Spc. Ahmad Mohamad, a combat medic with the 2nd Battalion,
12th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, uses his
interpreting skills to help a local sheik express his concerns to Capt. Joe
Heaton, the battalion's civil military operations liaison officer. Photo by
Sgt. Dan Purcell, USA
(Click photo for screen-resolution image); high-resolution image available.
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But his journey to serving in the U.S. Army started long before that visit.
"When I was 2 years old my father decided to move our family to Palestine
because he always believed that we should learn new cultures and languages when
we can," Mohamad said.
Mohamad has a unique heritage: His father is Palestinian, and his mother is
Spanish.
Moving then from Puerto Rico was easy for Mohamad, and being so young made
adapting easier. He said it was very exciting living in Palestine, and it was a
very good experience to learn about typical Arabs' lives and customs, how they
think and the little nuances in how they deal with each other, he said.
Today the 29-year-old soldier is assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry
Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team of the 1st Cavalry Division, and is fluent in
three languages -- English, Spanish and Arabic.
"I think my father was right," he said. "My childhood was really amazing,
because during the early '80s things were still quiet over there (in the Middle
East)," he said. "There were no troubles, Jewish (people) and Palestinians used
to hang out together. But about a year before I returned to Puerto Rico, the
intifada started. It became more difficult to study because the schools were
closing, so my parents felt it wasn't best for me to stay and decided to return
home."
By then fluent in both the Arabic language and customs, Mohamed returned to
Puerto Rico at the age of 14, where he graduated from both high school and
college.
"My major in college was physical chemistry," Mohamad said. "I received a
scholarship from the (Dr.) Ronald McNair Foundation. I was one of 20 students
the foundation selects every year from the United States and Puerto Rico."
With just two classes shy of obtaining his degree, Mohamad received an offer to
attend a medical school in Mexico, where he spent the next six years of his
life.
"In Mexico I finished my four years of medical college and got my diploma, but
I didn't finish my internship because it took all my time and in Mexico you
don't get paid while in training," he said. "So between long hours in training
and study I had no way to support my family, I dropped the internship and
returned home to work for my brother who took over my father's business."
After spending about five months helping his brother, Mohamad realized that he
wasn't cut out to be a businessman.
Then came his visit – and signing up – with the Army recruiter. "I think I was
too excited to join because I never looked at the contract, … and the next
thing I know I'm on a plane heading for Ft. Benning, Ga. I chose to be a medic
because I wanted to stay in the medical field and I thought at some point I
would be able to finish getting my medical license."
After basic training, Mohamad was assigned to the 1st Cavalry Division at Fort
Hood, Texas, and then deployed with his unit to Iraq.
Currently, Mohamad can be found working at Camp Hawk, home of the 303rd Iraqi
National Guard Battalion, where he manages to put all his skills to work.
"Here I continue to work as a medic. Usually the ING and American soldiers come
to me when they have a medical problem or condition, even people from the local
community come for consults," Mohamad said. "I am also assigned to help
interpret because I am fluent in Arabic.
Besides working with the Iraqi interpreters, Mohamad also serves as a liaison
between his command, local sheiks and the media. Conversations move
effortlessly from sheik to soldier as he skillfully interprets their concerns,
questions and answers.
"Working as an interpreter is great, especially in this environment because it
helps the time go by faster and it is a good distraction, but it doesn't give
me much time off," he said. "When I'm not working, I'm on call any time of the
day or night, so I don't do much else. My future goal is to finish my
internship and get my medical license in America, maybe even becoming a
commissioned medical doctor."
(Army Sgt. Dan Purcell is a member of 122nd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment.)
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