thedrifter
11-15-07, 03:17 PM
Davison school kids welcome home their hero
Posted by Jerry Ernst | The Davison Flagstaff November 15, 2007 09:56AM
Categories: Davison, Davison Township
Even after seven months of dodging bullets, mortars, roadside bombs, rocket-propelled grenades and whatever else the enemy could throw at him and his mates, Nate Bundy is prepared to return to combat.
"I wouldn't mind going back at all," said the 2005 Davison High School graduate. Bundy, who is home on leave until Nov. 25, left Iraq on Oct. 31 after a stint as crew chief for an amphibious armored assault vehicle in Anbar Province.
He said the work was tough but fulfilling, and he's optimistic he contributed to making the future brighter for a nation beset by violent religious strife and warfare.
"I honestly think it will work out. I definitely think it will turn around," said Bundy, 21, who was promoted to corporal the day after he returned to his home base, Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.
While he was on patrol in Iraq, Bundy said, attacks on U.S.-led coalition forces abated substantially.
Generals have been crediting a so-called surge, or expansion, of forces for their military successes, but Bundy said a big factor was the population's greater familiarity with coalition troops.
Iraqis had reason to be fearful when heavily armed troops invaded their landscape, he said.
But as Iraqis and foreign troops became better acquainted, the hostility has diminished, he said.
Bundy said he and others commonly left their vehicles and talked to English-speaking Iraqis.
Nonetheless, it wasn't always the safest place to linger, he said. Or the most comfortable.
One of his biggest shocks came from exposure to Iraq's standard of living.
Bundy, who spent five years in Davison after living 11 years in Roscommon County, said he became "more appreciative of what America has. ... I can't believe somebody can live like this."
Observing the different customs, such as native dress, was particularly interesting, Bundy said.
On the downside, he added, "I'll never forget the heat."
Temperatures peaked at 140 degrees Fahrenheit, he said.
Yet he wore a full flight suit, flak jacket, boots, gloves and helmet. Making things worse, the heat was higher inside the vehicle, where a thin plate separated him from the engine.
As a child, Bundy was fascinated with police and military work, said his mother, Tresa.
"He was always inquisitive about the Marine Corps," she said.
After high school, where he wrestled for three years and played varsity football for four, Bundy studied criminal justice at Mott Community College for a semester.
He joined the Marines on Jan. 6, 2006, fulfilling a goal that dated to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
The cousin of a friend died in the World Trade Center in New York, he said, and "ever since then, I've always wanted to join the military."
Bundy said he was dissatisfied with his life after high school. He drank too much, he said, and he lost the motivation and discipline that high school sports had provided.
"I thought I could do a lot better with myself," he said, and he looked to the military to restore order, growth, challenge and purpose to his life.
The son of a 1970s Marine, Dan Bundy, he chose that branch of military service because "they're the best."
True to expectations, he said, "it helped me to grow up a lot quicker. It was a life-changing experience.
"Just going through boot camp you learn so much, even about yourself. It makes for a stronger person."
Bundy said that in Iraq his "religion definitely became a lot stronger. I put more faith in the Lord. Me and my friends, one of our mottos was 'live today because tomorrow might never come.'"
Although his crew of three or four was safe, its vehicle was damaged by roadside bombs, Bundy said. He concluded that "it's the Lord looking out for me and all the guys."
At Bishop Airport, Bundy was surprised by a welcoming delegation of hundreds, including scores of family members and friends, scores of members of the Michigan Patriot Guard Riders -- a uniformed, flag-bearing group that escorts and assists soldiers and provides security at their funerals, delegations from the Davison Veterans of Foreign Wars and Burton-based military support group My Heart Supports The Troops and a large after-school Hill Elementary School club which Bundy spoke to and worked with before deploying to Iraq and which showered him with letters and packages while he was there.
Sammi Rahmann, 10, a member of the school's Bridges to the Future/I Make a Difference Club, said she had been "worried about him getting hurt."
"We're going to have an ice cream party" in two days and Bundy would attend, said Sasha Dudock, 8, excitedly.
The barrage of letters from the kindergartners through fifth-graders "was really encouraging and they made me realize there was something worth fighting for," said Bundy.
It was a heart-wrenching seven months, Tresa Bundy said, but "my husband and I raised our children to have character and faith in the Lord and wings to fly.
That's what we're supposed to do -- give them wings to fly. And so far they're doing a very good job.
"We're thankful that Nathan was able to come home, and we pray often for those families who have lost their loved ones over there."
Generations of Bundy's family are steeped in military service. Ronald McClure of Davison, his uncle, served in the Marines. Likewise Mark Parrish of Grand Blanc, his late uncle.
Robert Bundy of Flint and later of Flushing, his paternal grandfather, fought in the Korean War with the Army.
His step-grandfather, Cotton Leamy of Burton, fought in Europe during World War II with the Army, as did Clarke Parrish of Flint and later Grand Blanc, his maternal grandfather.
Even Bundy's older sister, Nichole Bundy Mathis, 27, is a petty officer in the Navy, stationed in Louisiana. Her husband, Cpl. Toree Mathis, is a Marine based in Gulf Port, Miss.
About the only committed civilian in the family is Bundy's younger sister, Alana, 16. Give her time.
Bundy doesn't know if he'll re-enlist after his four years are up, but the day he becomes an ex-Marine will be a sad one.
"I love the Corps," he said. "It's a big old brotherhood."
Ellie
Posted by Jerry Ernst | The Davison Flagstaff November 15, 2007 09:56AM
Categories: Davison, Davison Township
Even after seven months of dodging bullets, mortars, roadside bombs, rocket-propelled grenades and whatever else the enemy could throw at him and his mates, Nate Bundy is prepared to return to combat.
"I wouldn't mind going back at all," said the 2005 Davison High School graduate. Bundy, who is home on leave until Nov. 25, left Iraq on Oct. 31 after a stint as crew chief for an amphibious armored assault vehicle in Anbar Province.
He said the work was tough but fulfilling, and he's optimistic he contributed to making the future brighter for a nation beset by violent religious strife and warfare.
"I honestly think it will work out. I definitely think it will turn around," said Bundy, 21, who was promoted to corporal the day after he returned to his home base, Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.
While he was on patrol in Iraq, Bundy said, attacks on U.S.-led coalition forces abated substantially.
Generals have been crediting a so-called surge, or expansion, of forces for their military successes, but Bundy said a big factor was the population's greater familiarity with coalition troops.
Iraqis had reason to be fearful when heavily armed troops invaded their landscape, he said.
But as Iraqis and foreign troops became better acquainted, the hostility has diminished, he said.
Bundy said he and others commonly left their vehicles and talked to English-speaking Iraqis.
Nonetheless, it wasn't always the safest place to linger, he said. Or the most comfortable.
One of his biggest shocks came from exposure to Iraq's standard of living.
Bundy, who spent five years in Davison after living 11 years in Roscommon County, said he became "more appreciative of what America has. ... I can't believe somebody can live like this."
Observing the different customs, such as native dress, was particularly interesting, Bundy said.
On the downside, he added, "I'll never forget the heat."
Temperatures peaked at 140 degrees Fahrenheit, he said.
Yet he wore a full flight suit, flak jacket, boots, gloves and helmet. Making things worse, the heat was higher inside the vehicle, where a thin plate separated him from the engine.
As a child, Bundy was fascinated with police and military work, said his mother, Tresa.
"He was always inquisitive about the Marine Corps," she said.
After high school, where he wrestled for three years and played varsity football for four, Bundy studied criminal justice at Mott Community College for a semester.
He joined the Marines on Jan. 6, 2006, fulfilling a goal that dated to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
The cousin of a friend died in the World Trade Center in New York, he said, and "ever since then, I've always wanted to join the military."
Bundy said he was dissatisfied with his life after high school. He drank too much, he said, and he lost the motivation and discipline that high school sports had provided.
"I thought I could do a lot better with myself," he said, and he looked to the military to restore order, growth, challenge and purpose to his life.
The son of a 1970s Marine, Dan Bundy, he chose that branch of military service because "they're the best."
True to expectations, he said, "it helped me to grow up a lot quicker. It was a life-changing experience.
"Just going through boot camp you learn so much, even about yourself. It makes for a stronger person."
Bundy said that in Iraq his "religion definitely became a lot stronger. I put more faith in the Lord. Me and my friends, one of our mottos was 'live today because tomorrow might never come.'"
Although his crew of three or four was safe, its vehicle was damaged by roadside bombs, Bundy said. He concluded that "it's the Lord looking out for me and all the guys."
At Bishop Airport, Bundy was surprised by a welcoming delegation of hundreds, including scores of family members and friends, scores of members of the Michigan Patriot Guard Riders -- a uniformed, flag-bearing group that escorts and assists soldiers and provides security at their funerals, delegations from the Davison Veterans of Foreign Wars and Burton-based military support group My Heart Supports The Troops and a large after-school Hill Elementary School club which Bundy spoke to and worked with before deploying to Iraq and which showered him with letters and packages while he was there.
Sammi Rahmann, 10, a member of the school's Bridges to the Future/I Make a Difference Club, said she had been "worried about him getting hurt."
"We're going to have an ice cream party" in two days and Bundy would attend, said Sasha Dudock, 8, excitedly.
The barrage of letters from the kindergartners through fifth-graders "was really encouraging and they made me realize there was something worth fighting for," said Bundy.
It was a heart-wrenching seven months, Tresa Bundy said, but "my husband and I raised our children to have character and faith in the Lord and wings to fly.
That's what we're supposed to do -- give them wings to fly. And so far they're doing a very good job.
"We're thankful that Nathan was able to come home, and we pray often for those families who have lost their loved ones over there."
Generations of Bundy's family are steeped in military service. Ronald McClure of Davison, his uncle, served in the Marines. Likewise Mark Parrish of Grand Blanc, his late uncle.
Robert Bundy of Flint and later of Flushing, his paternal grandfather, fought in the Korean War with the Army.
His step-grandfather, Cotton Leamy of Burton, fought in Europe during World War II with the Army, as did Clarke Parrish of Flint and later Grand Blanc, his maternal grandfather.
Even Bundy's older sister, Nichole Bundy Mathis, 27, is a petty officer in the Navy, stationed in Louisiana. Her husband, Cpl. Toree Mathis, is a Marine based in Gulf Port, Miss.
About the only committed civilian in the family is Bundy's younger sister, Alana, 16. Give her time.
Bundy doesn't know if he'll re-enlist after his four years are up, but the day he becomes an ex-Marine will be a sad one.
"I love the Corps," he said. "It's a big old brotherhood."
Ellie