It was a time of thanks, a cause for celebration.
The town of Bellevue, and many Ketchum city employees, turned out last weekend to welcome home one of their own.
Mick Mummert, 45, was the celebrated resident in a mini-parade in downtown Bellevue Saturday, Nov. 12, that marked the end of an 18-month tour of duty in Iraq.
It was the bookend occasion to another event that began in the fall of 2001.
"I knew it was coming," said Mick's wife, BettyAnn. "Shortly after 9/11, I said, 'I don't know where you're going. I don't know when. But I know you're going.' We just prayed about it and just came to peace with it."
Mummert, who works for the city of Ketchum in the water department's metering division, and BettyAnn relaxed at home Wednesday, recalling accomplishments abroad and activities at home.
"There's a hope there that things will improve in time," he said of the mood in Iraq. "But there's still day-to-day pressures, like terrorism. But at least 90 percent of the people were very receptive and happy we were there. The majority of people welcomed us with open arms because they knew we were trying to help them establish a better life."
On base, living conditions were spartan, but each "containerized housing unit" had heat and air conditioning. Because of his rank, Mummert had a tiny unit to himself.
His day began around 5 a.m. with exercise. Breakfast was served a couple hours later, then he'd begin work at the office.
Mummert, a master sergeant in the National Guard, said he was a paralegal in the Judge Advocate General branch, or JAG.
"Chief paralegal," BettyAnn chimed in. "He's modest."
In his job Mummert helped stabilize Iraq's court system.
"Part of our responsibility was to restore order, rebuild courthouses, get equipment, especially technology and communication equipment," he said.
A frequent challenge was fostering communication between Iraqi judges and police, who didn't always understand each other's role.
"There was a difficulty with them interacting at all," he said. He helped set up conferences and face-to-face meetings to get both sides talking.
"It used to be Saddam's troops were the police," he said. "They weren't a protective force. We helped train police how to be police, and train the army how to be an army."
Mummert's JAG office had jurisdiction over a brigade of nearly 3,500 people, providing counsel to the U.S. Army enlistees and officers.
Infractions most commonly seen were alcohol and pornography use, which are barred for members of the American military in Iraq, and discipline.
"We're trying to be sensitive to (Muslim customs)," he said.
Other violations included negligent discharge—firing a weapon on base—and disrespect.
BettyAnn said the hardest parts of the past 18 months were not having Mick sitting next to her in church, and the 25th wedding anniversary that came and went in his absence.
Even on that momentous occasion, she kept her philosophical perspective.
"We were still married 25 years, even if he wasn't around," she said. "My attitude was, I'm a military wife. I didn't like it, but I knew I could handle it."
The Mummerts were lucky in that they were able to communicate daily, either by phone or via e-mail.
BettyAnn forged bonds with other wives in Mick's JAG section, and she embarked on a tour of duty of her own as a Red Cross volunteer in the Hurricane Katrina disaster zone, on the Gulf Coast.
She was aided by Mick's co-workers, fellow parishioners and the community at large—many of whom dropped by the house to offer help and moral support.
Local businesses also shipped treats to Mummert in Iraq.
"It's pretty humbling, encouraging, to realize all the support we had here," he said.
Mummert said the question he's asked most is whether U.S. troops should be in Iraq.
"It's a matter of personal opinion," he said. "I believe we are doing good things there. It doesn't matter what the catalyst was. We're doing good work for the Iraqi people as far as giving them hope for their futures."
At the beginning of the year, Mummert will return to work for the city of Ketchum.
"They've been very supportive," he said. "We've had no difficulty, no concern of whether I'd have a job when I returned."
In the meantime, the couple is planning to remodel their home. Next week, they'll prepare for a Thanksgiving dinner with all the fixings and all the family who felt so deeply his absence.
Master Sgt. Mick Mummert, right, and other members of the 116th Brigade Combat Team take a break while on duty in Iraq near the Tigris River.
