By Anthony Rifilato
That day, on Oakmere Road in Baldwin, where Burns grew up, his parents saw a television report that an Army brigade was being deployed from Kuwait into southern Iraq. Although the reporter couldn't say which division was departing, Frank Burns Sr. said he immediately knew it was his son's brigade. He recognized the "screaming eagles" logo of the Army's 101st Airborne Division, where Frank III is a first lieutenant and in one of the military outfits that will see some of the heaviest fighting of the war.
Needless to say, his parents have been watching television non-stop for the latest news from Iraq. "You're kind of glued to it," his father said. "As a parent, every five minutes you want to learn what's going on."
Neighbors in this Baldwin neighborhood have come together to support Burns and all the troops serving in Iraq. Yellow ribbons are tied to trees in front of every home, a show of solidarity for the soldiers and the Burns family.
Neighbor Dina Meekins helped supply the neighborhood with the bows, which were donated by the Kiwanis Club. "I thought they needed moral support from those who have seen him grow up," Meekins said of the Burns family.
A graduate of Baldwin High School, where he played in the symphonic and jazz bands, Burns knew early in high school that he wanted to go into the military. "It was his love for his country," his father said.
The 24-year-old ROTC graduate of Vanderbilt University has a bachelor's degree in chemistry and has already been in some of the most dangerous territories in the world.
"When he first went into the military he was totally gung ho," his mother, Joanne, said.
The 101st Airborne is a rapid-deployment force of roughly 20,000 soldiers trained to go anywhere in the world within 36 hours. Burns is a combat engineer with the 326th Engineering Battalion and, among other things, is an expert on de-mining explosives, erecting portable military bridges and providing infantry support. He has been stationed in some of the world's most unstable countries. He served a year in South Korea along the border with North Korea, and spent six months in Afghanistan, where one of his main jobs was overseeing the de-mining of Kandahar Airport during the United States' ousting of the Taliban.
After the upheaval in Afghanistan, Burns returned home last July for some time off. His parents said that during his first week of rest and relaxation, the adventures didn't cease. He traveled to Europe with a friend and visited England and France. He wanted to go to the Czech Republic, but the country was in the midst of a calamitous flood. Despite the flood, his parents said he would have gone.
"He's tough," Frank Sr. said.
After spending time with family and friends, Burns was deployed to the Persian Gulf in February. Before he left, a neighbor, Tom Wheat, who had served in Vietnam, gave Burns a family heirloom that was handed down to him from his father, who had served in World War II.
"It's something to keep [him] safe," said Joanne.
Although Frank III is a world away from Baldwin, his parents said that they have gotten updates from their son's e-mails and the incessant news coverage. "Last week he sent me an e-mail during a fierce sandstorm," his dad said. "He said it was more like a rock storm."
In order for troops to navigate with virtually no visibility, Burns wrote in his e-mail that he had devised a method requiring the careful use of a compass. "It was funny listening to a Pentagon briefing," said Burns Sr., referring to a question asked by a reporter on television about how the troops were faring during the fierce weather. Frank Sr. said a Pentagon official noted how the troops were using the compass technique that his son had described.
Like many of the outfits in Iraq and Kuwait, the 326th Engineering Battalion has to gird for the unexpected, as do families at home. Most recently, at Camp Pennsylvania in Kuwait, a U.S. Army sergeant was taken into custody after he tossed a hand grenade into a tent, killing a fellow serviceman and seriously wounding 15 others. Though Burns was stationed at a different camp, his father quickly sent an e-mail to his son and was relieved to get a response. "They all feel very badly about it," Burns Sr. said.
Another time, Frank Sr. was watching Geraldo Rivera, who was at the 101st division command center in Kuwait, giving a live report during a scud missile alert. In the background, soldiers toiled in hazardous-material suits due to the threat of chemical warfare. When he e-mailed his son about the Geraldo report, Burns replied to his father, "Funny you mentioned that," and said he was there and saw Geraldo talking to one of his generals.
Now that the e-mails have stopped, the Burnses worry, though they know their son will send them a message as soon as he can. In September, Burns is set to become a captain, something his parents said they can't wait to see. "Hopefully he'll be home to get it," Frank Sr. said in a reflective tone. But, he added, "They are trained so well. They're doing a better job than I ever imagined."
