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Airman receives visit from contractor mom in Iraq

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Melissa Phillips
  • 407th Air Expeditionary Group Public Affairs
ALI BASE, Iraq (AFPN) --  Airman 1st Class Catherine Dilena did not know what to think when her first sergeant dropped by her office and told her to stand by to meet with him in a few minutes.

Nervously, the 407th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron client support administrator here waited for him to return, mentally running through a checklist of reasons why he would want to speak with her.

A few minutes later, instead of chatting with her first sergeant, she received a counseling session of sorts from an unexpected visitor -- her mom.

“It was surreal to see my mom standing there," said Airman Dilena, who is deployed from Scott Air Force Base, Ill. “I was really shocked, but everyone else knew.”

Sheri Dilena, a contracted morale, welfare and recreation coordinator who works at a nearby forward-deployed installation, decided it was time to see her daughter. The last time the two saw each other was August 2004.

Ms. Dilena is signed up for a one-year tour in Iraq to provide programs and facilities where servicemembers can relax on their off-duty time.

For six years, she volunteered to teach dance lessons to servicemembers attending the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center at the Presidio of Monterey, Calif.

“I worked with a command sergeant major who showed me the ropes,” Ms. Dilena said. “He told me (my swing classes) provided troops more than just morale; it gave them mental stimulation to help them with their studies and brought down their stress level.”

So when he called and told her she should be here in Iraq helping, she went.

“I’m really happy (to be here in Iraq),” Ms. Dilena said. “It’s beyond words ... beyond satisfaction. I’ve met a lot of troops.” Troops who are her daughter’s age and need help to get through long deployments away from loved ones and friends.

Although Airman Dilena says she is proud of her mother, her immediate reaction to her mom’s decision to serve in Iraq was not one of joy.

“I was upset,” Airman Dilena said. “I didn’t want her to come over here. I still don’t.

“But I think it’s awesome that my mom cares about how (servicemembers) are doing here mentally,” Airman Dilena said.

Airman Dilena is not the only baby in the family to fly the coop and join the Air Force. Her brother, Airman Jonathan Dilena, will soon graduate from technical school to be become a security forces specialist and his future could include a deployment to Southwest Asia.

And his mom can be rest assured that at most locations somebody else’s mom or dad, brother or sister will be there to help him enjoy his off-duty time -- just like her.

“It’s a privilege to serve over here. It’s a step off from what I was already … at the Presidio … and now here I am working with them in the midst of the stress ... helping,” Ms. Dilena said.

For now, both women are pushing aside the stress of serving in a war zone together to concentrate on enjoying each other’s company for a few days -- and just might fit in an impromptu swing dance session.