Mark Nielsen

My Son: Boy. Man. Marine.: a Chicago Fireman Counts the Days Until His Son Returns from Deployment in Afghanistan Mark Nielsen

A Chicago Firefighter's first born son joins the Marine Corps just out of High School. He decides to go "all in" and becomes a machine gunner with the Thundering Third infantry battalion of the 1st Marine Division. The United States is currently involved in two wars. With his chosen military profession, the new grunt is destine to be involved in heavy combat somewhere in the world. At the age of twenty, the young Lance Corporal deploys to the hostile and distant land of Afghanistan. The United States military death toll is at a record high since the inception of "Operation Enduring Freedom". While his son patrols the town of Garmsir in the Helmand Province and fights on the border of Pakistan, Dad writes down his thoughts. This book documents a father's daily concerns and worries during his son's 6 1/2 month (felt like 6 1/2 years) tour of duty on the other side of the globe.