NcDeuce
01-19-2004, 03:23 PM
Father and son duo takes on duties serving country in Iraq
By CHANTAL ESCOTO
The Leaf-Chronicle
Being in the action is a burning desire of a local father and son who share more than their names. John Harmsen Sr. and John Harmsen Jr. also want to be together in their cause -- even if it means meeting in a war zone.
Since the younger Harmsen, 25, can remember, he always wanted to fly helicopters. His wish came true as he is a Black Hawk pilot with the 9th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment. But his desire to be part of the action in the Army came from his father, a retired 5th Special Forces Group master sergeant.
"I remember when I was a kid, he would be sitting around talking with his buddies about all the places that they had been. It used to fascinate me. Now he and I can sit around and compare stories," Harmsen Jr. said via e-mail from Iraq.
The elder Harmsen, 48, retired from 5th Group in July 2000, but following the 9-11 attacks, he wanted to return to the Central Asian and Middle Eastern region he knows so well.
"I felt like we didn't finish the job in the last (Gulf War), and since we didn't do the job then, it was to fall on our children and grandchildren," Harmsen Sr. said last week. "I just felt obligated to be over there when all that happened."
So, he decided to take a job with a civilian contractor that provides security in countries like Afghanistan and Iraq. Harmsen Sr. arrived in Iraq two months before his son was deployed to Mosul in June 2003 after graduating from flight school.
"He couldn't stand the thought of Johnny being over there without him," said Katherine Harmsen about her husband meeting up with their son.
Although Harmsen Sr. missed pinning on his son's wings at the Fort Rucker, Ala., flight school graduation, nothing could have made him more proud than to see his son in action in Iraq.
"I felt very proud of John (Jr.). He's wanted to fly since he was 6 years old. And to be able to fly together in Iraq in a combat zone ... to see it come to fruition ... to be a part of that means so much."
One of their most memorable episodes was meeting on Christmas Eve near Baghdad, a day before the younger Harmsen's birthday.
While the senior Harmsen was in Clarksville last week for a short break, he returned to Iraq on Friday and will likely miss his son's homecoming when the 101st Airborne Division returns over the next several weeks.
"I was ready to come to Iraq to help contribute to Operation Iraqi Freedom, but knowing my dad would be here definitely made the deployment easier, sort of like going home to your family," Harmsen Jr. said. "My dad was gone a lot when I was a kid, but I feel like he never really left me. I have always understood and looked up to what he did for this country, and I hope someday my son says the same thing about me."
http://www.theleafchronicle.com/news/stories/20040119/localnews/253070-90398.jpg
John Harmsen Sr. and John Harmsen Jr., 25, a Clarksville father and son, met in Baghdad Dec.15. The younger Harmsen is a Black Hawk pilot assigned to the 9th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment in Iraq, while his father, Harmsen Sr. works with a civilian contractor providing security in Iraq.
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By CHANTAL ESCOTO
The Leaf-Chronicle
Being in the action is a burning desire of a local father and son who share more than their names. John Harmsen Sr. and John Harmsen Jr. also want to be together in their cause -- even if it means meeting in a war zone.
Since the younger Harmsen, 25, can remember, he always wanted to fly helicopters. His wish came true as he is a Black Hawk pilot with the 9th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment. But his desire to be part of the action in the Army came from his father, a retired 5th Special Forces Group master sergeant.
"I remember when I was a kid, he would be sitting around talking with his buddies about all the places that they had been. It used to fascinate me. Now he and I can sit around and compare stories," Harmsen Jr. said via e-mail from Iraq.
The elder Harmsen, 48, retired from 5th Group in July 2000, but following the 9-11 attacks, he wanted to return to the Central Asian and Middle Eastern region he knows so well.
"I felt like we didn't finish the job in the last (Gulf War), and since we didn't do the job then, it was to fall on our children and grandchildren," Harmsen Sr. said last week. "I just felt obligated to be over there when all that happened."
So, he decided to take a job with a civilian contractor that provides security in countries like Afghanistan and Iraq. Harmsen Sr. arrived in Iraq two months before his son was deployed to Mosul in June 2003 after graduating from flight school.
"He couldn't stand the thought of Johnny being over there without him," said Katherine Harmsen about her husband meeting up with their son.
Although Harmsen Sr. missed pinning on his son's wings at the Fort Rucker, Ala., flight school graduation, nothing could have made him more proud than to see his son in action in Iraq.
"I felt very proud of John (Jr.). He's wanted to fly since he was 6 years old. And to be able to fly together in Iraq in a combat zone ... to see it come to fruition ... to be a part of that means so much."
One of their most memorable episodes was meeting on Christmas Eve near Baghdad, a day before the younger Harmsen's birthday.
While the senior Harmsen was in Clarksville last week for a short break, he returned to Iraq on Friday and will likely miss his son's homecoming when the 101st Airborne Division returns over the next several weeks.
"I was ready to come to Iraq to help contribute to Operation Iraqi Freedom, but knowing my dad would be here definitely made the deployment easier, sort of like going home to your family," Harmsen Jr. said. "My dad was gone a lot when I was a kid, but I feel like he never really left me. I have always understood and looked up to what he did for this country, and I hope someday my son says the same thing about me."
http://www.theleafchronicle.com/news/stories/20040119/localnews/253070-90398.jpg
John Harmsen Sr. and John Harmsen Jr., 25, a Clarksville father and son, met in Baghdad Dec.15. The younger Harmsen is a Black Hawk pilot assigned to the 9th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment in Iraq, while his father, Harmsen Sr. works with a civilian contractor providing security in Iraq.
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