Home from war
By Mary McCarty
Dayton Daily News
They are part of the first generation of moms and dads who have gone to battle together, and Amanda and Aaron Wilson know they have just taken part in history.
But Thursday night, their thoughts turned toward the strictly personal. Following a five-month tour with Operation Iraqi Freedom, they found themselves on their way to Medway to be reunited with their twins, Katelyn and Christopher.
The babies were 10 months old when they were left in the care of Amanda's mother, Pam Covert of Medway. Since then they have, respectively, taken a first step (Christopher), sprouted a first tooth (Katelyn) and celebrated their first birthday.
"When we left they were just babies, and now they're little people," Aaron observed. "I feel like I'm in a time warp."
As they drove from Sumter, S.C., on Thursday night, Amanda called her mother from Chillicothe and Washington Court House.
"I started crying around Xenia," she said. "They were waiting at the door. I leaped out of the car and tried to walk through the door. But I was crying too hard, and they looked at me like I was crazy."
Did they recognize their parents? Hard to say. What's clear is they have bonded with "Grammy," as Amanda calls her mother.
"I don't know what we'd have done without Mom," Amanda said. "I worried about getting back to them safely, but I didn't worry about whether they were being taken care of. I knew they were getting spoiled rotten."
On Monday, the day before the family headed home for South Carolina, the Wilsons seemed well on their way to becoming a family again. Although the twins clearly favored Grammy, they crawled in and out of their parents' laps. Katelyn, ever the comic, put on a fashion show by trying on mixing bowls for hats.
"I'll be down there in two weeks," Covert warned. "They were like my babies."
Covert, 42, turned her life upside down to take care of the twins. Youngest daughter, Gina, 17, is entering her senior year in high school. After years of struggle as a single mom, Covert was focused on career.
When Amanda and Aaron, both in the Air Force, were deployed within a week of each other in March, she landed abruptly back in the the world of diapers and nap times.
She wouldn't have it any other way, not when her children were putting themselves in harm's way.
Aaron faced danger in his job as a jet engine mechanic working on F-16s. Stationed in Saudi Arabia, he was shipped on one occasion to Kuwait, 10 miles from the Iraq border, to work on a damaged aircraft diverted from Iraq.
"Saddam was shooting off missiles headed for Kuwait City, and Patriot batteries were shooting them down 100 yards from us on the hill," Aaron recalled. "It was scary to hear the alarms going off and scampering for shelter, knowing that stuff could kill you. We had to put on our chemical gear."
Unlike his wife, Aaron was able to banish thoughts about whether he would make it home to the twins:
"I couldn't think of it too much; I had to focus on the task at hand and count the days. Many times you would slave nine to 12 hours on an aircraft, til your knuckles were busted up. It's a good feeling to see the aircraft taxi out and to know you put it safely up in the air."
He found satisfaction in putting the skills he had learned in the Air Force into practice: "I spent my whole career practicing. When war comes along, it's game day. It's cool to exercise those skills when it counts."
Amanda, who worked in satellite communications, was stationed for two months in Saudi Arabia and two months in Pakistan. She never felt in immediate danger. She missed the twins terribly, and hated watching them grow up through digital photos on her computer screen.
She had plenty of company. "Up until now, none of the people I've served with had ever gone to war," Amanda said. "But I met so many moms and dads in the same or similar situation. Other people were missing their kids, too."
The worst days came when she had a day off, with nothing to do but look at the twins' pictures and think about going home. "There's so much that I missed, and I'll never have that back, no matter how many pictures they took and how much they videotaped," she said.
Added Aaron, "It's sad that you have to miss all that. But I hope we were building them a better future and a better world."
Each of the twins thoughtfully saved a milestone for their parents. Christopher started walking but didn't cut a tooth; Katelyn started teething but didn't take her first step. "If they had been teething at the same time I would have called President Bush and said, 'Bring her home!’ ” Covert said.
She found support in unexpected quarters. After reading about the Wilson family in a March 26 Dayton Daily News article, a group of 40 young gymnasts — ages 8 to 15 — banded together to support the family in a service project they dubbed Operation Twin Angels.
The young Olympic hopefuls train at Cincinnati Gymnastics Academy in Fairfield, where Covert's sister, Debbie Moseley of Huber Heights, works as a coach and gym manager.
Coach Tracie Voice noticed the article on Moseley's desk and decided to read it aloud to the girls at their weekly "spirit group" meeting. "I explained to them how the war was affecting people at home," Voice said.
Initially the girls decided to collect a dollar each to help the family. Soon their families became involved and it blossomed into a months-long enterprise.
The gymnasts showered Amanda and Aaron with letters, many decorated with drawings of American flags. They bombarded Covert with Pampers, formula and toys "until it was getting out of control," she said with a laugh.
On Easter they delivered a baby swimming pool decorated as an Easter basket and loaded with goodies. For the twins' first birthday they threw a boisterous All-American themed party at the gym.
"It's amazing to me that something that started out that small turned into a huge life lesson," Voice said. "They really got into sharing: What more can I give, what more can I do?"
Tina Morris, who, with her 14-year-old daughter Ashley, spearheaded the project, believes the girls gained as much as they gave.
"We're in such a fast-paced society, in a world of me, me, my, my," she said. "Some service projects last for a day or an hour and they're done. This took on a whole different meaning. The kids said, 'I'm going to use my allowance to buy something for the Easter basket,' or 'I'm going to put their scrapbook together.’ ”
"It was awesome," Amanda said. "I didn't know there were people out there who still did this kind of stuff."
Friday night, the family met their young benefactors at an impromptu gathering at the gym. They sat around the gym floor and explained what it was like in the Persian Gulf, and how it felt to be separated from their children.
"It gave them respect and appreciation for what they have done," Morris said. "Throughout the whole project they have been learning current events and participating in the small way that they were able to."
Do the girls realize they are witnessing history in the making? Or does it seem normal to them, a husband and wife going off to war together?
Amanda knows there are still those who believe women shouldn't be sent to war. To them she would simply respond, "I'm out there protecting your rights and the freedom for you to say that. If Aaron and I are both critical to the mission, then you do whatever it takes to get the job done."
And now comes their reward: It's their turn to take over Operation Twin Angels.
Contact Mary McCarty at mmccarty@DaytonDailyNews.com or 225-2209.
[From the Dayton Daily News: 08.06.2003]
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