Posted by
Billy on Wednesday, January 07, 2009 11:22:28 PM
War is hell. But in the imaginations of second-graders, the everyday life of soldiers like Ben Chambers is more like play.
To the students at Bryan Elementary in the Millard school district, soldier Ben is someone to wonder about. Someone to whom they can send a handmade holiday or birthday card.
To Chambers' family, he's the son, brother, cousin and nephew constantly on their minds and in their prayers. The one they wish they could have sung "Happy Birthday" to on New Year's Day, when he turned 22.
Chambers, a Bryan alumnus whom the whole school adopted in the fall, is a platoon leader with the 101st Airborne Division out of Fort Campbell, Ky. His unit traversed mountains near Afghanistan's border with Pakistan after its permanent outpost was bombed on Thanksgiving.
"Every day when he wakes up, he knows he has to save his life," said his mom, Laura Henry of Omaha.
But the Bryan second-graders aren't told that. Teachers give the children limited information about the Army specialist's duties. Nothing is said of the dangers.
When the second-graders drew birthday cards for Chambers, they were told that their soldier was part of the 3rd Platoon fire support, but that "he's not a fireman."
(Read more of the above story students adopt a soldier.)