Desert Shield/Desert Storm

[richhodg66]

This time of year always gets me thinking about it, and I'm afraid it's been largely forgotten about, but 30 years ago, I was about a week into my first time on foreign soil in harm's way in Dharan, Saudi Arabia. I was walking through out little city park here with various monuments yesterday evening and noticed they had a memorial to the guys killed from 1st Infantry Division (despite my very shameless homesteading most of my career here and very long time being a part of the Big Red One, I actually went to Desert Storm with the 3rd ACR which was at Fort Bliss at the time).

I was barely 24 at the time and it is one of those pivotal events of my formative years.

[koehn,jim]

Thank you for your service.

[WebMonkey]

thanks for sharing about the monuments in your area.

i still think it's important to 'stack stones' to remind future generations of what/who came before them.


desert storm ended my career so i'm right there with you about reflecting.

'monkey

[Scrounge]

I got there August 15th, spent my time running a satellite terminal in Riyadh. 507th Tactical Air Control Center Squadron.

I think most people have forgotten it. Just like they forgot Grenada, and Viet Nam, and Korea, and most everything that happened before.

Closest I got to being shot at, besides the SCUD-B missiles everyone in theater worried about, was a Saudi guard in our area losing it and shooting at shadows one night.

Thank you for your service.

[navyvet]

Thank you all for your service.

[Pressman]

The Monday prior to Thanksgiving I was "drafted" into a National Guard air ambulance unit, 1187th Med, as I was the only MOS qualified NBCNCO in the state. We ended up in Fort Riley for 6 months flying active missions for civilian assistance.
Released from active duty, but on leave I was called two weeks later for duty in KKMC Saudi Arabia to get all the rolling stock, ie: tanks, trucks and everything else ready and loaded to Dhahran. I landed in country the same day the ammo carrier exploded in Kuwait killing two.
With the clean-up mission completed months ahead of schedule I was sent to Camp Doha, Kuwait to work in a S&S company supplying food, fuel and transportation to the entire Doha complex, the air port and a Kuwaiti army base north of Kuwait City.
THe highway leasing north from Kuwait City had a choke point that was the scene of a major killing ground by Gunships and other aircraft as the Iraqi army tried to get away. The road was open then, but the wreckage was still there. It was a very poignant reminder of the brutal cost of war in human and material losses.
I ended up with exactly 1 year and six months on active duty for Desert Storm.

The aftermath of that experience still affects my life today. Good and bad.

[slim1836]

Thanks to all of you who served this great country of ours. The wounds from combat run deep and heal slowly. Keep the faith and remember those that did not make it back.

Slim

[RKJ]

Thank you all for your service.

Thank you for yours!

[1eyedjack]

As another National Guardsman mobilized for ODS I also see how easy it is to forget the sacrifices made not only by the service member but also the anguish the family goes through. I missed most of my daughters senior year providing fire support for the Brits which I have great respect for!!! They didn't care what branch of service or the patch on our shoulder, only can you do your job ??? We had antique artillery by our Army's standards - 8" M110A2 howitzers - old school but MORE effective against the targets we engaged for the Brits !!
God Bless ALL of our service members but never forget the families that provide support & prayers at home!!!

[fatnhappy]

My father and mother had many sleepless nights with my brother and I both there. My father more so.


It was an honor to serve.

[smoked turkey]

Thanks to all those who gave up precious years of their life to serve and defend our nation. Most of the time those were some of their best years too. I agree with the above that we must never forget the sacrifices that were made. All too often those giving their devotion returned home with their minds and bodies scared from the effects of their duty.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Richhodg66--I was long gone from the Army (1964) when the events you are remembering happened. My time was in the 3rd ID in Germany. When our army was getting ready to go over the sand berms and into Kuwait it was being shown daily on TV. I remember thinking, "Here are all these guys just wandering around. Lots of them aren't even wearing the same uniform. There's even some in boonie hats like the Viet Nam War. Looks like at least 4 different patterns and colors of cammies. Seemed like no cohesion. I wouldn't bet that the Iraqis won't give them a hard time." There seemed no organization, less discipline. Then the 3rd and their tanks started arriving from Germany. Abrams with soldiers dressed in forest camo. Tanks were coming down ramps, and I was straining to see the subdued shoulder patch on the tank commander's uniforms. The 3rd ID! I said to myself, "Here come the real soldiers!" They subsequently made the run to Bagdad, the longest attack against opposition in US Army history. I wasn't there, but 56 Years after my departure from the 3rd, unit pride still runs deep. I wrote this to commemorate and honor your experiences. No disrespect to the 1st, 2nd, or 4th IDs. Great outfits. When the 4th arrived in Iraq at the end of the conflict I thought the grand strategy might be to swing to the right and invade Iran. But, it didn't happen. I wonder, like the '60s song, "Who's sorry now?"

[Pressman]

My father and mother had many sleepless nights with my brother and I both there. My father more so.


It was an honor to serve.

In my 27 years of active and reserve service there was 6 times I saw my mother cry as I boarded a plane for another tour in a war zone.

Yes, those family members who stayed behind had a big load to carry.

[Ole Joe Clarke]

God bless all our current troops and those that served, and the loved ones who prayed and worried. Thank you for your service and sacrifice.

Have a blessed day,

Leon

[Finster101]

I think about it. I still had some friends in the 2nd ACR. From what I have heard and read they did quite a job in Desert Storm. I have read some on the battle of 73Easting but keep trying to learn more. Thank you to you boys that were there. I got out in 83.

[lightman]

A sincere Thank You to all of you that served.

[Omega]

I was in the 612th QM Co, Parachute Riggers, out of Fort Bragg. We pretty much were tasked with MHE support loading and unloading ships and supply runs. We were housed in an old Firestone plant, from the warehouse that was subsequently hit by the scud/patriot that killed those reserve guys.

[Harter66]

Our little town lost a son to the 2nd go around . Another gave his legs , he died 3 times on the way home . It's a little town of less than 3,000 so everyone knows everyone .

My youngest spent 30 of his 60 months in service over there 222 Air Wing Army from Savannah .
My oldest son spent 8-9 months over there with the 12th Cav from Ft ...... Kentucky .

The youngest has taken most of 8 yr since his discharge to be able to resume a "normal" life . Recently he said " I have to say thank you for giving me the tools to deal with what I saw , did , and lived through . Sometimes I almost felt like you were a stone cold asterisk in the way you made us do things and deal with life and it's frailty . I couldn't see even in the thick of things , but this guy I was talking to talked about how he had never seen the full circle of life and how it just destroyed him to see a life slip away . It took 7 years from the last hop home for it to all make sense . I talked to Gene about it and he said yeah Dad's almost as good as Grandpa was about teaching us about the ways of life . Seems like we knew what we needed to know we just didn't remember the lessons . Now we remember them and have begun to use them for ourselves and to begin help others ......... Imagine that I've actually come far enough to help someone else ."

Neither of the boys really elaborated on what the lesson was or what it taught them . It may have been as simple as head down/chin up so you can see or be the duck in a stream calm cool unruffled above the water paddling to beat all below or maybe it was hunting in and of itself or being their great grandmothers pall bearers . In any case whatever it was I'm glad they had it and sad they had to use it in the way they needed to .

I didn't serve but I humped ammo from 95'-17' sent 3 to tend the dogs of war and mourned the loss of a local son .
It comes this time of year when I often reflect on the vets and families of the last 245 years and the men , their wives etc I've known that served from the War to End all wars all the way up to my oldest boy that at the tender age of 33 has re-up'd for his second hitch and another 6 yr .

To those that are serving , have served and stand today you have my most humbled respect and most sincere thanks . I salute those now long gone and those that didn't make it home .

[jonp]

Many of us don't forget. In fact, despite the MSM the majority of Americans don't. I served and was in on Grenada and Panama plus some other things. Daughter went into the Sandbox. Thank you for putting on the uniform

[BrassMagnet]

I was there on the USS Nimitz (CVN-68). We got there after the shooting stopped. We just patrolled and enforced the cease fire. No big excitement, just a lot of long work days. I had it easy compared to those that had their boots on the ground.
A few years later I retired. Then I went to college and got a degree and then I found another career using the electronic training I got in the Navy and the degree to make that high school dropout look less bad. I have retired from that, too!
Life is good. I can load, shoot, and help others to load and shoot. Yesterday I was teaching a friend reloading and today we continue with the reloading teaching. We'll even get to shoot his first reloads.