visibility3miles
25th May 2009, 16:08
People who volunteered in the U.S. National Guard typically expected to serve in civil defense: fighting fires, hurricanes, tornado damage, floods, etc. Years ago, they rarely expected to leave home to serve overseas for years at a time at short notice. Now these vets return home to one of the worst job markets in recent history.
Note: This is NOT meant to be political commentary.
washingtonpost.com (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/15/AR2009051501699.html)
The Fight To Fit Back In
When Craig Lewis left his teaching job to fly a helicopter in Iraq, he was risking more than just his life
By Christian Davenport
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Craig Lewis is a helicopter pilot with combat experience and a college degree. So why didn't anyone seem interested in hiring him after he returned from Iraq?
Craig Lewis had been gone so long that when he walked into the front office of Fluvanna County High School, the secretary gave him a quizzical look.
"Can I help you?" she asked.
She studied him with a blank expression for a moment, and then, suddenly, her eyes widened with recognition.
"You're back!" she said, smiling broadly.
"I am," Lewis said, his close-cropped hair still at Army standard.
He managed a smile, though it felt strange to be back in this squat brick building again. He'd grown up in this rural community outside of Charlottesville and, what now seemed like eons ago, had graduated from Fluvanna in 1997 before later being hired to teach and coach baseball at his alma mater. But it had been more than two years since he'd been a regular presence in these hallways. More than two years since Lewis, a lieutenant in the Virginia Army National Guard, had been ordered to flight school and then to Iraq as a Black Hawk helicopter pilot. Now he was home and finally ready to see his old boss, Fluvanna principal James Barlow.
"Is he available?" Lewis asked the secretary.
"Let me check," she replied.
Note: This is NOT meant to be political commentary.
washingtonpost.com (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/15/AR2009051501699.html)
The Fight To Fit Back In
When Craig Lewis left his teaching job to fly a helicopter in Iraq, he was risking more than just his life
By Christian Davenport
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Craig Lewis is a helicopter pilot with combat experience and a college degree. So why didn't anyone seem interested in hiring him after he returned from Iraq?
Craig Lewis had been gone so long that when he walked into the front office of Fluvanna County High School, the secretary gave him a quizzical look.
"Can I help you?" she asked.
She studied him with a blank expression for a moment, and then, suddenly, her eyes widened with recognition.
"You're back!" she said, smiling broadly.
"I am," Lewis said, his close-cropped hair still at Army standard.
He managed a smile, though it felt strange to be back in this squat brick building again. He'd grown up in this rural community outside of Charlottesville and, what now seemed like eons ago, had graduated from Fluvanna in 1997 before later being hired to teach and coach baseball at his alma mater. But it had been more than two years since he'd been a regular presence in these hallways. More than two years since Lewis, a lieutenant in the Virginia Army National Guard, had been ordered to flight school and then to Iraq as a Black Hawk helicopter pilot. Now he was home and finally ready to see his old boss, Fluvanna principal James Barlow.
"Is he available?" Lewis asked the secretary.
"Let me check," she replied.