As Jason, age 6, climbs into the backseat of our car, headed for a local Fall Festival excursion, he very proudly announces, "My dad is gone, but he'll be back in fifteen months." While there is pride in his voice, I cannot help but also hear the touch of sadness about his father's absence. I offer him a big smile and turn to his mother to extend the support of our neighborhood. She smiles and very calmly remarks that her husband will be missing Christmas this year, but will be sure to return before next Christmas. It becomes obvious that this military family has well prepared themselves for the deployment experience. Jason's family is one of the many at Fort. Campbell who will be affected by deployment. More than 10,000 troops are expected to be deployed over the next several months. Through Jason, I am reminded not only of the great courage of our many U.S. troops across the world, but of the courage of their families, as well.
-Alecia Vaughn