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Local families, Gulf War veterans uplifted, disturbed by response to war

By Patty Shultz 4 min read

Local families with loved ones stationed in the Persian Gulf along with those who were on the same battlefield more than a decade ago are finding varied responses to the war effort to be both uplifting and troubling. Robert and Rose Durbin have their television tuned to CNN and rarely venture out of hearing range of the news broadcast since the war was launched in Iraq.

The Bullskin Township couple, like many throughout the area, has a vested interest in what is taking place on the warfront.

On the front lines, their granddaughter, 2nd Lt. Randee Lee Farrell, is providing escort security for a news journalist covering the war and their son, Brig. Gen. Robert E. Durbin, is traveling continually to and from the Kuwaiti border to oversee his troops from the 1st Calvary Division.

“Naturally, you worry, but we’re very proud of them,” said Rose Durbin.

But as they find it uplifting to hear from friends and to see local communities erecting flags and initiating patriotic displays, the couple finds it disturbing to watch broadcasts of groups parading through streets in protest to the war.

“I don’t mind them congregating, but they should be getting together and praying for our soldiers, rather than protesting against the war,” Robert Durbin said. “It’s difficult to watch that with our son and granddaughter and the other soldiers (on the battlefield to) guarantee our continued freedom.”

National Guardsmen attached to the Connellsville Company D unit, Sgt. Brian Anderson and Sgt. Ken Gray, agree that the troops need the support of those at home. The two were on the same battlefield a dozen years ago when allied forces liberated Kuwait.

“Politics aside, regardless of how you feel about the war, we need to support our troops,” said Anderson. “They need to know they are supported here at home.”

Gray, like the Durbins, is also keeping close tabs on the events as they unfold in the Persian Gulf Region from his Indianapolis home.

During his deployment with the Army’s 1st Infantry, he provided security for Desert Storm’s U.S. and British forces commander Gen. Frederick M. Franks Jr.

“War is terrible,” he said. “Nobody wants war, but sometimes there is nothing else that can be done.”

Gray recently returned from a five-month tour of Italy with the National Guard where he along with other members of the unit provided security duties at U.S. military bases.

While it is unlikely he or the other guardsmen will be activated, Gray said his combat boots are next to the door.

“You just never know,” he said.

Anderson, meanwhile, said his Connellsville junior high students often ask him about his prior military service in the Persian Gulf region after watching the televised war.

He served with the U.S. Navy aboard the USS Dahlgren, a guided missile destroyer, during his deployment. His duties included radar interrogation of aircraft and other ships to determine their identity.

“It’s rough (being a soldier during war time) and we need to do what we can to keep their morale up,” Anderson said.

The Durbins, meanwhile, said conversations and correspondence with their family members is brief and limited, depending upon access to cellular telephones and the Internet.

“Randee’s mother just received a message from her asking that we continue to pray for their safety,” said Rose Durbin. “In the background you could hear the bombs exploding.”

Maintaining contact with their son is somewhat more difficult, but the latest note that arrived offered encouragement to his parents.

“He told us not to worry, that they were very ready for what was about to happen,” said Robert Durbin.

The couple said their daily prayers would be for all those serving in the military, in addition to their granddaughter and son.

“We want them to all come home safe and sound,” said Rose Durbin.

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