3 soldiers home for some R&R

Three soldiers may be back in Utah for some R&R, but they're finding plenty of active duty on the home front.

Wayne Pyle, West Valley City; Chris Oakes, Roosevelt; and Cody Adamson, Salem, are among dozens back from the war either by furlough or demobilization, but these three have two new kids and a city to look after.

Oakes was lucky enough to fly home from Iraq just in time for the birth of his son. Adamson won a furlough to meet his newborn daughter. Pyle is city manager for West Valley City who will take on first-hand municipal duties he's been overseeing long-distance while stationed in Colorado.

• Oakes, stationed at the Baghdad airport, repeatedly asked for leave to return to Utah to be present for the birth of the baby he and his 20-year-old wife, Alicia, were expecting. He is a heavy equipment specialist with the Utah National Guard's 1457th Engineering Battalion.

As often as he asked, Oakes heard "no."

"It was just policy at the time, they weren't granting anyone leave. Alicia contacted the Red Cross so they knew I was going to have a baby being born so they could kind of pull some strings to get me home, too. They were saying we're not granting any leave," Chris Oakes explained.

Then on the evening of Sept. 23, a platoon sergeant popped his head inside Chris' tent and told him to pack his bags, he would be heading for

home in one hour.

"I was taking a nap. . . . I think I was packed in about 30 minutes and was waiting. It was so exciting it was hard to believe," he said.

As luck had it, he was in the first of several waves of 270 military personnel to be given two weeks' rest and relaxation. He was the only member of his unit, based in Vernal, to be called for the rotation home.

He boarded a plane in Kuwait and flew to Germany.

"She was having contractions when I called her from Germany, and that's when I told her I was coming home," he said. From Germany it was on to Baltimore, where he explained his situation to a friendly airline ticket taker who rescued him from a lengthy layover.

It was close, but after 20 hours in the air and several others waiting in airports and in debriefing sessions, he was in Roosevelt a few hours before their son was born Sunday morning. Dylan Scott Oakes was two weeks early, but on time to bond with both parents.

"I think he looks a lot like me," grinned the proud 20-year-old dad. He is to return to his unit Oct. 11.