Ok, so I'm an Infantryman. The first line of defense and the front line of defense; the "Queen of Battle." I recently returned from serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation Enduring Freedom. I was there from 12 Feb 2003 to 15 Feb 2004! I was at Camps Doha and Wolf in Kuwait, An Nasiriyah and Camp Kalsu in Iraq, and H5 in Jordan. I also got a chance to go to Qatar for 4 days of R&R! This page isn't going to be much, but I just got a new digital camera so along with boring typing, be sure to check my photo page regularly. Hopefully I can catch up with you all on a more personal basis very soon! Keep in touch!

THE 76th Brigade at Camp Atterbury. Nighthawks!

"The American Infantry Soldier"
By: unknown

The average age of an American Infantry soldier is 19 years. He is a short-haired, tight-muscled kid who under normal circumstances is considered by society as half man, half boy. Not yet dry behind the ears, not old enough to buy a beer, but old enough to die for his country. He never really cared much for work and he would rather wax his own car than wash his father's; but he has never collected unemployment either. He's a recent High School graduate; he was probably an average student, pursued some form of sports activities, drives a ten year old jalopy, and has a steady girlfriend that either broke up with him when he left or swears to be waiting when he returns from half a world away. He listens to rock and roll or hipp hop or jazz or swing and 155 mm Howitzers. He is ten or fifteen lbs lighter now that when he was at home because he is working or fighting from before dawn to well after dusk. He has trouble spelling, thus letter writing is a pain for him, but he can field strip a rifle in 30 seconds and reasseble it in less than that. He can recite to you the nomenclature of a machine gun or of a grenade launcher and use either one efficiently if he must. He digs foxholes and latrines and can abbly first aid like a professional. He can march until he is told to sotp or stop until he is told to march. He obeys orders instantly without hesitation, but he is without spirit or individual dignity. He is self-sufficient. He has two sets of fatigues: he washes one and wears the other. He keeps his canteens full and his feet dry. He sometimes forgets to brush his teeth, but never to clean his rifle. He can cook his own meals, mend his own clothes, and fix his own hurts. If you're thirsty he'll share his water with you; if you are hungry, his food. He'll even split his ammunition with you in the midst of battle when you run low. He has learned to use his hands like weapons and his weapons like they were his hands. He can save your life - or take it because that is his job. He will often do twice the work of a civilian, draw half the pay, and still get ironic humor out of it all. He has seen more suffering and death than he should have in his short lifetime. He stood atop mountains of dead bodies and helped to create them. He has wept in public and in private, for friends that have fallen in combat unashamed. He feels every note of the National Anthem vibrate thorugh his body while at rigid attention, while tempering the burning desire to 'square away' those around him who haven't bothered to stand, remove their hat, or even stop talking. It is an odd twist, day in day out, far from home, he defends their right of freedom. Beardless or not, he is not a boy. He is the American fighting man that has kept this country free for over 200 years. He has asked nothing in return, except our friendship and understanding. Remember him always, for he has earned our respect and admiration with his blood.
Pray for our men and women!!!

"It is the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press.
It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech.
It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.
It is the soldier, not the lawyer, who has given us the right to a fair trial.
It is the soldier who salutes the flag, who serves under the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protestor to burn the flag."
~Charles M. Province

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