thedrifter
08-30-09, 08:01 AM
Marine's Publicity Spikes Family's Pride, Anxiety
Cpl. Ratzlaff Represents Women in Combat
By Gary White
THE LEDGER
Published: Saturday, August 29, 2009 at 12:01 a.m.
Last Modified: Sunday, August 30, 2009 at 4:57 a.m.
WINTER HAVEN | Alan Thompson has avoided watching the news or reading the papers since his daughter's Marine unit shipped off to Afghanistan in April.
After all, Thompson reasons, why go searching for potential bad news?
Still, it was impossible for the Winter Haven resident to miss his daughter's recent media exposure. Photos of U.S. Marine Cpl. Brigitte Ratzlaff circulated around the world this month along with an Associated Press article about the Female Engagement Team, a unit of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force.
The Ledger ran a front-page photo of Ratzlaff, 21, smilingly engaging with a local boy while on patrol in Afghanistan's Helmand Province. Other news outlets published a photo of Ratzlaff, a Winter Haven native, laughing as she was bowled over by a bomb-sniffing dog named Cpl. Clay.
Alan Thompson, 48, said his family has been inundated by calls and e-mails since the photos appeared. He said he probably would have gotten even more responses except some friends didn't recognize Brigitte by her married name - Ratzlaff.
Without the caption, it would have been difficult for anyone but family or close friends to identify Brigitte Ratzlaff from the photo of her meeting with the Afghan boy. Her helmet and a neck brace virtually engulf her, leaving visible only her mouth, nose, right cheek and a shaded eye.
"To see her in all her technical gear was quite sobering to me," Alan Thompson said last week. "When I saw that, it sent a cold chill up my spine. You realize, 'Wow, she's right in the middle of it.'"
When Brigitte's older sister, Danielle Thompson, heard about the photo in the newspaper, she dashed into the library at Polk State College's Lakeland campus, where she is a student.
"I hadn't seen her face since she got shipped off to Afghanistan," said Danielle Thompson, 23. "I ran over to the library and picked up a copy of the paper, and I just saw her face and started crying. I started begging the lady at the front desk, 'Can I have a copy of the paper? This is my sister.' I was just bawling."
A TOMBOY BUT STILL FEMININE
Family members say they never expected Ratzlaff to join the military, though she displayed tomboy tendencies throughout her childhood. Alan Thompson introduced his daughter to welding when she was 12, and together they spent years working to remodel a 1954 Chevrolet truck.
Ratzlaff, who attended Winter Haven's Grace Lutheran School, also applied her welding skills to bicycles. Family members say she modified regular bikes into choppers and then sold them to neighborhood kids.
Danielle Thompson always expected her sister to become a veterinarian. She said Ratzlaff was constantly rescuing baby squirrels she found in the woods, and she liked to catch lizards and let them clamp their jaws onto her earlobes. Family members called her Elly May, for the "Beverly Hillbillies" character with a fondness for skunks and possums.
But Ratzlaff, a wiry brunette with a mischievous smile, also has her feminine side, including a penchant for knitting.
From the age of 12, Ratzlaff kept a backpack in her closet stocked with water-disinfection tablets and other supplies she would need to survive in case of nuclear war or another emergency.
Her father said she taught herself about edible plants in the woods.
Ratzlaff lived with her mother, Tonya Thompson, in Orlando after her parents divorced, and graduated from Dr. Phillips High School in 2006. She enrolled at Mid Florida Tech in Orlando and trained to be an emergency medical technician.
As she neared graduation, though, she told relatives she was considering enlisting in the Marines.
Alan Thompson tried to steer her toward the Coast Guard instead.
Thompson, who said he raised his children "to be tough," said he thinks Ratzlaff chose the Marines in part to prove her mettle to him.
When he finally offered his blessing, Thompson told his daughter to "do it 100 percent."
That may have been needless advice.
Daryl Thompson of Winter Haven, Ratzlaff's uncle, said, "She's always head first."
TOP OF HER CLASS
Ratzlaff enlisted in September 2007.
At just 114 pounds, she barely met the Marines' minimum weight, yet relatives said she received a meritorious promotion during boot camp and graduated first in her class at Parris Island, S.C.
She trained as an airplane welder at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland and did some desert training in California before being stationed at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.
It was there she met Chase Ratzlaff, a fellow Marine from Washington state. The two married last September at Brigitte's grandmother's property on Lake Eloise in Winter Haven.
Brigitte Ratzlaff deployed to Afghanistan in April, at age 20, and Chase followed five weeks later.
Danielle Thompson said at one point they were living about a mile apart and were able to meet often for lunch.
Family members said they don't know much about the Female Engagement Team, attached to Golf company of the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Regiment of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade.
The special unit of 46 women was created to engage with women and children in southern Afghanistan, where the dominant Muslim religion greatly restricts contact between men and women. The team members wear head scarves as a sign of respect for Muslim customs, according to the Associated Press article. It is the Marines' only all-female unit, its leader, U.S. Marine Capt. Jennifer Gregoire, said by e-mail.
Gregoire said Ratzlaff volunteered for the team and was chosen after a four-day selection process.
She said Ratzlaff was part of a four-person team deployed for Operation Eastern Resolve II, which provided security in Taliban-held areas during the recent elections.
Asked what traits would qualify his daughter for the special team, Alan Thompson replied: "Where do I start? Her face is nothing but honesty. She's sincere about everything. Even though she's tough, she's got a big heart. She's pretty smart. She can read body language and read people's emotions."
The Female Engagement Team is assigned to active combat areas. When the Associated Press journalists met them, team members were in the midst of an eight-day mission in the Now Zad Valley area, a stronghold of the Taliban.
Alan Thompson said Ratzlaff wears a flak vest and other gear weighing more than 80 pounds. But family members know that gear can't save her from all dangers in a war zone where a reported 295 American troops have died this year.
Family members say Ratzlaff has only occasional access to a computer or phone.
Her father said he talked to her by phone earlier this month.
"She told me it might be a while before I hear from her," he said. "She said, 'Don't worry, I'm protected by a bunch of Marines.'"
After the Associated Press photos circulated, Ratzlaff sent her stepmother an e-mail saying she hoped the pictures hadn't caused too much concern for family members, including her stepbrother, Jake Etherton, a senior at Lake Region High School.
Since the photos were taken, Danielle Thompson said her sister has received a second meritorious promotion. As a corporal, she now outranks her husband, who is a lance corporal.
Ratzlaff's deployment is scheduled to end in November, but her father said he won't be surprised if she volunteers for an extension. He said his daughter eventually hopes to use her welding skills as the owner of a custom motorcycle shop.
In the meantime, a pair of yellow ribbons cling to the trunk of an oak tree in Alan Thompson's yard, one for his daughter and one for his son-in-law.
[ Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or at 863-802-7518. ]
Ellie
Cpl. Ratzlaff Represents Women in Combat
By Gary White
THE LEDGER
Published: Saturday, August 29, 2009 at 12:01 a.m.
Last Modified: Sunday, August 30, 2009 at 4:57 a.m.
WINTER HAVEN | Alan Thompson has avoided watching the news or reading the papers since his daughter's Marine unit shipped off to Afghanistan in April.
After all, Thompson reasons, why go searching for potential bad news?
Still, it was impossible for the Winter Haven resident to miss his daughter's recent media exposure. Photos of U.S. Marine Cpl. Brigitte Ratzlaff circulated around the world this month along with an Associated Press article about the Female Engagement Team, a unit of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force.
The Ledger ran a front-page photo of Ratzlaff, 21, smilingly engaging with a local boy while on patrol in Afghanistan's Helmand Province. Other news outlets published a photo of Ratzlaff, a Winter Haven native, laughing as she was bowled over by a bomb-sniffing dog named Cpl. Clay.
Alan Thompson, 48, said his family has been inundated by calls and e-mails since the photos appeared. He said he probably would have gotten even more responses except some friends didn't recognize Brigitte by her married name - Ratzlaff.
Without the caption, it would have been difficult for anyone but family or close friends to identify Brigitte Ratzlaff from the photo of her meeting with the Afghan boy. Her helmet and a neck brace virtually engulf her, leaving visible only her mouth, nose, right cheek and a shaded eye.
"To see her in all her technical gear was quite sobering to me," Alan Thompson said last week. "When I saw that, it sent a cold chill up my spine. You realize, 'Wow, she's right in the middle of it.'"
When Brigitte's older sister, Danielle Thompson, heard about the photo in the newspaper, she dashed into the library at Polk State College's Lakeland campus, where she is a student.
"I hadn't seen her face since she got shipped off to Afghanistan," said Danielle Thompson, 23. "I ran over to the library and picked up a copy of the paper, and I just saw her face and started crying. I started begging the lady at the front desk, 'Can I have a copy of the paper? This is my sister.' I was just bawling."
A TOMBOY BUT STILL FEMININE
Family members say they never expected Ratzlaff to join the military, though she displayed tomboy tendencies throughout her childhood. Alan Thompson introduced his daughter to welding when she was 12, and together they spent years working to remodel a 1954 Chevrolet truck.
Ratzlaff, who attended Winter Haven's Grace Lutheran School, also applied her welding skills to bicycles. Family members say she modified regular bikes into choppers and then sold them to neighborhood kids.
Danielle Thompson always expected her sister to become a veterinarian. She said Ratzlaff was constantly rescuing baby squirrels she found in the woods, and she liked to catch lizards and let them clamp their jaws onto her earlobes. Family members called her Elly May, for the "Beverly Hillbillies" character with a fondness for skunks and possums.
But Ratzlaff, a wiry brunette with a mischievous smile, also has her feminine side, including a penchant for knitting.
From the age of 12, Ratzlaff kept a backpack in her closet stocked with water-disinfection tablets and other supplies she would need to survive in case of nuclear war or another emergency.
Her father said she taught herself about edible plants in the woods.
Ratzlaff lived with her mother, Tonya Thompson, in Orlando after her parents divorced, and graduated from Dr. Phillips High School in 2006. She enrolled at Mid Florida Tech in Orlando and trained to be an emergency medical technician.
As she neared graduation, though, she told relatives she was considering enlisting in the Marines.
Alan Thompson tried to steer her toward the Coast Guard instead.
Thompson, who said he raised his children "to be tough," said he thinks Ratzlaff chose the Marines in part to prove her mettle to him.
When he finally offered his blessing, Thompson told his daughter to "do it 100 percent."
That may have been needless advice.
Daryl Thompson of Winter Haven, Ratzlaff's uncle, said, "She's always head first."
TOP OF HER CLASS
Ratzlaff enlisted in September 2007.
At just 114 pounds, she barely met the Marines' minimum weight, yet relatives said she received a meritorious promotion during boot camp and graduated first in her class at Parris Island, S.C.
She trained as an airplane welder at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland and did some desert training in California before being stationed at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.
It was there she met Chase Ratzlaff, a fellow Marine from Washington state. The two married last September at Brigitte's grandmother's property on Lake Eloise in Winter Haven.
Brigitte Ratzlaff deployed to Afghanistan in April, at age 20, and Chase followed five weeks later.
Danielle Thompson said at one point they were living about a mile apart and were able to meet often for lunch.
Family members said they don't know much about the Female Engagement Team, attached to Golf company of the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Regiment of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade.
The special unit of 46 women was created to engage with women and children in southern Afghanistan, where the dominant Muslim religion greatly restricts contact between men and women. The team members wear head scarves as a sign of respect for Muslim customs, according to the Associated Press article. It is the Marines' only all-female unit, its leader, U.S. Marine Capt. Jennifer Gregoire, said by e-mail.
Gregoire said Ratzlaff volunteered for the team and was chosen after a four-day selection process.
She said Ratzlaff was part of a four-person team deployed for Operation Eastern Resolve II, which provided security in Taliban-held areas during the recent elections.
Asked what traits would qualify his daughter for the special team, Alan Thompson replied: "Where do I start? Her face is nothing but honesty. She's sincere about everything. Even though she's tough, she's got a big heart. She's pretty smart. She can read body language and read people's emotions."
The Female Engagement Team is assigned to active combat areas. When the Associated Press journalists met them, team members were in the midst of an eight-day mission in the Now Zad Valley area, a stronghold of the Taliban.
Alan Thompson said Ratzlaff wears a flak vest and other gear weighing more than 80 pounds. But family members know that gear can't save her from all dangers in a war zone where a reported 295 American troops have died this year.
Family members say Ratzlaff has only occasional access to a computer or phone.
Her father said he talked to her by phone earlier this month.
"She told me it might be a while before I hear from her," he said. "She said, 'Don't worry, I'm protected by a bunch of Marines.'"
After the Associated Press photos circulated, Ratzlaff sent her stepmother an e-mail saying she hoped the pictures hadn't caused too much concern for family members, including her stepbrother, Jake Etherton, a senior at Lake Region High School.
Since the photos were taken, Danielle Thompson said her sister has received a second meritorious promotion. As a corporal, she now outranks her husband, who is a lance corporal.
Ratzlaff's deployment is scheduled to end in November, but her father said he won't be surprised if she volunteers for an extension. He said his daughter eventually hopes to use her welding skills as the owner of a custom motorcycle shop.
In the meantime, a pair of yellow ribbons cling to the trunk of an oak tree in Alan Thompson's yard, one for his daughter and one for his son-in-law.
[ Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or at 863-802-7518. ]
Ellie