Shared mission: Major thanks students for support

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EAST PROVIDENCE – Students at St. Margaret School had a chance to see the effects of their generosity when a special visitor arrived the week before Christmas.

Major Michael McGee was home in Rumford on a two-week leave from Iraq, where he has been stationed for the past seven months. He visited all of the school's students, including his daughters, Kathryn in 2nd grade and Meaghan in Kindergarten, to thank them for sending packages and letters to him and the men in his unit while they have been deployed.

Indeed, they sent so many boxes full of snack foods, magazines and other reminders of home that McGee says he lost count. "You guys have sent us so much food, so many things it would probably fill this entire classroom," he told a Pre-K class.

The letters have been pouring in, too. "There have been so many that you can't even hope to write back," he said. Most recently, students personalized stockings full of Christmas goodies for the more than 100 men and women in his unit.

McGee said the reminders of home help him get through the long days and nights away from his family. "You should see the smile on my face when I open up a box and see a package of Oreo cookies in there," he told one class.

McGee, who is a member of the St. Margaret school board, told a class of 8th grade students, "It's nice to know that you guys are back here thinking about us."

The major is stationed in Balad, Iraq, where he handles logistics convoys; simply put, he is in charge of ensuring that all units receive the supplies they need like food, water and fuel. "Where I am is very safe," he said, but added, "Whenever we go outside [the base] we don't take any chances."

The students had many questions.

Many wanted to know what Iraq is like.

"Hot" was his answer. "It was 130 degrees when I first got off the plane," he said. The rainy season had just begun when he left – the first rainfall since he arrived in Iraq seven months previously.

Even more students were interested in what kinds of weapons he carries. McGee, like all soldiers in Iraq, must carry a weapon at all times. His is a pistol, but he said he has never had to use it outside of training.

A third grade student wondered why he had to wear a uniform. "One of the things about being in the Army, like being at St. Margaret's, we're all part of a team," he explained. His uniform, like theirs, shows everyone what team he is on.

And some wanted to know why he had to go to Iraq in the first place. McGee tailors his answers to the age of the students. His young daughters, he said, "just understand, 'well, you're fighting bad guys,'" But, for an older child, he explained in more detail. "Iraq is a country that had a bad government, and that government has been changed. Besides being over there to protect you guys, we're there to help the Iraqis too."

"Were you scared?" A third grade student asked.

"Yes. Every day,” McGee said simply.

"Do you ever regret joining the Army?" a seventh grader wondered. McGee answered thoughtfully, "I really hate it when I get back to my room and have nothing to do but think about my family," he said, but when he is busy and making the decisions that keep units running, that's when he loves his job. He described his feelings for the Army as a "love/hate relationship."

One student asked the question on the minds of politicians and pundits across the country: "How much longer do you think before the war is over?"

To answer that question, he specified, he was just Mike McGee; he wasn't speaking with his authority as an Army major. He guessed that Americans will spend two to three more years with a heavy presence in Iraq, and after that will continue on with a very small presence for many years. He compared it to the U.S. military's presence in Korea.

McGee’s tour in Iraq will be over in a few months. After that, he plans to retire. He could have retired before his unit was deployed, since he had already served 20 years. But he said he felt he couldn't let "his boys" go over without joining them. He has worked with many of the men and women in his unit for several years and has grown close to them.

But not even the surrogate family of the Army eases the pain of being separated from family. McGee talked about missing his wife and children and dog and cats in every classroom. "We miss our families an awful lot," he said.

The major was slated to return to Iraq December 29.