The Times Reporter March 7, 2004 Life in the 1485th: It’s been a long, hard year for Dover unit Members of the 1485th gather for a briefing before escorting a convoy of supplies with their gun trucks from their base north of Baghdad. Copley News Service/Ron Johnson By MARCUS STERN Copley News Service SOMEWHERE NORTH OF BAGHDAD – The sun was barely above the horizon Friday morning when Capt. Jeremy Banta, 33, the commanding officer of the Dover-based 1485th Transportation Company of the Ohio National Guard, lit his ritualistic cigar. It was to mark the departure of another convoy. His soldiers were providing protection for 25 cargo trucks about to roll south from this undisclosed location, through the heart of the treacherous Sunni Triangle, past the constant threat of roadside bombs, to a sprawling U.S. military base surrounding Baghdad International Airport. The cargo, like most of what enters the country these days, had arrived in the belly of a giant C-130 cargo plane. This former Iraqi air base where the 1485th is operating is a primary logistical hub for U.S. forces in Iraq. After arriving by air, the cargo is sorted and trucked to U.S military bases around the region. Since June, the 1485th has been a transportation work-horse, with its 60 tractors, 105 trailers, five Humvees and an assortment of other specialized vehicles. The unit makes deliveries in some of the Sunni Triangle’s most dangerous cities. Transportation companies like the 1485th are “pretty much the backbone of the entire operation,” said Staff Sgt. Sean Spanbauer, 27, a student at the Stark Campus of Kent State University. “Nothing moves unless we move it. Nothing gets anywhere; nobody goes anywhere.” Today, the missions are winding down for the 149 men and women of the 1485th. They’ve begun scrubbing their gear and loading it into large shipping containers to make the 6,300-mile trip back to Dover. They hope to fly to Kuwait in early April and to Ohio in early May. By then, these “weekend warriors” will have been away for 16 months. They have spent much of that time living as they do today, in tents. Meanwhile, regular Army units they’ve supported have come and gone on shorter deployments. The soldiers of the 1485th will bring home memories of a true pioneer experience. They arrived on this desolate stretch of sand in unbearable heat without shelter, furniture, air conditioning, adequate water, electricity or sanitation facilities. They survived on Pop Tarts, Ramen noodles and those meals in little brown military pouches known as MREs, or Meals Ready to Eat. When they turn over their small compound to their replacements, the latest arrivals will enjoy hot showers, flush toilets, air-conditioned tents, Internet access, satellite TV, sidewalks and chow halls serving sumptuous catered meals. While many regret the lost year-plus and the extreme hardship on their families, most say their involuntary endeavor was worthwhile for the American people, the Iraqis and even, in some ways, for themselves. “It’s been a real learning experience,” said Sgt. Kenneth Beers, 33, of Massillon. “It has felt good to help these people. Sure, some of them are shooting at us. But most of them don’t want us to leave. “These people have shown us respect and shown us they care. We’ve given them something they haven’t had before: freedom. And seeing them the way they are gives you something to be grateful for. It opens your eyes,” said Beers, who worked as a shipping clerk at Kendrick Vacuum Forming before he was deployed. Heavy media focus on the guerrilla war has slanted American perceptions, he said. “There’s a lot of good stuff that’s happening over here that they never hear about back home,” Beers said. “We’re doing a good thing here.” * * * Most of the 1485th say the deployment has changed their lives. It’s undeniable for two soldiers from the first and third platoons. They met in February 2003 during the first stop of the unit’s deployment – Fort Lee, Va. Today, they are married. Spec. Amanda Hursey and her husband, Spec. Eric Hursey, sat on his cot in the third platoon’s tent. Their heads were bent close as they feverishly spooned macaroni and cheese from the same plastic Tupperware bowl. The two giggled like newlyweds as they fought off each other’s spoons. “I’m glad he’s here and we’re together,” Amanda said. “But it sucks because we’re on different shifts and it’s hard to get time together.” Two months after meeting, they became engaged. In October, they went home on leave and got married. After the macaroni and cheese was devoured, Eric pulled the cover off his electronic keyboard and began playing. Amanda, sitting cross-legged in shorts on his cot, explained why she fell for Eric almost immediately. As his fingers danced up and down the keyboard producing mellifluous melodies, Amanda nodded and said, “That’s why.” They’re both 21. He’s from Newcomerstown and she’s from Bolivar. When they return home, they plan to live in her parents’ basement while deciding whether to build a house on six acres they own or buy one already built somewhere else. Guard units tend to be a family affair. The Hurseys are one of three married couples. Outside the third platoon’s tent, Sgt. Jimmy Marraccini and his wife, Sgt. Barbie Marraccini, both 26, hunched together talking quietly in the darkness of a sandbag-reinforced bunker. At home, he works at Harrison Steel Plant and she is a full-time employee of the Guard. His brother, Michael, also is here. Michael and Jimmy have a sister who is part of the unit but wasn’t deployed. Spec. Nicole Delong, 20, of Salesville is here with her father, Staff Sgt. Darryl Delong, 45. A squad leader here, Delong is a machinist back in Salesville. Nicole has been glad to have her father along. “It’s pretty great, actually,” she said. “It’s nice to have family here on holidays. Of course, it means I can’t get into too much trouble.” The unit even has a divorced couple. First Sgt. Ronda J. Phillips of Dover is the top enlisted soldier in the company. One of the troops serving under her is a squad leader from Tippecanoe named Larry Phillips. He’s her ex-husband. Their 8-year-old daughter Taylor is back in Dover. She is staying with one of Ronda’s closest friends, who lives in the house behind the sergeant’s and has children roughly Taylor’s age. While fortuitous circumstances have helped minimize the disruption to Taylor’s life, her mother says missing two of her daughter’s birthdays – the eighth and ninth – is reason enough to take her 20-year retirement from the Guard when she returns. She has been in the Guard 25 years, 20 of them full time. * * * The military doesn’t allow disclosure of the name or precise location of the base the 1485th has called home for the last 10 months. It’s in a barren area with a 10-mile perimeter. In the morning, shortly after dawn, two coyotes skulked among the vehicles. An American flag snapped in the desert wind over the tents. A sign in front of their compound carries the unit’s nickname: Spearhead. Those who had been on duty overnight were preparing to go to bed. Others were just getting up to face a day of 90-degree heat. It’s a temperature they actually find comfortable. After all, the temperatures were much higher during the summer. The top recorded temperature for the unit’s deployment so far has been 157 degrees. The soldiers describe seeing children walking bare-footed in 140-degree heat across asphalt hot enough to cook eggs. The metal trucks are so hot in the summer that touching them barehanded can cause first- or second-degree burns. Driving through the summer heat at 40 mph is like driving into an industrial strength hair dyer, they say. Putting your hand out the window will burn your fingernails almost immediately. Yet most of them will tell you the heat pales as a hardship in comparison to the length of time they have been away from family, friends, jobs and school. “It’s been great for the Iraqi people, but for me, personally, it’s sucked,” said Staff Sgt. John Miller, 39, of Hartville. He is very close to his two sons, Christopher and Michael. They build race cars together. When he was activated, they were working on a ’78 Monte Carlo. While in Iraq, Miller, a mail carrier, has missed two of his son Michael’s birthdays and lost custody of the boys to his ex-wife. He faces a battle over child support payments when he gets home. “I’ve been in the Army off and on since 1983,” said Miller, who served more than eight months during Desert Storm. Despite it all, he said, “I don’t regret being in the military.” He is serving here with Staff Sgt. Ronald Cogan, 39, from Canton. The two went to kindergarten and high school together and even married women who are cousins. “It’s been a long year and I’m looking forward to going home,” said Cogan. “Our top priority is to get everyone home alive.” Spec. Dylan Palmer, 27, of Massillon suspended his business studies at Ohio University when the unit was activated in February 2003. In Iraq, he drives trucks and pulls guard duty. Off duty, Palmer plays volleyball and the guitar while continuing to read business books. When he enrolls again at Ohio University next fall he will have missed three semesters. “For me, it’s been worthwhile,” he said. “I have a better perspective on what’s important to me – family. I’ve also been able to save a chunk of money for school. “It’s easy to get bummed about this. But I just try to remain positive and use the time for self-improvement.” What food does he miss most? “For some reason Taco Bell has been on my mind a lot,” he said. Spec. Ryan Cox, 25, is a diesel mechanic from New Philadelphia. He switched from the regular Army to the Guard to make a priority of getting his university degree. “I came to the Guard to finish my degree, and I haven’t been able to finish a single semester yet,” he said. His daughter was 7 months old when he left New Philadelphia. “My daughter will turn 2 on May 1, the day we’re supposed to roll into Dover,” he said. “So she might get a hell of a birthday present.”