Army National Guardsman's sees Iraq operations from start to finish

By Army Sgt. David A. Bryant
United States Division – South

Army National Guard Sgt. 1st Class John Wayne Savage is a force protection noncommissioned officer with the 36th Infantry Division. The Phoenix, Ariz. native and resident of Austin, Texas, deployed with the Army National Guard at the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom, again during the 2006 surge, and will have the unique opportunity to see the completion of United States operations in Iraq. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. David A. Bryant) (Released)
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BASRA, Iraq (1/18/11) - His ice-blue eyes grew slightly unfocused as his mind took him on a journey back through time. The year was 2003 and Operation Iraqi Freedom had just begun –  the first of three deployments to Iraq for Sgt. 1st Class John Wayne Savage.

The 39-year-old motor transportation sergeant, currently serving as a force protection noncommissioned officer, vividly recalled the beginning of the conflict as a time of uncertainty.

“We didn’t know when we’d be coming home back then; we were there for six months before we were even told we’d be staying in Iraq for a year,” said Savage, a Phoenix, Ariz., native and resident of Austin, Texas.

“I served with the 2220th Transportation Company, Arizona Army National Guard, and our mission was fluid. Everyone was learning the mission together; we improvised and just did things the best way we knew how.”

At the beginning of OIF, the amenities Soldiers normally enjoy were in short supply.

“When we first got to Iraq, we had no latrines, no chow halls, no (post exchange), no shower points; so we had to improvise,” Savage said. “We had Soldiers taking showers standing in a drip-pan using their camelback and doing laundry out of big plastic tubs.

“Our water source was a water buffalo. As we draw down our forces in Iraq and start closing things down, it will be interesting to see whether or not we go back to the way it was in the beginning.”

Savage’s perspective of OIF is unique; he was there for the beginning, served a second tour in 2006 and will now see the fruition of the United States’ efforts in Iraq as he deploys with the 36th Infantry Division for Operation New Dawn.

The tall, whipcord-thin Savage served in the United States Navy for six years before getting out in 1995.

After a three-year break in service he enlisted as a Citizen-Soldier, a member of the Army National Guard willing to leave a civilian career to answer his nation’s call.

Deploying is difficult at times, but Savage said he considers himself no different from the hundreds of thousands of his fellow Soldiers who have made the same sacrifice on behalf of fellow Americans.

“The chance to serve alongside the best America has to offer makes the sacrifice worthwhile,” he said.

“Every day I work with Soldiers whose professional capabilities make me proud to be associated with them. They are the reason I continue to serve. Their courage inspires me to be a better Soldier.”

2006 brought a surge in troops to Iraq and a new mission for transportation Soldiers. Savage’s second deployment would be more focused than the first, with a clear mission to provide long-haul convoys of supplies to major hubs in the theater of operations.

“The primary difference is there were no breaks; it was just work,” he said. “We were running missions all the time and almost all movements were made at night, between midnight and 5 a.m. It was a lot of work, but what we did made it possible for fellow Soldiers to do their job effectively.”

Savage said he remembers moving so much materiel during his second deployment that he figured it would be a tough job getting it all out when the time came to bring everyone home.

Now, with Operation New Dawn, he will get the chance to find out, though he will miss another year in the lives of his 17-year-old son and 13-year-old daughter and will celebrate his 20-year wedding anniversary during the deployment.

“I think it’s cool seeing how this will end, seeing how different Iraq will be from the way it was when we first arrived,” Savage said.

“I want the chance to see the success stories of the Iraqi people – that Iraqi police officer proud of what he is doing and that Iraqi soldier proud to be serving his nation. I want to be able to say we were a part of that.

“We were there, and we made a difference.”

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