A couple weekends ago, Dawn and I attended a “going away” BBQ at friends Jerry and Cheryl Glance’s home. Jerry is what I casually call a “bomb tech”; his job is associated with disarming explosive devises. It’s dangerous work and, while I often kid him about it (see my April ‘07 post), I’m well aware of just how serious it really is.
Jerry’s also a Reservist where he does essentially the same thing and, as luck would have it, he was recently called for EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) duty in Afghanistan. He left a week ago Monday for Begram Air Base, a militarized airport located next to the ancient city of Bagram, southeast of Charikar in Parwan province where he’ll do what he does best — disarm and deactivate IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices). If my geography is correct, Begram is about 27 miles from Kabul which puts him right smack in harm’s way.
So the going away party was for Jerry, and many of the guys in his unit and their wives were there to give him a fitting send-off. And it was a grand get-together with wonderful friends and neighbors. Yet despite all the food, laughter and camaraderie, the seriousness of the occasion was also present and weighed heavily on everyone, especially Cheryl.
So we promised to help watch over her until his safe return. We’ll keep Jerry in our prayers and ask that you keep him in yours as well. While he’s in Afghanistan, he’s agreed to send me photos of what he sees — the local people, guys he works with, whatever he finds of interest — and I’ll post them on this site. And when he returns, I’m sure he’ll have lots of stories to share as well!
Be safe, Jerry. And remember: Pray (hard).