Serving their country
Uncle and niece meet in Iraq

By XAVIER ZARAGOZA
The Daily Dispatch
Published/Last Modified on Friday, April 25, 2008 3:06 PM MDT


Imagine being in Iraq serving your country when you suddenly come across your uncle, who is also serving in the military.


Sgt. William Ballesteros, left, had a chance encounter with his niece SPC Monica Ballesteros in Scania, Iraq.

That’s what happened recently to a Douglas resident now serving in the Middle East.

SPC Monica Ballesteros, 25, was working on a vehicle in Scania, Iraq. The vehicle had a flat tire and was low on oil. Ballesteros was removing the flat tire when she heard someone call her name over and over.

When she turned to see who it was calling her name, she found her uncle, Sgt. William Ballesteros, 53, of the 257th Transportation Company 4th Platoon.

Ballesteros said she couldn’t believe it.

“I ran to him, hugged him and just cried,” she said. “God is out here!”

She spent most of the day with William before they both had to return to their assigned duties.

Ballesteros is from the Delta Troop, 3-73 CAV Combat Support Unit. This is her first tour in Iraq.

William Ballesteros was in Desert Storm in 1990. This is his second tour in Iraq.

Copyright © 2012 Douglas Dispatch

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