When I sit and think about all the military influences in my own life
today, I don’t have to look very far. I reflect first on my immediate
family tree. My father, Hiram Roush, served in the Army Corps of Engineer,
and went on to become one of the best military aircraft design checkers,
masterminded the hydraulic wheel lift system on the E-2, and saved the
Apollo 11 black box from exploding on impact at the first landing on the
moon on July 20, 1969. His younger brother, Henry, was killed in a test
flight at Miramar Air Station, taking another guy’s shift so he could be with
his family. Dad’s older brother, James, was a B-52 Bombadier, noted for his
accuracy and successful missions. My mother, Beverly, was a Rosie the Riveter,
and met my father when working late shifts at the same plant. Several
relatives are members of DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution).
Living in a military base town such as San Diego, California, it was bound
to happen that I would meet and marry a man in the Navy, an Air Traffic Controller
(Top Gun), stationed on the USS Horne, and later USS Valley Forge.
Not sure how “romantic” this was, but he proposed to me during an episode of
M*A*S*H. I understand all too well, being a West-Pac Widow, as his ship
was assigned to the USS Ranger during the Persian Gulf War. Although
he was highly decorated for his merits, he came home a different man, and
became an abusive alcoholic. I’ve since dated a Submarine Senior Chief, and
a Marine (not that I’m dating my way through the ranks!).
As a professional trainer, many of my clients are from the military world,
not only the individuals and their families, but also their service providers,
their hospitals, their housing coordinators, and their transition teams.
I have a certain affinity and a special place in my heart for our military,
so I’m proud to produce this book of stories from—and tributes to—each
and every one: the service member and their loving, dedicated families.
(C) 2009 Sheryl L. Roush
Published in Heart of a Military Woman:
Stories and Tributes to Those Who Serve Our Country,
by Sheryl Roush and Eldonna Lewis Fernandez.
All original and true short stories, poems, and tributes from military personnel, their families and loved ones.