BROTHERS IN ARMS

For soldier Tim Burke,
serving your country is a family affair

Easter brought a joyful knock on the door for the Burke family. They welcomed their third son, Marine 1st Lieutenant Tim Burke, home from his second tour of duty in Iraq.

Battle-weary and fatigued, the 26-year-old soldier returned stateside April 15 to a solid row of welcoming signs and American flags that fluttered along lower Prince Street in Old Town.

“I am so grateful for the warm welcome from the neighborhood and it felt great to be back on the East Coast,” said Burke said, who’s currently stationed at 29 Palms, Calif., in the Mojave Desert, where daytime temperatures hover near 130 degrees.

Tim Burke was welcomed home to Alexandria by a bright cardboard sign his mother had fashioned and placed outside their Colonial-style townhouse.

Seemingly overnight, most of their neighbors decorated their homes with flags, signs, children’s drawings and notes for the battle-weary Marine.

“We had not spoken to any of our neighbors about Tim’s homecoming, it just happened. It has been very inspiring, especially since he was in such a hostile area and saw a lot of action while in Iraq,” John Burke said.

Burke is a 1998 graduate of Paul VI High School in Fairfax where he played lacrosse, and is a 2002 graduate of the Virginia Military Institute, where he majored in international relations.

Burke’s older brother, Sean, 34, also graduated from VMI, joined the Marines, and works for the FBI. His middle brother, Danny, 30, works overseas for the State Department.

“When Senator Warner spoke at my graduation from VMI, he talked about the importance of both public and military service,” Burke said. “My brothers and I took his words to heart.”

John Burke could not restrain his pride. “We are very proud of each of our sons. They are doing honorable things with their lives. Money is not important to us, but making a contribution to society is,” said Burke, who was an FBI agent for 25 years. “Our boys are a result of my wife’s good guidance and adoration for her sons.”

Tim Burke knew at a young age that he felt the calling to join the Marines, which he considers “the best of the best.”

Burke grew up in the midst of the Marines, as he would occasionally accompany his father, John Burke, on his work for the FBI. “On weekends, I would sometimes go with my dad down to Quantico and see the guys running drills. I think that is where the idea first took hold. I could see then, that they were a cut above, and I knew I had to be a part of that,” Burke said.

A soldier’s story
Burke applied to VMI and then enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserves after his second year. He went to boot camp for 12 weeks at Parris Island, S.C.

“This was a very isolated island and really gave me a taste of what it would be like to be a Marine,” Burke recalled. “Basically, our drill instructor had complete control over our days, and we never knew what was in store. It was hot, there were sand fleas, we were up early, and we had to meet swim qualifications and complete rigorous physical training…And, we got yelled at a lot. It was just something I had to get through.”

He also recalled how many of his high school friends were life guarding or bartending for the summer, and how different his path was from theirs.

During Burke’s final two years at VMI, he would report monthly to Quantico for his “weekend warrior” commitments to fulfill his reserve obligation.

There, he would train on LAV, or light armored reconnaissance. After Burke’s graduation from VMI , he attended Officer Candidate School at Quantico for 10 weeks. Upon completion of that course, he was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant. Then he spent the fall in Virginia working at a variety of office jobs.

In April 2003, Burke checked into The Basic School (TBS), which is a 6-month school where Marine officers are trained to be platoon commanders. By the summer of 2003, Burke had completed this course, and was assigned his Military Occupation Specialty (MOS) of Infantry, which was his first choice. Burke was a platoon commander who, along with a platoon sergeant, was in charge of 40 men.

Yet, there was more training in store for him. “I then stayed in Quantico to attend Infantry Officer’s Course and graduated in December of 2003, and I was assigned to a unit in 29 Palms. 29 Palms is basically a desert shantytown in the high desert in the middle of nowhere. I checked in January of 2004, and was deployed to Iraq a month later to return in September of 2004,” Burke said.

“Our deployments are 7 months long, and during my first mission, we were on the Syrian border in a town called Al Qaim, and we lived in an old train station. This was at a time when the insurgency was just beginning to proliferate.”

It was during this deployment that Burke was faced with any lieutenant’s nightmare. “We lost three men in an IED, a roadside bomb. Part of my obligation is to speak with the families after they were contacted by the Marines to let them know that I was there when the Marine died, and that he did so honorably. Those phone calls to the families in Texas, Missouri, and Rhode Island, were the toughest ones that I have had to make. I also set up sessions for my platoon where they could talk about our loss and remind everyone that we are there for each other,” Burke said. The IED exploded the vehicle, in which the Marines were riding, just three cars ahead of Burke’s vehicle.

Perilous region
Burke’s most recent tour of duty, which he embarked upon as a First Lieutenant (he was promoted in January 2005), took him to Ramadi which is 70 miles west of Baghdad, the capital of the Al Anbar province. Ramadi is all Sunni and they had been highly favored by Saddam Hussein and are at the heart of the insurgency.

“Ramadi is considered the French Riviera of Iraq as it is situated along the banks of the Euphrates and many had palatial homes in the area. There had been a lot of money in this area under Saddam,” Burke explained. Ramadi is the location of the “60 Minutes” television interview titled: “Under Fire, Alongside the Fallen,” that featured Marine Captain Patrick M. Rapicault who was killed in front of the camera by an IED, the interview that shook America into awareness of the peril of the region.

“I was stationed in the same area as that interview just one year later for my seven month deployment,” Burke said. “For the record, I always felt safe in my body and vehicle armor. The armor saved my life more than once and was completely adequate,” Burke said.

Iraqi elections
Burke’s Platoon was tasked with managing the Oct. 15 elections for the Constitutional Referendum, and Dec. 15 for the Iraqi Parliamentary Elections. “For the Oct. 15 elections, practically no one in Ramadi voted because the Sunnis were boycotting the election. We managed about 10-15 polling sites. By the second set of elections on Dec. 15, 65 percent of the people voted, both men and women,” Burke said.

“It seemed that most of the people in the area are not pro-insurgent, but they are scared and intimidated by the insurgents. They would scare them into not cooperating and not voting.” Burke said.

Their Marine headquarters was one of Saddam Hussein’s summer residences with the dining room transformed to a conference room. “The palace was very lavish and was decked out with huge oriental rugs, sweeping red and gold velvet curtains, marble toilets and fountains everywhere,” Burke said.

There was plenty of free time for the Marines while on base in Ramadi. “You could go running, play basketball or football, and train in the weight room. We also watched a lot of DVD’s that friends and Operation Gratitude sent us. It certainly helped pass the time,” Burke said.

He was also showered with packages, letters and e-mails from his large family. “We have one cousin Liz, who lives in Chicago, who would disseminate information about Tim whenever we heard from him. It was a great network for the family, and a great source of support for his mother and me,” said John Burke.

Burke feels that there is hope for Iraq despite the dismal reports that deluge the media. “From my perspective, things definitely improved between my two tours of duty. By the second tour, the Iraqi military and police were more responsive, prepared, and took ownership of their towns. The elections were more successful with 65 percent of the population voting. And we would receive tips and warnings regarding roadside bombs. This did not happen during my first deployment,” urke said.

Welcome home
Burke was welcomed back to the U.S. on March 28 by his parents on base in California, where there was a reception, the Marine Corps Band, balloons and banners. He was greeted with a “Welcome Home, Tim” sign, as well as an unexpected surprise, the newest member of the Burke Family, nephew Sullivan Patrick Burke, who was born Jan. 31, 2006.

“Sullivan was wearing a little Marine outfit that my brother Sean and sister-in-law Erin had found. They surprised me by making the trip from Chicago. It was awesome to meet Sullivan after hearing everyone talk about him, and seeing the pictures that had been e-mailed to me while in Iraq,”

The Burke family spent a long weekend together before Lt. Burke reported for a two week “welcome back” brief where resources available to the Marines were explained to members of his platoon as they re-entered their home country.

From the banks of the Euphrates to the heights of the Mojave Desert to his Virginia refuge on Prince Street, this young Virginia gentleman sees hope for a rebirth for Iraq and contemplates his own future plans, as his contract with the Marines is complete in six months. During his brief time here in Alexandria, Burke hopes to visit his favorite establishments. “I can’t wait to visit O’Connell’s. Bullfeathers had always been my favorite place in Old Town. I also plan to make my way up to Murphy’s and Bugsy’s. Most importantly, I am spending time with my family and friends,” Burke said.