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Cavalry, family honor LJ soldier enjoying R&R
Published November 2, 2009
LAKE JACKSON — Army Private Second Class Keith “Bear” Miller thought he was riding with the Brazoria County Cavalry on a quest to welcome home a man named Josh Owens, but when the group pulled up outside his mother’s home in Lake Jackson, he learned otherwise.
Though there might be a soldier named Josh Owens, no one in the Brazoria County Cavalry actually knows of him. The name was part of a ruse to bring Miller along on the ride for his surprise welcome home, said his mother, Roni Loring.
Miller, 22, came home Oct. 23 after six months in Afghanistan for a little rest and relaxation before he finishes out his year-long tour. He has spent that time hanging out with his brother, visiting family, eating out at restaurants and tying his 13-year-old sister to a tree.
“I’ve missed him messing with me all the time,” his little sister, Veronica Lavigne, said with a smile.
Apparently, Miller tied her to a tree in the family’s front yard after learning she was talking to boys, but she soon escaped the rope and ran from him, she said.
Tormenting his younger sister is just one of the things Miller misses when he is away from home, he said.
“I miss a lot of things, even just a ride down the road to the gas station,” he said.
Miller is on his second tour to Afghanistan since he enlisted in 2006 at 18 years old, he said. There, he serves as a combat engineer, providing route clearance and personal security.
While he’s gone, his mother doesn’t watch the news and thinks about him constantly. She said as soon as she saw him again, she felt whole, she said.
“When he’s gone there’s a piece of me that’s missing and nothing can fill that void,” Loring said. “Now that he’s back, it’s like there’s a peace and a calm in my heart. I’m full again.”
Miller leaves Sunday for the second half of his tour then will go back to his duty post in Fort Knox, Ken., he said.
Erin McKeon is a reporter for The Facts. Contact her at 979-237-0152.
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