Trautman returns from Afghanistan
By Michael Johnson, Editor
Fourth, fifth and sixth graders at Underwood School had the option to ask Robert Trautman any question at all. Trautman, a Riverdale native, was on leave from the U.S. Army infantry division where he just returned from deployment in Afghanistan. Many were interested in what the coolest thing was that he saw and did while there. It only took Trautman a moment to talk about the sights of the American movement in a foreign country, including the sight of two American jets flying low over head. It was at that point that Trautman said to himself, “I think the Army was the right choice,” Trautman said. The coolest parts did not include the gun shots fired at him, the time a bomb went off when a lead vehicle drove over it or the way the people there hated the Americans. They were not “cool,” as the kids said but they were parts that made the job a tough one. The students were definitely interested in those moments though. The group had been writing to Trautman while he was deployed and asking him many questions. Their interest in all that he was doing was welcome as he was away from home.
