Players See Coach Serving In Afghanistan

November 12, 2010 /

KIDK – Idaho

SHELLEY – Football players often talk about going to war. You’re about to meet a coach who really did.

That applause is for Dwight Richins, the Shelley Football Coach who is serving with the Army in Afghanistan. As a special Veterans Day celebration, Lieutenant Colonel Richins was hooked up for a live feed to talk with the Shelley student body about his time at a forward operating base at 1:00 a.m. far far away in a war zone.

“I’m currently in FOB Lagman in southeast Afghanistan approximately 10,000 miles from Shelley, Idaho,” Richins said.

Richins got a chance to talk with individual students, and to present a flag to the student body, a flag that flew over his base September 11 of this year. Through the Internet, Richins got to meet veterans who had come to Shelley to pay their respects, and high school kids who had just signed up. As gunfire sounded outside his tent and just after he was sending patrols out into the mountains, Richins shared what Veterans Day means to him.

“My dad was a veteran. My grandfather was a veteran. I have very special friends who are veterans. My son is a veteran and I serve with many veterans here. All the corp is a veteran. These people sacrifice very very much for all that we have. Some of them paid dearly with their lives,” said Richins.

“All his talks of war with us on Friday nights that we got to get our battle buddies around us. It’s good to see him and that he’s doing well. We appreciate all that he’s doing,” said Clarke Huntsman, a Shelley lineman.

By the way, coach or Lt. Colonel Richins talked with his football team later about their state playoff game this Saturday with Bishop Kelly.