thedrifter
12-20-07, 11:25 AM
Story last updated at 7:17 PM on Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Family does double-duty in military service
BY MICHAEL ARMSTRONG
STAFF WRITER
Their children have been shot at in Fallujah and dodged heat-seeking missiles over Baghdad, so it's a blessing that at least one of the two Marines in the family of Carey and Charlie Kauffman will be home for Christmas.
Sgt. Travis Kauffman, 23, of the 4th Reconnaissance Battalion, 4th Marine Division, Reserves, will be home for the holidays with his parents and his younger brother and sister, Ryan and Heidi. He's on leave from training in Alameda, Calif., in preparation for his second deployment to Iraq next March.
Cpl. Tavia Kauffman, 20, got back from Iraq in November, after a six-month tour with the Marine Air Corps as a loadmaster on a C-130 Hercules. She's now at Marine Air Corps Station, Cherry Point, N.C.
Having two children in a combat zone hasn't been easy, Charlie Kauffman said. He had his wife run Homer Cleaning Center on Main Street.
"It does put letting your kids go in a whole different category," he said. "You realize what the cost of freedom is."
Travis Kauffman was in Iraq during the assault on Fallujah in 2004. As a recon specialist, he searched for insurgents and weapons caches and patrolled for snipers and mortar groups.
"They dug up caches and caches of weapons," his dad said.
Five Marines in Travis Kauffman's unit died from improvised explosive devices, including two Alaskans he knew, Grant Fraser of Anchorage and Jeremiah Kinchen of Salcha.
During her tour, Tavia Kauffman rigged cargo and refueled C-130s out of a base in Iraq. Many of her trips were to supply bases in northern Iraq. Some jobs were more glamorous, like transferring money to Iraq provincial leaders sometimes millions of dollars.
Being up in the air in a propeller cargo plane wasn't without danger. The C-130s had spotters to look for missiles, ready to drop chaff and flares. Once while circling over Baghdad, an F-18 was behind them and a missile was shot at it.
"He (the F-18 pilot) got away from it, but they were next on the list. The missile picked up on them," Charlie Kauffman said. "They dumped up some chaff and flares and got away from them."
Tavia's unit also did relief work in Bangladesh and helped evacuate Miramar Marine Air Corps Station in California when it was threatened by forest fires. A more somber duty was evacuating wounded or the dead on what are called "angel flights."
Travis spent Christmas in 2004 in Iraq. Charlie Kauffman said it was easy to send gifts and care packages to him, since military mail can be sent in flat-rate U.S. Postal Service boxes. His son's unit was well supplied by family and friends.
"They got a lot of stuff," Charlie Kauffman said. "Travis said they were getting so many packages they'd pile the extra stuff in there for whoever in the unit could use it."
Every unit got a satellite phone to share among the Marines, and each man or woman would get about an hour of talk time a week. Charlie Kauffman remembered talking to his son at Christmas in 2004.
"He started laughing," Kauffman said. "Somebody was dressed up like Santa Claus and driving around in a truck lit up with lights."
Travis and Tavia have always been close, their dad said, and their common Marine and war experience has drawn them even closer.
"They'll start talking about some of the stuff that happens over there," Charlie Kauffman said. "A few stories come up there they never specifically told us."
"I think they see a lot different perspective than the normal news you hear," he added. "I think there's some real good people there (in Iraq) and they're making some progress."
Tavia has leave for the holidays, but she chose to use it for other plans. She loves to travel, and plans to visit Tibet and China. Charlie Kauffman has a sister teaching in China, and Tavia will visit her. Even though she'll be far from her Alaska family, she will be with other family for the holidays.
For Chinese New Year.
Michael Armstrong can be reached at michael.armstrong@homernews.com
Ellie
Family does double-duty in military service
BY MICHAEL ARMSTRONG
STAFF WRITER
Their children have been shot at in Fallujah and dodged heat-seeking missiles over Baghdad, so it's a blessing that at least one of the two Marines in the family of Carey and Charlie Kauffman will be home for Christmas.
Sgt. Travis Kauffman, 23, of the 4th Reconnaissance Battalion, 4th Marine Division, Reserves, will be home for the holidays with his parents and his younger brother and sister, Ryan and Heidi. He's on leave from training in Alameda, Calif., in preparation for his second deployment to Iraq next March.
Cpl. Tavia Kauffman, 20, got back from Iraq in November, after a six-month tour with the Marine Air Corps as a loadmaster on a C-130 Hercules. She's now at Marine Air Corps Station, Cherry Point, N.C.
Having two children in a combat zone hasn't been easy, Charlie Kauffman said. He had his wife run Homer Cleaning Center on Main Street.
"It does put letting your kids go in a whole different category," he said. "You realize what the cost of freedom is."
Travis Kauffman was in Iraq during the assault on Fallujah in 2004. As a recon specialist, he searched for insurgents and weapons caches and patrolled for snipers and mortar groups.
"They dug up caches and caches of weapons," his dad said.
Five Marines in Travis Kauffman's unit died from improvised explosive devices, including two Alaskans he knew, Grant Fraser of Anchorage and Jeremiah Kinchen of Salcha.
During her tour, Tavia Kauffman rigged cargo and refueled C-130s out of a base in Iraq. Many of her trips were to supply bases in northern Iraq. Some jobs were more glamorous, like transferring money to Iraq provincial leaders sometimes millions of dollars.
Being up in the air in a propeller cargo plane wasn't without danger. The C-130s had spotters to look for missiles, ready to drop chaff and flares. Once while circling over Baghdad, an F-18 was behind them and a missile was shot at it.
"He (the F-18 pilot) got away from it, but they were next on the list. The missile picked up on them," Charlie Kauffman said. "They dumped up some chaff and flares and got away from them."
Tavia's unit also did relief work in Bangladesh and helped evacuate Miramar Marine Air Corps Station in California when it was threatened by forest fires. A more somber duty was evacuating wounded or the dead on what are called "angel flights."
Travis spent Christmas in 2004 in Iraq. Charlie Kauffman said it was easy to send gifts and care packages to him, since military mail can be sent in flat-rate U.S. Postal Service boxes. His son's unit was well supplied by family and friends.
"They got a lot of stuff," Charlie Kauffman said. "Travis said they were getting so many packages they'd pile the extra stuff in there for whoever in the unit could use it."
Every unit got a satellite phone to share among the Marines, and each man or woman would get about an hour of talk time a week. Charlie Kauffman remembered talking to his son at Christmas in 2004.
"He started laughing," Kauffman said. "Somebody was dressed up like Santa Claus and driving around in a truck lit up with lights."
Travis and Tavia have always been close, their dad said, and their common Marine and war experience has drawn them even closer.
"They'll start talking about some of the stuff that happens over there," Charlie Kauffman said. "A few stories come up there they never specifically told us."
"I think they see a lot different perspective than the normal news you hear," he added. "I think there's some real good people there (in Iraq) and they're making some progress."
Tavia has leave for the holidays, but she chose to use it for other plans. She loves to travel, and plans to visit Tibet and China. Charlie Kauffman has a sister teaching in China, and Tavia will visit her. Even though she'll be far from her Alaska family, she will be with other family for the holidays.
For Chinese New Year.
Michael Armstrong can be reached at michael.armstrong@homernews.com
Ellie