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Welcome home; A safe return gives holiday added spirit |
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Monday, 07 July 2008 |
The Fourth of July is always a special day for one Saline County family, but this particular holiday holds even more meaning with the safe return of one of their own from Iraq.
Staff Sgt. Brandon Marvel, 25, came home Monday with the 213th Area Support Medical Co. He was stationed at the Tallil Air Base, which is in southern Iraq near Nasiriyah.
“I can’t describe how it feels to back in the U.S.,” Marvel said in an interview at his mother’s office. Kim Wheelbarger works as a records clerk for the Bryant Police Department.
Wheelbarger said the Fourth is always celebrated with the whole family gathering to eat, play and visit. They even all go together to pick out the fireworks that will be on display at their home in the Salem community. “This year, with Brandon being home, all the family will come over, and we’re going to have a family picture taken,” she said.
“I love being back in green,” Marvel said, noting one tires quickly of the desert landscape. Wheelbarger and Marvel’s sister, Trista Page, recalled that at 6 a.m. the day of the interview, Marvel was out on the four-wheeler just looking at trees and the grass.
“After we leave here, I’m going to get a four-wheeler,” Marvel said.
Having just returned home, Marvel seemed to be adjusting fairly easily. His nieces and nephew probably helped, giving their uncle much attention with hugs and playful affection.
He said he still has the positive attitude that got him through the long days in Iraq. “I just tried to always look at the positives. The nights I’d sit there and wonder when my number would be up were not good nights.”
Marvel escaped losing his life or serious injury one night when he was away from his sleeping quarters. “When I got back there was shrapnel on my bed from a rocket that flew through the window. I always thought I’d be safe in there,” he said.
“I couldn’t worry about that. When you’re number’s up, it’s up,” he said.
Staying busy at work helped Marvel get through any rough patches. His work also helped him perfect ways to stay in touch with his family.
Marvel’s duties included running the hospital’s and company’s computer system. More specifically, he said he maintained a log of soldier records. To help himself and others stay connected to home, Marvel installed an Internet satellite system. “The whole unit benefitted,” he said. He was one of 76 soldiers from Arkansas stationed there.
The Internet endeavor also helped promote an Iraqi business, which is one of the military’s goals right now, Marvel said.
Marvel got his start in the computer world shortly after joining the National Guard in 1999. He knew he wanted to join the military as a boy when he listened to his grandfather, Ambrose Dave Bridges, tell Navy tales.
As a participant in the Junior ROTC program at Sheridan High School, Marvel said he was interested in communications courses. “That was one of the perks of the National Guard. The computer training is through the roof,” he said.
In 2003, two years out of high school, Marvel was deployed to guard Fort Sam Houston in Texas as part of Operation Noble Eagle.
He volunteered for his assignment in Iraq so that he could work in the hospital and not in a more combative zone. However, he said, “You always see some combat.”
Performing what he called an eight-man job alone earned Marvel an Army commendation medal for achieving excellence in his field.
Wheelbarger received a letter about Marvel from his supervisor in May, outlining how he is an asset to the company. Maj. Gary Hinkle wrote: “What I appreciate most about his actions here is that he came here and ended up having to run the hospital and company’s computer systems. This job is extremely challenging, considering we had to complete the mission single-handed.”
Expressing gratitude for the family’s support of Marvel, Hinkle wrote: “I realize the difficulties there are for you without Brandon around, I know he misses you very much and buries himself in work to make the time go by faster. ... His presence here has made a difference in many soldiers’ and civilians’ lives, differences you may never hear about, but you have directly helped create. ... He has been very valuable to me, to the 213th ASMC and the soldiers and civilians of southern and central Iraq and I will get him back to you soon!”
In the hospital where Marvel worked, he said medical personnel treat more than 20,000 soldiers, and American and local civilians a year.
A happy memory for Marvel is working on Operation Smile during which the Army helped Iraqi children receive proper dental care. Another good memory is playing softball in front the Ziggurat of Ur, which has historical and biblical significance. “That was a unique experience.”
Marvel said he’s had a change of attitude concerning the U.S.’s involvement in Iraq. “My views changed. Before, I had the typical American attitude. I wondered why we were there, why we were wasting our time, our soldiers’ time.”
A 7-year-old boy changed his thinking.
The boy is the son of one of the interpreters that worked in the hospital, Marvel said. He had gone to a local hospital for an injury, “and they were going to amputate it.”
“We saved his foot,” Marvel said. “We’ve built thousands of schools, medical facilities. We’re teaching them to stand on their own feet.”
Now, Marvel is hoping to start a new job as a senior systems administrator for a company in Little Rock. In the meantime, he plans to kick back his feet and enjoy the simple things in life. |
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