His Warrior Story: Brian Clark | A Series with the Warrior Collections

My hometown is Council Bluffs, Iowa.  I have family that has served in the Military to include my Great Grandfather, Grandfathers, and Uncle.  A teacher in high school encouraged me to join the Iowa National Guard when I was 17 years old.  However, my parents wanted me to focus on my education.  September 11^th happened when I was 21 and attending the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa.  This rekindled a desire to join the Army.    

I finished my degree and worked as a Substitute Teacher for a year before enlisting into the Army Reserves.  I was deployed as soon as I returned from training.  I deployed to Iraq from 2004-2005 with the 308^th Quartermaster Company, supporting the 1^st Cavalry and 10^th Mountain Divisions.  I kept a journal during this time and published it.  My journal is called By My Side by SGT Brian M. Clark and can be found on Amazon.  It was not written with the intention of being published and is very raw and unedited. 

I returned from Iraq and spent some time as a Firefighter/EMT before joining the Iowa National Guard.  I joined the Iowa National Guard to be in the Infantry and became part of the 34^th Infantry Division “Red Bull”, which has a rich history.  While I was going through Officer Candidate School and working full time for the Guard, I found out about the Interservice Physician Assistant Program.

I was fortunate to be selected for the program, shortly after finishing my Infantry Officer Course at Fort Benning, Georgia.  I was already scheduled to go on deployment to Afghanistan, so delayed my enrollment until after deployment.  I served as a Platoon Leader for the 1-168 Infantry Battalion in Afghanistan from 2010-2011. 

I now work at the University of Iowa in Urgent Care and am the Battalion Physician Assistant for the 1-194 Field Artillery Battalion.  We are part of the 34^th Infantry Division and will be deploying soon. 

None of this would be possible if it were not for the love and support of my parents, family, friends, coworkers, mentors along the way, and God.  I have three wonderful children.  My daughter, Baylee, is 20 and working as a Paraeducator for children with special needs.  My son, Brandon, is 19 and studying Mechanical Engineering at the University of Iowa.  He also has an internship at John Deere.  My son, Aiden, is 11 and is very creative.  He currently likes making videos on Tik Tok.  A few outstanding Mentors I have had along the way include Major General Timothy Orr, Lieutenant Colonel Amy Price, Lieutenant Colonel Philip Turner, Lieutenant Colonel Eric Wieland, and Sergeant First Class Ty Buras. 

I am also inspired by the strength and courage of Taya Kyle. 

All these people inspire me to be a better Leader for my amazing Medics.  I feel that the best life that one can have is in serving others.  I hope to someday serve our Country in the next generation of space exploration, as an Astronaut for NASA. 

From my family to yours, have a blessed day. 

CPT Brian Clark