KHOWST PROVINCE, Afghanistan – In today’s world technology has made it possible for soldiers to instantly reach out to loved ones thousands of miles away.

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. John Thompson, a section chief from Headquarter and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 6th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Task Force Duke, used Skype tele-conferencing software to reenlist as his wife watched from her home in the U.S., Dec. 10.

This is the Cleveland native’s third re-enlistment, but the first time his wife had been able to watch. The previous two times he re-enlisted in Iraq.

“It’s actually amazing,” said Jennifer, who was up at 3:30 a.m. to watch the ceremony. “I’ve never been able to see his promotions or re-enlistments. For me to be able to video cam it, I’ll have something to look back on years down the road.”
John said he came up with the idea while watching a scene from Transformers where a soldier says hello to his newly born daughter for the first time over Skype.

“I thought, ‘Hey, why not re-enlist over here and have her watch it,’” John explained.

When John suggested she watch him re-enlist over Skype, Jennifer said she was a little nervous about being on camera where everybody could see her but she couldn’t see everybody else. However the opportunity to be part of something that meant a lot to her husband was too good to pass up.
“I’m proud of my husband and think he’s made an amazing choice,” she said.

Before re-enlisting, John took the time to weigh the pros and cons of another enlistment that would take him to retirement.

“I love what I do and enjoy the Army and teaching soldiers,” John explained. “It’s in my blood. My great-great grandfather fought in World War I and family members have fought in every war since then.”

Connected Media