As Secretary of State Collin Powell revealed what he believed to be proof yesterday of Iraqi possession of weapons of mass destruction, University of Wisconsin senior Connie Feurher packs the last of her belongings in preparation for deployment to the Middle East. Just last week, her Madison-based military unit came into active duty under President Bush’s call for war and the Operation Enduring Freedom Will Take Endurance Act.
“We got our orders about a week ago. They came from the Pentagon, basically,” Feuhrer said. “Every unit that is deployed has at least one or several very specific missions that are usually classified.”
David Tarr is a retired UW political science professor and feels there are distinct purposes behind troop deployment.
“Deployment increases the pressure on Saddam,” Tarr said. “[America needs] to be believable against a man like Saddam.”
Fuehrer is a fifth year senior at UW, studying bio-conservation. She has been a part of the army reserves since 1998 and is now a part of a four-company battalion containing about 200 people.
Despite being on the brink of graduation, Feuhrer is willing to put her personal plans on hold to respond to the call of duty and join the hundreds of thousands of American troops expected to participate in an invasion of Iraq.
“I have very individualistic beliefs,” said Feuhrer, who expressed a strong hope for a peaceful resolution to the current crisis. “But I believe in following the leader of our country.”
Three of those companies train in Madison and Feuhrer believes there will be a “fair amount of students in each unit.” She attributes this to the unusual programs the Army offers, such as tuition reimbursement and on-the-job training. Even so, Feuhrer did note that many of those in her unit are married and many have children.
“For deployment I [will be] working in the S-4 unit for supply,” Feuhrer said. “Our section keeps accountability of the whole battalion, equipment. We keep inventory, order dress uniforms, gear … and any other medical supplies, living supplies.” Soldiers that work with her essentially run a gigantic warehouse that requisitions and sends supplies.
Although the relations with Iraq have only recently escalated to the possibility of warfare, Feuhrer feels that she and her unit are prepared for the situation abroad.
“We’ve been training seriously for a long time,” she said. “It will be good if we can fight like we train.”
An intermission from school
Aside from the intense military preparation Feuhrer has undergone, she is still a student at UW and needs to tie up ends on campus before deployment.
“The most difficult part is that you have to drop classes no matter what,” she said. “And the hard thing about that is, because its short notice, we don’t actually have the official documents stating that were active yet. So there’s no way of telling the university that you are officially withdrawing.”
The end result of this problem comes in the form of tuition fines, inability to return books, and being set back academically. Feuhrer, who is scheduled to graduate this May, now says she has to wait until she returns before completing her bachelor’s degree.
Student veteran coordinator Linda Struck helps students in the armed services to sort out the task of putting their schooling on hold.
“Depending on when they get called up, we withdraw them and reimburse them in full,” Struck said.
However, Feuhrer said she has been trying unsuccessfully to collect reimbursement.
Adding to the challenges of withdrawing from classes, Feuhrer has had to cancel her lease early and move everything out of her apartment.
“According to the Soldiers and Sailors Act, universities have to let you withdraw without penalty, and landlords have to allow me to break my lease with no penalties — which they have not,” Feuhrer said.
The reason she’s met such opposition is because of a lack of official orders from the military. Since the exact location and purpose of her deployment are sensitive government information, all units have to wait till the very last moment before finding out precisely where they are going and what they will be doing. This makes her last days at home before shipping out hectic ones.
In addition, the academic and apartment struggles do not help in easing the transition between Madison and the Middle East. She worries about her roommates and wants to make sure they don’t have to take responsibility for her financial burdens in Madison.
“I have to clear [things] up later, when I could have done it ahead of time,” she said.
Back in the Middle-East
For Feuhrer, this will not be the first trip to the Middle East.
“I’ve been home for a year now and I had been deployed to Kuwait,” she said.
Prior to her stay in Kuwait, Feuhrer spent time in Guatemala with a hurricane relief effort.
Although the locations change, many of her immediate life events haven’t.
“Last year I took the whole year off for Kuwait,” she said, “[This year] one of my friends is having a wedding that I was playing the clarinet for, but I won’t be able to attend.”
Feuhrer also had to cancel a visit to her boyfriend in Louisiana this past weekend. However, she was able to spend time with many of her close friends and relatives.
“The whole family dropped everything they had,” she said. “We all stayed at a hotel. We swam and bummed around Madison.”
Although her family left on Sunday, Feuhrer’s twin sister stayed an extra day to help with any last minute items. Besides being twins, the two have something in common that Feuhrer feels helps each sister to understand the other.
“My sister is a Navy nurse [and also] on active duty,” she said. “[It’s] hard on my mom; she says ‘I’m very proud but I just want you girls home.’ ”
Several friends also stopped by to visit Feuhrer and wish her a safe trip.
A changed perspective
Having experienced militarily hostile situations first hand, Feuhrer believes she has changed and matured greatly through the challenges of military life.
“The way I view the world and my reaction to the world [has been altered],” she said.
Like her prior military deployments, Feuhrer is optimistic about the effects the recent one will have on her life. She feels her experience thus far has helped to shape and create the person she is today.
“There’s no going back to the person I was, even if I try,” she said.
Up to 500,000 people could suffer serious injuries during the first phase of an attack on Iraq, a confidential United Nations report said recently. This figure includes an estimated 100,000 hurt in combat and another 400,000 hurt in the desolation left after a U.S.-led attack.
Although the situation in Iraq has grown in intensity, Feuhrer holds fast to her life goals.
“I need my bachelor’s degree and I want to start my career as a conservation biologist,” she said. “Its just one of my dreams, and I am looking forward to that very much.”
Even so, the military is still a large part of her life.
“I’d love to stay in the guard,” she said. “My enlistment is up next February, [but] I’d love to be a Blackhawk pilot — that’s my unit’s specialty.”
A Future in Limbo
Having only a few days before deployment, Feuhrer has been moving non-stop. She’s had to withdraw from classes, completely empty her apartment, and say goodbye to many loved ones. She says it is hard to imagine that she now has to be prepared for a possible war.
The months to come are very uncertain for Feuhrer and her unit. Yet as she packs up the last of her things and makes her final farewell calls, her optimism holds strong.
“Bottom line: I want my whole unit to come back safe, every person,” Feuhrer said.