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Army Sgt Spreads His Message From East to West

Apr- 5-2006 » Filed Under: 172nd SBCT

Written by Spc. Richard Vogt, 138th MPAD

MOSUL, Iraq (March 22, 2006) -- Sgt. Eric Jackson, chaplain’s assistant for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 4th Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, has a passion for music.

He has a recording studio set up at Forward Operating Base Marez where he sings and writes his own music. He recently visited the town of Qara Qosh, Iraq, to advise the town on what style mixing board to buy.

“They have an analogue mixer and they want to get a digital [mixer],” Jackson said. “The advantage of the digital recorder is that you can layer it. You can play the drums first, and then go through and put in a piano track.”

“It’s been a very interesting experience,” Jackson said of his deployment. He arrived in Iraq in August 2005. “One thing I never thought I would see, call it ignorance, are Christian Churches. We’ve seen no less than seven Christian Churches as well as ancient monasteries. It’s been a great experience. An eye opener.”

“In the Army chaplaincy, you have to support all religions,” Jackson said.
“The chaplain performs the ceremony. I provide the support for him to do so. I coordinate the service.” In addition, the chaplain’s assistant also acts as a security guard for the chaplain. Fortunately for Jackson, Capt. John Grauer, the 4th Battalion, 23rd Infantry’s chaplain, is a third-degree black belt, so he can pretty much take care of himself.
Jackson said he is considering becoming a chaplain himself.

“I plan on taking as many college credits as possible at my next duty station and then I will begin seminary.” Jackson is a member of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.

“I’ve always been a patient person, but I think I’ve grown more patient and compassionate. More patient because of the language barrier and more compassionate comparing what they have to what people have back in the States.”

“People here want basically the same thing that we want. People want freedom. They want to raise their children in peace. The more I see, the more I realize that there’s not much difference between us.”

(via DVIDS)


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