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Army

Father Soldier Son: Just Keep Going

July 26, 2020 by Julie Levac Leave a Comment

Father Soldier Son - Wikipedia

Father Soldier Son (directed by Leslye Davis and Catrin Einhorn) is a new Netflix Original Documentary telling the unbelievable story of Brian Eisch, a single father of two young sons and a Platoon Sergeant in the US military.  Showing more than 10 years of footage, we follow this family as they go through the lowest and highest points in their lives.

The early footage of Brian’s children, Isaac and Joey, is very touching.  You can see the love and pride they have for their father.  They miss him when he’s deployed but seem to understand the importance of what their father is doing.  Still, the scene where Brian had to leave again for another 6 month stretch–and watching their goodbyes–was heartbreaking.

Introducing 'Father Soldier Son,' a Film From The Times and Netflix - The  New York Times

Despite their understanding, Isaac and Joey were always concerned for their father.  Seeing such young children talking about the weight on their shoulders when their father is deployed (or hearing one say “you shot my Dad so I kill you”) is difficult to watch.  Brian states that he was doing ‘what Uncle Sam asked him to do’, but what is everybody asking of his sons?  Only Brian is in the military, yet so many others are personally affected by it.  Isaac and Joey had to make sacrifices as well.

Brian takes pride in being in the military and seems to prefer being on active duty, deployed, and fighting for his country.  It is part of who he is.  But after a traumatic injury, he can no longer do what he loves.  It’s like he loses his identity and doesn’t know who he is or what to do any longer.  

We see a fascinating shift in the family after Brian’s injury.  The seemingly positive Isaac, who wishes to follow in his father’s footsteps, becomes a more introverted teenager who would prefer to go to college than enroll in the army and the more sensitive Joey suddenly now becomes the son who longs to follow in his father’s footsteps.  Their opinions on the military change as they get older and they battle with questions of whether or not being in the army is worth what their father is going through.

The Must-Watch Doc Father Soldier Son That Was 10 Years In The Making

Brian, losing his identity and dealing with the painful process of an amputation, understandably loses motivation to continue with the difficult healing and learning process.  Not only is he dealing with the physical aspects of his new life, but the emotional consequences as well.  He becomes withdrawn and stops engaging with the family.  His new partner questions whether he had PTSD.  Brian felt that he became a burden to the military and was just someone else that they had to take care of.

Father Soldier Son is a fascinating and sobering look into just one of the millions of people who are in the US military alone.  These soldiers are not just making sacrifices during the time that they are on active duty, but it is a lifelong commitment.  The physical ramifications alone can be immense, but the emotional damage can be a lifelong struggle, not only on the soldiers themselves, but on their family as well.  They are making the ultimate sacrifice.

Despite a laundry list of devastation, we witness the Eisch family experience some beautiful life milestones closer to the end of the film.  Father Soldier Son brings you along on the Eisch family’s emotional roller coaster.

Review: 'Father Soldier Son'

What I choose to take away from this film are the wise words of Brian Eisch, “Just keeping going.  That’s all you can do.  And fill your days with more happiness then sadness.”

Father Soldier Son is streaming on Netflix now.

Filed Under: Reviews Tagged With: Army, Brian Eisch, Catrin Einhorn, Father Soldier Son, Isaac Eisch, Joey Eisch, Leslye Davis, military, PTSD

The Long Road Home Ep. 4 – Faith in Uncertainty

November 27, 2017 by J. Alan Sharrer Leave a Comment

(Photo: National Geographic/Van Redin)

The situation in Sadr City wasn’t getting any better for the soldiers depicted in National Geographic’s The Long Road Home (Tuesdays 10 PM/9 PM CT and on demand).  In fact, it was getting significantly worse. All three platoons had come under heavy fire and numerous men have been injured or killed.  What do you do when the threat of death is pervasive in the air?

The fourth episode focused on Staff Sgt. Robert Miltenberger (Jeremy Sisto), who was called back to duty beyond his contract date (known as stop-lossing). He was portrayed in the earlier programs as a calm veteran who seems to have a laissez-faire attitude about the whole concept of war. In fact, that was far from the truth.  Miltenberger was on duty in Kosovo during an earlier tour of duty and watched helplessly as a woman carrying her dead baby walked directly towards him, then headed into a live minefield.  As a result, he had numerous dreams about the lady and developed a fatalistic outlook on the whole mission, even going so far as to write a letter his wife was supposed to find after he died in battle.

Miltenberger’s brigade in Iraq was dealing with numerous issues—notably driving into the middle of a city under attack with an unarmored vehicle and no radio communication (big no-nos). He sensed an ambush and got the squadron out of certain death, only to have the truck’s radiator crack a short while later.  While attempting a patch, he saw a group of unarmed residents—one who looked eerily like the lady he saw in Kosovo.  Was this a premonition of something?

As for the original platoon, led by Lt. Shane Aguero (EJ Bonilla), they were still hunkered down, but the militia against them was slowly closing in.  The soldiers were running out of ammunition and had no night vision gear as the sun slowly set.  You could sense fear in theiir eyes.  The head od the forces, Lt. Col. Volesky (Michael Kelly), had his life flash before his eyes after being trapped by insurgents, only to be spared at the last minute.  Some of the wounded, thankfully, were evacuated to base camp to receive treatment for their injuries.

(Photo: National Geographic/Van Redin)

Back in the US, the news outlets reported fighting in Sadr City, understandably causing the soldiers’ wives to panic. Gina Denomy (Kate Bosworth) and LeAnn Volesky (Sarah Wayne Callies) were the point people but were limited as to what could be shared due to Army regulations, infuriating some of the wives.  Lt. Aguero’s wife later learned of the attack, causing her son Elijah to run to his room and cry, “Dad’s going to die and it’s all my fault.”  It’s heartbreaking, considering his reaction to the deployment in the first episode. Uncertainty hangs in the air, with lots of men still in harm’s way and darkness closing in . . .

Though they’ve played a small role in the program, the army wives have fascinated me. They had unknown fears going into the deployment.  Some were new mothers while some were expecting a child in a matter of months.  All were trying to keep life as normal as possible–not only for their children, but for themselves.  When the news began reporting on the situation in Iraq, it understandably caused the wives to worry: Were there casualties?  If so, was my husband one of them?  If so, how am I going to live life without them by my side? If they’re hurt, can I deal with taking care of them, no matter what the injury (physical or mental)?   The hardest thing in those moments is faith–faith in God, faith in the commanders, faith that all will be okay. The Bible says faith is “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1 NASB).   That’s incredibly difficult for most of us in ordinary life, much less people in the military.  However, without faith in something to stand on, we just exist.  In the case of the military wives, faith is all they had to hold on to even with the swirling winds of conflicting news reports all about them.

Tomorrow evening’s episode will look at the situation in Sadr City from the eyes of an unlikely person—the interpreter.  It should be quite interesting.

Filed Under: Reviews, Television Tagged With: Army, death, EJ Bonilla, Faith, Gary Volesky, GIna Denomy, Hebrews, Iraq, Jeremy Sisto, Kate Bosworth, Kosovo, LeAnn Volesky, Michael Kelly, National Geographic, Robert Miltenberger, Sadr City, Sarah Wayne Callies, Shane Aguero, The Long Road Home, uncertainty

The Long Road Home: Interview with the Cast

November 3, 2017 by J. Alan Sharrer Leave a Comment

Every individual who enters a branch of the US Armed Forces understands there is a possibility of having to be in a combat situation. They also understand there’s a chance they will be wounded or potentially killed while attempting to complete their mission.  The First Calvary Division from Ft. Hood TX was on a basic peacekeeping mission in Iraq in 2004—the city they were placed in, Sadr City, had been incident-free for nearly a year.  Nice and easy, right?

On Palm Sunday (April 4, 2004), the First Calvary Division came under a surprise attack resulting in nearly fifty soldiers being wounded, along with eight deaths. It was horrible, to be sure—an event that was written about by ABC Chief Global Affairs Correspondent Martha Raddatz in her book The Long Road Home.  On Tuesday, November 7th, National Geographic will broadcast an eight-part miniseries chronicling that day in Iraq.  I had the recent opportunity to interview members of the series and discovered that despite the difficult circumstances, the concept of family and faith was critical to the survival of both the soldiers and their families seven thousand miles away.

(Photo: National Geographic/Van Redin)

For the soldiers, the situation was pretty dire—but they didn’t fight alone. Katie Paxton, who played the wife of 1st Lt. Shane Aguero in the series, said that, in reality, “Every soldier is you, is me, is your neighbor.” As a result, the families deploy with the soldiers (though not physically), constantly worrying if their loved one will return to embrace them again. It’s a sense of sacrifice that isn’t lost on the children. Karina Ortiz, playing the wife of Spc. Israel Garza, noted that the soldier is seen to some kids as abandoning them instead of a hero.  Others attempt to cling to them in a sense of desperation. It manifests itself into varied and unpredictable forms of behavior as a result.

War is a test on couples as well.  Paxton noted that the wife is basically a single parent.  It’s an additional level of stress and trauma to deal with. Martha Raddatz added that since the families don’t know anything, they’re constantly terrified. As a result, the wives have no real choice but to form a close-knit community.  Jorge Diaz, who played Israel Garza, shared that it’s also tough on the soldiers who constantly think about their families back home.  The occasional phone call helps but doesn’t relieve the worry.  In addition, the soldiers miss out on large chunks of family life.  In the case of Shane Aguero, his tours of duty caused him to miss 65 months of his kids’ lives.

When soldiers get into the heat of battle, they are forced to make split-second decisions affecting people’s lives.  But that’s not all they deal with in those moments.  Sometimes, a soldier is hit by gunfire or shrapnel and has to deal with physical injuries. But Aaron Fowler, US Army veteran, mentioned a unique term in my interview: moral injuries.  Moral Injuries are unseen and involve doing something that is legally correct but violates a person’s morals (such as killing a child who has a suicide vest on). In these cases, deep spiritual trauma can occur.

To this end, faith in God is almost a requirement for a soldier.  Chaplains are deployed just like soldiers and help the soldiers spiritually, but they don’t have weapons.  Mikko Alanne, executive producer and screenwriter, added that each episode of the series has a focus on a specific character and theme.  The second part of the episode on Tuesday evening has a theme of faith—and it’s readily on display for the viewer to see. He referenced Psalm 130:1, “Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord,” mentioning that faith can give people the will to survive in a difficult time. Eric Bourquin, US Army veteran featured in the series, noted that “if you have nothing to believe in, you have nothing to hope for.”

It’s important to know not only what happened, but why it happened, according to Alanne. The Long Road Home was created with meticulous attention to detail to honor the soldiers who were a part of Black Sunday.  As Fowler noted, why would you sacrifice the relationship with your brothers for something that’s not accurate?  It became a solemn responsibility for them.  Raddatz mentioned that when the event happened in 2004, she received two photos of the whole thing, so her reaction to first seeing the final product was one of “absolute awe.”  After seeing two episodes, you’ll probably say the same thing.

The Long Road Home premieres Tuesday, November 7th at 9 PM (8/CT) on National Geographic and will feature the first two episodes.

Special thanks to National Geographic and Andy Peterson from Different Drummer for coordinating the interview sessions.

Filed Under: Interviews, Television Tagged With: Aaron Fowler, Army, Black Sunday, Eric Bourquin, First Calvary, Fort Hood, Iraq, Israel Garza, Jorge Diaz, Karina Ortiz, Katie Paxton, Martha Raddatz, Mikko Alanne, Moral Injuries, National Geographic, Sadr City, Shane Aguero, The Long Road Home, war

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