AAFES manager returns from Iraq deployment

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Nicole Poff
  • Public Affairs
Vance Air Force Base, Okla. --  Deploying to austere places in the world is something servicemembers in today's expeditionary force are ready to do at a moment's notice. Going where others will not is a factor which distinguishes the ones who wear the uniform from the ones who don't ... or so we thought.
A little more than six months ago, Jhona Ronistal, the Army Air Force Exchange Service assistant store manager here, answered that very same call. She volunteered to join deployed men and women in uniform embodying the AAFES motto of "We go where you go."
"It was like working the same job, just someplace where the weather is worse," said Mrs. Ronistal.
Mrs. Ronistal spent a month and a half in Qatar before moving forward to her assignment at Camp Rustamiyah, Iraq, where she spent the remainder of her six month deployment.
"Qatar was really nice. It's where all the soldiers went for rest and relaxation," Mrs. Ronistal said. "People could go to the mall, but women had to be escorted by a man and be careful about what was said and done while out."
Camp Rustamiyah lacked the amenities of Qatar, but it had all the necessities.
"Anything you needed, you had, so you're not suffering," said Mrs. Ronistal. "You couldn't get rid of the dirt though, no matter how hard you tried."
Mrs. Ronistal, though safe within the confines of the gate was not immune to sounds and visions of war. She said she was able to distinguish the different "booms" by the end of her tour and identify whether it was a mortar, car bomb or controlled blast.
She also suffered the same sense of loss as the servicemembers when someone didn't return from a mission because everyone was family there.
"Every time there was a loss, it was a friend lost," she said.
Nonetheless, she valued her experience and acquired a newfound respect for our troops.
"I have a great amount of respect for those who serve in the Armed Forces. They do a job that many others would not do," said Mrs. Ronistal.
Mrs. Ronistal would have liked to extend her tour but returned home to take care of her three children. Her husband is preparing to deploy to the same location with a government contractor as an electrician.
"He is an extension of me, so I will still have a part of me at Camp Rustamiyah for a little longer," said Mrs. Ronistal. "I have three important people here to take care of, so I will stay home while Brody continues our support of the troops."