Soldiers’ Daughter Baby-Sits Sisters While Parents Serve in War
What an incredibly hearting and, regrettably, unfortunate story (from Los Angeles Times):
It’s been Delgadillo’s morning routine ever since her mother and stepfather were sent to Iraq, leaving her to look after her four little sisters — Stephanie, 17, Grace, 10, Ashley, 4, and Emily, 3.
Just before summer, Sgt. Claudia Hernandez-Smith and Sgt. Gary Smith were deployed with a Black Hawk helicopter division of the Army’s 131st Aviation Regiment stationed at Balad Air Base, about 50 miles north of Baghdad.
[...]
The Hesperia couple requested to serve together, and the Army, under its recently implemented simultaneous deployment program for married couples, was happy to oblige. So far, 1,712 people have requested to be considered for joint deployment with their spouses.
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Delgadillo, tiny and tomboyish with wire-rimmed glasses, readily admits that, at times, she feels robbed. She spends precious little time with her fiance or going out with friends. Instead, it’s a daily grind of cleaning, cooking and shopping.
"This is something that I asked for and wanted to do," Delgadillo said. "But sometimes I feel like I grew up too fast. Sometimes, I feel like I missed out."
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After her parents left, Delgadillo quit her job as a teller at Bank of America. She sneaks out a night or two each week for a dinner date with her fiance, Kenneth Beers, while Stephanie watches the girls.
