Parra, 47, came home on April 15 after a one-year tour in Iraq, the first deployment of his career.
For six months, Parra, a pilot and flight testing engineer stationed at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, supplied weapons and equipment to Iraqi forces. The last six months, he helped train the Iraqi Air Force in Tikrit.
“As the need became more apparent, they started expanding the deployment categories.
‘‘Now everybody gets deployed regardless of their function,” Parra said.
While he supported the war effort, his family soldiered on in Springboro, where they moved in 2007.
“It was very challenging,” Carla Parra said, crediting neighbors and the congregation at Springboro Baptist Church with helping her endure his absence.
“When you are military, you rely on the kindness of others.”
Eldest son Samuel Parra, 11, added, “It was really bad. When you got into the routine, you got used to it.”
Despite challenges, Parra expressed hope Iraq would regain stability and return to its fertile, affluent past. Back home, he was appreciating his American life.
“You just never know. I enjoy our freedom. Our children should be reminded of those things often,” he said.
While nervous, Parra’s sons sparred verbally before Luke led the pledge.
Luke, 9, admitted he was “a little shy. My brother’s way too shy.”
Rather than shy, Samuel said he had a touch of stage fright.
“There’s a big difference,” he said.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2261 or lbudd@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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