Wanda English Burnett, Editor

Thanksgiving for the Johnson family of Milan came four days after the traditional one - but they didn’t mind. What was more important was being able to celebrate it with their loved one who has been in war torn Iraq for the past nine months.

SPC Nicolas Johnson walked through the door of his parents’ home in Milan dressed in full Iraqi garb, a present from a friend, to the squeals of delight from his family that he was home, and still had his sense of humor!

The Milan soldier deployed with the Indiana Army National Guard 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team in January of this year. “I volunteered to go,” he told the Osgood Journal on Sunday as he polished off some of the feast his mother had prepared for his homecoming.

SPC Johnson had always wanted to be a soldier. He said it was a “lifelong dream” - one he was thankful to be able to fulfill. While he didn’t know the soldiers he was serving with, he said they were willing to give their lives for him, and he would return the favor if needed. Thankfully, it wasn’t.

But, Johnson has felt war’s impact loud and clear. He told of his first experience “out of the gate” meaning he was leaving what little safety was inside the place he was staying in Iraq, and ventured out with others into the unknown. “I was scared to death,” he candidly spoke of the experience. He said the place they stayed in was dubbed “Mortarittaville” because of the numerous mortar rounds that would sound off. “It was hit over 900 times,” he shared.

The Milan soldier was stationed all over the country of Iraq, sometimes in the city of Baghdad, near the Iranian border, and by Kuwait. He’s seen the gamut of the country that is mostly covered with sand.

During a sand storm, which is much like white-out blizzard conditions as far as visibility goes, Johnson said he tried to call home. But, at the same time, his Milan family experienced hurricane winds and had no electricity to take his call. “It was frustrating,” Johnson remembers. He said he would call home for support during difficult times, and that was one of them.

Some immediate thoughts he shared included a dangerous route of travel his company took through Baghdad, because, “it was a quicker route.” But, it wasn’t safer. He said they were known as the “Run on Red Boys” who were “crazy” for taking that road. With a call sign of Grim Reapers, Team Foxtrot, carried out their mission with precision, and little fear. “We were there to do a job,” he noted.

One place Johnson stayed was an old base of Saddum Hussein’s. He told how it had a theatre for live performances that they transformed into a movie theatre of sorts, and watched the latest movies they could get their hands on. An olympic size swimming pool that had been used for the Iraqi Olympic team to train, was theirs for the using. “It was an awesome pool,” he told.

Some memories were of harrowing times like when the fire-power was blasting overhead and “we just kept running on the track.” He said you kind of get used to the sounds of blasts and guns going off. Something else he didn’t care for was the lack of trust. He told about a checkpoint close to where he was living that was blown up by a vehicle full of explosives. “You couldn’t trust anyone over there,” he noted. Not talking about his fellow soldiers, but those in the Iraqi army left something to be desired in the trust department. He told of one commander who had made friends with an Iraqi soldier only to be shot dead by him in later months. He told of a 14-year-old suicide bomber, making it impossible to even trust the children. “It’s a different world over there,” he noted.

The children were another story. He said it was hard to see them and not think of his own daughter, three-year-old Isabella at home. He said he and others would give out candy and bottled water to them whenever they could. “Iraqi people are big on gifts,” he noted. “They love to give gifts and they love to receive them,” he shared. He said he did his share of bringing back souvenirs to loved ones at home, even while doing a tough job.

“Iraqi people see what freedom is and they want it,” Johnson told the Osgood Journal. He spoke of the friends he had made while stationed there saying they were thankful for the American troops. He said while initially he believes they saw the troops as a bad thing, they “now realize we’re trying to help.”

Johnson said he gave a blanket of his daughter’s to one of his Iraqi friends for his daughter. “He really appreciated it,” he noted. He said in Iraq people are greeted with a hug, not a handshake.

What was the thing he missed most about home besides family and friends? “Mom’s cooking,” was the reply, without hesitation. He said while they had plenty of food in Iraq, it didn’t come close to being authentic American food. “Once when we got cole slaw, it was missing one ingredient, the mayonnaise,” he told. “When we ate, there would be a phrase we would use often, he shared. That was “Pretty good, but aint’ like Momma’ fixes it!”

What was the most dangerous thing he encountered? Well, it would have to be the EFP/C4 explosives. He said this particular explosive, that was packed in a tube, could take out an armored tank.

While the soldier feels America should have been in Iraq, he now feels it’s time to let the Iraqi people “start taking care of business.”

And his wife, Angela, agrees. She’s glad to have her husband home. While he was gone, she busied herself with “projects”. His mother, Brenda Johnson, laughed, and said, “Oh, yes, we had lots of projects.” The two women, who both love the same man dearly, worked together on the various projects, painting, landscaping, well, that one didn’t go over so well, but, they bonded. “It helped to bring us all closer,” Brenda shared.

The family was thankful for many things this Thanksgiving. Most of all, they were thankful for Nicolas’s safe return home. When the prayer was offered before the Thanksgiving feast began, the soldier’s words were, “Thanks for getting me home safely.” Then he prayed for the safe return of all those still serving.

How does it feel to be home? “It’s amazing. It’s so good to be home,” he shared. Indeed, it was great for him to be home and his daughter told the Osgood Journal she is taking her daddy to Show and Tell at her preschool next Friday. What will he tell? She was asked. “Stuff” was her simplistic reply. She attends Miss Wanda’s Preschool at the Moores Hill Baptist Church. She told another reporter she loved her dad from “here to Lawrenceburg.”

Words could not describe the soldier’s wife’s feelings about the safe return of her husband. “It’s so good to have him home,” she stated, her eyes shining. That statement was echoed by everyone in the room, that included many family members and a neighbor, Gary Anderson. Johnson is the son of Jerry and Brenda Johnson, and grandson of Delores Benham. He has two sisters, Liz Roell and Tracy Mullikin.
The Johnson’s didn’t feel the cold rain that fell on Sunday. Their hearts were warm from the safe return of their loved one.

Where does Johnson go from here? Well, he’s finished with his four-year stint in the Army National Guard and will pursue his dream to be a law enforcement officer. He was a reserve officer with the Milan Police Department before deployment, and hopes to be back there. “I just want to serve the people of my community,” he concluded.
The soldier has proved he’s not afraid to step up and face the enemy. According to Ripley Publishing Co. files, he received an Army Accommodation Medal in September for detecting an explosive device, saving the lives of fellow soldiers and civilians. Johnson said he was just doing his job as a soldier.

WANDA ENGLISH BURNETT PHOT Pictured above, Delores Benham gives her grandson, SPC Nicolas Johnson a big hug at a Thanksgiving homecoming celebration at the home of the soldier's parents in Milan on Sunday. Also pictured is his wife, Angela.