From Newtown’s Board Rooms To Baghdad—

Col Will Rodgers Goes To Work In A War Zone

By John Voket

(This is the first of what will be ongoing reports from Iraq, as transmitted by Newtown Legislative Council Chairman Will Rodgers, who is actively serving as a colonel in the Marine Reserves.)

One minute Colonel Will Rodgers thought someone was banging on his bunker door, and the next minute he and the contingent of fellow Marines in his unit were scrambling for cover while donning protective helmets and Kevlar vests.

A mortar round had just detonated a few hundred feet away in a US Military ammunitions depot.

But a few hours later, the mild-mannered attorney who until recently was following wartime activities from the comfort of his Hattertown office computer, was dusting himself off and returning to what he describes as “just another normal day in Baghdad.”

Col Rodgers was dispatched to Iraq in late August, volunteering to take the place of one of several younger Marine Reservists who Mr Rodgers said likely had children much younger than his own daughter Amelia, who is now a college sophomore. His wife, Moira, who is also an active local volunteer, said the decision was nonetheless emotionally challenging for their family, but the family remains united and committed to Col Rodgers duty to the country and The Corps.

While any given day may find the Newtown native high above the desert traveling by “helo” (helicopter)] to a remote village or outpost, or racing through Baghdad streets in a high speed delivery convoy, his job description somewhat belies the intensity he is regularly facing during what is expected to be at least a seven-month tour.

“I’m scheduled to serve as part of a civil affairs contingent,” he said before departing Newtown on Flag Day. “I’ll be primarily working with the community members, tribal factions, and political leaders negotiating damage settlements as well as providing support in diplomatic and infrastructure matters.”

After a few weeks “in country,” much of which was spent in a single jumpsuit because his luggage was lost in the multistop transport process between Washington, D.C., and Iraq, and without his own units’ weapons because they were seized by security officers while passing through London’s Heathrow Airport, the real adventures began.

One recent day found Col Rodgers offloading “a substantial sum of American cash,” from a cargo flight for eventual distribution to necessary service and diplomatic personnel.

In his first correspondence October 9, Col Rodgers wrote:

“My home base is relatively safe despite the daily mortars, small arms fire, and intel reports of infiltrators and abductors. Where life gets real exciting is outside the wire where I have been going about once a week,” he said. “One recent trip was to two cities northeast of Baghdad. In one there are Marine snipers posted on the roof of the government building (who were justifiably proud of their kills in the attack the night before) and you had to run to and from the buildings while keeping a lookout for insurgent snipers.”

Lest anyone locally thinks Col Rodgers has escaped the rigors of subdued political activities, he assures his friends and neighbors this is not the case.

“A recent trip was again into Baghdad Red Zone — for a council meeting!” he wrote. “Here, though, it was a Provincial Reconstruction Council meeting, not our Legislative Council. It was considerably more fractious. It was very interesting to see the divisions among ethnic and tribal groups, as well as the range of hostility towards coalition forces — both a Marine Corps General and a British General were present for the meeting.”

Col Rodgers also talked of frequent trips to a rather high profile location in Baghdad.

“I travel to Saddam’s main palace every day, which is where much of my work takes place,” he wrote. “Yes, I have used his toilets!  The opulence is especially affronting when you compare it to the squalid conditions of most of the surrounding country. I’ve traveled along (more accurately, aside or above) both the Tigris and Euphrates  rivers from city to country.”

He tells of the Iraqis he’s encountered being “nice and incredibly resilient in the face of tremendous bloodshed.” Although many of Col Rodgers’ new acquaintances have terrible tales to tell.

“We have local drivers for local trips within International Zone,” he wrote. “One, in his late 20s to early 30s, told me he had lost 25 high school classmates in the preceding month.”

Despite the violence, he wrote, the news is not all negative. 

“Local governments are getting back on their feet, even where security problems persist,” Col Rodgers observed. “Major agricultural assistance projects, particularly in the area of responsibility of my Marine unit, are underway.  We are making a difference and most Iraqis seem to appreciate it.

“I miss green and moisture,” he wrote. “This is a country of smells, very few pleasant — even the shower water smells like sand.  Sounds are better for although there is the constant noise of small arms fire and helos, and frequent explosions (some close, but so far no cigar), there are also the calls to prayer which are quite beautiful.”

But in all likelihood, one of the most highly publicized aspects of his visit was the early October mortar attack on an adjacent US ammunition supply depot.

“Yes, the ammo dump is less than a couple clicks away,” Col Rodgers wrote. “When it started going off, I did what many in my location did: I went to answer what I thought was a knock on my door, so sharp was the rap from the first percussion (most mortars or explosions are lower, rumbling noises).”

He said when subsequent explosions occurred in rapid succession, his fellow Marines thought they were facing a coordinated shelling attack. 

“We donned flak gear but before too long it was announced that it was our ammo dump, and we tried to ignore it.”

He said that incident quickly faded in my memory, however, because in the day or so following he reported: a military dog scenting on explosives in a vehicle coming into his area; several mortars hitting nearby; three co-workers suffering broken bones when their vehicle was struck by an Iraqi vehicle and rolled over; a controlled detonation of an unexploded rocket that landed near his barracks; and taking yet another intense ride through Baghdad in a convoy traveling the wrong way against three lanes of Baghdad traffic!

“This is, simply put, a dangerous place,” Col Rodgers added. “Once again, however, my lot is luckier than most.”