EDITOR’S NOTE: THIS COMMENTARY FROM DRAPER CITY COUNCILMAN MIKE GREEN IS PART OF UTAH POLITICAL UNDERGROUND’S OPINION SERIES REFLECTING ON 9/11’s 20th ANNIVERSARY.

I joined the U.S. Army on July 6, 2001. I wanted to serve and move forward with life. I reckoned wearing the uniform would help me obtain skills and pay for college. At the time I was a junior in High School and was entering the military’s education delay, that way I could go to basic training right after graduation and then serve an LDS mission.  

Well, like any military plan, it changes on “first contact” and as always, the adversary or enemy has a “say” in any real fight.  September 11, 2001 rolls around and I wake up to head to West Jordan High with my mom saying that two planes have hit the World Trade Center.  I went to class and in shock watched the news in every class that day.  At football practice that evening, I distinctly recall not seeing a plane in the sky and having a weighty feeling of anger mixed with anxiety toward the future. 

In that moment, I knew that my life was never going to be the same.

Fast forward 24 months later, I completed Basic Combat Training, US Army Intelligence School, and US Army Airborne School.  I was a brand new Private First Class Paratrooper assigned to Support Company 1St Battalion 19th Special Forces Group (Airborne) “The Green Berets” and was sent to Afghanistan to support the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force intelligence efforts. A lot of Army jargon for being with “cool guys,” “chasing bad guys.”  

I spent 9 months doing everything in my power to find, know, and never lose track of Al Qaida, Taliban, Hezbi Islamic, and all sorts of extremists and foreign intelligence operatives running around Afghanistan.  

I was fortunate enough to be moved forward and serve with a Special Forces Company in the heart of the Kunar Province.  I did everything the U.S. Army asked of me, sacrificed with my brothers and sisters, and honorably came home.   I have escorted caskets covered in the flag, I have friends resting in Arlington, I have friends with valor medals like the DSC and Silver Star.  I am not a hero, but I know them and stood with them.  

After all of that, what does 9/11 mean to me. It is the moment in my life where I knew my purpose. I knew my role was to always seek freedom, justice, and fight for liberty.   These are not mere words but concepts that embody our way of life.  I realized that I could not keep fighting forever, but that I would one day become an old man.

My path somewhat changed in college, I realized that oath I took referred to a sacred document, the Constitution of the United States.  This document enshrines principles that create prosperity for our society and individuals.  I dedicated the next 8 years to the study and application thereof, eventually becoming an attorney.  This path has led me to fight, advocate, and protect daily the application of many of these principles. 

9/11 was a day where I was angered, but I answered the call.  It gave me a moment to reflect and define my core values and follow the path fighting on the battlefield, in the court room, and today as a city councilman in city hall.   I don’t feel as much anger today, I am proud of my service.  But I was hoping for a better outcome there.  I was hoping that one day I could walk through Kunar with grandkids safely and say I helped change this.  I won’t get that.  That has been hard to swallow.  

However, when America called, I was there with my talents and gave her my all.  I don’t think I am done, and I know she will need more of me in the future. Again, how that turns out is not in my control, but I will be there again.