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WEST JORDAN -- Last week we welcomed home the last troops to leave Iraq, but a war still rages on in Afghanistan. Two Army National Guardsmen, a father and son, will for the second time deploy to Afghanistan for a year right after the New Year.
Like father, like son - Ken Jones and his son Jared will soon leave their West Jordan facility to train Apache helicopter pilots in Afghanistan.
"Even though he outranks me, I can still beat him in an arm wrestling match," Jared said of his father.
"I probably treat (my son) harder. He doesn't get any special treatment," said Ken.
But training isn't the only concern on this military family's mind. Jared said that combat is always a possibility. For mom, that means double the worry.
It's a comfort for me for my husband to go there. It's a comfort to have them together.
–Julia Jones, wife and mother
"It's a comfort for me for my husband to go there. It's a comfort to have them together," said mother Julia. She has been through this before. Ken and Jared also deployed together in 2005. She intends to stay busy with her daughter-in-law and grandkids to keep from too much worry.
Ken and Jared know the extra toll their double deployment takes on their family.
"We even had the chance to fly together twice, which is pretty unique," said Jared. "We didn't tell mom, though, until after the fact. We don't want to give her gray hairs prematurely."
But mom says their guardian angel has already gone gray. "Ken's got lots of hours and my joke to him is he has a guardian angel with lots of gray hair begging for a transfer," she said."
There may be extra grey hairs all around, but the double deployment also means Ken and Jared have extra support in Afghanistan. There is always someone to share with and talk to when the going gets tough, they said.
"Just to have your father there and have somebody you can just talk to," Jared said, "but also to have a very experienced pilot who is there for you all the time."
Their mother is grateful that they'll have each other while overseas.
"Mostly you don't dwell on it and you concentrate on the good that you are doing," she said.
That good includes delivering supplies and food to the Afghani people. Ken and Jared launched charitable efforts last time they were there.
They will train for three months in Texas before heading overseas.
Email: kmccord@ksl.com
