Sure-Shot
08-02-2004, 07:14 AM
Staff photo by Carolyn Yaschur
Shaun Loun, a corporal in the Army, reflects on his experiences in Iraq. Loun earned a Purple Heart and an Army Commendation Medal on the battlefield.
A soldier's story• North Kitsap High School graduate Shaun Loun is home on leave after an extended tour in Iraq. By Chris Barron, Sun Staff Caught up in some of the heaviest fighting of the Iraq war, Army Cpl. Shaun Loun was hit by shrapnel twice during one week in May, endured daily battles for weeks and went on dangerous nightly missions searching for insurgents.So, after an intense 15-month stay in Iraq, one might think the 25-year-old Poulsbo resident would be pleased to just sit at home and relax.Not even close."I'm an adrenaline junkie now," the 1997 North Kitsap High School graduate said this week after returning home for a month-long leave.Loun went skydiving for the first time Wednesday. And next week, he's planning a heavy-duty whitewater rafting trip in Oregon."Iraq was like a 15-month bungee jump," he said.
"There's nothing that can compare to the adrenaline rush of getting a grenade thrown at you."Readers of The Sun got to know Loun during the winter and spring through a series of columns he wrote chronicling his battlefield experiences that earned him a Purple Heart and an Army Commendation Medal.He returned to Kitsap last week after the Germany-based 1st Infantry Division ended its extended Iraq stay.Back home nearly two weeks, Loun said life in the States has been an adjustment for several reasons. Not only does he not have to be on alert all hours of the day, he has also regained personal freedoms of doing what he wants when he wants."You are going from ready to kill, life and death, to normal civilian life where the biggest stress is what kind of beer do you want to order," he said.
Loun, an infantry soldier, saw his heaviest action of the war after the 1st Infantry Division was extended by three months in April."That was a crushing blow," he said of the extension. "It was absolute misery for a couple of days. We were packed and ready.
"During his time in Iraq, he said he probably killed 10 to 15 insurgents, most coming in the final three months. But he said he's not bothered by what he had to do on the battlefield.Many soldiers over the past year have had difficulty readjusting to civilian life, but Loun said he hasn't been affected by his battles with the enemy. "I feel fine with what I did," said Loun, who went through a weeklong re-integration process before returning home. "These guys are trying to kill me and my friends, and they're trying to ruin (Iraq)."They were doing their ****edest to try to kill us, so I had no problem killing them."That approach is probably one reason Loun was selected to try out for the Army's special forces. Only about 10 percent who endure an intensive seven-week selection process qualify for the elite force.With three years left before the end of his first Army tour, Loun said he knows he'll be heading back to Iraq, "but do I want to go back in full garb and full guard duty, or do I want to go back in a baseball cap, a beard and civilian clothes and roll around and do the fun stuff?"
Loun saw special forces personnel in action countless times, especially when the Army tried to take back control of Karbala in May. For 21 straight days, Loun and his fellow infantrymen battled insurgents around the clock.During an early morning raid on an amusement park where insurgents were storing arms, Loun earned a Purple Heart after he was wounded by a grenade thrown at his feet."I felt something hit me in the leg, but I couldn't quite tell what it was," he said. "And then my buddy yelled, 'Grenade!' and I started running. I didn't quite make it behind cover before the pieces went flying."Loun received a small gash and several cuts in his legs from shrapnel. But once he deemed he wasn't wounded badly, he got back in the fight."We started throwing frags at the guy and launching grenades," he said. "We ended shooting him to death with a grenade in his hand. He had to know he was going to die, but he wanted to try and take out some Americans before he went."A week later, Loun was injured by another grenade, but this one came from a buddy who launched one from his rifle out a window. The grenade caught the top of the window frame, blew up and a fragment came back and went through Loun's hand, missing critical ligaments."It was numb for the rest of the night and hurt for a couple of weeks," he said.That night, the Army, on its final big mission in Karbala, stormed a mosque that was a stronghold for Shiite Muslim leader Muqtada Sadr's militia."It was frightening," he said. "It was insane. It was like World War III when we hit the ground."
After his division returned to Germany two weeks ago, Loun said he and his buddies began paying closer attention to the presidential election. He supports President Bush, but said other soldiers were for John Kerry. However, he said most believe in the mission in Iraq."I think we needed to be over there, and I think it's the right thing," he said. "Some people back home don't see it that way, but that's their right."After dealing with these terrorists over there, I think we need to take a firm stance with them."
Shaun Loun, a corporal in the Army, reflects on his experiences in Iraq. Loun earned a Purple Heart and an Army Commendation Medal on the battlefield.
A soldier's story• North Kitsap High School graduate Shaun Loun is home on leave after an extended tour in Iraq. By Chris Barron, Sun Staff Caught up in some of the heaviest fighting of the Iraq war, Army Cpl. Shaun Loun was hit by shrapnel twice during one week in May, endured daily battles for weeks and went on dangerous nightly missions searching for insurgents.So, after an intense 15-month stay in Iraq, one might think the 25-year-old Poulsbo resident would be pleased to just sit at home and relax.Not even close."I'm an adrenaline junkie now," the 1997 North Kitsap High School graduate said this week after returning home for a month-long leave.Loun went skydiving for the first time Wednesday. And next week, he's planning a heavy-duty whitewater rafting trip in Oregon."Iraq was like a 15-month bungee jump," he said.
"There's nothing that can compare to the adrenaline rush of getting a grenade thrown at you."Readers of The Sun got to know Loun during the winter and spring through a series of columns he wrote chronicling his battlefield experiences that earned him a Purple Heart and an Army Commendation Medal.He returned to Kitsap last week after the Germany-based 1st Infantry Division ended its extended Iraq stay.Back home nearly two weeks, Loun said life in the States has been an adjustment for several reasons. Not only does he not have to be on alert all hours of the day, he has also regained personal freedoms of doing what he wants when he wants."You are going from ready to kill, life and death, to normal civilian life where the biggest stress is what kind of beer do you want to order," he said.
Loun, an infantry soldier, saw his heaviest action of the war after the 1st Infantry Division was extended by three months in April."That was a crushing blow," he said of the extension. "It was absolute misery for a couple of days. We were packed and ready.
"During his time in Iraq, he said he probably killed 10 to 15 insurgents, most coming in the final three months. But he said he's not bothered by what he had to do on the battlefield.Many soldiers over the past year have had difficulty readjusting to civilian life, but Loun said he hasn't been affected by his battles with the enemy. "I feel fine with what I did," said Loun, who went through a weeklong re-integration process before returning home. "These guys are trying to kill me and my friends, and they're trying to ruin (Iraq)."They were doing their ****edest to try to kill us, so I had no problem killing them."That approach is probably one reason Loun was selected to try out for the Army's special forces. Only about 10 percent who endure an intensive seven-week selection process qualify for the elite force.With three years left before the end of his first Army tour, Loun said he knows he'll be heading back to Iraq, "but do I want to go back in full garb and full guard duty, or do I want to go back in a baseball cap, a beard and civilian clothes and roll around and do the fun stuff?"
Loun saw special forces personnel in action countless times, especially when the Army tried to take back control of Karbala in May. For 21 straight days, Loun and his fellow infantrymen battled insurgents around the clock.During an early morning raid on an amusement park where insurgents were storing arms, Loun earned a Purple Heart after he was wounded by a grenade thrown at his feet."I felt something hit me in the leg, but I couldn't quite tell what it was," he said. "And then my buddy yelled, 'Grenade!' and I started running. I didn't quite make it behind cover before the pieces went flying."Loun received a small gash and several cuts in his legs from shrapnel. But once he deemed he wasn't wounded badly, he got back in the fight."We started throwing frags at the guy and launching grenades," he said. "We ended shooting him to death with a grenade in his hand. He had to know he was going to die, but he wanted to try and take out some Americans before he went."A week later, Loun was injured by another grenade, but this one came from a buddy who launched one from his rifle out a window. The grenade caught the top of the window frame, blew up and a fragment came back and went through Loun's hand, missing critical ligaments."It was numb for the rest of the night and hurt for a couple of weeks," he said.That night, the Army, on its final big mission in Karbala, stormed a mosque that was a stronghold for Shiite Muslim leader Muqtada Sadr's militia."It was frightening," he said. "It was insane. It was like World War III when we hit the ground."
After his division returned to Germany two weeks ago, Loun said he and his buddies began paying closer attention to the presidential election. He supports President Bush, but said other soldiers were for John Kerry. However, he said most believe in the mission in Iraq."I think we needed to be over there, and I think it's the right thing," he said. "Some people back home don't see it that way, but that's their right."After dealing with these terrorists over there, I think we need to take a firm stance with them."