Chaplain gives vital support to returning veterans

For God and Country

Once soldiers and their families accept that the feelings, flashbacks and emotions are normal, healing and recovery can begin. "There are some soldiers that will need some extra help, and my advice is to get help early rather than later," Gibson said. It is so important, he said, to put the problem in perspective. "People forget that after World War II, we had 800,000 psychological casualties."

Chaplain gives vital support to returning veterans
By Sharon Kiley Mack
Saturday, March 15, 2008 - Bangor Daily News


PITTSFIELD, Maine - Andrew Gibson sits comfortably in his Army National Guard fatigues, every inch a soldier from the leather boots to the black beret and the short haircut.

But the patch on his desert-tan shirt gives away his special mission: chaplain.

In his role as the full-time support chaplain for the Maine Guard, Gibson has a unique perspective. Not only is he the father of an Iraq war veteran, he has served in Afghanistan and Bosnia himself. He has tended to young men killed or wounded by explosives, mourned soldiers who committed suicide, dealt with personal flashbacks, disorientation and the often difficult event of coming home. He has assisted with death notifications to Maine families.

Using those experiences as tools, Gibson is now responsible for reintegrating Maine’s soldiers and their families after service in Iraq. "I help them learn and accept the new normal," he said.

When asked what returning soldiers need the most, his answer is quick and precise: time.

"Time is the great and immediate need," he said. "Folks are anxious to get on with their life. We often throw parties [for returning soldiers], and this can be very disquieting to have a lot of people come up and hug and kiss you. You are so tired. It’s not uncommon for soldiers to come home and sleep for days."

Gibson recalled an incident about 10 days after he returned from service in Afghanistan when he awoke in his Pittsfield home, in his own bed, and struggled to remember where he was.

Soldiers can feel very detached and aloof and expend a lot of energy just trying to care, he said. They might have a heightened or inappropriate startle reflex. They can suffer from nightmares.

Gibson said the soldiers have spent a year carrying a weapon that saved them, wearing body armor that protected them and a uniform that allowed them to recognize comrade from foe.
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There are times when I do not want to call myself a Veteran's Chaplain. After 25 years of dedicating my life toward caring for them, nothing I have done or ever will do, will come close to being one of them. I will always be on the outside looking in. I never held a rifle or had to witness a friend die in combat. I have never had to question God's judgment after seeing what combat can do to other humans. I am here to help those who go and those they come home to. It's the best I can offer, and humbly do. Andrew Gibson is one of the reasons I do not feel as if I come close to deserving to call myself a Veteran's Chaplain. I am not a veteran. I am just a Chaplain taking care of veterans. My husband is the veteran I cared for first. It's because of him I do what I do and because of him, I love all of them.