Ms. Green’s son visits from Iraq

Posted on 13. Jan, 2010 by joannagreer in News Around School

Private Cargill with nieces before return to duty in Iraq

By Evan Smith
December 4, 2009

Private First Class Andrew Cargill, son of Assistant Principal Ruth Green, spent some of his time off from duty in Iraq speaking to students in JFK’s NJROTC classes.

“I miss my friends and family,” said Cargill. “I’ve been working non-stop since I got here.” Private Cargill graduated from Sherwood High School in 2003. He worked for a while after he graduated, then trained to be a Harley-Davidson mechanic. He wanted something different so he enlisted in the U.S. Army. “There are many job opportunities in the army, ” he said, “anything from engineering to medics.”

In Iraq Private Cargill stays at Fob Normandy with two other roommates. The room hardly appears large enough for one person to live let alone three. He manages to fit his laptop, some speakers, and pictures of his friends and family around his bunk and that’s about it. “I have my laptop in case we ever get a little free time,” he said. It is clear that free time is rare when you are a soldier in Iraq. You may find yourself patrolling a base or path all day, or you might end up having to train outside a base; either way it isn’t very often that you get to sit around and mess with your laptop. There isn’t even a consistent internet source in their homeaway from home at Fob Normandy. Even when it may be up, it can be extremely slow. “It’s comparable to dial-up speeds, ” said Cargill.

He has been thankful that he hasn’t had to shoot at any human beings though he couldn’t help but admitting it is fun to shoot when you are practicing at a range. “The war has definitely toned down from a few years ago, he said. Private Cargill has yet to witness any violence or aggression from Iraqi citizens towards him, and for this he is thankful. “Afghanistan is where all the real fighting is going on right now,” he said.

Because all U.S. troops were removed from inner cities, Private Cargill regrets that he has not seen any of the sights from major cities in Iraq, such as Bagdad, in person. Sanitation is differentthan here as the Iraqi people tend to burn their garbage over and over again which makes for some interesting smells. Every once in a while you may even see a donkey or two walking around. This is because farmers often let them go find their own food during the day.

Private Cargill estimated that he typically carries around 60 pounds of equipment daily depending on the various duties.

He spent two weeks with his family and friends and took time out to visit the NJROTC classes at Kennedy. He is back on duty in Iraq at this date.