LIBERTY — Capt. Shawn Miller led more than 200 men into battle in Iraq, oversaw weapons and equipment worth in excess of $30 million and still managed to make his mother worry back home in Liberty.
“It is safe to say that neither Fred nor I slept very much during that time,” Debbie Miller said of she and her husband.
Capt. Miller was the guest speaker during the Veterans Day program sponsored by American Legion Post No. 76 on Friday morning at the Amite County Courthouse.
Miller was commissioned as an Army Field Artillery Officer in May 1997. He served with the First Armored Division in Baghdad from May 2003 to July 2004. He served as the Task Force Fire Support Officer for the First Battalion, 35th Armored Division and then as Commander of Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, Fourth Battalion, 27th Field Artillery.
Miller said his accomplishments included planning and issuing more than 400 operations orders and briefings, developing a patrol and defense program to protect a warehouse full of food providing security for the Baghdad Central Train Station.
“It was to give the new Iraqi government the ability to stand up and to operate in the face of an insurgency,” he said of his work in Iraq. “It was extremely difficult and extremely rewarding. It’s kind of the hardest job I had and the most fulfilling.
“The decisions that I would make and sometimes beyond my control could potentially result in loss of lives and, quite frankly, did result in loss of lives.”
Miller said the support soldiers receive from loved ones back home cannot be underestimated.
“It certainly would not have been possible for me to be deployed and do the things I did,” he said. “It’s all families of those who deploy who have a much harder job than we do.
“Back here is a whole complicated life that’s much more difficult.”
Miller acknowledged people like his brother, Sgt. Joseph Miller, who served with the Second Infantry Division in Mosul, Iraq, for answering the call to serve their country.
Miller’s awards include the Bronze Star, Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Kosovo Campaign Medal, Global War of Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, NATO Medal and the German Army’s Gold Military Service Achievement Badge.
“I am honored that all my children are here today, including my daughter, Heidi,” Debbie Miller said. “Heidi remained home during the boys’ combat tours, keeping the home fires burning and helping us to stay sane.”
Miller lives in Summit, Mo., with his wife Aubrey and children Leo and Peter. He now serves as a section chief at the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services’ National Benefits Center, which is part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
