Father and son serve side by side

Photo By Sgt. Tracy Ellingsen | Spc. Lylevalentine K. McMackin, right, won't have to call back to the states to talk to his father, Sgt. Frank C. McMackin (left), for Father's Day. 'Big Mack' and 'Little Mack,' as they are known to their platoon, are both assigned to the 257th Transportation Company currently conducting operations in Kuwait and Iraq. "When we come back from a mission, I don't have to call home," said 'Little Mack.' "I can just go talk to my dad." The 257th is an Army Reserve unit from Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas, Nev. and is commanded by Capt. Valeria Anderson.  

CAMP ARIFJAN, KUWAIT

06.10.2008

Story by Sgt. Tracy Ellingsen 

311th Expeditionary Sustainment Command   

By Tracy Ellingsen
311th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary)

CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait -- Spc. Lylevalentine K. McMackin won't have to call back to the United States to talk to his father for Father's Day. He won't even have to drop a card in the mailbox or send off an e-mail. No, this Father's Day McMackin will be able to shoot hoops with his dad, Sgt. Frank C. McMackin, like they do almost every Sunday. Only this year, they'll be playing on a court in Kuwait while deployed supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The McMackins are both assigned to the 257th Transportation Company (Heavy Equipment Transport), based out of Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas and currently conducting operations in Kuwait and Iraq.

"On the surface it seems like it would be a problem having father and son in the same platoon, but I've never had a problem," Sgt. 1st Class Cory L. Comeau, their platoon sergeant. "Which speaks a great volume on their character."

"Big Mack," as he as known to the Soldiers of the 257th, is currently on his second deployment in the Global War on Terrorism. He deployed in 2006 to Iraq where he ran gun trucks for a year. In his civilian job, he works as a truck dispatcher for the Carl's Jr. company in Ontario, Calif.

He lives in Anaheim, Calif. with his wife and with his daughter Chayla. His son, known as "Little Mack," is the last of his three sons to be deployed to the Middle East.

"The others have all been here," said Sgt. McMackin, speaking of his sons Spc. Devinshaw and Sgt. Charles McMackin, both active duty infantrymen. "He is the last one."

The challenges of being homesick and missing family that affect many Soldiers are less prevalent among the McMackins.

"Once in a while we'll hang out, go to the PX, play volleyball, play basketball ...," said Spc. McMackin. "When it's me and my two brothers and my dad at home we play basketball every Sunday."

But along with the benefits of being deployed together, this year is also proving to have some challenges. Unlike family members back home who don't know the day to day operations of their loved ones who are deployed, the McMackins know the dangers and the risks because they are both exposed to them.

"When we come back from a mission, I don't have to call home," he said. "I can just go talk to my dad."

The two are never sent out on convoys together and sometimes end up going days or weeks at a time with no contact.

"I don't ask questions when he's gone," said Sgt. McMackin. "I trust the guys he is with."

Because of their opposite schedules, finding the two on the same base at the same time can be a challenge. But when Big Mack and Little Mack are together, they provide many humorous moments for the company.

When the unit's supply clerk ordered nametapes for the Soldiers of the 257th, all of the "McMackin" name tapes were issued to Big Mack. He thought about keeping them for himself, but eventually gave some to his son.

And just like any family members, the two have been known to fight on occasion.

"It's like father-son banter," said Comeau. "It's not really an argument; it's more like a loud disagreement."

• Date Taken: 06.10.2008
• Date Posted: 06.10.2008 12:26
• Story ID: 20312
• Location: CAMP ARIFJAN, KW