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A Soldier’s Story First Sgt. Robert Jennings |
See also: In the Military
Isrii Talib, left, sits with fellow seamstresses Elham, Sharean and Olla in the sewing room of her shop.
Reason for single
sock dawns hard on
soldierŐs weary momHeavy presence may have helped deter attacks This is an excerpt from an e-mail I received from Mrs. Myrna Bein, mother of Spc. Charles Woolwine:
"I had brought Charles' soiled clothes home from Walter Reed to wash. Everything had gone through the wash and dry cycles and I had dumped the freshly laundered clothes onto the bed to fold them. It was late and I was quite tired, so I wanted to finish and get to bed to try for a better night's sleep than I've been having lately.
"I found one sock ... just one. I folded all the rest of the clothes and still, just one sock. Without even thinking, I walked back to the laundry room and searched the dryer for the mate. Nothing was there. I looked between the washer and dryer and all around the floor, in case I'd dropped the other sock somewhere during the loading and unloading processes.
"Still, my pre-occupied brain didn't get it. As I walked back to the bedroom with the one sock in hand, it hit me like a punch to the gut.
"There was no other sock. There was also no other foot, or lower leg, or knee. I stood there in my bedroom and clutched that one clean sock to my breast and an involuntary moan came from my throat; but it originated in my heart."
As most of you may know, Woolwine lost his lower leg in an ambush in Kirkuk on May 2nd. Bein has been my God-sent "information angel." She keeps me posted on the two soldiers remaining at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, and we use each other from time to time for thought sharing.
I told her I wanted to use some of the stuff she writes because there may be a mother, father, wife, or husband out there dealing with the same things. You all are not alone.
I also received outstanding news about her son. It seems that Woolwine has broken a record at Walter Reed; the least amount of time from losing a leg to standing on a prosthetic -- 30 days.
To all that know him, this is not a surprise. "The Machine," as he was known here in Alpha Company, is just acting like Woolwine. Congratulations and keep working, because I need a Guidon Bearer for our first run in Hawaii.
This week has been quiet for Alpha Company in regards to traditional military operations. It has allowed us to continue visiting areas of the city that need improvement and try to make friends in not-so-friendly neighborhoods.
As promised from last week, I will give an update to our small grant experiment. Isrii Talib is a widow whose husband was imprisoned and killed by the former Saddam regime before the fall of Iraq.
She came to us looking for work so she could feed her four children. We first employed her to clean and do other small chores. Later, we were able to sponsor her with a small business grant.
This week we went by to check on business and were very pleased. She runs a small sew shop and has had many offers to manufacture goods for Kirkuk and the surrounding regions.
She says that she just can't explain the happiness we have brought her. She said, "This is the first time in her life that I really feel self-dependent. I have learned to trust in my own abilities and learning to trust others. I could never have done this on my own."
She went on to say, "I am so happy I have made such good friends with the American soldiers. With their help, I was able to start my own business in a good neighborhood. Since I opened I have not struggled, I've just worked very hard."
It is always a pleasure to visit her because she is always so hospitable and smiling. This is such a pleasant change from a lot of the stuff we see everyday.
As we get closer and closer to the five month mark of our deployment I have done a little reflecting on our purpose, actions and progress. When I look at the job our soldiers have done it really brings me a strong sense of accomplishment.
I look back at the people we've arrested, not all have turned out to be the bad guy. But when we go back to their residence to check on them, they still seem to be grateful we are here. Even though we busted their door down in the middle of the night, they understand that is what has to happen in order to clean this city of the sewer trash that tries to strong-arm it.
As a Battalion Task Force, we have been able to oversee Iraqi citizens rebuilding their country. They have refurbished schools, repaired roads, installed sewer systems, repaired water towers and we have given numerous business grants.
All are a success so far. So if anyone asks me if I think it was right that we invaded Iraq, overthrew a ruthless dictator and sacrificed time, blood, sweat and tears to rebuild it, I can say without a doubt, "Yes."
God Bless and Aloha.
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Heavy presence may
have helped deter attacksThis week meet Pfc. Brandon Finch, a rifleman for 2nd Squad, 3rd Platoon. He is from Greensboro, N.C., and has been in the Army for 18 months. He also doubles as one of our company mechanics who keep our vehicles running.
Finch says that sometimes it's difficult to see the difference that we're making, but when you see how happy most of the people are it makes it that much easier.
Brandon Finch: The army rifleman says most Iraqi citizens appear eager to move forward
He added, "Since May 2nd, it really has focused me on the dangers in Iraq. We had not received a lot of contact, so it was easy to forget this was combat, not a restoration mission. I think keeping our presence heavy and visible has paid off with the drop in attacks."
I asked Finch where he saw this country going. He said, "They have to understand this isn't going to happen overnight. They have a long bumpy road ahead of them. Once they learn to work together, it will work itself out. Most of the Iraqi people seem very eager to move forward, but there are those few who continue to resist. We'll weed them out one at a time."
He finished his interview by saying hi to his father, Jeff, in Oxford, N.Y., and his mother, Rebecca, and brother, Derek, in Greensboro. "Don't worry too much; I'll be home safe and sound soon enough."
First Sgt. Robert Jennings
