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Cover GI looks familiar in Phoenix Gracing this week's Time magazine cover is Phoenix High School graduate Chris Kerby, 24, now a member of the 101st Airborne Division based at Fort Campbell, Ky. And yes, says his mother, Chris Kerby always looks serious, as he does on Time By PAUL FATTIG The rugged soldier on the cover of the Oct. 29 issue of Time magazine leaves no doubt he is tough enough to accomplish the mission. Any mission. His cool blue eyes stare down the barrel of a no-nonsense M4A2 assault rifle complete with a grenade launcher. Camouflage paint covers his face; his helmet is strapped down. He's ready for action. The army of one is Chris Kerby, 24, a 1995 graduate of Phoenix High School and the son of Raymond and Carol Kerby of Phoenix. The specialist fourth class is also a member of the 101st Airborne Division based at Fort Campbell, Ky. "It's been kind of crazy," he said during a telephone interview Thursday afternoon shortly after copies of the magazine arrived at the post. As barrack buddies are wont to do, they've been razzing the celebrity in their midst. "Oh, yeah, they've been giving me a hard time," he said. "But they also want me to sign copies of the magazine for them." The photograph was taken while Kerby and others were undergoing annual qualifications at the rifle range about a month ago. Photographers from several news organizations were shooting the soldiers that day. "I didn't have a clue who they were until I saw the magazine cover," he said. The Time story focuses on preparations by the U.S. military's elite units for possible ground war in Afghanistan. Kerby, who was stationed in South Korea in 1997-98, is the second Rogue Valley resident to make the cover of the magazine in the past two years. Medford plastic surgeon Ron Worland's photograph graced the cover as part of its Man of the Future story in the May 22, 2000, issue. But Worland's photograph was actually taken in the mid-1960s when Worland was working as a New York model to help put himself through college and medical school. Nor is Kerby the first GI on the cover. In fact, the magazine chose the American GI - albeit generic - as Man of the Century to close out the 20th century. Kerby joined the military as a high school student when he was a 17-year-old enlistee in the local 186th Infantry Battalion of the Oregon Army National Guard in 1994. "He was very dedicated - he wanted to learn everything he could," recalled Sgt. 1st Class Roberto Solis, 24 years a soldier, including a hitch in the regular Army. Solis, now a recruiter, and Staff Sgt. Scott Irving both took Kerby under their military wing in the battalion's Alpha Company. "He was always a good soldier," Solis reiterated. "He wanted to do it right. He was one of those you could always count on to do the mission." Noting that he intends to get signed copies for the battalion office, Solis said, "We're real happy for him." As is his family, said his older sister, Heidi Otis of Ashland. He also has a younger brother, Brian. "We're very proud of him," Otis said. "He's a pretty tough kid," his mother said. "That stern look is always in his face. He's military all the way." Father Raymond, 52, agreed, noting that Chris is third-generation Army in the Kerby family. Raymond served in the Army in Vietnam in 1970-71; Chris' paternal grandfather served in the Army in World War II. "I'm proud of him," Raymond said. "But we're proud of all of those serving in the military. He's representing all men and women in the service. He's doing it with his country in mind." But Chris Kerby, who is attached to the division's air assault unit that rappels out of helicopters, won't be airborne much longer. An injury during live fire exercises at Fort Lewis, Wash., last year has left him without full dexterity in his left ankle. "We were clearing a trench line about 10 feet deep and I jumped, shattering my ankle," he said, adding that surgery failed to restore full use. "I'm not going to be able to stay in the infantry," said Kerby, who had re-enlisted for six years in 1998. "I'm going to school in February to become an office clerk." Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.