Back from the Sandbox

 When Patrick Foreman's brother called the newspaper office the other day asking if we would do a story on Foreman, I have to admit that I wasn't expecting what I consider one of my better interviews. Foreman served on a tank during two different tours of Iraq. This, in part, is his story.

By JOHN WORTHEN
News-Times Staff
“It’s hard to describe; you just can’t find the words.” That’s how Staff Sgt. Patrick Foreman remembers his two tours of duty in Iraq. “The Great Sandbox,” as it’s often called by battle-weary soldiers, holds a cluster of horrors for each man and woman who serves there.

The heat can be unbearable, the coarse sand irritates the eyes and skin, and the insurgents, at times, are around every corner ready to hurl their homemade bombs.
But driving along North West Avenue in El Dorado, Foreman no longer has to worry about a possible sniper taking a shot at him, nor does he fear a roadside bomb that could tear his vehicle apart.

He’s back home now, safe and sound, just where his family wants him to be. Foreman, 30, of Batts Chapel, returned to Union County last month to his wife, children, mother, sister, brother and friends, who each prayed daily for his safe return.

“I just thanked God for allowing him and the other guys to make it back alive,” said Mamie Rowland, Foreman’s mother. “He said to me, ‘When I joined the Army, I took on a responsibility to serve and protect my country.’ And that’s what he did.”
Rowland spent many sleepless nights wondering about her son as he fought for his country in a barren, war-torn land more than 7,000 miles away from home. She could hardly bear to turn on the evening news for fear that she would see her son in danger, or worse.

When Rowland’s anxiety became too great, she called her son’s wife, Tonya Foreman, for moral support. “She would tell me that she and Patrick were communicating on the computer and that made me feel better,” Rowland said. “I would always ask people to pray that he would make it home safely.”

There is only one thing worse than being the mother of a soldier at war – being the wife of one. Foreman and his wife have been married for eight years, but they have only spent a fraction of that time together in the same location. Tonya Foreman knew going into her marriage that her husband would be called to duty if his country needed him, but she wasn’t quite prepared for it.

“I had never experienced this before (being a military wife),” Tonya Foreman said. “I dedicated myself to the couch and TV, and I stayed in touch with Patrick on the Internet. Talking to his mom also helped me make it though. She was my backbone.”
The couple’s children were also rocks of support for Tonya Foreman when thoughts of the war overloaded her. Collie Darby, 19, Shamear Foster, 18, Tamear Darby, 17, and Quintaye Foreman, 8, helped their mother through one of the toughest situations of her life.

But after enduring two long tours of duty in Iraq, countless training missions and many sleepless nights, Tonya Foreman was about to get her husband back; this time for keeps.

Answering the call
Foreman began his military career in 1994 at 18, following in his older brother Jimmy Jennings’ footsteps. Jennings, 38, served in the Army for four years, seeing brief action in the Panama conflict of 1989. He decided to exit the military after his four-year stint, though, to pursue other things.

“It just wasn’t for me,” Jennings said. “And I never went though anything like Patrick did. I thanked God so many times that he went twice and made it back. You are talking to one happy brother right now.”

Foreman’s brother was only part of the reason why he chose to join the military, though. The main thing on his mind was his future. Knowing that quality jobs are scarce, especially in rural Southern Arkansas, Foreman saw the military as a way out — it was a chance to better himself while helping his country. And if he could do that while following in his big brother’s footsteps, it made it that much better.
After joining the Army, it wasn’t long before Foreman received his first overseas assignments in Germany and Kuwait.

But the real action didn’t happen until the call from Iraq came in April 2003. Foreman joined up with Charlie Company 113, based out of Fort Riley, Kan., which was deployed as part of a peacekeeping mission after most of Saddam Hussein’s Republican Guard troops had been eliminated.

Foreman’s first tour of duty in Iraq was relatively quiet — there was little resistance and hardly any hostile fire. He was stationed at his company’s headquarters in a central Baghdad neighborhood and learned everything he could about the foreign land that became his temporary home.

His company’s primary job was to conduct patrols and avoid the homemade bombs that could come out of nowhere at any moment. “There were some small attacks with homemade bombs,” Foreman said of his first trip to Iraq. “The first time I didn’t see that much because of the area we were in. The (native) people tried to work with us.”

As part of a tank brigade, Foreman learned all aspects of running a multi-ton roving cannon, and he quickly worked his way up to tank commander, a position he is proud to hold.

Being a tank commander can be likened to the job of a ship’s captain, in that the tank’s driver and operations crew take orders from their commanders, who give the commands for direction, when to fire and when to return from the mission.
During Foreman’s second tour of Iraq, which began in 2005, his unit was charged with securing supply lines just north of Baghdad in an area that had become increasingly hostile. It was then that Foreman put all of his skills as a soldier to work.

“This time (during my second tour) I was in charge of two vehicles,” Foreman said. “I had my tank and a Humvee. We conducted patrol escorts, and depending on what missions we had, we used the tank or the Humvee. If anyone attacked the supply line we would fire up our engines and go wherever we were needed to keep those guys safe.”

But staying safe isn’t always an option, something Foreman found out firsthand when two of his best friends were killed during separate missions in Iraq. One was hit by a sniper while on patrol with the Iraqi police; the other died after an enemy fighter gunned him down from behind.

When speaking of these men, Foreman refers to them as his brothers. “We eat together, sleep together and look out for each other,” Foreman said. “You make friends, and they are like family. My tank crew is like my family. It’s just like I love my brother, my wife and my mother. That’s just how it is.”

Welcome home, soldier
As his tour wound down and Foreman found out he would be returning home, word spread like wildfire through his close-knit family, who began planning for a hero-sized homecoming.

“They called me on Jan. 10, and said that he had made it (back to the United States). I was so happy,” said Rowland. “That was a wonderful moment.”
Foreman’s sister, Shannon Rogers, was also happy to hear of her brother’s return.

She wrote him countless letters while he was deployed, sending her love, support and prayers. The two have always been close, Foreman said.
When he heard the news, Jennings immediately began preparations to hold a joint birthday party with his brother, since the pair’s birth dates fall just two days apart — Jennings was born Feb. 11, and Foreman, Feb. 13.

Jennings said he plans to make the most of his brother’s return. “Since we have been adults, we haven’t celebrated our birthdays together,” Jennings said. “We want to be close together for this one.”

This past Sunday, the family held a barbecue in Foreman’s honor, sharing their love and admiration for him. Jennings also expressed his thanks to everyone who supported his brother while he fought in Iraq.

“Everyone who showed love and support for my brother and prayed for him, I would like to say thank you,” Jennings said. “Whoever you are, if you said a prayer and included my brother in it, thanks.”

Foreman said he won’t be returning to Iraq, at least not any time soon, but he does plan to make the military his career. For now, though, he’s just enjoying being back at home with his loved ones.

“It’s so good to be back home, I really missed it, and there is no better feeling,” Foreman said. But if he should get a call tomorrow with new orders to deploy, he will be ready to head out, and his family will begin their prayers and support all over again.