SSG Gehlen L.

Gehlen is my incredible boyfriend, who served in Afghanistan when, after September 11th, he stormed into the Army recruiting station and joined at 17. Of course he could not ship off to basic training until he turned 18, but he was eager to get out there. His tour in Afghanistan was at the operating base called FOB Salerno, also known as The Rocket City, because of the almost constant rocket fire. Just when the soldiers would be trying to catch up on their sleep, the enemy would rain rockets down on them, and they would have to evacuate to safety, losing sleep almost every night. He has now been in the army for nine years, and he makes me and his family proud everyday. He doesn't just recruit future soldiers and move on, he makes sure every individual gets everything he or she needs, and will even call them up a year later to see that they are still happy. Gehlen cares about every person he puts in, and he is now one of the top recruiters in Arizona (meaning he has the highest numbers for recruiting in the reserve).

Signed,
Jacquelyn Mason