Photo By Spc. Paul Harris | 1st Lt. Benjamin Van Meter, native of Eugene, Ore., executive officer, Company B, 3rd...... read more read more
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by Pfc. Paul J. Harris
3rd HBCT, 4th ID PAO
BAQUBAH, Iraq (October 21, 2006) -- "It is one thing to see it on the news but it is different when you see it through your own eyes," said 1st Lt. Benjamin Van Meter, executive officer, Company B, 3rd Special Troops Battalion, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Lightning, referring to his first deployment to Iraq in support Operation Iraqi Freedom. "It puts (a) face to the conflict"
Van Meter is a native Oregonian having grown up in Eugene and graduated from the University of Oregon where he was enrolled in the Reserve Officer Training Corps program. His entrance in to the Army came about by an accident, quite literally.
"Right before I got involved in ROTC I had been involved in a car accident, a guy ran a red light and plowed into me and jacked me up pretty good," Van Meter said.
It was a long recuperation process taking its toll on his body and mind.
"I definitely gained a bit of weight, 5'7" and little over 200 pounds is a lot of weight if it is not muscle," Van Meter said. "I did not have a lot of self confidence. I ran into a lieutenant colonel who was running this ROTC program and he told me we are willing to give you a chance if you are willing to give yourself a chance."
Taking the weight off was hard at first. He recalled the first time he ran two miles for a physical fitness test in 26 minutes and 20 seconds. But over the course of his collegiate career he got into shape, running the same two mile test in 11 minutes and 30 seconds before graduating from the officer basic course.
After receiving his commission, Van Meter's first duty station was Fort Carson, Colo. He would not get to know the Mountain Post long as he was deployed to Iraq with the Striker Brigade in the fall of 2005.
"It was a lot different than I thought it would be," Van Meter said. "I honestly did not know what to expect."
In Iraq the Willamette High School alum would have to juggle many different hats. His job started out as a leader for a signal platoon helping supply communications via either radio or satellite to the brigade. With the brigade's primary mission to help the Iraqi Army and Government take control of the Diyala Province, Van Meter and his Soldiers were often tasked out to the Governor's Center in downtown Baqubah to help install communications.
He got his first taste of the craziness that is modern day Iraq while working down at the Governor's Center one afternoon when a vehicle laced with explosives ran into the Iraqi Police checkpoint in front of the building. It exploded on contact with the checkpoint killing the guards.
Though there are the fundamentalists who want nothing more than to see the new Iraqi Government fail Van Meter does not believe it to be the majority opinion of the Iraqi population.
"There are people that want a good life for themselves and their kids and they are not caught up on what ideology dictates," he said.
As a result of his work eventually becoming executive officer of Company B while still orchestrating communication support for many of the brigade's assets, Van Meter was recommended for the Bronze Star by Lt. Col. Leonard Wells, commander, 3rd STB.
"It is a year of your life that you spend over here," Van Meter said. "You get to interact with all sorts of people from different backgrounds. You come to understand and respect people from all different cultures"
An avid Ducks fan he has fond memories of hanging out at Eugene City Brewery and is looking forward to returning to Eugene to be friends and family after his re-deployment to the U.S.
"Eugene is a unique and beautiful city," Van Meter said. "You go up on one of the bluffs or the hills, there are so many trees you can hardly see streets ... and that is part of why it is so beautiful."
| Date Taken: | 10.21.2006 |
| Date Posted: | 10.22.2006 20:08 |
| Story ID: | 8107 |
| Location: | BAQUBAH, IQ |
| Web Views: | 358 |
| Downloads: | 83 |
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