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Families Patiently Wait for Troops Still in Iraq

Of the 3,200 U.S. troops killed since the war began, more than 150 were stationed at Fort Bragg. Families say the four years of warfare have been tough, but they're surviving.

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FORT BRAGG, N.C. — One look at 12-year-old Sean and 8-year-old Aaron shows their happiness. Their father just returned home safely from Iraq.

“He said that this summer, since he was gone for almost two years, he'd have something real big for us,” Sean said.

“He went to Iraq, he was gone for a year, then he came back for six months, then he went back again,” said the boys’ mother, Pamela Brocato. “And so, I think it's pretty stressful on them because they don't see him a lot.”

Of the 3,200 U.S. troops killed since the war began, more than 150 were stationed at Fort Bragg. Worrying and waiting is the same scenario for a lot of military families.

Now four years after the war began, troops are still there and the war is still ongoing. But for those who've been there, they say it's not about how long the job takes, it how you get the job done.

“Four years, 50 years, it's a job to be done,” said Capt. Mike Sturdivant, who was in Iraq for a year.

When 1-year-old Grant was born, Sturdivant was overseas.

“It's going be tough, but it would be tougher if we did nothing,” he said.

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