Baghdad- From the halls of Goodrich High School to Fort Benning Ga. to landing without lights at Baghdad International Airport on a C-130 Hercules’the past month has provided some changes for Lt. Col. David St. Aubin.
St. Aubin, 47, a U.S. Army Reservist and GHS principal since 2005, was called to active duty earlier this year. After 24 years of military service, he anticipates a one-year deployment in Iraq after departing his Brandon Township home in December.
‘I am well,? reported St. Aubin in a message to The Citizen via e-mail from a base in the city.
After landing in Baghdad, St. Aubin was transported via a ‘Rhino? (armored vehicle) as part of a heavily armed convoy through the red zone of the city.
‘This convoy moves fast. Stopping or slowing down is your enemy. You want to keep moving,? he said. ‘We all are wearing our body armor and our helmets. This is when you know ‘you’re not in Kansas anymore.??
St. Aubin said mortar and rocket attacks are frequent, but the area is heavily guarded with foreign security agencies (Ugandan and Peruvian) guarding every entrance of every street and every building. The area is secured and sealed off by huge cement slabs that stand upright about 20 feet high and about 15 inches thick.
‘Baghdad is a ‘cement? city for the most part. You can also see the damage that our bombing did to many areas and buildings. It is a definite casualty of war. The beautiful temples and palaces of Saddam Hussein’s regime still stand as a testament of a man who built enormous buildings for himself at the cost of his own starving people.?
‘Am I in danger? Let me put it this way. You always must be very careful and keep your diligence when it comes to personal security. There is gunfire and rocket attacks in the city often. It’s kind of like the old west. If you go into town looking for a gunfight, I guarantee you will get one.?
St. Aubin’s mission is to help train Iraqi soldiers so they can better provide security for their own nation.
‘An analogy: if you can’t control your discipline in your classroom, you can’t teach effectively,? he said. ‘If you can’t keep your people safe, you are not going to be able to govern your people effectively. This is part of my job working for the Multi-International Security Force-Iraq. To keep civil peace within a country with beautiful people who don’t hate the western world. They want peace and a democratic society. Their own democratic society. Not one with a military influence. One with a civil influence. There are my two cents.?
In January, St. Aubin will be relocated to a base about 100 miles south of the city, an area known as the ‘Wild West.?
‘I didn’t do anything for Christmas except call my family and I had a decent meal with a few comrades,? he said.
‘I wish the students a great holiday and I will be getting in touch with the school after the holidays,? he said. ‘I miss the students and staff at the school. I would also like to thank them again for all of the things that they did for me before I left. It was overwhelming. I felt very appreciated and loved by many. Thank you for all the things that you did.?