Spring Glen man home from Iraq

(SPRING GLEN) – A Spring Glen man has returned to Schuylkill County after serving five months in Iraq.
Andrew D. Swank arrived home Jan. 17, escorted by fellow firefighters with the Sacramento, Valley View, and Hegins Fire departments who sponsored a parade from Fountain to Spring Glen on his behalf.
Swank, 21, is a son of Clervin and Angela L. Reinoehl Zimmerman, and a Senior Airman with the U.S. Air Force who trained as a firefighter. He served with the 514th Civil Engineering Squadron (CES), McGuire AFB, NJ, and was assigned to the 506th CES in Kirkuk.  He’s a volunteer fireman with the Sacramento Community Fire Company.
He’ll spend a few weeks home, then head to Guam from March 6-21, 2010, before an anticipated 9-month deployment to Afghanistan in May 2011.
“Breathing” was one of the first things he said he appreciated upon his return, besides seeing his family.
“The fresh air is better here.  They have a lot of oil refineries burning all the time, and between the dust and sand storms and sewage plants, it’s so different over there,” he said.
Swank’s duties while overseas included training the Kirkuk City Fire Department and the Iraqi Air Force at the Kirkuk Regional Air Base.  Most days began at 5 or 5:30 a.m. with waking up and eating breakfast, followed by a clean-up of the station, roll call at 8 a.m., and then working directly with the Iraqi crews for the rest of the day.
Communicating wasn’t a problem, he said.
“They watched American movies with subtitles and that’s how they learned English,” said Swank.  “They understood us.”
Another of Swank’s duties was to stabilize the area where Medivac helicopters brought in the wounded.
The Iraqis cooked meals for Swank’s unit and also prepared “chai” (tea) for them.
“They make really good tea,” Swank said.
One aspect of living conditions that can become a challenge – besides the extreme heat -  is avoiding bites from scorpions, and camel spiders, he said.  “The camel spiders are as big as your head and their bite can have a paralyzing effect,” he said.  Bites from smaller, black spiders, too, are a frequent nuisance.  Soldiers use sticky strips strategically located around bedding areas to alleviate most of the problem, he said.
Swank said he felt his unit was well-equipped, and their unit regularly received care packages from home, that were “greatly appreciated and were a good morale booster”.
Swank signed up for a 6-year service term in June 2007.   A 2006 graduate of Tri-Valley High School, he completed his basic training at Lackland AFB, in San Antonio, TX, and attended firefighting school at Goodfellow AFB in San Angelo, TX.
Prior to his military service, Swank, had been an accomplished athlete, playing football and baseball for Williams Valley, Upper Dauphin, Tri-Valley, and Legion teams.  He also played semi-pro football with the Lykens Thunder arena team as a defensive safety, competing in games across Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Instead of pursing sports, Swank said he volunteered for the military, because of the veteran opportunities, the potential for acquiring a government job, and the travel experiences.
He left for his tour of duty on Aug. 28, 2009; and his grandfather, Henry Reinoehl of Wiconisco, died just a few weeks later on Sept. 20.
Since he was miles away, Andrew’s mother had a member of his unit break the news of his grandfather’s death to him.  Andrew made the decision to stay with his unit, and did not come back for the funeral. Staying in theatre is what he thought his grandfather would have wanted him to do, he said.  Swank’s unit flew a flag in Iraq on Sept. 22 in honor of his grandfather, and presented the flag and a certificate to Swank and his family.
Although he’s a senior airman now, he is expecting to become a staff sergeant by this spring.  He plans on pursuing a medical career, possibly as a registered nurse, and re-enlisting as an officer with the Air Force as a flight nurse.
His girlfriend, Malery Masser, 20, of Valley View, is interested in the medical field, as well, and is currently pursing a medical assisting degree at McCann, he said.
While he’s enjoying spending time with his family now, Swank said he’s in favor of the troop surge into Afghanistan, even if that means another deployment.
“I do think we should send in more (troops).  The job will get done quicker,” he said.
Swank thanked the community, and fellow firefighters, for supporting him and welcoming him home.

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