Small Pennsylvania town that answered the call on Sept. 11 now grieves its losses

NEW MILFORD, Pa. — After terrorists struck the U.S. on Sept. 11, 2001, residents here in the Endless Mountains of northeast Pennsylvania answered the call to service.

In this small town where blueberries grow abundantly, Master Sgt. James Ditchey, the Pennsylvania National Guard recruiter, signed on more new enlistees in October 2001 than any other recruiter in the state.

Among those who joined was Christopher Six, who enlisted with two of his high school buddies at age 17. "We wanted to help our country out the best we could," he says. "We thought in the Guard, we could still go to college."

Five years later, the two friends who joined the New Milford-based Guard unit with him are dead. So is Staff Sgt. Daniel Arnold, 27, who re-enlisted, in part, because of the terror attacks.

By the time the unit had returned from Iraq in June, seven soldiers assigned to it had been killed. That's a heavy toll for a town of 845 people, a town so small it doesn't even warrant a fast-food restaurant.

"Last year was a very, very long year," said Ditchey.

New Milford is a quiet mountain town with a bicycle shop and a few other independently owned businesses along a long rural stretch of road that makes up the main street.

There's an American Legion nearby, where veterans trade stories about Vietnam and World War II. "Rock On" is the motto for the unit, the 1st Battalion, 109th Infantry Brigade — part of the 28th Infantry Division.

Some here join the Guard because of family tradition. Others do it to help supplement their income, so they can stay in the region to hunt and fish.

Spc. Gary Sienko, 21, was talked into joining by Spc. Lee A. Wiegand, 20, who died in an attack that killed five of the troops.

"It was something to do with your life. In our town, there was not a lot to do," Sienko said.

Down a winding stretch of road a few miles away from New Milford is Montrose, where hundreds gather every year for a Fourth of July celebration.

It was here that Arnold, a tall, married father of two with dark hair and movie-star good looks, worked as a diesel mechanic and served part-time as a member of the New Milford Guard.

When he re-enlisted in 2003, he knew he would likely wind up in Iraq.

"He completely believed he could make a difference and he could make a better world for his children and everybody's children," said Janet Arnold, 62, his mother.