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Family, friends couldn't be prouder of Mike Tucker
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By WENDY MITCHELL Staff Writer
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SPANAWAY, Wash. -- For Bracken County native Mike Tucker, two weeks of rest and relaxation from his assignment in Iraq needs to be followed with two more weeks to recover from R&R.
April 1, Tucker will board a plane and return to the U.S. Army 1st Battalion 25th Infantry Division in Iraq.
After 18 years in the Army, Sgt. Tucker, the son of Issac and Mabel Tucker, recalled his younger days in the Frogtown community near Brooksville as a life experience in learning.
Growing up in Bracken County in a household of 16 children left room for Tucker to get into a little mischief and away from education.
"I quit school when I was a freshmen. I thought I knew more than the teachers back then," said Tucker.
"Mike came to work with me in Houston (Texas) when he was younger. He is a really talented carpenter," said his brother-in-law Don Wagner. "He has a carpenter's hands. He even worked on former President Gerald Ford's office in Houston."
Like many teenagers, Tucker got into some minor scrapes with the law, said Wagner.
Working as a carpenter with his father, Issac, the younger Tucker learned a trade but still was not satisfied with the direction his life was going.
"One day my Dad said 'Why don't you try the Army?' and it sounded like a good idea to me," said Tucker.
Education was a continuing process for Tucker even after he joined the military in 1987.
"I got my GED; that was pretty easy to do. Going to college was more difficult because I was older than a lot of my classmates. I was juggling school, military life and a family, but I got my four year degree," said Tucker. "Now I'm working on my master's degree."
"I'd say 90-95 percent of the recruits today are going into the military to pay for college," said Tucker.
"We are so proud of the way Mike has turned his life around," said his sister, Pam Wagner of Maysville.
Tucker and his wife of 10 years, AnnMarie, have two children, Tyler, 9, and Sarah, 5.
They met when Tucker was stationed in Hawaii.
"AnnMarie is from Philadelphia and has had a time adjusting to my Kentucky ways," said Tucker.
"She wanted to go to a shopping mall the first time she visited Bracken County. She thought I was kidding because I told her she would have to take a cooler because a mall was a couple of hours away," said Tucker.
His wife was glad to hear that when she visits Bracken County this summer, improved roadways have reduced the time needed to get to a mall.
"Thank goodness," she could be heard saying in the background as Tucker relayed the information to her.
"Her first trip to my folks' outhouse -- they have a modern bathroom now -- I told her to watch out for snakes. I have to give her credit for putting up with things like that and for taking in the cooking styles and traditions that make me feel like home, like ham and cabbage on New Year's Day for money all year," said Tucker.
Tucker credits his family and churches in Bracken County with supporting him over the years.
"We have moved around, but they have been there for me and my family and I appreciate everything they have done and are doing for the troops," said Tucker. "I cannot say that enough. The troops in Iraq and everywhere do appreciate the things that communities and churches are doing to show their support."
Tucker is looking forward to his assignment in Iraq.
"We're using the newest military vehicle they have, the Stryker eight-wheel drive truck. The tires adjust to sand by deflating at the touch of a button, for more traction, and re-inflating the same way," said Tucker, who recalled using a similar technique to maneuver the hills and roads of Bracken County in winter.
"We probably invented it; the military perfected it," he laughed.
Tucker expects to be back to this area to visit his father in December and hopes for better luck getting home for the holidays.
"I missed getting in for our 10th wedding anniversary by 12 hours," Tucker said. "But, I'll take 12 hours late over not at all."
Contact Wendy Mitchell at wendy.mitchell@lee.net or call 606-564-9091, ext. 370. |
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