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Rich Low was never one to stay in one place for long. He moved throughout the U.S. as a kid, even spent a few years as a child in Saudi Arabia. His father worked in construction and the family moved to wherever the job was.
Even in college Low was not experiencing the regular college life.
“I decided that if I was going to be a good leader I had to understand how to do the jobs at the lowest level,” Low said. “I had to understand the people I was going to lead.”
He joined the South Carolina Army National Guard in 2000 while studying at Clemson University. Once he graduated in 2003 he went into active duty with the Army.
His early Army career included time in Anchorage, Alaska. Low was a platoon leader in the infantry. In 2005 his unit got the call to serve in Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom III.
“I stayed in Mosul from August until February. Then in February I was detached from my unit, at that time I was a platoon leader. We went to Rawah, in the Al Anbar province just west of Fallujah and at the time was the most dangerous province in Iraq.”
Rising insurgents caused a spread of violence in Iraq. Low was in Rawah for six months, he spent time as part of a scout group working with the 414th Calvary.
His deployment was nearly over, on the doorstep of returning home but ended up seeing the door close.
“I had a very unique and active deployment,” Low recalled.
He and his men started the process of returning home. According to Low he was among some of the last soldiers still in Iraq. About half his platoon was already home, with the platoon’s equipment on the way back. Then he got the news that President George Bush was extending their mission and sending more troops.
“I had called home at the time and I was told I was not coming home and I was being sent back into Baghdad, so I heard about it on the phone before I did through our chain of command,” Low said. “It was true, we got extended indefinitely.”
The extension was difficult to handle, for some more than others. Some were put on suicide-watch they had taken the news so hard emotionally.
“You put a year’s worth of effort into the day that you get to go home and be around your family and be in the U.S. again, be out of danger,” Low said.
“There’s no words to describe it, the anticipation, the buildup, it’s going to be one of the happiest days of your life. And to have it pulled out from under you is tough.”
Low brought his people and equipment back together to move in and help secure Baghdad. Their mission had an indefinite end date, meaning he was not sure when he would get home.
“It’s miserable, you have no idea what you’re working for. It was tough, when you start losing people it gets harder to understand and accept,” Low said.
His deployment in Iraq saw major activity. From being shot at to dealing with improvised explosive devices, Low was constantly vigilant. The mental wear takes its toll, and it can have lasting effects. Low felt those effects when his military career ended.
Low participated in a study at the University of Wisconsin, where he wound up learning about himself.
“That whole process took probably two years of doing yoga, meditation and breathing, studying post traumatic stress. It probably took most of those two years to realize I had post traumatic stress.”
Post traumatic stress is something many veterans have, but often have a hard time speaking out about or seeking help. Low recalled sitting in a waiting room during processing with soldiers who had lost a foot and suffered shrapnel wounds.
“There was no way that I was going to speak up [about post traumatic stress],” Low said. “First, I didn’t know. Second, I wouldn’t have voiced my opinion that mentally something isn’t right. Because when you’re in the context of it, people that have truly been injured that way, it’s hard to step forward and say something mentally isn’t there.”
But as time went on Low learned something he hopes other veterans can.
“If you’re suffering or you think you’re suffering, go talk to someone. Even if it’s just to talk to someone to communicate the way you see the world, go talk to professionals and let them have a chance to diagnose and figure out what or how to treat if you need a treatment. Don’t try to self-diagnose, it’s not worth it.”
Post traumatic stress was not the only challenge to returning home. Low said he had to adjust to regular life, an eight hour work day and then going home was foreign to him. He took time to transition to being excited about things, about when to be reacting to stress.
“I guess that’s been the experience of transitioning, the transition never stops.”
Having been four years removed from his college education meant he had a little difficulty finding work. But, his resume came across eyes that had similar experiences to Low and soon he found himself working in supplier quality. Now he uses those leadership skills he picked up in the military as he works for a manufacturing company.
“The ability to handle stress, the ability to survive and lead, those are the things I walked away from the military with.”
Low’s abilities to handle stress and lead people have helped him find a constant hometown, unlike his childhood. Low has lived in Lake Mills since 2007.
“This is home,” Low said. “The longest [home] I’ve had in my life and it’s pretty nice, I’m liking it.”
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