thedrifter
04-19-03, 06:20 AM
A Son on the Front Lines
Local woman talks about her Marine fighting in Baghdad
by Melissa Hoyos
Vickie Mullen stopped watching CNN news reports weeks ago.
With her son Patrick Mullen, 21, on the frontlines in Baghdad, she’d rather hear breaking stories from her employees, instead of camping out in front of the tube.
Since the Mullen family found out Patrick was being sent to Iraq, Vickie says she and her husband, Lee, continue to stick by the motto: “No news is good news.”
In January, Patrick, a Marine Corps Corporal, boarded the U.S.S. Boxer to do his part in the war effort. He celebrated his 21st birthday on the ship with his 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment buddies.
“We’re proud of him and that is his serving his county. It will be a tough fight in Baghdad and he will come home safely,” said Vickie.
In the last couple months, the only communication the Mullens have received from their son was a brief phone call and a postcard, scribbled on the back of a Meals Ready to Eat (MRE) package.
“I thought it was pretty creative,” said Vickie of Patrick’s cardboard update letter.
When Vickie does get urges to know her son’s exact whereabouts, she goes to the U.S. Marines website for news from his battalion. Her friends and employees also use his battalion name to look for him on CNN.
“I come in every morning saying ‘Where’s the kid’ to the staff,” said Vickie, a Main Street business owner.
She also believes she can’t thank the community enough for keeping Patrick in their prayers.
As a kid, Patrick loved visiting anything that had to do with the armed forces, said his mom. Apart from outings to the Evergreen State Fair to crawl on the Humvees, Patrick was a fan of military museums. Vickie remembers a family trip to Hawaii was spent touring the Pearl Harbor memorial, instead of hanging out on the beach. "I’ve seen every military museum there is,"she said.
Although the Mullens knew their son would eventually serve the country one day, they always encouraged him to seek out a non-combat position. But the Marine mom believes Patrick’s head, heart and gut were already set on the front lines.
“Being a non-combat Marine was an oxymoron to Patrick," said Vickie. "I support him 100%. He assured us that he is doing what he is designed to do. I didn’t see him doing anything else, nothing else."
An alum of Monroe High School, Patrick joined the ROTC program at Snohomish High and later joined the Marines in September of 2000.
Almost immediately after bootcamp, the Monroe Marine left his base in Pendleton, Calif., to travel the world, including Afghanistan after the September 11th attacks.
With their son in Iraq, the Mullens now keep all of Patrick’s belongings in his room at home.
"They pared it down to the very basics," said Vickie of his deployment.
Lee Mullen even went down to Pendleton to pick up his Mustang so that it will be ready for him when he comes back.
While Vickie would like to find more cardboard messages from Patrick in her mailbox, she says not hearing from him is not a problem.
"Patrick knows us and things are fine. He feels it is more important for people with wives and children to talk and email each other," said Vickie.
According to the Marine Mom, the wait to use the Internet on base can take several hours.
Currently, there is no way for Patrick to communicate with his family since he is in combat.
Since war broke out, Vickie says her best day was when she heard her son’s battalion was able to rest and get more food and water supplies. But she has her bad days too. Avisit to the local Fred Meyer’s left her in tears recently. "I saw his favorite foods, Gatorade and Beef Jerky, and I just started to cry," she said.
Seeing the local war protestors stationed along Highway 2 has also produced mixed feelings for the military mother. After residents started appearing with "Support our Troops" signs, Vickie says she went over to thank them in person.
"It’s great to see the other side," she said. "It’s almost frightening how emotional things make you. It’s amazing."
http://www.monroemonitor.com/weeklypages/4-9-03/postcard.jpg
Marine Corporal Patrick Mullen of Monroe is currently serving the country in Baghdad. The cardboard packaging (left) from his instant meals in the field was used to make a postcard for his family.
Sempers,
Roger
Local woman talks about her Marine fighting in Baghdad
by Melissa Hoyos
Vickie Mullen stopped watching CNN news reports weeks ago.
With her son Patrick Mullen, 21, on the frontlines in Baghdad, she’d rather hear breaking stories from her employees, instead of camping out in front of the tube.
Since the Mullen family found out Patrick was being sent to Iraq, Vickie says she and her husband, Lee, continue to stick by the motto: “No news is good news.”
In January, Patrick, a Marine Corps Corporal, boarded the U.S.S. Boxer to do his part in the war effort. He celebrated his 21st birthday on the ship with his 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment buddies.
“We’re proud of him and that is his serving his county. It will be a tough fight in Baghdad and he will come home safely,” said Vickie.
In the last couple months, the only communication the Mullens have received from their son was a brief phone call and a postcard, scribbled on the back of a Meals Ready to Eat (MRE) package.
“I thought it was pretty creative,” said Vickie of Patrick’s cardboard update letter.
When Vickie does get urges to know her son’s exact whereabouts, she goes to the U.S. Marines website for news from his battalion. Her friends and employees also use his battalion name to look for him on CNN.
“I come in every morning saying ‘Where’s the kid’ to the staff,” said Vickie, a Main Street business owner.
She also believes she can’t thank the community enough for keeping Patrick in their prayers.
As a kid, Patrick loved visiting anything that had to do with the armed forces, said his mom. Apart from outings to the Evergreen State Fair to crawl on the Humvees, Patrick was a fan of military museums. Vickie remembers a family trip to Hawaii was spent touring the Pearl Harbor memorial, instead of hanging out on the beach. "I’ve seen every military museum there is,"she said.
Although the Mullens knew their son would eventually serve the country one day, they always encouraged him to seek out a non-combat position. But the Marine mom believes Patrick’s head, heart and gut were already set on the front lines.
“Being a non-combat Marine was an oxymoron to Patrick," said Vickie. "I support him 100%. He assured us that he is doing what he is designed to do. I didn’t see him doing anything else, nothing else."
An alum of Monroe High School, Patrick joined the ROTC program at Snohomish High and later joined the Marines in September of 2000.
Almost immediately after bootcamp, the Monroe Marine left his base in Pendleton, Calif., to travel the world, including Afghanistan after the September 11th attacks.
With their son in Iraq, the Mullens now keep all of Patrick’s belongings in his room at home.
"They pared it down to the very basics," said Vickie of his deployment.
Lee Mullen even went down to Pendleton to pick up his Mustang so that it will be ready for him when he comes back.
While Vickie would like to find more cardboard messages from Patrick in her mailbox, she says not hearing from him is not a problem.
"Patrick knows us and things are fine. He feels it is more important for people with wives and children to talk and email each other," said Vickie.
According to the Marine Mom, the wait to use the Internet on base can take several hours.
Currently, there is no way for Patrick to communicate with his family since he is in combat.
Since war broke out, Vickie says her best day was when she heard her son’s battalion was able to rest and get more food and water supplies. But she has her bad days too. Avisit to the local Fred Meyer’s left her in tears recently. "I saw his favorite foods, Gatorade and Beef Jerky, and I just started to cry," she said.
Seeing the local war protestors stationed along Highway 2 has also produced mixed feelings for the military mother. After residents started appearing with "Support our Troops" signs, Vickie says she went over to thank them in person.
"It’s great to see the other side," she said. "It’s almost frightening how emotional things make you. It’s amazing."
http://www.monroemonitor.com/weeklypages/4-9-03/postcard.jpg
Marine Corporal Patrick Mullen of Monroe is currently serving the country in Baghdad. The cardboard packaging (left) from his instant meals in the field was used to make a postcard for his family.
Sempers,
Roger