Proud to Serve

Senior Chief Petty Officer Matthew P. Marks

Senior Chief Petty Officer Matthew P. Marks attended Delphi Community High School and is a 2006 graduate of Excelsior College, earning a B.S. in Liberal Arts. He is the son of Judy and the late Dick Marks of rural Delphi.

CPO Marks is stationed in Millington, Tenn., at the Navy Manpower Analysis Center, located just north of Memphis.

Marks is deployed for seven months to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, to augment the 82nd Airborne in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

Marks writes…

Hello to everyone in Carroll County!! I hope everyone finds the New Year well. My permanent duty station is the Navy Manpower and Analysis Center in Millington, Tenn., but I am currently serving at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan, with the 82nd Airborne Division. I am deployed as a part of the Navy's Individual Augmentation program. This program provides the Army with Navy personnel to ensure they have the necessary resources to fight the Global War on terrorism.

This is a seven-month deployment for me. My assigned duties are to monitor the command communication infrastructure in the Afghan theater, including telephones, satellite communications, and computer networks. I keep an eye and ear on all the systems, report problems, and ensure the proper technicians are solving the issues.

My Army counterparts are truly motivated, professional men and women. I am proud to serve with them.

When I was home last, I was approached by a person who believes we shouldn't be here (I support the freedom of free thought and speech) and was directly asked, "What do you think of the war?" I simply replied, "I think we should win. We have no other options."

For those of you I haven't been able to keep up with, the following has been my career. I first entered military service in 1988, enlisting in the Indiana Army National Guard as an infantryman and was stationed at the Delphi Armory.

In 1992 I was transferred to active duty in the U.S. Navy. My first tour was in Gaeta, Italy, onboard USS Belknap CG-26, from 1993-95. My next tour was onboard USS John Hancock DD-981, stationed in Mayport, Fla., from 1995-1998. I then transferred to the Surface Warfare Officers School in Newport, R.I., from 1998-2001. Next, I reported aboard to USS BOONE FFG-28, also homeported in Mayport, in 2001. I was recently transferred to my current duty station in Tennessee in December 2005.

I would like to take a moment to say hello to my family in the Carroll County area. My mother Judy, the DCHS study hall monitor; my sister, Beth, and her family in Lafayette; my brother, Dick, and his family in Monticello; and Roger and Holly Campbell, also of Monticello. I love you all.

Hello to all the patrons and members of VFW Post 9383.

My mailing address is:
Matthew P. Marks
CJTF-76, CJ6
82nd Airborne Division
Bagram Airfield (BAF)
APO AE 09354
The Comet thanks CPO

Marks for his e-mail to the

community.

If you or someone you know

from Carroll County is serving

our country and who would

like to say a few words to

those of us here at home,

please ask them to send email

to dlowe@carrollcountycomet.

com

Staying Connected is a

semi-regular feature in the

Carroll County Comet.