Mar 19, 2008 7:34 am US/Central
Minn. Newlyweds To Head To Iraq Together
WAITE PARK, Minn. (WCCO) ―
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Richard and Jen Deering, two members of the 34th Combat Aviation Brigade who are slated to leave for Fort Sill in Oklahoma this May before later heading to Iraq, are also a pair of Minnesota newlyweds.
CBS
Around 800 Minnesota National Guard soldiers will be leaving for Iraq this summer, the Guard announced Tuesday.
Two members of the 34th Combat Aviation Brigade, who are slated to leave for Fort Sill in Oklahoma this May before later heading to Iraq, are also a pair of Minnesota newlyweds.
"I always said before, if she ever does go, then I would do everything I could to go with her," said Richard Deering, who has already completed two tours of duty in Iraq.
His wife Jen Deering found out she was being deployed last summer while the two were still just dating, so he called up the National Guard to see if they would allow him to sign up again.
"I called up the unit, and they were more than happy to take me, so I joined up," he said.
The couple, who have only been married for a couple weeks now, will be deployed together. According to them, there are another four or five married couples in the brigade heading to Iraq this summer.
But even before their tour of duty, their story of love has played out against a military backdrop. It started with Jen Deering's deployment in 2005.
While in Kuwait, she became close friends with Richard Deering over the fact that the two shared the same last name -- yes, even before they were married.
While they were stationed at different bases during wartime, the two could only remain close friends, but their relationship soon yielded to dating following their deployment.
The couple does not know if they will be able to cohabitate on their forthcoming deployment.
"We're going over there to serve our country and do what we have to do," said Jen Deering. "And we love each other enough that everything can be put on hold and we're going to be fine."
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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