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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Menu Guide Wedding Weather Subscribe Contact Us July 10, 2006 Ashland public works director Paula Brown is back to work after spending time in Iraq as a Navy reserve. Orville Hector | Daily Tidings Brown brings home valuable experience Public Works Director helped build small towns from the ground up By Vickie Aldous Ashland Daily Tidings Most people take green grass and shady trees for granted. But not Ashland Public Works Director Paula Brown, who returned to her job with the city in June after a military deployment to Iraq. “In summertime, the heat is like holding a hair dryer in front of your face and turning it on high. It’s very hot and there’s wind. Everything’s beige or dirty green,” she said. “People would send me pictures so I would have pictures of Ashland.” Brown left Ashland in February 2005 to go to California for training, and then went to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii with the 30th Naval Construction Regiment. After a pre-deployment visit to Iraq in June 2005, she spent August 2005 to March of this year in the country, followed by time at bases in the United States until early May. A captain in the U.S. Navy Reserves, Brown led 1,500 people who were charged with building base camps for Iraqi security forces. The camps could hold from 750 to 2,500 forces. They had water and sewage systems and included housing units, showers, bathrooms and kitchens. “We were really building a small town. For some, we were rebuilding camps,” she said. “Some were built out of the barest piece of ground you’ve ever seen.” The camps provide a base for Iraqi forces to battle insurgents, including those coming over the border from Syria, Jordan and other countries, she said. Brown found there were cultural differences in what Americans and Iraqis want for their kitchens. While Americans prefer counters, sinks and a rangetop, such amenities didn’t accommodate Iraqi cooking customs. “They cook everything in humongous pots,” she said, stretching out her arms to indicate the size of the containers the Iraqis used to cook their flavorful curries laden with lentils and onions. “We had to restructure the kitchens. They would not use the kitchens.” Eventually the American forces learned to construct metal buildings with concrete floors where the Iraqis could cook their food using propane or wood, Brown said. In many ways, the concerns of Iraqis are like those of Americans, she said. At a city council meeting in Fallujah, people were concerned about power, watery delivery and trash pick-up. But security was also a major worry, as evidenced by the guns people carried to the meeting, she said. During her time in Iraq, Brown had to carry a pistol every day. “I never really got used to it,” she said. Her forces also had to contend with mortar attacks and be on the alert for improvised explosive devices, or IEDs. Although some were hurt, Brown said none of her people were killed during the time she was in Iraq. Since her return to America, Brown has been asked if she was afraid during her time in the Middle East. “I feared for my troops’ lives,” she said. “I had 1,500 people I was responsible for. I had to send them taking truckloads of construction equipment. The convoys would often get hit with IEDs. I feared for them — every day.” To decide whether to send a convoy out, Brown followed military procedures that included reviewing the recent rate of violence, checking that medical evacuation flights were available and considering the deadline for when a new base camp had to be finished to accommodate incoming Iraqi security forces. Troops in the convoys had to be alert for anything that was different along the roadway. “They look for freshly disturbed dirt or asphalt or trash — even a can that was not there on another trip,” Brown said. Her forces were able to e-mail messages to each other from the road to report what they had seen. Ordnance teams regularly went out to sweep and probe for IEDs. Their equipment was made so that if a device exploded, team members would not be hurt. Whenever possible, the construction crews tried to follow behind the ordinance teams. “You try to take calculated risks. We had bad explosions on the convoys. Guys were hurt, but not killed,” she said. “Our team was very lucky.” Brown said it was difficult for her people to work under such conditions and to see the impact of the ongoing violence on Iraqis, especially children. “When you drive through the towns, you look at the children. You say, ‘I hope when they grow up, they don’t have to live like this. I hope we can bring stability back,’” she said. Brown said it is not her place to have an opinion about whether Iraqis were better off under Saddam Hussein compared to now or in the foreseeable future. But she said military personnel want security and are working to stabilize the country, so there is hope. When asked if the media is focusing on the violence and not reporting any positive news about Iraq, Brown said American and Iraqi forces are doing things to restore the country that go unreported. “It’s like public works. If things go well, it’s not a big news day. It’s unfortunate for the people who give up seven, 12, 14 months of their lives and get no recognition,” she said. “I hope the guys who worked with me feel proud of what they did.” With 24 years of military service under her belt, Brown could have retired with full benefits after 20 years and avoided her deployment. But she said she has a sense of duty and honor to stay in the military. Now that Brown is back in Ashland, she said she is grateful to the new military team that rotated in so that she and her forces could return home. She is also thankful to City of Ashland staff members for their hard work during her absence. She said her readjustment to civilian life has not been too difficult, although when she heard a helicopter fly over her house, it reminded her of Iraq. “If you hear a helicopter, it’s not a good thing. Usually it’s a medivac and someone’s hurt,” Brown said. Mostly, her time in Iraq has left her with a deeper appreciation for her life here. “My sense of priorities is different. Life’s too short. I hope everyone looks at the positive things we have. Our nation is so lucky. I want to use that everyday,” she said. “Look at Ashland. So many little things don’t matter. It’s really nice to be home, to have a home, to have a place that is secure. We live in a wonderful area in a wonderful country — and we ought to all remember that.” Staff writer Vickie Aldous can be reached at 479-8199 or [email protected]. . DailyTidings.com Home Page Archives | Revels | Classifieds | Real Estate Guide | Weather | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2005 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Click Here Advertisement .:Advertisements:. Site Search: RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams