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thedrifter
12-01-06, 07:22 PM
A Student, A Teacher, A Veteran
By Christa Keele
30 Nov 2006

Eric Young wants to be a lot of things when he grows up. He would love to be a firefighter fending off blazes, a linguist translating and interpreting foreign languages, or most especially, a rancher.

"I actually don't know the first thing about ranching," Young said. "But I'd love to learn."

While Young isn't any of these things yet, and is by most standards already grown up, the 26-year-old BYU senior from Fruit Heights, who spent the spring of 2003 as a soldier in Iraq, has a passion for learning that has already allowed him to achieve much and opens doors for him to achieve whatever he desires.

Young's love of learning, especially his love for learning about the world, led the French and linguistics major to enlist with the Marines eight-and-a-half years ago and led him to a country halfway around the world.

In Iraq, Young fixed and drove vehicles, patrolled borders, secured buildings and occasionally functioned as a scout to investigate unknown dwellings.

While deployed, the soldier found himself in a world he was not accustomed to.

"The first thing I remember seeing were smoke columns all around and then I realized they were bombs going off," Young said. "It was definitely a different experience. It was hard to know exactly who the enemy was."

Although Young was in search of an enemy, he still found himself concerned with the refugees in Iraq and striving to help them. Others outside the battlefield noticed Young's propensity to attempt to understand and respond to the needs of those around him.

"He's a very caring person," Katie Finlayson, a junior from Granville, Ohio majoring in French teaching and a classmate of Young's said. "He's genuinely concerned for those around him. Despite how ridiculously busy he is, he would make time for you no matter what."

Being a friend is an attribute esteemed very highly by Young who said familial friendships means the most to him.

Born in and raised in Calif. until age 14, Young said his family had a strong influence on making him the person he is today.

He developed a love for language partly from his older sister Pam who studied French in school, a love for thinking from his older brother Darrin, a love for football from his cousin, the famed Steve Young, and a love and respect for hard work from his dad.

"I've realized that my dad is the best guy I have ever met," Young said. "He's taught me how to work. He's the only person I know who falls asleep in the middle of a football game because he's been out working hard to give his family the best life possible."

However, it seems Young inherited his father's work ethic.

"[Eric's] an extremely hard worker," Darrin Young, Eric's brother said. "I don't know how much he'd want this advertised, but he makes time to go down to a retirement home in Springville every Sunday to visit the elderly. In addition to the time he spends giving service he's going to school and he's a teacher."

From 2000-2002 Young served as an LDS missionary in Marseilles, France. During this time he learned French and was asked to teach French 101 at BYU this year.

While Young appreciated the opportunity to teach, his first love is still learning, an endeavor that inspired Young to take Arabic and travel to Jordan to study abroad last summer.

"I love to learn about languages and cultures," Young said. "I think we have skilled language users in our world but we are lacking in skilled culture users. If we want to make a change we need to understand and appreciate the cultures of others and respect the differences."

Friends who spend time with the student and teacher understand and appreciate Young's passion for knowledge.

"He definitely has a love for learning," Anamae Anderson, a graduate student from Orem studying public administration and a good friend of Young's said. "While he is pursuing a degree he's not going to college just to get a degree; he wants to learn about everything he can. He takes advantage of this opportunity and uses an active approach to learning."

As a man who has experienced war, thinks constantly and continuously undertakes new tasks, some individuals might regard Young as a complex person. However, Young, whose favorite things include a good game of backyard croquet, writing poetry, and learning, keeps his philosophy on life simple.

"I try to do the best I can and be honest in what I do and that is enough for me," Young said.

That and perhaps someday attaining his dream of being a rancher.

Ellie