Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans
8:08 | Coming home was hard. The war in Iraq had grown more unpopular. Ben Wormington's next assignment was one he wanted but he had a 30 day leave and it was then that he fell apart inside.
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In Iraq, Ben Wormington befriended an Iraqi interpreter who was a big help to his unit. Years later, he heard from the man on Facebook and began a decade long struggle to bring him and his family to America.
It was in middle school that Ben Wormington was assigned to do an interview with a veteran. So he interviewed his grandfather and found out some amazing things about his service. Later, in high school, after seeing what boot camp did to another student, he was determined to join the Marines.
He was just waiting for his eighteenth birthday to enlist in the Marines and it was finally here. Eleven days later, Ben Wormington was shocked to watch the events of 9/11 unfold on television. That made him very serious about boot camp.
Ben Wormington's MOS was 0861, Fire Support Man. First post was Fort Sill for training and then Coronado where he learned to direct Naval gunfire. After that, he listed his picks for duty but got none of them. He was going to Twentynine Palms, where they made good Marines.
The fire support team was a tight unit. Ben Wormington was the Scout along with an officer and a radio operator and a couple of other Marines. They knew the call was coming and when it did, they flew to Kuwait, which was like walking into an oven. There, they met a reporter who was to be embedded with them.
The fighting subsided as Ben Wormingtom neared Baghdad. The high rise buildings were a new factor, perfect for snipers. At first, the Iraqis were welcoming and threw treats to them. It was his unit that was there when the giant statue of Saddam was toppled, an image shown around the world.
They knew they were going back to Iraq. The Marines were training intensively in the interim and Ben Wormington had a new boot named Chance who was talented but unfocused. He singled him out for attention to make sure he got it together.
Ben Wormington was surprised when he got to Camp Ramadi to start his second tour in Iraq. There were showers, a gym and a convenience store. What is going on? The first mission was miserable but at least there were no firefights. His unit lucked out after that when they became the security detachment for Gen. John Kelly.
There was a young Marine named Chance Phelps who was usually Ben Wormington's gunner on patrols. He had the day off but volunteered to ride with another team that was short-handed. He never made it back. His story became the basis for a film called Taking Chance.
After deciding to reenlist, Ben Wormington was excited to be attached to a Recon Marine outfit as the chief fire support man. They sent him to Airborne school and then Tactical Air Control school.
It was great! Ben Wormington was deployed with the elite Recon Marines but when they got to Iraq, it wasn't so great. After a period on the border interdicting smugglers, there was a new Status of Forces agreement that said they could only go outside the wire if they were accompanied by an Iraqi Army unit. No way we're doing that.
It was a good reunion. When Ben Wormington and his outfit got together recently, they did so in the hometown of their fallen brother in arms, Chance Phelps.
