TL20051107_001 "Double-overtime goal punches Tigers' ticket to CAA Tournament Ignorance isn't Bliss when invited to the home of Bohemians Arts, page 15 |l|*JlKllt^l*l and for the students of Towson and Baltimore -- twice weekly Monday, Ll/7/05 From Maryland To Iraq Reporting for duty Students balance school, military service Ben Hughes Contributing Writer Most Towson students busy themselves by going to class, working a part-time job and partying on the weekends. But other students travel around the World in order to fight for their country. Some student soldiers spend their weekends at drill with their unit to be prepared if they ever get the call to duty. Others have served 20 years on active duty and returned to Towson to continue their education. There are also students who have been sent back by their branch of service to get more schooling to further their military career. They all have their reasons for choosing to join the military, and TU. Brendan Curran, 27, is currently the Cadet Command Sergeant Major for Loyola College/Towson University Reserve Officer Training Corps. He previously served five years in the U.S. Army on active duty. He enlisted after an initial unsuccessful attempt at college life. """"I joined because I was a mess,"""" the junior philosophy major said. """"I had failed out of college, my priorities were all out of proportion, and I was basically going nowhere."""" Since enlisting, Curran, who was chosen by the Army to go to school with the intention of returning to active, duty as an officer, has seen and done things most students only see in movies or play in video games. He was in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003, and described his time there as """"an experience like no Many students...do not understand how tough it is and the things we go through to serve our country. other."""" """"I remember rolling into Iraq with The Doors song 'The End' playing on a stereo,"""" Curran said. """"Nighttime firelights under the green haze of night vision, rockets (RPGs) shooting mere feet over my head as I lay down to sleep. It was all very surreal."""" Curran's time in the Middle East was not totally consumed with fighting a war. He saw the torture cham- Christian Jennings junior, history major Ders used by the Republican Guard, Iraqi families digging up mass graves to find their loved ones, and Kuwaiti citizens handing out pictures of family members that had been captured before the war began. Curran called them """"sights that took my breath away."""" But he did see some good things and was involved in some positive aspects of what America was doing in Iraq. """"I would go into villages and meet with the community leaders. I would dine with them, talk about life, family, Islam, philosophy, the future,"""" Curran said. See MILITARY, page 10 Photo courtesy of Brendan Curran Curran, above, is TU's Cadet Commander Sergeant Major. INSIDE: Family Weekend offers taste of Towson life Alicia Miller/ The Towerlight Photos by Heidi Greenleaf/ The Towerlight Families from near and far flocked to Towson's campus for Family- Weekend on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, with its medley of activities and events. Sponsored by Campus Life with many on-campus contributors, the weekend of events included (left) magician Mike Super, (top) a Casino Night sponsored by University Residence Government and (above) a dance expo. Other weekend events included a welcome reception and religious services, in addition to sporting events and sibling weekend. For more photos of Family Weekend, see page 8. Coming In Thursday's Towerlight: Perspectives....3 News 7 Beyond............14 Music 16 Sports. Arts................15 Classifieds.....19 .24 Arts: Students can get their Liquor Box at Sonar next weekend News: Brooke Kroeger talks about real people with fake identities in Passing'"
