By Jaci Schneider, Opinion Editor
With American troops fighting in Iraq for more than 80 weeks, few people on campus are unaffected. Most people know someone overseas, or know someone who knows someone.
Monica Smith, junior journalism major from Fort Worth, had the joy last week of spending time with her father, who is on leave for two weeks from just outside of Baghdad.
“I’m going home as much as possible to see him,” she said. “I’m excited.”
Her dad will return to Iraq Saturday, after spending Friday night in Abilene watching Monica Smith perform in JamFest. He is scheduled to remain in Iraq until April.
Annalee Bivins, senior English major from Pearland, said it took a while for her to get used to her boyfriend being overseas.
“The first couple of months were pretty bad because I was really uptight and scared,” she said. “He’s been gone for four months now, so it’s just kind of a part of life.”
Her boyfriend, David Micheletti, is on board U.S.S. JFK in the Persian Gulf. The ship is patrolling the oil lines to make sure there aren’t any terrorist attacks, Bivins said.
“He has e-mail, and I write him letters every day,” Bivins said. “But they only go into port once a month.”
“He can’t even tell me when he’s coming into port,” she said. “He can’t really tell me a whole lot of stuff that’s going on.”
Although Bivins worries about Micheletti, she said he tells her he’s safe.
“He says he’s really safe,” Bivins said. “I think to make me feel better.” However, Bivins added, working aboard an aircraft carrier is one of the safest places to work. A submarine and battleships follow the carrier, and the sheer number of people aboard the carrier makes it an unlikely target.
Bivins said Micheletti could be home in December or January, but she doesn’t know for sure.
Jama Cadle, alumni events coordinator, said her husband, Mike Cadle, has been training at Fort Hood in the Texas Army National Guard for several weeks. She gets to talk to him every day for a few minutes.
“I know it’s his duty, and I’m very proud of him,” Cadle said. “I would much rather Mike (Cadle) be here though.”
