Deployed fathers find ways to keep in touch with families

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Carolyn Viss
  • 379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) --  This Father's Day, many deployed servicemembers have mixed feelings about being away from their children and having their "area of responsibility" shift from the home front to the war front.

But many fathers in the AOR feel their commitment to their families is also a big part of their identity as Airmen.

"I am an Airman to provide security for my family and my country," said Chief Master Sgt. Eric Welsh, who served as the acting 379th Air Expeditionary Wing command chief for May. "The two are inextricably tied together. I love my country and family, and I talk about my duty to my chosen profession with them."

Part of that commitment is keeping in touch with children at home and including them in your deployment, he said. This can be challenging at times, but it is still feasible here.

"I like e-mail and morale calls," the chief said. "I build a set time to call and they are always available or try to be. It helps to have a routine. My son also e-mails me questions he has on homework and school stuff and that keeps me in the loop and connected. I will give advice and e-mail back."

Most first sergeants have calling cards that are available for Airmen in their units to use to keep in touch with loved ones, Chief Welsh said.

Additionally, the Airman and Family Readiness Centers offer families many options to keep in touch. From letter packets, which include stationary, envelopes and stickers; to phones, computers, Web cams and fax machines; to seminars on "Staying connected" and "New dads," the ARC staff is ready to help in any way possible.

"Celebrating fathers in the AOR should (happen) not only on Father's Day but also every day, and you can do that by staying connected with your family," said Master Sgt. Bob Monteagudo, the ARC superintendent.

Your family still needs dad to call home, when he can, from the latest deployed site, to help out with math problems or discuss issues of adolescent life with, Chief Welsh said. The biggest challenge for Air Force fathers is being a good father on the move and communicating efficiently with home.

Tech. Sgt. Miguel Cruz, a 379th AEW paralegal, whose sons are ages 7 and 6, cross-trained from security forces to his current Air Force specialty code because when he and his wife, Rosie, wanted to start a family, he didn't want to be away from home as much as he knew he would be as a defender.

"This is the first time I've been deployed since my kids were born," Sergeant Cruz said. "When I told them I had to deploy, my son asked, 'Are you and your legal forces going to help Soldiers fight?' They know this is my job, and they have a lot of love for America, even at their young ages."

He said he is keeping the tradition of bedtime reading alive by reading to them on DVD, and is getting ready to send them a care package -- something to "distract" them from missing him so much.

"You can't lose sight of why you're doing what you're doing," the Airman of 15 years said. 

Chief Welsh said it can be a difficult balance at times.

"I have to maintain a life balance to operate at peak performance for my mission. I have to be aware of what a good balance is for me between my God (spirituality), country and Air Force, and my family," the father of two teens said. "(Airmen) are engaged in the biggest battle we've ever been in, and it's difficult not to get so wrapped up in the business of executing an air campaign that we neglect our children's needs."

Being a good father helps set the foundation for children to rise up into adults, Chief Welsh said. "Integrity, service before self, and excellence are principles I learned from my mother and father. I can't think of a better role model (for children) than Airmen in the service of our country." 

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