Ahmed, who managed the souvenir shop across the street from the Army camp, became a close friend. So did the man Sgt. Joseph Infante knew as Abu Hamza.

Trained for military intelligence — and "a linguist or military intelligence soldier at heart" — Infante, 39, ended up going to Iraq as a cook with the Army National Guard's 1457th Engineer unit from American Fork.

"I saw it as an opportunity to exercise the best attitude I could in doing something that I really didn't want to do," he said.

So, for several months, Infante served up two meals a day to 450 soldiers at a camp not far from the Baghdad Airport. Soldiers received one MRE, a prepackaged "meal, ready-to-eat," for their lunch. It was a demanding day of churning out food quickly.

"It's a stressful job, and probably the most thankless job in the military," Infante said recently from his Bountiful home.

But Infante turned his less-than-ideal circumstances into a life-changing experience by developing relationships with the Iraqi people he met during 15 months in the country between February 2003 and May 2004.

He started cultivating these relationships before he went to the Middle East, listening to tapes and teaching himself rudimentary Arabic while training at Fort Lewis in Washington.

When he arrived in Iraq, he conversed with Iraqi people who worked at the camp or nearby. One day he met Ahmed at the trailer where trinkets and souvenirs were sold. The man had been an English teacher at Baghdad University before Saddam Hussein changed the work climate of the country. Some of Ahmed's relatives had been murdered by insurgents.

So the two talked about their families and religion. He took Ahmed to a Burger King on a bigger base camp one day. Ahmed's first child was born while Infante was in the country. "I felt connected to him as a spiritual brother," Infante said. "I hope some day to help them get to the United States."

On his way to the dining hall on another day, Infante met Abu Hamza, who was part of a work crew laying sandbags to protect the camp against mortar attacks.

Abu Hamza tried to sell him a colorful Quran, which he later purchased. The interaction led to one of the most memorable events of his tour — a communal lunch with workers where Infante was the guest of honor. Eight or so workers sat in a circle and placed the items from their lunches in the middle. Then each man ate family style from the offering.

"I was able to find something very satisfying and gratifying with the Iraqi people," he said.