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Units: Headquarters Iraqi Air Force, Multi-National Security Transition Command; 51st Command Group
Branch of Service: Air Force
War / Conflict: Iraq War, 2003-2011
"For me, to be a leader, you've got to do the right thing when nobody's looking." (Video interview, Part 1, 19:40).
Strongly influenced by the values imparted by her grandfather, an Irish immigrant, Colonel Deborah Ann Thomas Meserve felt right at home in the Air Force, as the service principles echoed those of her family and upbringing. Her VHP collection focuses on her deployment to Iraq, which she characterizes as “the best job I ever had.” Entering the service in the late 1980s, she spent two decades building the skills she utilized during her deployment, and as she relates in her oral history, every day in Iraq “felt like a final exam” testing her on these skills.
As the American advisor to the Iraqi Air Force's lead engineer, she worked with her Iraqi colleagues to get their helicopters and airplanes in the sky, improving aircraft maintenance capabilities, increasing the number of sorties and enabling their helicopter operations in Mosul. The challenges of life in Iraq stretched beyond the demands of her job. She regularly weathered mortar attacks; the first one she experienced came while she was in the shower, and she had to throw on her flak jacket over her pink polka dot bathrobe. While stationed in Basra, she slept in a “coffin”—a bed with cement reinforcements—to protect against nighttime attacks. Despite the hardships of life in a war zone, she embraced all that her deployment had to offer, particularly the chance to foster connections between Iraqi colleagues and civilians.
One of the highlights of Meserve's time in Iraq was the chance to interact with Iraqi civilians, particularly children. She visited children in the hospital and distributed gifts to kids on the street, and helped throw a Christmas party complete with a visit from Baba Noel (Santa Claus). Meserve also volunteered with the Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts of American programs in Iraqi schools. On one memorable occasion, she took a group of kids on an overnight camping trip to Saddam Hussein's old hunting grounds, during which she introduced them to principles of scouting and leadership as well as how to make a s’more.
Meserve’s work involved close collaboration with her Iraqi counterparts, and she was deeply impressed by the technical capabilities, hard work, resilience, and hospitality of those she encountered during her deployment. She bonded with Iraqi friends over everything from the Iraqi elections to popular American TV shows, and at one point even invited one of her Iraqi colleagues to join her in an Easter egg hunt.
Meserve’s photos indicate the extremes of her deployment, from the precautions she had to take to safeguard against mortar attacks to the camaraderie of life on base. Her commentary in her oral history indicates that she took it all in stride, even relishing the uncomfortable moments, such as wearing 50 pounds of gear while walking outside in 130 degree temperatures and battling sand that would coat her teeth in grit.
