Local News

<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   Related Stories • Justin W. Hebert   CONTACT THE HERALD Robert Frank, City Editor frank@heraldnet.com   Published: Saturday, March 29, 2003 Friends fighting two wars One Silvana son is in Afghanistan, another in Iraq Brian Kelly / Herald Writer SILVANA -- Two sons. Two wars. And two families hoping and praying for the best. Across the road from the old grain elevator at Silvana's Grain Co., yellow ribbons hang from the fruit trees on the main drag of this farming village. And in the front window of Willow and Jim's Country Cafe is a poster with the photos of two young soldiers now at war in Iraq and Afghanistan. Brett Rickard and Justin Hebert went into the Army via the buddy system just after they graduated from Arlington High School in June 2001. Though they went through basic training together, their lives have taken a similar yet geographically different course since then. Rickard, a paratrooper with the Army's 82nd Airborne Division, is in Afghanistan fighting Taliban and al-Qaida holdouts in mountainous Hemand Province. Hebert is a paratrooper with the "Sky Soldiers" of the 173rd Airborne Brigade based in Vicenza, Italy. He is believed to be with the brigade's soldiers who parachuted into northern Iraq earlier this week to take control of the Harir airfield near Bashur. The son of William and Robin Hebert, Justin Hebert was home on leave in January, and his mother said she last talked to him on Sunday. He was still in Italy, but told his mother he would be leaving soon. "He said he was going to the bad land, and I figured it would be Iraq," she said. "I knew he was going to be in it." It was a quick conversation. "He said, 'I've gotta go, Mom.'" And that was it. The regular phone calls have since stopped. But Robin Hebert is anxious for any news that may involve her son, an outgoing, free-spirited man who will turn 20 in July. "I've been waking up to CNN and going to bed with CNN," she said. Rickard's family has it a bit better. Although he is deployed to Kandahar, Afghanistan, Rickard has been able to call his family regularly. And he's been sending home disposable cameras of his day-to-day life during America's "other war." His father, David Rickard, says he gets a lot of interest from those who work in the photo department at the Quil Ceda Village Wal-Mart in Marysville, where he usually takes the film to be developed. "It always gets a big crowd" of employees who want to see the latest photos from Afghanistan, he said. There were four cameras in the last package he sent home. The photos show Brett Rickard on patrol with other soldiers from the 82nd Airborne, and appear to have been taken last month when his unit was on Operation Viper in the Baghran Valley. The goal of Operation Viper was to search villages for hidden weapons left behind by Taliban and al-Qaida forces. Many of the photos show caches of rifles, ammunition and other weapons found by Rickard's unit during searches of villages in the valley. The family hasn't heard from their son, who just turned 20 last month, in three weeks. But during an earlier phone call, Rickard reassured them that he hasn't been shot at and is glad to be serving his country. "He's really happy to be part of this," Debbie Rickard said. "He told me, 'I'm actually doing some good, Mom.'" They watch the Afghan news on the Internet every night, hoping for news on the 82nd. And they also scour for news that they can pass along to the Heberts. "Both families keep track of both boys," David Rickard said. The pair have known each other since middle school. Brett Rickard joined the Army first, and about a week later Justin Hebert signed up. "It was really upsetting to me," Debbie Rickard said, adding that her son had qualified for an Army job flying drones by remote control, but picked paratrooper training instead. "We're proud of what he's doing," she added, but said living through the uncertainty surrounding his deployment is tough. "We're his parents. We desperately need to know what's going on there," Debbie Rickard said. "Every day, I just want to hear the phone ring. Also worried is Stephanie Rickard, Brett Rickard's young wife. They married in December at the Navy chapel in Smokey Point after Brett Rickard finished the Army's paratrooper school. The couple met when they were working at the Smokey Point Hollywood Video store. Stephanie Rickard has been working at two jobs and volunteering for Silvana's small fire department to stay busy and keep her from worrying. Robin Hebert said her son joined the Army to get an education and see the world. He never told his parents about taking the tests to qualify for the Army, coming home instead when he was ready to join and asking his parents to sign off on it because he was 17 and needed their signatures. His flight to basic training marked the first time he was ever on an airplane. "We're worried, very worried and scared. But very proud of him," she said. Debbie Rickard paused to look at portraits of the two paratroopers. "There's two boys there," she said. "I wouldn't wish this on any mother or wife," Debbie said. "This is real life, and it's real danger. And people are dying all the time. It's not a situation you'd like to see a loved one in." Reporter Brian Kelly: 425-339-3422 or kelly@heraldnet.com.

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