CONTIGENCY OPERATING BASE ADDER, Iraq - The first time Staff Sgt. Tonga Rose and her husband, Sgt. First Class Marcus Rose, deployed to Iraq in 2003, they were separated by approximately 80 miles. Tonga was stationed at Camp Taji; Marcus was near Tikrit.
This time around, the Roses are both assigned to the 27th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, stationed at Contingency Operating Base Adder, and they get to live together in the same room.
"It's a morale booster because we're able to be together, explained Tonga, from Killeen, Tx. "It's not a strain on our marriage this time, and it lessens the stress."
Like the Roses, Staff Sgt.'s Kelvin and Michelle Windham are also residing together during this deployment.
When asked for her opinion about the opportunity to not only be stationed with her husband at COB Adder, but to also live with her husband, the supply sergeant from Guthrie, Okla. could only attribute it to divine intervention.
"I know I'm blessed," said Michelle. "I know that it is far and few between that married military couples get stationed together on a deployment--I can't put a price on being able to come home every night to my spouse and talk about my day."
Michelle and her husband are fully aware of the dangers they face in combat. Kelvin serves as a gun-truck sergeant on vehicle convoys, which means he frequently provides security for the battalion's convoy vehicles to and from various locations.
"The only worry I have is that we are equally at risk of being injured by incoming rounds," she said. "I pray every day that the Lord will watch over my husband and Alpha Company Soldiers."
Considering the risks Long Knife Soldiers face during a deployment, the married couples in 27th BSB are happy to have each other just an arm's length away.
"One of the advantages of being in this company is that we can help each other with any issues that may arise in our day-to-day workload," said Michelle. "To not have to look in a video camera to see his face is, by far, the best blessing ever."
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