Oneida, Sep 2 (Newswire): There's no hype about what United States Air Force Staff Sgt. James Clarey does. He's pretty much James Bond.
The 2004 Oneida High School grad is home on leave for a week, winding down from an intense four-month tour in Afghanistan. Plastering a seven-foot-wide banner on their Main Street home's fence, his parents, Debbie and Jim Clarey, welcomed their son home. He's since spent his time with his family and wife, Monique, playing golf, visiting the New York State Fair and enjoying things he can only get here, such as wings from the Marble Hill Inn and that comfortable small-town feeling of being home.
"You never forget where you came from," Clarey said. He's soaking up the feeling of being back in a small town, something he doesn't get from his base in Las Vegas. "It's nice to be home and see familiar faces."
The enjoyment of his week's stay in his hometown is in stark contrast to the grueling four months he spent in Afghanistan. The 26-year-old spent from March to July in eastern Afghanistan. Trained as an special operative intelligence officer, it was Clarey's second trip to Afghanistan - his first tour was a few weeks long in 2006.
This time around, he worked with drones and MQ-1 Predator UAVs to collect intelligence in the Middle East.
In non-military terms, "it's pretty James Bondish," he admits.
But it comes at a price. As the only intel officer, he was essentially on call 24 hours a day for four months working 14- to 16-hour shifts every day. While he returned unscathed, he's had to deal with the loss of fellow servicemen. Just a few weeks after returning stateside, three special operations men he considered close friends were killed by suicide bombers.
Spending two weeks to "rest and recuperate," Clarey said he began transitioning back into his everyday life on base in Las Vegas with his wife. He returned to work for a week before coming home. He leaves next week. On a continual tour, Clarey isn't sure when and if he'll be sent overseas again but he'll continue to work using skills he developed during a year's worth of training after he enlisted, just four months after graduating high school.
He chose a profession no family member before him had. He said he knew he wanted to serve his country, see the world and benefit from the education and support the Air Force could provide. Besides Afghanistan and Las Vegas, he's served in North Carolina, Germany and other places.
The 2004 Oneida High School grad is home on leave for a week, winding down from an intense four-month tour in Afghanistan. Plastering a seven-foot-wide banner on their Main Street home's fence, his parents, Debbie and Jim Clarey, welcomed their son home. He's since spent his time with his family and wife, Monique, playing golf, visiting the New York State Fair and enjoying things he can only get here, such as wings from the Marble Hill Inn and that comfortable small-town feeling of being home.
"You never forget where you came from," Clarey said. He's soaking up the feeling of being back in a small town, something he doesn't get from his base in Las Vegas. "It's nice to be home and see familiar faces."
The enjoyment of his week's stay in his hometown is in stark contrast to the grueling four months he spent in Afghanistan. The 26-year-old spent from March to July in eastern Afghanistan. Trained as an special operative intelligence officer, it was Clarey's second trip to Afghanistan - his first tour was a few weeks long in 2006.
This time around, he worked with drones and MQ-1 Predator UAVs to collect intelligence in the Middle East.
In non-military terms, "it's pretty James Bondish," he admits.
But it comes at a price. As the only intel officer, he was essentially on call 24 hours a day for four months working 14- to 16-hour shifts every day. While he returned unscathed, he's had to deal with the loss of fellow servicemen. Just a few weeks after returning stateside, three special operations men he considered close friends were killed by suicide bombers.
Spending two weeks to "rest and recuperate," Clarey said he began transitioning back into his everyday life on base in Las Vegas with his wife. He returned to work for a week before coming home. He leaves next week. On a continual tour, Clarey isn't sure when and if he'll be sent overseas again but he'll continue to work using skills he developed during a year's worth of training after he enlisted, just four months after graduating high school.
He chose a profession no family member before him had. He said he knew he wanted to serve his country, see the world and benefit from the education and support the Air Force could provide. Besides Afghanistan and Las Vegas, he's served in North Carolina, Germany and other places.
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