Nebraska couple juggles military service, family

Published: 2006-03-07

LINCOLN, Neb. (CNS) -- Many military families move often. But when Maj. Terry Flynn joined the U.S. Army 17 years ago, he and his wife, Karen, decided they wanted their two young daughters to have the benefits of family stability, strong community values, the same church and Catholic education with the same classmates and teachers. The Flynns are members of Ss. Peter and Paul Parish in Falls City, a community of about 5,600 in the southeast corner of Nebraska, where Terry Flynn had taught and coached for 11 years before he finished his nursing degree and joined the military. His wife and the couple's daughters, Erin and Erica, remained in Falls City while he became the "geographical bachelor." Since he entered the Army in 1989, his career has taken him to Korea, Texas, all over the central part of the country as an Army recruiter, and now to Iraq. Flynn was the officer in charge of the medical readiness section at Fort Riley, Kan., before he was called to Iraq as part of the 10th Combat Support Hospital. The 10th, which is based at Fort Carson, Colo., is scheduled to return in October 2006.

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