Military families in Utah are suffering hardships with their loved ones in the Iraq War.

Kevin Fernandes
Final Paper
Military families in Utah are suffering hardships with their loved ones in the Iraq War.
On the day that Riley Curtis was shipped out to serve his country, his mother Rebecca cried uncontrollably for days, knowing that her heart would suffer for 15 months, until Riley returned home. The Curtis family prays every day that Riley will return home safe from the dangerous world of the Iraq War.
Military families throughout Utah know the pain that the Curtis family is going through, they suffer through hardships every day and pray for the safe return of their children, siblings and spouses.
Rebecca Curtis, of Layton, writes her son daily, searching for words to comfort him until he returns home. Rebecca said with tears in her eyes, "I just encourage him to keep his head up and look to the Lord for help and inspiration.” Marine Sgt. Riley Curtis, 23, has been in Iraq for 9 months, and keeps a picture of his family in his wallet, and another in his helmet. He took his Book of Mormon along, too.
"He's ready to come home," Rebecca said. "He wants to get what they need to accomplish done and return home to his family." Utah military families feel prideful when they hear of the good that is occurring in Iraq due to the U.S. soldiers, but that pride is mixed with fear.
“I feel so much pride when I hear of the good that my son is accomplishing, but the fear for my son will be here until he gets back,” said Rebecca.
Some Utah military families are troubled by the thought that a government official will show up on their doorstep and deliver the worst possible news.
“Knowing that my husband’s life is constantly in danger scares the hell out of me,” said Ashley Creech of Logan, a wife of a Marine in Iraq. “I feel that sometimes I have to prepare myself for the worst. It drives me crazy that I have these awful thoughts.”
"If I saw a government car pull up in front of our house, I would go completely insane," said Creech whose husband, Marine Sgt. Paul Creech, 27, serves in a division that clears roadside bombs in Iraq. "That's when I'd crumble."
Sgt. Creech constantly writes back his wife telling her not to worry about him and that he will come back home safe and sound. “His letters are kind of comforting but he knows that I will fret until he comes home and my arms are around him,” said Ashley Creech
Chris Kay of Ogden has his only brother serving in the Iraq War, Staff Sgt. William Kay, 30, of the National Guard has been stationed in Iraq for a little over a year. I have always looked up to my older brother he is a real inspiration to this family and I miss he a whole lot, said Chris Kay. When asked what he does when dealing with the hardships of knowing that his brother has been injured in this war, Kay replied. “It’s hard not to despair, but what I do is let pride be the more powerful emotion and that keeps the fear down for a while.”
Staff Sgt. Kay has qualified for two Purple Hearts, he was injured twice while serving his country and he is still in Iraq fighting hard. Staff Sgt. Kay will return home at the end of June. “I have worried about my brother for so long, and even though he will be back in two months I will worry until he gets home,” said Chris Kay.
The hardships that these Utah military families have felt have gone on for years, and will continue to go on until their loved ones return home safely. All that these families can do is pray and persevere through these hard times, hoping that their children, spouses and siblings come back safely from the Iraq War.