While many students dread the thought of going to war, one LSU student is looking forward to the chance he will get in a month to serve in the U.S. military.
Rickey Choppin, a construction management senior, is being deployed next week for the war.
Choppin will spend the next month at an unidentified military facility receiving training until he is sent to Kuwait, where he will remain until he is ready for combat in Iraq.
Choppin joined the military to help pay for college and because of his admiration for the military operations.
“I always looked up to the military and thought they had character, good values and morals and always wanted to go through the training. I just decided after high school that I wanted to do it,” Choppin said
Choppin is a member of LSU’s Kappa Sigma fraternity. He hopes to finish his personal matters and school work before leaving so he can focus on his military obligations.
“My job is very dangerous; it’s extremely stressful — there is a lot to know,” Choppin said.
He was originally scheduled to graduate from LSU in December, but that date is on hold until his return. Choppin said this semester he is going to receive incompletes for a couple of classes due to University rules regarding leaving mid-semester.
However, Choppin said he is talking to a few professors about possibly avoiding those incompletes by taking his exams before he is deployed.
Amanda Choppin, Rickey’s cousin and an engineering freshman, said she is happy Rickey is getting to do what he wants but says she is still going to be worried about him.
Amanda knows first-hand what it is like to have a loved one in the war. Her boyfriend is serving in the Third Infantry in Baghdad.
Jeff Choppin, Rickey’s uncle, said he is proud of his nephew.
“You have to feel that it will be an experience that he will carry with him for the rest of his life,” he said.
Upon his arrival in Iraq, Rickey Choppin’s main job will be close air support, or CAS. CAS personnel travel on the ground with army advancements. In the event of encountering enemy forces, CAS members instruct air pilots where enemy targets are located. The pilots then use bombs and missiles to clear the area.
Choppin thinks war is a way to judge how much one has learned through military training.
“It’s like a self-measure test, to see how I fare in combat. It’s the ultimate test for the military,” Choppin said.
Choppin’s unit is known as TACP, or tactical air control parties. The unit does not send entire groups to battle — instead each member is split up into a different army unit with the main purpose to control close air support, Choppin said.
A broken heel stopped earlier deployment for Choppin. He said he had to wait for medical clearance before shipping out. He broke the heel in early August during a rescue scenario.
Like most students, Choppin is looking forward to the upcoming Spring Break. He and a few of his fraternity brothers will spend part of the week in the Destin, Fla., area.
Although Choppin is excited to be entering the war, he is somewhat worried about the risks involved.
“I’m a little bit scared, little bit excited. Nobody’s going to say they’re not scared. If you’re human, you’re going to be a little scared,” Choppin said.