Since 9/11: A Soldier Remembers

In commemoration of the decade since Sept. 11, Goose Creek Patch is looking at the stories of several local residents on that day and how it has impacted each of their lives. Share your first-person stories by emailing greg.hambrick@patch.com. We'll collect them and run them Sunday.

After 22 years of active duty in the U.S. Army, Lt. Col. Tripp Blanton has begun a second career leading the JROTC program at Stratford High School.

"It is so refreshing to be a soldier and to be able to come back to Charleston and recognize there are still good kids in our school system," he said.

On Sept. 11, 2001, Blanton and his family were stationed at Camp Hialeah in South Korea. The base went to full alert and lock down. Blanton said he was most surprised at the response from the South Korean nationals in his unit.

"They were so angry and saddened that this happened to America," he said. "Just to see South Koreans mourning for Americans — they were sad and angry, too."

Blanton said the attack gave clarity and purpose for troops.

"If you're a solider, all you want is a clear mission and a clear end state," he said. "I think after that took place, there was more of a sense of duty and purpose as a solider. It gave us an opportunity to do what we trained to do."

The JROTC program shows young people the opportunities available in the military, but the core mission is about building better citizens.

"We honor service members fighting for a freedoms right now by being good citizens," Blanton said. "Not walking around with your pants around your ankles, smoking dope and having piercings all over your face. That's not honoring the men and women fighting for us."

Even though they don't have much memory of life before 9/11, some young people are itching for action.

"There's still a portion of our society still very angry about 9/11," Blanton said. "There's still a section saying, 'Put me in coach. I want to get the bad guys.'"

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