MAPELTON, Maine – Last Thursday, students and staff at Mapleton Elementary School made U.S. Army Sgt. Mike Warner feel like a winner.
Warner, who recently returned home following a one-year deployment to Iraq, was the guest of honor at a welcome home ceremony held at the school, where Warner’s son, Graydon, 9, and daughter, Brittany, 8, are students. Joining Warner was his wife, Tina. Daughter Kali, 12, was unable to attend.
“This is very overwhelming,” said Warner, a member of the B Co. 3/172 Infantry Mountain based in Brewer. “It kind of took my breath away and made my heart skip a beat. It was just awesome.
“The support this school – the teachers and the children – have shown me and all the other soldiers, was just unreal,” he said. “They’ve always been there for me. I’d get letters from the kids, and that meant a lot.”
Prior to Warner’s arrival at the school, all pre-kindergarten through grade five students filled the school’s center and gave a thunderous round of applause when the solider walked into the room. Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA” was then played, and fourth-grader Mary Mitchell led the group in the “Pledge of Allegiance.”
Student Shea Brown read a poem entitled, “A Solider,” which was followed by the children singing, “God Bless America.” Then each student approached Warner and presented him with a picture, card or other artwork they created for his homecoming. One student even gave Warner a camouflaged Easter egg.
The Warners were led to the cafeteria where a special table was set up for them to share a meal together. Warner said the meal – corn chowder and a turkey sandwich – was “much better” than the food served in the mess hall.
The Chapman resident reported to Brewer Jan. 9, 2006, and then went to Fort Dix, N.J. where he received two months of training.
“We flew overseas March 8, 2006,” he said. “That was my first overseas deployment. I was stationed in Baghdad, which was quite a change. It’s a completely different culture.
“The weather is hot and dry over there,” said Warner. “The average temperature in the summer was anywhere from 130 to 140 degrees, but during the winter months, it cooled down to 30 degrees. There were a lot of nights you’d be outside shivering … almost like being back home.”
As a member of the infantry mountain division, Warner was responsible for running convoy security missions.
“We’d escort Iraqi truck companies or KBR trucks. We’d get them from where I was stationed to other bases, hauling their goods and getting them there safely,” he said.
Warner said he missed his family the most during his year away.
“Then Aroostook County next,” he said. “I was able to talk to Tina and the kids almost every night. If we went on a mission or went on one that turned into a RON (remain overnight), I wouldn’t be able to talk to her, but where we utilize the Internet and I had my own personal laptop computer, it enabled us to use Web cams and voice on occasion.”
Tina said it was difficult raising the three kids by herself for so long.
“It was different … a day-to-day struggle,” she said. “There were good days and there were bad days, but my parents live five minutes from me, so I had a good support system. The community was exceptional.”
“I have a new found respect for my wife,” said Warner. “I think she had it rougher here than I did over there as far as dealing with the kids, the everyday things, running around for sports and school. She’s done an outstanding job. The awards that I’ve got I don’t feel worthy of … they ought to go to her.”
Warner said the troop returned to Fort Dix a little over a week ago, and was then bused to Bangor March 9.
“There were a lot of people in that hangar,” said Warner. “When they opened up the doors and we were all in formation, we got the order to march in. It was like, ‘Wow!’ There were guys that were looking to find their families for 15 minutes. I got lucky … I saw my youngest daughter on top of my Dad’s shoulders with a great big sign that said, ‘Welcome home, Dad.’
“We stayed down overnight and then drove back home the next day,” he said. “When I saw the windmills on Mars Hill Mountain, that totally blew me away. I was getting The Star-Herald over there in Baghdad, so I was able to keep up on what was going on in the area.”
For the last week and a half, Warner has been “hanging out with the wife and the kids.”
“We’ve had the snowmobiles out, and made a great big snow fort with the kids,” he said. “I’m slowly reintegrating back into society.”
Though still readjusting to life at home, Warner said he’s thinking about going back to school.
“I’d like to go for my associate’s degree in residential construction, and I’ve got my job at Columbia Forest Products. I’ve been there for 12-13 years, so I’ll be going back there,” he said.
“There’s always the possibility of being activated again. You never know,” said Warner. “I re-enlisted before I went over for six years, so I’ve got another four and-a-half years left on this contract. By the end of this contract, I’ll have 15 years in. I’m shooting for at least 20 years, so I’ll enlist again.”
Warner said he joined the military because he admired his father, Gordon, so much.
“My Dad spent 23 years in the military,” said Warner. “He served in Vietnam and Desert Storm, and I always looked at my Dad as my hero, so I think I that’s why I joined the military.”
Warner has nothing but praise for the “folks back home” who have kept the soldiers in their thoughts and prayers.
“On behalf of all the American soldiers serving over there, I’d like to say ‘thank you’ to everybody who shows any type of support for the United States soldiers,” he said. “They put their life at risk over there on a daily basis, and it makes me proud to know that the American public is standing behind the soldiers … they might not be standing behind the war, but they’re standing behind the soldiers. That makes you feel pretty good to put this uniform on.”
