P. HEFNER ★ CESAR B. RUIZ ★ ★ SHAWN FERNANDO DE LA ROSA ★ CODY R. STANLEY ST SHA H. MCNABB ★ CHRIS N. STAA STAATS AATS ★ DAVID DA ★ JOSHUA M. MILLS ★ MICHAEL C. MURPHREY ★ JOSHUA S. MEADOWS ★ DARRYN D. A. DAVIS DA BAL ZAR JR. ★ CLAYTON CLA PA PATRICK BOWEN ★ MICHAEL JAY JA ANDREWS ★ CHRISTOPHER S. BALTA HOSKINS ★ TRAVIS TRA THORNTON BABINE ★ ALEJANDRO GRANADO III ★ ANDREW JA JAY ROUGHTON ★ GREGORY OWENS JR. ★ JOSHUA RA RAY YF FARRIS ARRIS ★ DARREN ETHAN TATE TA ★ PETER K. CROSS ★ ★ JARRETT P. GRIEMEL ★ MATTHEW MA D. OGDEN ★ MATTHEW MA G. REZA ★ MARK E. STRATTON STRA ★ ★ ★ ★ ARCHIE A. TAYLOR TA RA RAYMOND J. MUNDEN PETER J. COURCY CORY J. BERTRAND RODOLFO ★ JAIME GONZALEZ JR. ★ EDGAR A. HEREDIA ★ MATTHEW I. RODRIGUEZ ★ JOHN A. MATTOX MA MA E. MENDOZA ★ MARK R. CANNON ★ CHARLES B. KITOWSKI III ★ ALAN J. AUSTIN ★ THOMAS G. BOSTICK JR. ★ ZACHARY R. ENDSLEY ★ JOSEPH G. HARRIS ★ MICHAEL A. SHANK ★ WILLIAM R. BROWN ★ ROGELIO R. GARZA ★ ANDREW VELEZ ★ ERIC CABAN ★ ROGER P. PEÑA JR. ★ ERIC W. TOTTEN ★ JEFFREY S. WIEKAMP ★ CLINTON T. NEWMAN ★ PHILLIP C. GEORGE ★ LAURA MARGARET WALKER ★ DAMIAN J. GARZA ★ STEVEN CHARLES TUCKER ★ ISAAC E. DIAZ ★ ★ RAYMOND WILLIAM M. AMUNDSON JR. ★ JUAN MANUEL TORRES ★ JOHN E. TAYLOR TA RA LOSANO ★ ★ ★ ★ JOHN “MIKE” TEAL RODRIGO GONZALES-GARZA BRIAN T. CRAIG JOHN A. CHAPMAN ★ NA NATHAN R. CHAPMAN

Salute to Veterans 2011

AFGHANIST AFGHANISTAN

11

Endeavors of merit Bronze Star recipient says Vietnam veterans were disrespected at the time

By MAGGIE KIELY maggie.kiely@theeagle.com

Salute to Veterans 2011

C

12

ollege Station resident Ken Spencer spent his 21st birthday in a bunker under massive rocket fire from Viet Cong aiming to hit his base located near the DMZ. “Oh, it was just some incoming fire, you know,” the 64-yearold retired Army captain said half-jokingly. “Just VC shooting rockets at us. We didn’t have it bad compared to the infantry.”

After talking with other Vietnam veterans, it’s apparent that Spencer’s humble demeanor is common for a soldier from that period, and many seem quick to thank a fellow soldier for their service before acknowledging their own contributions.

About 58,000 American soldiers and an estimated two million Vietnamese troops — ffrom the north and south armies — died during the war.

In 1961, about 2,000 military advisers were sent to Vietnam to assist South Vietnamese soldiers fighting to keep their country from being consumed by communist leaders in North Vietnam who had substantial backing from the Chinese.

Two years later, more than 16,000 advisers were on the ground and in 1965 the first wave of Marines arrived.

By the time the war ended in 1973, about 2.7 million American troops had been deployed to Vietnam.

Spencer, a Bronze Star recipient, said that on Veterans Day he’s sure to express his appreciation to troops because he knows the impact of being recognized and thanked.

He’s also felt the effects of the opposite — many Vietnam veterans were treated poorly by Americans upset with the country’s involvement in the war when they returned home from service and for several years after.

Facing the possibility of being drafted, Spencer said he enlisted in the Army after graduating high school in New York because he didn’t know what he wanted to do.

Initially, he was assigned to the Defen ef se Langua efen ng ge ngua Institute — a school run by the Army that provides foreign langua ng ge services to the ngua Department of Defense and other government agencies.

After being trained as a Chinese interpreter, Spencer said he went on to officer candidacy school, which he left in May 1967 as a second lieutenant for the Army Signal Corps.

At that point, the Army sent him to Quang Tri Province in Vietnam in April 1968 as part of the 588th Signal Company.

The unit was responsible for providing communication support for the 3rd Marine Division, 1st Brigade and the 5th Mechanized Division — combat units engaged heavily engaged with Vietnamese troops at the time.

His platoon maintained and set up communication

systems near combat zones so that ranking officers could stay in contact with infantry leaders and provide support.

During the day, Spencer said, they spent most of their time within the perimeter of the post setting up cables and reconfiguring switchboards so that those in combat were able to relay messages back to officers via radio.

Although his unit did receive incoming mortar or rocket rounds, Spencer said he wasn’t engaged in any battles.

The eeriest moments were at night when his team would take military jeeps into the jungle scouting for cables that needed maintenance or setting up new communication lines, he said.

About six months into his tour, Spencer was reas-

Ken Spencer enlisted in the Army after graduating high school. He spent a year as part of a platoon providing communication support for combat units engaged ag with Vietnamese aged troops so that ranking officers could maintain contact with infantry leaders in the field.

Eagle photo by Dave McDermand

See MERIT, Page 13

HonoR. appReCiate. appReCia SaLute!

At The Bank & Trust we salute and give thanks to our Veterans, active military personnel and their families for their sacrifice and commitment to preserving our freedom.

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With gratitude, we honor America’s veterans and military personnel.

MERIT: Vietnam divided America Continued from A12

Special to The Eagle The national Vietnam War memorial is divided into three parts: the Three Soldier’s statue (above), the Vietnam Women’s memorial and the Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial Wall (right). The wall displays the names of U.S. service members who died during the war.

post without somebody saying something to you,” she said. “It was ridiculous is what it was. The entire time in America was hard to believe, it was so divided.”

She can remember when Vietnam veterans in New York City were invited to take part in a homecoming parade for Gulf War veterans, an effo ef rt by civilians

that she said had a strong positive impact on soldiers from the era.

Upon returning home and retiring from the Army in 1969, Spencer married and had a son before moving to Texas in 1986.

Two years ago, Spencer retired from the U.S. Postal Service after 22 years as a clerk.

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Salute to Veterans 2011

signed as a 63rd Signal Battalion rodeo officer in Phu Bai, slightly more than 50 miles south of Quang Tri on the coast of Vietnam.

When Spencer returned home in 1969 — a year after more than 700 college students had been arrested in his home state during war protests — he wasn’t expecting the response he received from civilians.

“People were calling us baby killers, giving us all sorts of crap,” he said. “We never got any respect.”

Despite the lack of gratitude at the time, Spencer said he doesn’t hold any grudges and that society’s sentiment toward Vietnam veterans has significantly improved since the war.

Robin Silva, operations director at the Museum of the American G.I., didn’t serve in Vietnam, but was working as a technician n ffor the medical corps while the war was going on.

“If you were in the military at that time you were hated. You couldn’t walk off

13

An experience to learn from Desert Storm veteran works with the Texas A&M Corps of Cadets Keith Youngblood served in Desert Storm during the early ’90s and taught military science at Texas A&M for four years. He trained combat brigades at Fort Hood and deployed for a second time to Iraq.

By MICHELLE CASADY michelle.casady@theeagle.com sady@theea sady@theeagle.com

Salute to Veterans 2011

T

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he Desert Storm veteran was the only one off ffive passengers who survived the roadside bomb attack on his convoy in Nasiriyah, Iraq, in 2006.

Keith Youngblood received a traumatic brain in ry during the attack inju and remained in a medically induced coma for three days, but he continued fighting, refusing transport home for treatment, and completed his 12-month tour of duty.

“When the vehicle was blown up I was hit in the back of the head by an ammunition can for a .50 caliber,” he said. “And it blew me out of the vehicle.”

The veteran first saw combat in Iraq in the early ’90s; but, after taking a job at Fort Hood training young soldiers in 2005, he was sent back.

Youngblood came from a long line of Army veterans and enlisted in 1986 at age 17, knowing then, he said, the Army would be a career for him. As soon as he graduated high school in Avinger, a small town in northeast Texas of about 600 people, he was off to Fort Benning in Georgia.

He had just turned 21, and his wife was four months pregnant with the couple’s first child, when he shipped out to Saudi Arabia.

Youngblood and his fellow soldiers trained for a month in Saudi Arabia while defen ef ding the Port of efen Jubail before heading north into Kuwait.

Then, on Jan. 17, 1991, the ground war in Iraq began.

“I was excited. It was what I had joined the military for,” he said of his deployment and service in Desert Storm. “I wanted to defend the Constitution of the United States and defend the people who were helpless in defending themselves.”

Extensive training before his deployment, he said, prepared him for the rigors of being in a combat environment.

“I was excited. It was what I had joined the military for. I wanted to defend the Constitution of the United States and defend the people who were helpless in defending themselves.”

Keith Youngblood Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom veteran

Photos courtesy of Keith Youngblood

Keith Youngblood (third from left) is pictured with some of his brothers in arms while on base during his second deployment in Iraq.

“But once the first bullets start flying — that changes everything,” he said.

On the second day of ground operations in Iraq, the vehicle he was riding in to cross the border into Iraq, an M577, hit a landmine.

He suffered a concussion and said his ears were ringing for a ffew days, but none of the crew inside were seriously injured.

The vehicle had to be destroyed in place, though.

For nearly two months of his deployment, he was part of a platoon patrolling the area where Saddam Hussein ordered Iraqi troops set fire to 700 oil wells during their retreat from Kuwait.

“The actual ground was on fire from all the oil. It was like a sea of fire in the desert,” he said. “I think dealing with the smoke and heat from the fires was the most grueling part of the whole deployment — breathing in just acrid, oiled smoke for days on end.”

Back in Avinger as a teenager, Youngblood

served his community as a volunteer firefighter and said he hoped to enter the Army in that same capacity, but the program that allowed for that ended shortly before he enlisted.

“But I guess it kind of worked out anyhow,” he said.

He was only allowed one phone call home during his five months overseas. It lasted seven minutes, and it was to his wife.

“We had to wait until we began the peace-keeping mission in Kuwait before we could call,” he said. “It was so great to hear from her, because I had no idea what had been going on.”

The soon-to-be-father made it back to the U.S. two days before his son, Jason, was born.

For the next decade, he and his young family moved from base to base before he was offer ff ed a job ffer at Texas A&M teaching military science in March 2001.

“When that opened up, I said, ‘Yes, send me, I’m there,’” he said. “I’d always enjoyed teaching as a soldier and Texas was home. I

was ready for home.”

Months after accepting the post, the Sept. 11 attacks occurred. Youngblood said teaching in the classroom day in and day out and listening to progress reports on the nightly news was one of the hardest things he’s ever had to do.

He and other instructors at A&M volunteered to go back and help train soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Their request was denied.

“They told us we were serving a better purpose at A&M, training these soonto-be-lieutenants about what they can expect, and how to conduct themselves in front of the troops,” he said.

He made it back, though, at age 35.

After four years at A&M, he accepted a job at Fort Hood, training a combat brigade to deploy to Iraq.

They trained for 11 months and then headed d ffor Baghdad.

After that tour, he trained one more group at Fort Hood, but didn’t deploy.

Youngblood has since retired d ffrom the military

but still works at A&M with the Corps of Cadets and said he’s even received an offer to finish his college degree at the university.

“I’ve got about 200 hours of college credit,” he said laughing. “So, I could really take my pick of what to study.”

He’ll likely pursue a degree in agriculture economics, having grown up on an 1,800-acre family farm.

“I don’t mind talking about what happened and what I did,” he said.

“Everyone needs to know what’s going on over there and what the soldiers they’re paying are doing g ffor them.”

The Eagle Here when you need us

Department of Defense 101 • Militar y ser vicemembers and civilians operate in every time zone and in every climate.

• More than 450,000 Depar tment of Defense employees are overseas, both afloat and ashore.

• The DOD operates in more than several hundred thousand individual buildings and structures at more than 5,000 different locations or sites. Add those sites together, and the agency uses more than 30 million acres of land.

• The largest militar y property is the Navy’s large complex of installations in Norfolk, Va., with more than 78,000.

• DOD budget: $419.3 billion • DOD employees: 1.3 million people • 95 percent of the employees have high school diplomas vs.

79 percent of the national workforce • 5.6 percent of the troops have a master’s degree vs.

4.9 percent of the national workforce • CEO: President of the United States • DOD’s military branches rou-

tinely participate in peacekeeping and humanitarian missions.

• Army defends the land mass of the U.S., its territories, commonwealths and possessions and operates in more than 50 countries.

• Navy maintains, trains and equips combat-ready maritime forces capable of fighting wars, deterring aggression and maintaining freedom of the seas. Aircraft carriers stationed in hotspots including the Far East, Persian Gulf and Mediterranean Sea. • Air Force provides a rapid,

flexible and sometimes lethal air and space capability that can deliver forces anywhere in the world in less than 48 hours.

Annually fly missions in all but five nations of the world.

• Marine Corps maintains ready expeditionary forces, sea-based and integrated air-ground units for contingency and combat operations, and the means to stabilize or contain international disturbances.

• Coast Guard provides law and maritime safety enforcement, marine and environmental protection, and military naval support.

• National Guard and Reserve forces provide wartime military support and are essential to humanitarian and peacekeeping operations.

• Headquar ters: Pentagon.

Even though there are 17.5 miles of corridors in one of the world’s largest office buildings, it takes only seven minutes to walk between any two points in the building.

— Source: U.S. Department of Defense

Interactive exhibit to honor veterans Special to The Eagle The Texas Veterans Land Board and chairman Jerry Patterson will celebrate Veterans Day with the opening of a Voices of Veterans program exhibit An interactive, multimedia exhibit opens Nov. 11 in Austin where visitors can hear the stories of veterans from around the country.

The program, which is at the Texas Capitol Visitors Center called “Every Veteran has a Story to Tell,” will run through September 2012.

“Our nation’s wars are wellknown,” said Jerry Patterson, chairman of the VLB and retired lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. “But hearing the gripping personal narratives from veterans of those wars — their experiences of leaving home, going abroad, facing combat and surviving — adds context for the public.

These firsthand accounts show that ordinary men and women, faced with incredible adversity, can accomplish extraordinary things, organizers said.

The Voices of Veterans program is an oral history initiative of the VLB that honors veterans by documenting their powerful stories through thorough interviews.

Their captivating stories are then permanently archived in the Office of

Special to The Eagle The Capitol Visitors Center, located at 112 East 11th St., Austin, is the oldest office building in the state.

Veterans Records at the Texas General Land Office, where they join the historic documents of other Texas heroes such as Sam Houston, David Crockett, Jim Bowie and William Barret Travis.

The archives are made available to researchers, historians, genealogists and the general public to inspire future generations and remind us of our soldiers’ sacrifices.

The program is free to Texas veterans of all wars,, ffrom World War II to Afghanistan.

God Bless Our Troops!

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Salute to Veterans 2011

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A different look at life

Veteran was on front lines of Operation Iraqi Freedom

By MICHELLE CASADY michelle.casady@ theeagle.com

Salute to Veterans 2011

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is friends didn’t understand when Robert Lee Aiken III, a University of Texas student just 20 hours short of graduation, decided to enlist in the U.S. Marine Corps.

“My dad was a career Marine, and I wanted to do the same thing,” he said of his decision to enlist in December 2000. “For me, it wasn’t giving up school, it was having both.”

After the Sept. 11 attacks, Aiken received transfer orders to move from Okinawa, Japan, to a base in North Carolina. But, he wanted to see combat, and requested to be transferred.

He was sent to Twentynine Palms, Calif., to begin Combined Arms Exercise training.

By January 2003, 26-yearold Aiken and the other members of his platoon were ready to deploy to Kuwait, 45 kilometers from the Iraq border — where they waited and trained, not knowing where they would be called.

In March, Aiken crossed into Iraq with Regimental Combat Team 7. His job, as an engineer, was to do reconnaissance work for the First Tank Scout Platoon — meaning he and a squad of other Marines went out ahead of the tank convoys to spot trouble and report back.

“We never got ambushed, but we took constant fire.

You had to be on the ball constantly,” he said. “I’m lucky that I can say during the invasion there were no casualties in our platoon from combat.”

On the march forward to Baghdad, Aiken and his troops encountered a ffirefight that lasted days when the Marines crossed and

“I remember being so mad when I ggot shot. It’s like ‘tag, you’re out.’ I just kept thinking about my guys, my Marines, the mission, how everyone was doing. It was the worst feeling.”

Robert Lee Aiken III

Operation Iraqi Freedom veteran took control of the bridge over the Diyala River, about 10 miles south of Baghdad.

As part of the reconnaissance team, Aiken was scouring the river banks and surrounding areas, trying to find an alternative route into the city.

“By the next day, we had killed a lot of people — some were trying to cross with white e fflags,” he said.

“But we had orders: Nothing will cross that bridge. I ffelt bad for the gunners.”

On April 7, they crossed the bridge and pressed onward to the capital. April 7, he said, is a date he’ll never forget.

The Marines, Aiken recalled, discovered the armory of what was the equivalent of Saddam Hussein’s Special Forces and also a stable full of “hundreds of the most beautiful Arabian horses.”

“Some of them were dead and dying and we had to put a ffew down,” he said.

“That’s always stuck with me. It makes me sick to think about the conditions of war.”

He left the country after his tour was over in early June, and married Gigi, whom he had met while stationed in Okinawa and had maintained contact with through letters during his deployment.

See AIKEN, Page 17

AIKEN: Intended career as a Marine was cut short After six months of rest, he asked to be redeployed.

This time, he went as a corporal leading a squad of about a dozen Marines as part of the 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines infantry battalion.

Coincidentally, Oliver North, the combat veteran Marine, author and political commentator, embedded with his group.

He arrived in February 2004, but left on April 7 after he was shot twice with an AK-47.

It happened in Al Ramadi, the capital city of the Al Anbar region, where he and his other Marines had the day before spent an entire day scouting for improvised explosive devices.

“The next day we realized we found so many IEDs because they were planning a ffull-scale attack the next day,” he said.

The Marines were outnumbered six to one, he said.

He loaded up into the last

Eagle photo by Dave McDermand Robert Lee Aiken III served on the front lines when the U.S. military invaded nv nvaded Iraq in March 2003. He was shot twice with an AK-47 in 2004 and required to be medically retired in 2005.

vehicle in the convoy and shortly ran into an ambush — he was shot once in the foot and once in the buttocks, though he wouldn’t realize he had received the second wound until he got to the field hospital.

“Itt ffelt like someone put a hot iron through my foot,” he said. “The boot was still on, but everything in there was like Jell-O, floating around, crunching, cracking.”

“I remember being so

mad when I got shot. It’s like ‘Tag, you’re out,’” he said. “I just kept thinking about my guys, my Marines, the mission, how everyone was doing. It was the worst feeling.”

Aiken’s injuries required he be medically retired from the Marines in November 2005. He had intended to make a career as a Marine.

He and Gigi now are raising two young daughters — Samantha is 5 and Gina is 18 months nt old nths d — iin a home in Iola that was donated to them this summer by Operation Finally Home, a nonprofit organization that provides mortgage-free housing to disabled veterans.

He’s also since completed his fine arts degree at UT and runs his own business.

“My experiences in the Marines enriched me tremendously,” he said. “It gave substance to my art work and made me think of life differently — I’ve seen so much death, I know we won’t be here forever.”

Our dedication to service... is what makes us different.

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Salute to Veterans 2011

Continued from A16

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Military museums make history interactive

By SUSANNE M. SCHAFER Associated Press

F

AYETTEVILLE, N.C. — Military museums allow visitors to experience the rough and tumble jerk of a parachute jump, the barked orders of an Army drill sergeant or the segregated training endured by the first African-Americans to enter the Marine Corps.

Whether you are a hardened military veteran or one who’s never worn a uniform, several military museums in the Carolinas offe of r extensive lessons in military service as the Nov. 11 Veterans Day draws near.

In Fayetteville, N.C., the soaring Airborne and Special Operations Museum attracts between 120,000 to 175,000 visitors every year and tells the story of how America’s military developed the strategy of dropping fully-armed soldiers into battle from the skies. A 15-foot sculpture of the paratrooper dubbed “Iron Mike” stands guard at its glass-and-girder front entry, which evokes both the

250-foot “jump towers” that paratroopers use to train and the wingspan of the C-47 aircraft that dropped soldiers onto battlefields in World War II. Located just minutes off Interstate 95 in downtown Fayetteville, N.C., the museum is holding a weeklong celebration in advance of Veterans Day, says Paul Galloway, executive director of the foundation that supported construction of the $25 million building.

“We’ll be hopping and popping. We do a salute to veterans every year,” Galloway said. A week of films about the Army and paratroopers will be held the week prior to the holiday, as well as other events to honor military men and women, Galloway said.

As soon as you enter the museum, you spot a World War II-era paratrooper in combat gear floating out of the sky under a yellow 28-foot-wide parachute.

Behind him, another model drops from the heavens, a modern Army Ranger buoyed by a light green, hon-

Associated Press The 82nd Airborne Museum at Fort Bragg, N.C. has an outdoor and indoor collection of classic military aircraft, vehicles and artillery that tells the story of how America’s military developed the strategy of dropping fully-armed soldiers into battle from the skies. eycombed parachute used by U.S. Special Forces.

A wild ride can be had in the museum’s 24-seat platform motion simulator, recreating the bumps and jumps of parachute drops and rides in military vehicles.

To highlight some of the

major events of wartime paratroopers, visitors first stroll through a recreated village in Normandy.

Recordings from the June 1944 Allied invasion to liberate France e ffrom Nazi Germany put visitors in the heat of the battle, with rockets and bullets screeching by.

Overhead, a C-47 “Skytrain” aircraft hovers with a U.S. aircraf Army paratrooper poised to jump out an open door.

Walkways are papered with still photos, videos and murals that show the history behind U.S. forces that evolved into the famed Special Operations units, designated to take on unconventional warfare and special missions in foreign lands.

Displays from the war in the Pacific if , the Korean War ific and Cold War are shown. In one display, soldiers jump from a UH-1 “Huey” helicopter into a jungle battle raging in Vietnam. Other displays detail the history of U.S. involvement in the Dominican Republic, Panama and Grenada.

America’s conflicts in the Middle East are recalled with models of camouflaged soldiers crouching in desert hideouts in Iraq. Others depict U.S. Special Operations forces meeting for tea with Afghan villagers or medical centers where military medics tend to local children.

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a Happy Veterans Day!

Salute to Veterans 2011

For their courage, hard work and dedication to their country, we salute the men, women and families of our Armed Forces past and present.

It is because of their sacrifice that America remains the land of the free, and we thank them for protecting our citizens and our country.

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Returning to civilian life Veteran served second tour in Afghanistan, resumes university classes

T

wo weeks after wrapping up duty in the U.S. Marine Corps, 25-year-old Travis Kiser was back in class at Texas A&M resuming the college career he put on hold for the military.

After his freshman year at the university, Kiser — who grew up in Bryan and graduated from Bryan High School — said he “needed a reality check.”

His solution? Join the Marines.

“My family was surprised,” he said. “But they understood and felt like it was the best thing for me.”

Kiser served two tours — his last one a seven-month deployment to Afghanistan that ended November 2009.

Before that, he was deployed to Iraq for seven months until August 2007.

So far, 1,830 U.S. soldiers have been killed serving in Af anistan as part of Afgh Operation Enduring Freedom — which was launched in 2001 with the goal of dismantling terrorist organizations.

Currently, there are about 98,000 American soldiers — a number President Barack Obama announced he plans on decreasing by 30,000 by September.

Kiser arrived to the war zone in April 2008 — less than a year after he had returned from Iraq.

Between the two deployments, he was allowed to come home for two weeks and at the time wasn’t aware he’d be headed to Afghanistan.

“When I ffound out, I was thankful I wasn’t going back to Iraq — it sucked,” he said. “We had a staff sergeant who had deployed to Af anistan in 2006 and he Afgh talked about being up in the mountains. It seemed like it was more fun there.”

But when he got there, Kiser said his reinforced platoon of 70 didn’t deal with any mountain warfare and instead was tasked with helping British troops train and mentor local

“It was a job that I did and it makes me the person that I am every day.

And I thank God every day for the blessings that I have.”

Travis Kiser Operation Enduring Freedom veteran police forces.

Basically, he said, they assisted by patrolling and protecting areas outside of the base, he said, adding that his unit ran into Taliban forces almost daily.

“The enemy had extensive operations in that area,” he said. “We had a buffer zone to the north and south of our base, but once you passed the buffer zones, you knew you were in Taliban territory.”

Kiser, who served as a lance corporal, said his platoon would run across an occasional IED — a makeshift bomb commonly used by insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan — but a majority of the insurgents they dealt with used ambush tactics.

When the Marines loaded up and headed into the desert for a patrol, there often were locals working with Taliban who would provide surveillance intelligence to those waiting for an opportune time to strike.

“They’d wait for us to get out of our vehicle and then attack,” Kiser calmly recalled. “If we came across an IED and got out to help, they’d ambush us.”

In total, his company — which consisted of three platoons — lost 20 guys, Kiser said.

Getting the news that a fellow Marine was killed in action was never easy to deal with, no matter how many times it happened, he said.

Because he had already been to Iraq where he performed mostly urban warfare tactics, Kiser said the shock of seeing dead bodies in the streets of communi-

Eagle photo by Dave McDermand deplo in Afghanistan. Upon returning to civilian life, he has resumed his education at Travis Kiser spent his second deployment among the veterans group in the Corps of Cadets. camar Texas A&M University and has found support and camaraderie

ties had worn off.

A lot of the time, the person killed and left lying in the street was an Afgh Af anistan soldier or police officer, he said.

Having accepted what he witnessed during his combat experience as part of his life, Kiser said it isn’t emotionally difficult for him to tell his war stories.

“It was a job that I did and it makes me the person that I am every day,” he said. “And I thank God every day for the blessings that I have.”

What has been a challenge is returning to school where very few of his peers know what he’s seen and gone through, Kiser said.

“Now I’m 25 and the things I’ve been through I can’t relate to some 18 or 19 years old,” he said. “At the Marine Corp, I could walk outside of my room and have the best friend of my life next to me.”

Since returning home, Kiser said he’s been able to find similar camaraderie within the veterans group of the Corps of Cadets — which he joined ass a ffreshman before becoming a Marine.

Being around other combat veterans is easy and comforting, he said. In talking with them, he doesn’t have to explain what it was like to wake up each day knowing it could be your last, and they get what it’s like to return to the civilian world after months of witnessing death and killing.

Had he not served, Kiser said he doubts he’d ever gain a true appreciation for those in the military.

And while he says it’s nice to be thanked for his service by those who don’t have military experience, he questions their ability to truly be grateful without having been in a war.

“Other than the people

close to veterans, honestly, [people] don’t care,” he said. “They don’t have a reason to unless they’ve been affected by the war or if somebody really close to them goes over there. You can’t hold it against them.”

It’s nice to see people’s Facebook statuses on Veterans Day announcing their gratitude for troops, Kiser said, but wishes more people would acknowledge and recognize the soldiers on days other than the holiday.

He noted how much it meant to him to receive care packages from supporters.

“To me, Veterans Day just is another day, but I’m thankful to be here,” he said.

Kiser plans to graduate with a bachelor’s degree in history in May 2013 and plans on pursuing his doctorate in the subject so he can go on to teach military history courses.

Salute to Veterans 2011

By MAGGIE KIELY maggie.kiely@theeagle.com

19

On Veterans Day We recognize the many sacrifices made by our men and women in uniform both today and throughout our nation’s history. We honor their courage and dedication, and we thank them for their contribution to our country.

Thank You, Veterans.

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