Soldier's story harrowing tale of fighting in Iraq
FTHS grad Eric Navarro has first-person account of training Iraqi troops
BY BARI FAYE SIEGEL Correspondent
With the help of a loving family and dedicated teachers, most children grow up hoping to be adults in search of their true calling. However, most people realize that it's more than finding one's calling that counts; you actually hear it when it presents itself and are ready to act when the cause is just.

Freehold Township High School graduate Eric Navarro served two tours of duty in Iraq and has written a book about his experiences, "God Willing: My Wild Ride With the New Iraqi Army."

That very opportunity came knocking for Eric Navarro, a 1993 graduate of Freehold Township High School, as it did for thousands around the world, on Sept. 11, 2001.

Navarro, now a Brooklyn, N.Y., resident, had always thought about joining the United States armed forces, but it wasn't until Sept. 11 when he rushed to help at ground zero after the twin towers at theWorld Trade Center had been hit by planes commandeered by terrorist hijackers, that he felt compelled to act.

"I remember feeling helpless. I tried to give blood, but the hospitals had already received so many donors. I rushed downtown to see if I could help with anything. The area was filled with dust and debris and (was) blocked off. I remember that night being completely surreal," Navarro recalled. "Everyone packed into the bars and restaurants of the city and we watched the president's address. I remember the fighter jets doing combat air patrols over Manhattan. And, I can remember the wind shifting so that the smell of burning death wafted into my apartment. It was horrifying."

He walked into an armed forces recruiting station in Times Square on Sept. 12, 2001, to find out how he could join the Marines.

"I felt it was the right thing to do. My country was in need. I don't know if it was some inner voice, but something told me this was something I had to do at that moment," Navarro continued. "I had a college degree and I believed in my heart that I had what it took to be a leader."

He applied for the officer's program and was enrolled in Officer Candidate School by January 2002, only four months after the terrorist attacks.

The United States launched a war in Iraq in March 2003, and Navarro was eventually deployed to Iraq on two separate tours. He returned from the second tour in April after working as an engineer platoon commander; he went around sweeping for enemy weapons caches and fortifying fighting positions and forward operating bases.

This second tour, part of President GeorgeW. Bush's surge strategy, was very different from the first. In fact, his second deployment proved heartening.

"The Iraq I just recently saw was a much more peaceful one. The Iraqis are finally starting to work with us in a meaningful way," he said.

During his first tour, however, from November 2004 through July 2005, when he acted as an imbedded adviser to the Iraqi Army, Navarro was on a team of 10 Marines who were assigned to live with, train and go into battle with nearly 500 Iraqi soldiers.

In addition to the incredible camaraderie with his fellow Marines, spending time in the military - especially in Iraq following the attack on New York - gave Navarro a real sense that he was fulfilling an important American duty.

But it certainly wasn't all fun and games. He described the separation from his wife, family and friends as "brutal." The fact that he feels he was sent to war knowing he was heading into danger "without the right resources or leadership" was horrible.

And, yes, he was shot at.

"While the adrenaline rush is like nothing else I have ever experienced in my life, having to contemplate my own death in a very real way was completely terrifying," Navarro said. "I have never been more scared in my entire life than that first night in Fallujah. I had just had my position rocketed. The Iraqis had just wildly fired off thousands of rounds all around me and, there I was, laying in a dingy basement listening to gun battles go on around the block and just waiting for the enemy to storm my room and cut my throat in the night. I was convinced, down to the bones, that I was not going to make it past that first night."

But he did, and it was this experience, his first time at war in Iraq, that spurred Navarro to write a book, "GodWilling:My Wild Ride With the New Iraqi Army" (Potomac Books, March 2008). The book recounts his time as a U.S. Marine in Fallujah and Habbiniyah.

In his book, the author describes the places he went, the people he met and the chaos in he encountered in war-torn Iraq.

"In general, Iraq felt like the Wild West," he described. "There was no law and order except what we, the Americans, imposed. Where there was not a heavy American presence, it felt like anything could and did happen."

He said he decided to pen the book right from the outset of going off to war when he arrived in Quantico, Va., for predeployment training.

"They explained to us that even though we were going over to work with the Iraqi Army, they weren't giving us any language training. Somehow, I thought this was just the tip of the iceberg. So, I set to keeping a journal once we arrived in Iraq. And the events of the tour did not disappoint."

Navarro believes his book is not only a compelling recounting, but that it contains information vital for the American public. In fact, he said he felt he had a duty to write the book.

"I believe the American public has no idea what the Iraqis are like," he said, noting that "Americans are so completely disassociated from the conflict that they have no clue what type of people or country we are dealing with in Iraq."

While many people in the United States believe the cause is just and that America should be fighting in Iraq and working to rebuild the country, many others do not. By explaining his story, describing the sights and sounds and events that he and his team experienced, Navarro feels that the naysayers might change their attitudes toward the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

Now back from active duty, Navarro is readying himself to attend New York University's Stern School of Business to pursue amaster's of business administration.Wherever life takes him, he will surely take the memories of his experiences at war in Iraq. And, he will hold steadfast to beliefs he formed while fighting for his country.

Above all, Navarro feels extremely passionate about one particular concept.He believes that the United States should not only still be in Iraqwith amilitary presence, but that "we should never leave. Ever."

To those who keep demanding that the United States withdraw from Iraq, Navarro has a simple question. "When did we withdraw from Germany, Japan and Korea after bothWorldWar II and the Korean War? The answer is never; we are still there. Those countries are still our allies. Iraq should become a powerful and important U.S. ally for generations to come," he said. "We should have permanent bases there and use those bases to both protect Iraq from invasion and project our own power to secure our interests throughout the region."