Marines return from Afghan service

By Ed Runyan

runyan@vindy.com

VIENNA

It’s easy to see how 11-year-old Hubbard boy Tristan Mott feels about his dad, Sgt. Jason Mott, who returned home Saturday night from a seven-month tour of duty in Afghanistan.

As Sgt. Mott stepped into a meeting room at Youngstown Air Reserve Station with his six fellow Marines, Tristan took an incredible leap into his dad’s arms, soon followed by his brother, Austin, 15.

The moment was as perfect as the World War II photo of the flag-raising at Iwo Jima, not just as a symbol of heroism but as a reflection of the pride and happiness the Mott family feels about having the sergeant back home.

Tristan, dressed in military fatigues, told a reporter he’s also going to be a Marine some day and even knows about how many years from now that will be.

“I’m going to do it because I’m looking for a challenge and for the brotherhood,” he said, looking at Austin to see if that sounded right.

As for Sheri Conlin, Mott’s fianc e, having Jason home means that, hopefully, the sick feeling she’s had in her stomach the past seven months will go away.

“It’s constant,” she said of the feeling. “You worry, and you wonder, and you wait, and you go on with your everyday life without him.”

Mott, 38, is among the eight Marine Corps reservists stationed at the Youngstown Air Reserve Station who volunteered for active duty and got their wish starting in March.

When asked how he feels to be home, Mott said, “I’m very grateful to be home, grateful for the support. Most people don’t realize the sacrifices that are made on the home front.”

The reservists were deployed to Camp Leatherneck in Helmand Province. Their assignment was to provide combat support to other Marines. They loaded and delivered supplies such as food, water, ammunition, fuel, repair parts and medical supplies to combat outposts.

All the terrain they navigated was littered with explosive devices, which is why the families of the returning reservists were told to be prepared for the possibility that their loved one might be a little “jumpy” in the beginning.

“The weapon of choice for the enemy is an improvised explosive device,” said 1st Sgt. Eric Bauer, part of the welcoming party.

Such devices are frequently hidden or buried alongside the road or hidden in a car. These Marines were most likely in proximity to such devices on several occasions during their deployment, Bauer said.

Seven months of always being watchful for cars or an unidentified objects near the road can produce an instinctive response that can seem out of place back at home, he said.

“Your heart just skips a beat, and then you realize ‘Oh, it’s OK,’” Bauer said of seeing such things at home. After Bauer returned home from active duty, his family just laughed about it, he said.

“But different people take it different ways,” he said. A Marine who needs help with such issues has resources available, he added.

Some people might think that a reservist has fewer duties than other active- duty Marines, but that is not true, Bauer said.

“It’s exactly the same. There’s no, ‘Oh, you’re a reservist, so you’ll do this.’ Unless you were told they’re reservists, you’d never know.”

Each Marine activated for 400 days, meaning each one has about two months left to remain on active duty. Each one gets four days off, then has the option of returning home if he or she has a good job or urgent educational plans, Bauer said.

But most will complete those two months at the reserve station, Bauer added. That gives the reservists time to “decompress” with fellow reservists. Frequently, they work on the Toys For Tots campaign, where the public usually treats them “like rock stars” and asks lots of questions, Bauer said.

The Marines who returned Saturday were from Hubbard, Mansfield, Brunswick, Marion, Akron, Kirtland and Columbiana.

Kim Wrenn of Columbiana and her sons Ian and Owen were there welcoming home Kim’s oldest son, Lance Cpl. Joshua Macklin, 22.

“We’re excited he’s coming back. It’s been a long time without him,” Kim said. Macklin’s grandparents, also of Columbiana, also were there.

Tina Zalewski of Hinckley and her daughter-in-law, Amanda Werner, of Brunswick were excitedly awaiting the return of Sgt. Charles Werner.

And Zalewski said she was especially pleased that she and the rest of the family would be celebrating Charles and Amanda’s first wedding anniversary together Saturday night.

Charles is working toward a college degree and has a job as a warehouse manager but wanted to serve his country in Afghanistan, Zalewski said.

Why?

“Because he’s a Marine. That’s what they’re taught to do — to be a Marine,” she said.