Turner is a 24-year-old E-4 in the U.S. Army’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team and is scheduled to head back to Iraq at the end of this year, where he will once again aid Iraqi citizens, experience many of the Army’s different missions in the country and, of course, spend one day a month bragging to his fellow soldiers about his MOMs (Mothers of Military Servicemen and Women) Club care packages, and “how great” home is.

SPC Daniel Turner (at left)trudges through the Iraqi desert with his fellow soldiers. Photo courtesy Bill and Debbie Turner

Turner returned from his first tour in Iraq last November.
“There is always a bit of nervousness” within his family before he ships out, Turner said, “but they know it’s a good thing, they support me and the war.”
As a broadcast journalist in the Army, Turner is responsible, both in the U.S. and when stationed abroad, to “get the Army’s story out. We film training and soldiers” and broadcast the footage at Fort Hood, Texas, where he’s stationed while in the U.S., he said.
Turner graduated from Bishop Union High School in 2001 and joined the Army in 2004, enlisting for five years. At home in Texas, he works for the Fort’s news broadcast, “Fort Hood On Track,” and works on the publication Iron Horse Report, covering soldierstraining and deployment to Iraq.
Turner will be shipping out in December, where his division will be replacing the 1st Cavalry Division. “We’re going to give them a break,” he said.
He will be stationed in Baghdad, but, he said, it is likely that he will see the entire country, documenting military progress and assisting with “combat propaganda.”
“What we do in Iraq (as broadcast journalists) is let the family know how well the soldiers are trained,” by recording examples of the soldier’s training and keeping those “at home” aware of the status of troops serving abroad.

SPC Daniel Turner, 24, serves as a broadcast journalist in the U.S. Army. He returned from his first tour in Iraq this past November, and is preparing to ship out later this year for his second. Photo courtesy Bill and Debbie Turner

Turner’s duties actually run a wide gamut both in the states and in Iraq.
“Being a broadcaster, you get to experience all the other jobs we’re doing in Iraq” and in the U.S., rather than being tied down to one position, Turner said, noting that he’s patrolled with military police officers, sought out weapons caches via patrol boat on the Euphrates River and extensively worked with the Iraqi people to create better living and working conditions in the war-stricken country.
“I think it’s the best job you can have, because you get to see it all,” he said.
Turner’s last tour in Iraq “was interesting. I got to go all around the country” and work with all kinds of soldiers, serving in many different capacities.
Among Turner’s activities during his first tour in Iraq, he said that he assisted in bringing supplies to Iraqi schools, helping farmers develop an “agricultural community” and helping to build water purification plants for smaller, rural communities throughout the country.
“We were just helping,” he said.
Turner said that most of his experiences working overseas has shown him that the Iraqi people are eager to accept American aid, and are willing to work with Coalition forces. As broadcast journalists, “we get to go out and interact with the Iraqi people, and most of them accept us with open arms.”
In fact, most of the terrorist activity within Iraq comes from foreign fighters, entering Iraq to resist the establishment of a democracy there, Turner said.
In addition to having the opportunity to help support a struggling country, and experiencing a number of Army jobs, one of Turner’s favorite parts of deployment in Iraq is, believe it or not, talking about home.
While in Iraq, the Bishop MOMs Club sends monthly packages of home-baked cookies, cards and letters from local family members, friends and school children, along with some conveniences such as stationary, books and more.
“It’s really motivating, it makes me want to brag about home even more,” Turner said.
He noted that he was awarded even more bragging rights this past Memorial Day weekend. “I brought a few of my buddies home for Mule Days. They loved it. They loved the small town,” Turner said, adding that Fort Hood “is about four times the size of Bishop.”
Turner said that he always welcomes news and letters from home, from old friends and strangers alike. He enjoys reading, watching movies and going to church in his spare time.
Though his plans for life after the Army are unclear at this point, Turner did say that he was considering a career as a youth minister. “I was involved with the youth ministries in Bishop” before joining the military, he said.