Local family sends soldier off to Iraq with pride, love
MENALLEN TWP. – Of all the lessons she and her husband have attempted to instill in their five children, Janine Jenkins said she hopes the one the kids have learned is the importance of finishing what you start. In a few short days, Jenkins’ husband, Army National Guard Capt. James Jenkins, 38, will begin a journey that will lead him to Iraq for a one-year deployment. After nearly 17 years in the National Guard, this will be the first deployment for Jenkins, a battalion maintenance officer with the 110th Infantry from Mount Pleasant.
While he said he is “ready to do his job,” he said he isn’t quite ready to leave his family.
“I think it will hit me when I say my final goodbyes,” Jenkins said.
Those will include goodbyes to children Jimmy, 18; Courtney, 17; Andy, 15; Cody, 7; and Sage Elizabeth, 5, who was wearing a “Daddy’s girl” T-shirt.
Because their father has been in the Guard for nearly 17 years, the military has always been a reality of the children’s lives.
The five children, along with a group of other family members and friends, gathered Saturday at Dearth Motors for a farewell party for Jenkins and to enjoy some of the moments they will spend with him before his deployment.
“Jimmy, we are so proud of you,” were some of the words written in icing on the cake ordered for the occasion, which Janine Jenkins said, coincidentally, is the same color as her husband’s new uniform.
The younger Jimmy, who will graduate from Uniontown Area High School next week without his father in attendance, said he is nervous about his father going away, but not really nervous about him not coming back.
“It’s his duty. He’s been in the Reserves for 17 years. I have pretty strong faith. I’m mostly upset that he will be missing all the things we will be doing,” Jimmy said. “I’ll take it day by day.”
One of the things Capt. Jenkins will miss is Jimmy beginning his college experience at Providence College in Providence, R.I., to study bio-chem/pre-med. Jimmy said he plans to become a doctor.
Janine Jenkins, 36, joked that Jimmy is becoming a doctor “so he can take care of me and my broken heart.”
“It’s not easy. I cry all the time,” she said.
Although both James and Janine’s families still live in the area, the Jenkinses now live in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, where Janine will stay during her husband’s deployment. She said she didn’t want to pull the kids out of school and disrupt everything.
Despite the fact that Capt. Jenkins missed the first Communion of his youngest son and will miss his youngest daughter going to kindergarten, Janine Jenkins said she believes there are things that are more important.
“The most important thing is to know commitment,” Janine Jenkins said. “It teaches our kids to stay by the decisions you make. It’s a matter of finishing something that you start. He’s been dedicated to everything (he has done),” she said.
James Jenkins has been training for the deployment since Jan. 4 in Mississippi, after learning last December of his deployment.
Janine Jenkins said she is thankful for cellular phones, e-mail and Web cams, so her husband will be able to see the kids. The couple have been together for 15 years and married for eight. Janine Jenkins said she knows that some of the other wives are having a tough time.
“It’s really tough, but I know he chose this,” she said.
James Jenkins’ parents, William and Carol Jenkins of Uniontown, said they would prefer that their son wasn’t going to Iraq, but added that they are proud of him.
“His personality is that he takes whatever comes and deals with it,” William Jenkins said.
Elaine and Jack Rose of Lemont Furnace, Jenkins’ mother-in-law and father-in-law, had nothing but praise for their son-in-law.
“I’m sad, but my son-in-law is a hero-type person,” Elaine Rose said. “I know his children will miss him. He is a really good father and has been a very good son-in-law.”
“He really is sincere about his country, I think it was a priority to him,” Jack Rose said. “I never saw a man with five children treat them all the same and make sure to give them each equal attention.”
Courtney, who was recently named to the All-Ohio girls rugby team, said she is proud of her father. “I think it’s a cool experience. I want to join the Army National Guard, also,” she said.