Army Specialist back home to East Texas
HENDERSON, TX (KLTV) -
An East Texas soldier is home from Iraq after a year-long tour.
Army Specialist Dedrick Walker was a part of the last groups of US troops to deploy for Iraq back in October 2010.
He's also a part of the last groups to come home from Iraq for good.
Walker says it is good to be home this Christmas--and many more to come.
Military roots run deep in the Guillory family.
It's evident Bishop L.J. Guillory, Dedrick's father, is proud.
The latest edition to the long line of servicemen is his 23-year-old son, Army Specialist Dedrick Walker.
Dedrick is home for Christmas. Home now, for good.
"He is the biggest present that we have for Christmas," says Guillory, "And his brother and I are just happy, just elated to have him here."
Dedrick's father and dozens of others welcomed him home Sunday, after he served a year in Iraq.
Dedrick served as a Preventive Medicine Specialist, helping make the drinking water and living conditions safe for our troops.
He says he helped the Iraqis develop a better quality of life.
His work in Iraq earned him a bronze star.
Dedrick explains that he inspected Iraqi compounds, taught classes, and gave tips to the locals.
Last Christmas morning he was serving overseas. Dedrick says it was then he missed some of the little things, "Just this house, you know, I really missed it. So, I'm not looking for any gifts or anything like that. It's just being around the people I love."
Guillory says, "He is my present from God. My son and I, he is our present from God. That's the biggest present that God could have given me. Santa Claus, St. Nick, all those guys they just don't know. This is the best Christmas I've ever had.
Specialist Walker will attend SFA in the fall, where he will study psychology.
He says he wants to help soldiers cope with mental health issues.
