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Remembering Sept. 11’s legacy
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| H&N photo by Andrew Mariman Specialist Kenneth Burnett, Sgt. Brian Chipman and Sgt. John Gates discuss their time in Afghanistan serving with the Oregon Army National Guard. |
Service to country
By Megan Doyle
H&N Staff Writer
Sgt. Brian Chipman filtered the stories he would tell his mom while serving in Iraq and Afghanistan because he didn’t want her to worry.
Other members of his unit did the same thing. Conversations were about their children or the good things they were doing with the 186th Alpha Company.
Following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in Washington, D.C., and New York City, Chipman and other Klamath Falls-based Oregon Army National Guard members were among thousands of troops sent to Afghanistan to fight the Taliban.
The unit of soldiers from Klamath Falls, Medford, Grants Pass and Roseburg provided security for convoys and training for Afghan forces.
While deployed to Afghanistan between March 2006 and June 2007, unit members tried to focus on their mission and why they were there, Chipman said.
It wasn’t easy. Tragedy struck often.
A rocket aimed at their base missed its target and hit an adjacent civilian camp.
Sgt. John Gates recalls a busy street corner where people were walking one minute and on the ground, injured the next.
The unit provided Afghan students a tent for use as a school house, but it was burned three days later by members of the Taliban.
“There was a reason we went over there,” Gates said. “We’re doing amazing things over there, building schools.”
Fellow unit member Specialist Kenneth Burnett said helping children made an impact on him, especially since he had children of his own at home.
While sitting in an observation tower one day, he watched a group of children walk by.
“They weren’t dressed properly for the inclement weather,” Burnett said.
Help from Klamath Falls
Utilizing contacts in Klamath Falls, Burnett gathered warmer clothes for the Afghan children and handed them out.
“They definitely liked us a lot more after that,” he said.
The men said they interacted with Afghanis on a daily basis.
There were some small towns the men went through where the locals would look at them as if they could set them on fire with their eyes.
“(But) overall they’re pretty receptive of us being there,” Chipman said.
In Afghanistan, locals sometimes would let Americans know if there was someone around who would try to hurt them. That intelligence wasn’t offered as often when Chipman served in Iraq, he said.
Other members of his unit did the same thing. Conversations were about their children or the good things they were doing with the 186th Alpha Company.
Following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in Washington, D.C., and New York City, Chipman and other Klamath Falls-based Oregon Army National Guard members were among thousands of troops sent to Afghanistan to fight the Taliban.
The unit of soldiers from Klamath Falls, Medford, Grants Pass and Roseburg provided security for convoys and training for Afghan forces.
While deployed to Afghanistan between March 2006 and June 2007, unit members tried to focus on their mission and why they were there, Chipman said.
It wasn’t easy. Tragedy struck often.
A rocket aimed at their base missed its target and hit an adjacent civilian camp.
Sgt. John Gates recalls a busy street corner where people were walking one minute and on the ground, injured the next.
The unit provided Afghan students a tent for use as a school house, but it was burned three days later by members of the Taliban.
“There was a reason we went over there,” Gates said. “We’re doing amazing things over there, building schools.”
Fellow unit member Specialist Kenneth Burnett said helping children made an impact on him, especially since he had children of his own at home.
While sitting in an observation tower one day, he watched a group of children walk by.
“They weren’t dressed properly for the inclement weather,” Burnett said.
Help from Klamath Falls
Utilizing contacts in Klamath Falls, Burnett gathered warmer clothes for the Afghan children and handed them out.
“They definitely liked us a lot more after that,” he said.
The men said they interacted with Afghanis on a daily basis.
There were some small towns the men went through where the locals would look at them as if they could set them on fire with their eyes.
“(But) overall they’re pretty receptive of us being there,” Chipman said.
In Afghanistan, locals sometimes would let Americans know if there was someone around who would try to hurt them. That intelligence wasn’t offered as often when Chipman served in Iraq, he said.
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Brittany Severson wrote on Sep 10, 2008 11:14 PM: