I want to thank everyone in Brookhaven and the surrounding areafor all their support and prayers for all of us in Iraq.

My name is Staff Sgt. Mitchell Schmitz, and I’m with the 155thArmored Brigade. I am part of the 106th Support Battalion locatedin Monticello.

I have to tell you we are very blessed to be living in the U. S.If you could only see what I have seen and the other soldiers thatare here,you would appreciate the life and all that you have awhole lot more. You would fully understand just how well you havebeen blessed.

I think the total lost in our brigade is up to 10 soldiers rightnow. These soldiers gave it all so you could have freedom and feelsafe at night. Some say we should not be over here, that it is notour war. These people over here, not all of them are the bad guys.These people are God’s children just like we are. They deserve thesame freedom and rights that you and I have.

We were blessed by God himself to be born in the United States,where we have our freedom, but our own freedom came at a largeprice all the way through history.

From what I have seen, most of the people saying that we don’tneed to be here have never served one day in the military. Doesn’tGod say go to all ends of the earth, to every tongue and everynation to spread his word. I am here to provide safety for myfamily, friends and loved ones. We are making a sacrifice sohopefully we can keep them off of our soil, so we don’t have toworry about our homes and work places being destroyed. This is avery big sacrifice that soldiers and their family are making so youcan sleep with peace at night.

Unless you have a family member over here you will neverunderstand the sacrifice that is being made daily by the soldiersand their spouses.

One thing that happen to my family that they will never forgetand this opportunity only came to them because I am in Iraq,my wifeand one of my kids got to see the president of the United States.Not only did they get to see him, but my daughter Hunter got a hugfrom him and his autograph when he was in Jackson this past week.This will be a day in their life to tell the grandkids about.

People call us heroes for the job we are doing over here. Thereal heroes are the spouses of a soldier. You see, a lot of thetime they go without hearing from us for days. A lot of the timethey don’t even know where we are in Iraq.

Plus, a lot of them have a full-time job and now have to comehome to a empty house and do everything that has to be donethere.

I want you to know what it is like to be a soldier in Iraq. Wework seven days a week between eight and 12 hours a day, dependingon your job and the missions that day.

I have talked to a lot of Iraqis since I have been here, andthey all told me they were glad we are over here. When we go out onconvoys, the kids will line up along the roads to wave and give usthe thumbs-up sign. I can’t tell you how it makes you feel to seethem out there.

We are making a difference over here, and if we pull out now allthe soldiers that have died over here will be for nothing. I feelsorry for the families that have lost a loved one over here.Freedom dose not come free.

I have a wonderful wife and four children that I left behind. Ithas been hard on all of us. We all take it one day at a time, andthat is all we can do.

My wife’s name is Cindy Schmitz, and the girls’ names areCaroline (age 16), Hunter (age 13), Elizabeth (age 13) and

Catherine (also 13). I want my wife and kids to know that theymean everything in the world to me. I love them very much, missthem very much and can’t wait to return home again.

For all the friends that have been taking care of my wife andhelping her out, you will never know how much you mean to me andhow much your work is appreciated. For all the ones that have sentletters, cards, e-mails and for all the prayers, I want to thankyou as well for your support during this hard time in our life.Please keep us all in your prayers daily because they areworking.

I hope and pray that everyone that reads this will have a betterunderstanding of what it is like to be a soldier. Thank you foryour time, and may God bless you and yours.

Staff Sgt. Mitchell Schmitz is serving with the 155thArmored Brigade in Iraq.