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CAMP GRUBER, Okla. - “I am Specialist Egbeokhaiarhe, Solomon. I came here in 2012 and I didn’t really have anybody here, but ever since I joined the Oklahoma National Guard, they took me in as a family. So I think I found my brothers and sisters here.”
Egbeokhaiarhe is an Oklahoma Army National Guard Soldier with Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 179th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT). The IBCT is conducting pre-mobilization training at Camp Gruber, Oklahoma in preparation for their deployment to Ukraine as part of the Joint Multinational Training Group – Ukraine (JMTG-U).
Egbeokhaiarhe moved to the United States from Nigeria to attend school at Cameron University in Lawton, Oklahoma, where he studies Management Information with a minor in Cyber Security. Ultimately Egbeokhaiarhe would like to be a data analyst.
Shortly after his arrival in Oklahoma, Egbeokhaiarhe decided to join the Oklahoma Army National Guard. In doing so, he found something more than service and adventure; he found brotherhood and family.
Egbeokhaiarhe enjoyed his time in the Oklahoma so much he decided to take advantage of special programs offered by the National Guard to earn his citizenship.
“Ever since I came into this group, I’ve never felt inferior or like someone from another country,” Egbeokhaiarhe said. “They took me in, they made me do everything they do. I say, ‘Really?’ and they say, ‘You’re an American now, so just do it.’ I love it all!”
Becoming a U.S. citizen and deploying to Ukraine aren’t the only big things happening in Egbeokhaiarhe’s life.
“I just got married to the lady I’ve been with since 2013,” he said. “I feel sad because I’m not really there to spend much time with her. No honeymoon; nothing. I promised her, that is my vow for her, I’m coming back. She just needs to hold on to that ring, to the promises we made, and I’ll be back.”
Egbeokhaiarhe met his wife in church where he says she led him to the Lord. When she expressed concerns about the upcoming deployment he told her, “Trust the Army, trust the Brotherhood; they keep to their word.”
Egbeokhaiarhe is a humble man who thinks of others first and foremost. When asked if he had anything to say to his wife and friends, he kept it short and sweet, but showed his pride for his adopted state.
“Right now, she’s praying for me, I can feel it," Egbeokhaiarhe said. "To my lovely wife I want to say, I love you and I’m missing you so bad. To my friends in Oklahoma I want to say, keep doing the good work. The world is proud of you.”
| Date Taken: | 11.17.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 11.21.2016 14:25 |
| Story ID: | 215271 |
| Location: | CAMP GRUBER, OK, US |
| Hometown: | LAWTON, OK, US |
| Web Views: | 120 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Nigerian finds new home in the Oklahoma National Guard, by SSG Eric McDonough, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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