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Local marine preps for third tour

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Michael Homola

LINN TOWNSHIP — The first time, he was scared.

The second time, he was bored.

This time, he's excited.

Marine Sgt. Michael Homola, 24, Linn Township, is preparing for his third military deployment overseas.

During his first two tours, he worked as a jet mechanic in Anbar Province, an overwhelmingly Sunni area in western Iraq and the site of some of the worst fighting during the war.

His third tour will take him to the western Pacific Ocean, where he will work as an imagery analyst.

Homola has been home in the Lake Geneva area since last week.

"It's amazing. I love coming back home," he said.

Homola joined the Marines after graduating from Big Foot High School in 2003.

He first was deployed from August 2004 to February 2005.

"Our base got hit weekly," he said.

Homola recalls working on the flight line when an improvised explosive device detonated nearby. He had to drop his tools, round up his comrades and run for cover.

"It was pretty scary," he said.

He next was deployed from August 2006 to February 2007. Fighting in the area had calmed significantly.

"We only got hit one time," he said.

Homola planned to leave the service after his first two tours and to work in the airline industry. But then he decided he wanted to finish his degree.

So he changed from aircraft mechanics to military intelligence.

"It opens up a lot more opportunities in the real world," he said.

He said he's looking forward to his third tour.

"It's a different place, different job, whole different deployment," he said. "We'll bounce around between the western Pacific countries, and we'll train with the different fighting forces over there. We'll let them learn a little bit about what we do, and we'll learn a little bit about what they do."

Homola and his squadron also will be monitoring the border between North Korea and South Korea.

Greg Homola, a former Marine, said his son's third tour is an opportunity to see the world.

"I had really questioned how smart I was in guiding him to go into this," Greg Homola said. "I told him, 'You're going to have an opportunity to find out what you're made of, and you won't know until you're tested by fire, until you face something you've never faced.'"

His son came out of it a better man, he said, and he's earned the chance to explore.

Homola leaves Tuesday.