U.S. Marine Cpl. Jonathan Booth greets Afghan children during a security patrol.
Contributed photo by Sgt. Earnest J. BarnesName: Cpl. Jonathan BoothAge: 24Job: Motor TransportLocation: Camp Leatherneck, AfghanistanHometown: Red Bank, Tenn.Family: Wife, Cala Oglesby Booth
U.S. Marine Cpl. Jonathan Booth joined the military following in his father’s and grandfather’s footsteps of wartime service. He deployed to Afghanistan in February. He’s scheduled for one year in the combat zone. Stationed out of Camp Lejeune, N.C., Baker said in a telephone interview that he misses first his wife and family and next his Chevrolet Z71 pickup truck.
Q: Tell me about your day-to-day life in Afghanistan.
A: I check our convoys, we do turnover of 12 hours on, 12 hours off. I do changeover with my guys, they tell me all I need to know for the night. I track the convoy on a system that’s like instant messaging on crack.
One of my biggest challenges is sitting at a desk. When you sign up to be out in the field driving trucks, you don’t ever think that you’re going to be behind the desk. I beg and I plead and sometimes I get my way [to go on patrol] and sometimes I don’t.