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For a local family, bombing in Iraq hits home Son's leave canceled for Middle East duty By Susan Jay Chad Burket has a lot to think about this week. His future depends on what happens in the next few days -- or months -- in Iraq. The 19-year-old, a soldier in the 21st Chemical Unit of the 82nd Airborne Division, leaves his Medford home Tuesday for Fort Campbell, Ky. Once there, his orders are to be ready to leave for Iraq. Fast-moving events in the Persian Gulf make his immediate future uncertain. All he knows is that he's been told he could leave for the Middle East as soon as Christmas Eve. "Today it hit me harder than ever," he said Saturday. "I can't really picture what it would be like to go." As you might expect, the news has taken some of the merriment out of the holidays for his family. For Burket, the oldest of five boys, including two stepbrothers, the orders cut short a longed-for Christmas vacation with his parents. He returned home to Medford Nov. 12, after six months in boot camp and advanced training. For his parents, it means days of worrying and anxiousness. "I'm nervous," said Burket's stepmother, Susan Burket. She is proud of how bravely her stepson is taking the news: "The bottom line is it makes you realize the things that matter and the things that don't." She is also concerned for her husband, Bob, a road maintenance worker for the Oregon Department of Transportation, who spends the winter keeping the Siskiyou Pass clear of snow. "This is going to be on his mind all the time," she said. Both dad and son are angry over the timing of the Iraqi action, and feel last week's missile attacks on Iraq were President Clinton's way of distracting the public and Congress from impeachment proceedings. While Burket's father understands the need for action in Iraq, he said Saddam Hussein should have been taken care of a long time ago. "I realized this could happen when he joined up, and it hits home," Bob Burket said. Chad Burket is determined to do his job and do it well, but he has mixed emotions about the timing for the same reasons as his father. "I think we're just toying with Saddam Hussein," he said. From what's he's seen in training, he believes his country has the troops and technology to destroy Saddam. While it would be dangerous for any soldier in Iraq, Burket's job is particularly volatile. He is trained in chemical warfare. In Iraq, his job would be to warn and protect soldiers of chemical weapons and contamination. He would be helping soldiers decontaminate gear and equipment. What scares him the most about war in Iraq is the use of chemicals. "You never know when it's going to happen and it can happen so fast," he said. What keeps Burket going now are good thoughts, about college in the future, a unique career opportunity in chemicals, and next spring's family trip to Disneyland. And prayers. "I know God is always going to be watching my back," he said, "and he has his reasons for everything he does." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1998, Medford, Oregon USA