| Photos: Don Eberly |
Don Eberly, left, slipped home from Baghdad to attend his daughter Caroline's graduation
at Hempfield High School June 6. Beside him, from left, are his wife, Sheryl, daughters Caroline and Margaret, and son Preston. |
 East Hempfield resident Don Eberly, wearing a helmet, stands
with members of a recognized youth center in Baghdad. Eberly is one of 24 senior American officials in Iraq. |
Rebuilding Iraq
Eberly's family in E. Hempfield patiently waits for his return
Believes he can wrap up work in Iraq by mid-August
Fourth of Four Parts
BY JUSTIN QUINN
Editors Note: Don Eberly, an East Hempfield resident, has lived in Baghdad since March as part of a team sent there to rebuild the country. Eberly recently talked about his experiences during a lengthy telephone interview from a United States military compound.
From them moment he landed in Baghdad, Don Eberly knew that his time there would be limited.
"Our job is to work our way out of a job and to move as quickly as we can into a transition," said Eberly, senior advisor to the Iraqi Ministry of Youth and Sport. "For us to complete our mission here, we have to complete the 'de-Baathification,' completet the reorganization of government programs and position new Iraqi people into government - people who have the necessary qualifications and have no part of the corrupt past."
The Coalition Provisional Authority, the international group charged with rebuilding the nation, is beginning to share power with the Iraqi government now that the ministry replacements have been appointed. Still ahead are the drafting of a constitution and democratic elections.
Eberly, an international policy coordinator working for the Bush Administration, said the return of the reins of government to the Iraqi people will happen soon. Iraqi government ministries are being rebuilt around "good competent people," he said.
"At different ministries, it will happen at different times," Eberly said. "The very last to be transferred likely will be the security departments. Those transferred early probably will be the education, higher education and the youth and sport ministries. My objective is to make sure we're ready when that time comes."
Eberly has given himself a mid-August deadline.
"I think that's entirely realistic," he said. "We've actually been dressing up and have become genuine bureaucrats. I spend most of my evenings now filing reports and doing typical government operations. We weren't sent here as combat troops, even though we faced combat conditions when we arrived."
Almost every night, Eberly said, gunfire could be heard in the distance. Sometimes it's closer, sometimes it's farther away. Though it has tapered off in recent weeks, Eberly said it still adds an element of urgency to the mission of restructuring Iraq's government.
"The place is just drowning in guns," he said. "And you never know what it's about. Most of the people I work with here have been very close to that. I have been close to it, too."
Most of the world's attention, Eberly said, has been focused on the Iraqi cities devastated by war and 10 years of sanctions.
"There are some very positive things happening here right now, and you don't hear much about that," he said. "While many services haven't been restored in all cases, it's not for lack of effort. It's largely because of the previous regime's neglect. But education is being improved, and a lot of the horrible education policies implemented by Saddam Hussein have been replaced."
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Eberly has guaranteed his wife and children that he will return to the United States in August. The founder of the National Fatherhood Initiative said he is eager to see his family again.
"It would be impossible for me to be here to do this if my family was not completely united behind it," Eberly said. "Any number of problems could have caused me to return home if it wasn't for such a wonderful family and such really responsible kids. This isn't the type of thing you do every year, and they know that and support it. It's the type of thing you do once in a lifetime, if that."
Waiting for him are his wife, Sheryl, son Preston, 19, and daughters Caroline, 18 and Margaret, 13. All say they miss him but are proud of the work he's doing.
"It hasn't been easy on any of us," Preston said. "But I'm proud of the fact that my dad is able to help history take shape and be a part of it. It's good that things are going smoothly right now, but we're obviously ready to get him back."
Preston, who attends James Madison University in Virginia, said he and his father correspond via e-mail and, less frequently, telephone.
“We have a pretty strong connection, and I feel this trip overseas has helped improve that," Preston said. "It takes a certain kind of person to complete the tasks over there that he has been given."
Margaret, who attends Kraybill Mennonite School in Mount Joy, said she gets an e-mail from her father every day and gets to talk to him one the phone about once a week.
"It's kind of amazing when I think about what he's doing," she said. "It's kind of sad, too, though, because I miss him. When he comes back, I think our family will be more united because we all miss him so much."
Last month, Eberly returned home for a few days to watch his older daughter graduate from high school.
Caroline, a member of Hempfield High School Class of 2003, plans to attend the university of Virginia in the fall.
"My initial reaction was that I was pretty shocked," she said when asked about her father's decision to go to Iraq. "He was heading into a pretty turmoiled area, but I was also excited for him."
Caroline said she mostly misses her father's day-to-day involvement in her life.
"I knew he would be unable to attend those really important events, like my graduation and dance theater," Caroline said. "It was a really good surprise when I found out he was flying home for my graduation."
Mrs. Eberly, a writer who speaks on the topics of manners, said her husband's extended stay in Iraq has given their children the chance to rise to the occassion.
“The kids have been wonderful," she said. "I've been so proud of them. They've had such a positive attitude."
At first, she said she was worried for her husband's safety.
“It helped a lot when I first heard his voice," she said. "He had been traveling for two or three days, and when he called that first time, I felt tremendous relief."
The coule is able to communicate on an almost daily basis, she said.
“He's eight hours ahead of us," Mrs. Eberly said. "I make sure to e-mail him before I go to bed so he has an e-mail when he wakes up. He e-mails me before he goes to bed so I have an e-mail when I wake up. It's kind of a nice way to start out the day for both of us."
His brief visit last month rejuvenated the family, she said.
“That's an important part of how our family has coped with the separation," Mrs. Eberly said. "He was here for that important event in our family's life. That gave us all a second wind. We didn't think he was going to be home, and the fact that he was meant everything to Caroline."
He even participated in the party preparations, Mrs. Eberly said.
"The Saturday before the party, he was outside mulching in the rain because it needed to be done," she said. "He was doing the things dads do best."
Eberly recognizes the indirect role his family has played in the rebuilding of Iraq.
"if I had gotten reports of serious problems at home, it would have been horribly difficult to get the job done here," Eberly said. "I've just been a very lucky man as far as my family is concerned."
The time differential has made things difficult for the family.
"It's weird being on opposite sides of the Earth," he said. "We communicate at different times of the day, but we make it work."
After his departure from Baghdad and his return home, Eberly said he is unsure if he will continue to do international work. For now, though, he said he is focused on completing the mission.
"we are under firm instructions to stand up these ministries and be prepared to hand them off to qualified Iraqi counterparts," he said. "Within four to six weeks, our positions will be handed over to senior Iraqi officials until a permanent government is developed.
On to the postscript of this series >>>
"Our job is to work our way out of a job and to move as quickly as we can into a transition," said Eberly, senior advisor to the Iraqi Ministry of Youth and Sport. "For us to complete our mission here, we have to complete the 'de-Baathification,' completet the reorganization of government programs and position new Iraqi people into government - people who have the necessary qualifications and have no part of the corrupt past."
The Coalition Provisional Authority, the international group charged with rebuilding the nation, is beginning to share power with the Iraqi government now that the ministry replacements have been appointed. Still ahead are the drafting of a constitution and democratic elections.
Eberly, an international policy coordinator working for the Bush Administration, said the return of the reins of government to the Iraqi people will happen soon. Iraqi government ministries are being rebuilt around "good competent people," he said.
"At different ministries, it will happen at different times," Eberly said. "The very last to be transferred likely will be the security departments. Those transferred early probably will be the education, higher education and the youth and sport ministries. My objective is to make sure we're ready when that time comes."
Eberly has given himself a mid-August deadline.
"I think that's entirely realistic," he said. "We've actually been dressing up and have become genuine bureaucrats. I spend most of my evenings now filing reports and doing typical government operations. We weren't sent here as combat troops, even though we faced combat conditions when we arrived."
Almost every night, Eberly said, gunfire could be heard in the distance. Sometimes it's closer, sometimes it's farther away. Though it has tapered off in recent weeks, Eberly said it still adds an element of urgency to the mission of restructuring Iraq's government.
"The place is just drowning in guns," he said. "And you never know what it's about. Most of the people I work with here have been very close to that. I have been close to it, too."
Most of the world's attention, Eberly said, has been focused on the Iraqi cities devastated by war and 10 years of sanctions.
"There are some very positive things happening here right now, and you don't hear much about that," he said. "While many services haven't been restored in all cases, it's not for lack of effort. It's largely because of the previous regime's neglect. But education is being improved, and a lot of the horrible education policies implemented by Saddam Hussein have been replaced."
Eberly has guaranteed his wife and children that he will return to the United States in August. The founder of the National Fatherhood Initiative said he is eager to see his family again.
"It would be impossible for me to be here to do this if my family was not completely united behind it," Eberly said. "Any number of problems could have caused me to return home if it wasn't for such a wonderful family and such really responsible kids. This isn't the type of thing you do every year, and they know that and support it. It's the type of thing you do once in a lifetime, if that."
Waiting for him are his wife, Sheryl, son Preston, 19, and daughters Caroline, 18 and Margaret, 13. All say they miss him but are proud of the work he's doing.
"It hasn't been easy on any of us," Preston said. "But I'm proud of the fact that my dad is able to help history take shape and be a part of it. It's good that things are going smoothly right now, but we're obviously ready to get him back."
Preston, who attends James Madison University in Virginia, said he and his father correspond via e-mail and, less frequently, telephone.
“We have a pretty strong connection, and I feel this trip overseas has helped improve that," Preston said. "It takes a certain kind of person to complete the tasks over there that he has been given."
Margaret, who attends Kraybill Mennonite School in Mount Joy, said she gets an e-mail from her father every day and gets to talk to him one the phone about once a week.
"It's kind of amazing when I think about what he's doing," she said. "It's kind of sad, too, though, because I miss him. When he comes back, I think our family will be more united because we all miss him so much."
Last month, Eberly returned home for a few days to watch his older daughter graduate from high school.
Caroline, a member of Hempfield High School Class of 2003, plans to attend the university of Virginia in the fall.
"My initial reaction was that I was pretty shocked," she said when asked about her father's decision to go to Iraq. "He was heading into a pretty turmoiled area, but I was also excited for him."
Caroline said she mostly misses her father's day-to-day involvement in her life.
"I knew he would be unable to attend those really important events, like my graduation and dance theater," Caroline said. "It was a really good surprise when I found out he was flying home for my graduation."
Mrs. Eberly, a writer who speaks on the topics of manners, said her husband's extended stay in Iraq has given their children the chance to rise to the occassion.
“The kids have been wonderful," she said. "I've been so proud of them. They've had such a positive attitude."
At first, she said she was worried for her husband's safety.
“It helped a lot when I first heard his voice," she said. "He had been traveling for two or three days, and when he called that first time, I felt tremendous relief."
The coule is able to communicate on an almost daily basis, she said.
“He's eight hours ahead of us," Mrs. Eberly said. "I make sure to e-mail him before I go to bed so he has an e-mail when he wakes up. He e-mails me before he goes to bed so I have an e-mail when I wake up. It's kind of a nice way to start out the day for both of us."
His brief visit last month rejuvenated the family, she said.
“That's an important part of how our family has coped with the separation," Mrs. Eberly said. "He was here for that important event in our family's life. That gave us all a second wind. We didn't think he was going to be home, and the fact that he was meant everything to Caroline."
He even participated in the party preparations, Mrs. Eberly said.
"The Saturday before the party, he was outside mulching in the rain because it needed to be done," she said. "He was doing the things dads do best."
Eberly recognizes the indirect role his family has played in the rebuilding of Iraq.
"if I had gotten reports of serious problems at home, it would have been horribly difficult to get the job done here," Eberly said. "I've just been a very lucky man as far as my family is concerned."
The time differential has made things difficult for the family.
"It's weird being on opposite sides of the Earth," he said. "We communicate at different times of the day, but we make it work."
After his departure from Baghdad and his return home, Eberly said he is unsure if he will continue to do international work. For now, though, he said he is focused on completing the mission.
"we are under firm instructions to stand up these ministries and be prepared to hand them off to qualified Iraqi counterparts," he said. "Within four to six weeks, our positions will be handed over to senior Iraqi officials until a permanent government is developed.
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