Photo By Spc. Jason Dangel | A UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crew from the 3rd Battalion, 4th Aviation Regiment,...... read more read more
By Sgt. Jason Dangel
Combat Aviation Brigade, 4th Infantry Division
CAMP TAJI, Iraq – It was only a moment that Soldiers stopped to recognize Thanksgiving Day, and thereafter, quickly returned to business as usual, twelve miles north of the Iraqi Capital, Nov. 27.
For Soldiers of the Combat Aviation Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, Multi-National Division – Baghdad, the national holiday amounts to extended dining facility hours, a good meal and possibly a phone call home.
In the back of every Soldiers mind they know that the enemy is still out there; dwindling yet still determined to undermine the country's progress over the last year.
For the majority of Soldiers from the "Iron Eagle" brigade, this isn't their first time away from their families during the holidays, and it probably isn't their last.
For most, this is the second time in three years that they have been deployed into the combat zone where fighting the enemy is a 24/7 job, and it doesn't stop for the celebration of holidays.
Chief Warrant Officer 2 Richard Montoya, a 13-year veteran, knows how hard it is to be away from family during the holidays, but remains dedicated to the mission despite missing out on his wife's delicious side dishes.
The UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter pilot from the CAB's 2nd Battalion, 4th Avn. Regt., likes to use a popular phrase first spoken by actor David Spade in the movie "Joe Dirt," when asked how he feels about being away from his family, and that is "you just have to keep on keepin' on.
"I really don't sit and sulk about [not being home with my family]," the Hialeah, Fla., native said.
"Before I deploy, I fully understand that for the following year things are not going to be the same. Actually, with so many years in the military under my belt, this isn't even an issue for me anymore. It's a way of life," he continued.
For Montoya, this will be his fourth Thanksgiving away from his wife and three children, and the second in three years.
"They don't like when I'm gone. No one does. But its days like these that we need to focus on what is truly important; family," he said.
"It is important to let them know how much you miss them and how you wish you were there to enjoy the day with them. It really means the world to them to let them know that."
Over the sound of spinning rotor blades, Soldiers line-up to receive their share of Thanksgiving dinner. The buffet style meal is probably as much celebration as a Soldier gets on "Turkey Day."
The dinner features all the traditional fixings that a Soldier would enjoy back home, except they aren't home and they don't get the day off.
All Soldiers agree that when they signed up to become part of the U.S. Army, they knew they would have to make sacrifices, and even though many service members have become hardened over the course of many combat deployments, the longing for family during is ever present on Thanksgiving day.
From inside his isolated office, 20-year Army veteran Master Sgt. Tim Spratley finalizes some paperwork for a young Soldier who has opted to stay in the Army for four more years. Work is priority number one; he can wait for dinner. The dining facility isn't going anywhere.
The married father of two can't be lured away from his desk by the smell of turkey or pumpkin pie; there is too much work to be done.
"The most I will probably do today is call home, and I might go over and get some Thanksgiving dinner," the brigade's retention non-commissioned officer-in-charge from San Antonio said.
"Around here, or at least to me, Thanksgiving is just another day."
He files through a stack of papers and mentions that 45 percent of the brigade's reenlistment objective has been met. Three more Soldiers will reenlist today; on Thanksgiving.
"I don't think the Soldiers who are reenlisting will think of today any differently than any other," he said.
"They will probably have their ceremonies and then go back to work. We are in combat and our mission is priority number one."
Similar to Montoya, the veteran retention NCO has missed Thanksgiving with his family five times during the course of his career due to deployments and tours to Korea.
For the most part, his family is used to his absence during the holidays, but this year he said he will make sure to talk extra long to his seven year-old son when he calls home tonight.
| Date Taken: | 11.27.2008 |
| Date Posted: | 11.27.2008 14:24 |
| Story ID: | 26889 |
| Location: | TAJI, IQ |
| Web Views: | 163 |
| Downloads: | 134 |
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