Leadership is the task assigned to all noncommissioned officers who are responsible for the successful training, morale, welfare and mentorship of junior Soldiers. Known as the "Backbone of the Army," the U.S. Army's Noncommissioned Officer Corps leads the way in 'raising' today's Soldiers.
Sgt. Jason North, D Troop, Task Force Saber AH-64 Attack Helicopter Repairer, is an NCO charged with not only conducting scheduled and unscheduled maintenance on the task force's Apache helicopters, but is additionally responsible for leading Soldiers in the only Apache repair section in the Troop's maintenance platoon.
His father is a retired command sergeant major and North says that military service was in his blood.
"I knew my whole life that I wanted to be in the military," said North. "That was it for me. When you've been an Army brat your whole life, you just feel it. I knew the military would set me up for success. Obviously my dad didn't do too badly for himself!"
While Army children typically travel just as much as their active duty parents do and tend to call many different places "home" during their childhood, North claims Crestview, Fla. as home. Crestview is also his place of enlistment. He worked in an automotive shop as a mechanic prior to enlisting and says that while he enjoyed his job, he knew it was not what he wanted to do long-term.
Joining at the age of 25, he says that "since my dad was so successful in the military, I wanted to see if I could be even half of that."
North said he knew before joining that he wanted to be a part of aviation. When asked why he chose to work with the Apache, he smiled and said, "Because that is the baddest machine I've ever seen." At first he wanted to work with the Blackhawk, but when the recruiter showed him a video of the Apache, he was completely sold.
In addition to two tours in The Republic of Korea, this deployment is North's fourth time overseas. "I was in Iraq last time I deployed, but Afghanistan is a whole different ball game," he said. "It's a whole different mission; things are moving a lot faster, and I have a lot more responsibilities this time."
Two of those new responsibilities include his brand-new twins, Skyler and Jacob, born in November, 2009.
"Being over here this time is so different than it ever was," said North. "Before, it was just me, now I have a wife and two kids at home that I miss like crazy."
He says that things are a little easier on him than most of his Soldiers that have kids because his wife is also in the Army. "She knows what it's like being active duty, and she's also deployed before, so if I can't call home for a while, she doesn't get upset. She just carries on like normal."
North states that while he doesn't have a lot of free time, the added responsibilities were definitely welcome. "Free time' If you're an NCO and you have free time, you're not doing your job!" North laughs. "I was acting platoon sergeant for about two months after we arrived in country, and it's a job that I am looking forward to getting back in the future. I don't know how my platoon sergeant does it now, but to be honest, we have really great leaders here that help everybody in every way possible, and they really don't let us fail. The Soldiers here are awesome in everything they do too. We never have to tell them twice to get the mission done. They are the biggest reason why I succeed as an NCO at all."
When he is at home, he is with his new family. He says that while he did not get to spend a lot of time with them prior to deploying, the time he had with them was well spent. His baby daughter, Skyler, is daddy's little girl, while his son, Jacob, is Mr. Independent already.
"My wife and I knew that I was leaving, and we really just wanted to spend time together beforehand," said North. "A year is a long time away from your family, but we wanted to focus on how close you can be if you appreciate the time that you do have together, instead of focusing on the time that you're away from each other."
He says that his family is what is helping him through this deployment. "You'd think that I'm used to this. I've been in for eight years, but this is my first year as a father. Without my awesome wife, I wouldn't make it. My parents are amazing, too. They know what this is like and only want what's best for me and my family."
North goes on to say in a serious tone, "I had a good life growing up, two parents who loved me, wanted the best for me, showed me right from wrong, and they taught me to shoot for the moon. That's why I'm in the military; to be the best I can be, and I guess to repay them for all the extra love they gave me as a kid."
Asked about what he enjoys most about his job, he says that the challenges he is faced with every day are what keeps him going.
"Trying to figure out what's going to happen next can be overwhelming, but fun at the same time," said North. "We never know what's going to take place from one minute to the next, whether it's aircraft maintenance, a Soldier's personal issues or issues within the task force, but the OPTEMPO (operational tempo) within the unit has been terrific. My phone never stops ringing, but it's really great. I wouldn't have it any other way."
This has been the best chain of command that I've ever worked with, and it is the main reason that I don't want to leave when we get back to Campbell. Whenever something arises, no matter what it is, they're completely approachable and always give us guidance immediately."
He has had several leaders during his military career that have influenced and guided him to be the leader that he is now.
"My AIT (advanced individual training) instructor ended up being my platoon sergeant at my first unit out of school in Fort Hood, Texas, and really helped me grow professionally," said North. "He taught me loads about the aircraft and made me work with it as much as possible. Whenever we had free time, we were going over the TMs (training manuals) together."
He also says that he has admired Gens. Cody and Petraeus, saying that "they took time to speak with me and my unit in 2003 when we were deploying to Iraq. They were everyday joes and are just tremendous leaders."
Since deploying, he has had the opportunity to work with different countries and their aircraft. "I was able to meet some soldiers from the U.A.E. (United Arab Emirates) a few weeks ago, which was completely exciting," said North. " That's something that I probably wouldn't be able to do in garrison."
Asked about his short-term goals, and he says that right now it is just to get promoted. "I've been promotable for a little bit, and I'm working as hard as I can to make points so I can get pinned staff sergeant," said North. "I just really want to finish this deployment and get my guys home to their families. We're family out here, and as close as we are with each other, it's not the same without our own."
He says that long-term, he wants to retire as a first sergeant at a minimum.
"I have a lot to live up to; my dad's a command sergeant major. That can give you a complex growing up!" he laughs.
"I've been really considering putting in a flight packet and going warrant (officer). I love the aircraft, and to me, it can't get any better than this." He is also trying to complete his bachelor's degree within the next few years.
When questioned about whether retirement is in his future, North says very seriously, "Absolutely not! They're going to have to kick me out when I'm 60!" He says that while he plans on making the military a career, he would love to get the opportunity to work for Boeing when he finally does retire, "but if I could just figure out how to stay on a lake and make a good living, I'd be pretty satisfied," he jokes. "But for now, the Army isn't that bad of a place to be while I wait for my lake house."
While his focus right now is continuing with the mission, training and leading his Soldiers, he cannot wait until the unit redeploys to Fort Campbell, Ky. so he can see his children again. "I've done the Soldier thing, done the NCO thing, now it's time for me to do the husband and father thing. I miss my wife and kids like crazy!" He says that thus far, his Army career has been very good, and he plans on making the rest of his time just as successful. "I'm going to be that guy that says in another 15 years, 'I was in Iraq for that,' or 'I was in Afghanistan for that.' I'm proud of not just myself, but all of my guys, too."
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