My Soldier Son Leaves For Italy Today

Its never easy to say goodbye to your children. I found myself getting teary eyed on Saturday night after I said my goodbyes to my eighteen-year-old son. He leaves this morning for Vicenza, Italy. Jon has worked so hard to get to this point in his life. He enlisted in the United States Army last summer, completed basic training in December, graduated as a combat engineer in February, and completed airborne school at Fort Benning in Georgia last Thursday.

One of Jon's dreams was to serve overseas in Italy. His dreams are now a reality. Jon will be stationed in Vicenza, Italy.  Vicenza is the home of the U.S. Army Garrison Italy located on Caserma Carlo Ederle. The headquarters of U.S. Army Africa, which is America's premier Army team dedicated to achieving positive change in Africa. Positioned at the foothills of the Dolomites in northern Italy, Vicenza is the capital of the Vicenza province in the Veneto Region and lies midway between Venice and Verona. It is perfectly positioned within a 3-hour drive to Florence, Milan, and Bologna.

I wasn't the picture perfect father, and certainly made my fair share of mistakes along the way. I'm grateful that we found our way back to each other, and were able to spend the weekend together. He's handsome, loving, respectful, driven, and brave. I'm extremely proud of the man he's become, and very thankful for his service to our country in the United States Army. I wish him all the happiness in the world, both personally and professionally.

P.S. I also told him to meet a nice Italian girl who can cook up some authentic Italian dishes.