"Goooood morning, Iraq!"
It doesn't have the same ring to it as, "Goooood morning, Vietnam!" Nor is Army reservist Sam Smith to be confused with Adrian Cronauer, the inspiration behind Robin Williams' character in the movies.
But during his yearlong tour of duty as a medical supply specialist, Smith put together a radio station at Camp Dogwood, a support operations center southwest of Baghdad. A table and some buckets to sit on served as a makeshift studio. Broadcasts carried for a 2-mile radius using the mini transmitter he created and the base's antenna.
"It was fun for everyone," he said. "It was just our way of coping and dealing with our little space."
Smith, a part-time KRCL disc jockey, handled the R&B format. Other soldiers provided classic rock and country music. A Puerto Rican woman did a show in Spanish.
Though assigned mainly to fill orders for supplies as part of the 172nd Medical Logistics Battalion, Smith, as soldiers in Iraq commonly are, was asked to do all sorts of other things. "When you're over there in that type of situation, you have to take on other jobs," he said.
Smith, 39, ran telephone lines, set up computer networks and satellite systems and drove a forklift. He didn't see any combat, but its ugly results still affected him.
The Puerto Rican DJ at the radio station died when insurgents shot down the helicopter in which she was riding. It was en route to an air base where she was to board a plane home. Her father was planning to meet her in Atlanta.
"She said some really nice stuff to me. She was going home that day to see her family," Smith said with sadness, adding she had goals in life and that she was proud to wear the uniform.
After a heartfelt funeral service, Smith realized he hadn't had to deal with the emotional pain of war until that moment. He realized that he could die, too. He has a wife and two teenage children.
"You make sure you say what you need to say to people," he said. "You take on a different outlook."
That continues at home.
"I am very appreciative of everything that I have," Smith said. "I have become very, very patient."
Being in Iraq helped him gain "a whole new appreciation for America. It's not something you can put into words and explain to people. When you see someone get off the plane, get on their knees and kiss the ground, it's not for show."
Smith had never been outside the United States before his assignment in Iraq.
Stability is something else he has come to appreciate.
He didn't unpack his bags for two weeks after returning home. "When I got back, I didn't know if I should start my life back up," he said.
But he eventually got back into the swing. In addition to working at KRCL, he has a job in media electronics at Salt Lake Community College and is working toward a communications degree at Weber State University.
There is a possibility he could be called back to Iraq. He said he doesn't want to go but would. He still has things packed from his first tour.
Sam Smith
Rank: Specialist
Unit: 172nd Medical Logistics Battalion
Tour: Iraq, March 2003-March 2004
Residence: Salt Lake City
E-mail: romboy@desnews.com