Wisconsin - Soldier Answers the Call

Proud Family Sgt. First Class Chet Millard’s family poses with the Time magazine cover showing the wounded soldier. From left, Ashley, Lexy, Millard’s wife, Dawn, Gunnar, and Hunter.

Proud Family Sgt. First Class Chet Millard’s family poses with the Time magazine cover showing the wounded soldier. From left, Ashley, Lexy, Millard’s wife, Dawn, Gunnar, and Hunter. (Photo credit: Karla Sullivan)

Sparta, Wisconsin

Hundreds of AFSCME members have been placed on active duty since 2001, many serving in Afghanistan, Iraq and other foreign countries. But only one of them—United States Sgt. First Class Chet Millard—has landed on the cover of Time magazine.

In his civilian life, Millard, 32, is a corrections officer at the Jackson Correctional Institution in Black River Falls and a member of Local 219 (Council 24). Since 2003, Millard has served in both Afghanistan and Iraq as one of approximately 100 Wisconsin National Guard soldiers currently deployed to the area.

In September, Millard, the commander of Wisconsin National Guard’s 951st Engineer Company, led a platoon of soldiers on a mission to disarm roadside bombs in Eastern Afghanistan when an explosion ripped through their vehicle. Millard and his three comrades survived, but he suffered brain trauma and bruises to his back and knees. Even so, he got back on his feet and rejoined his unit once his injuries healed.

His story might have gone unnoticed outside the military and his circle of family and friends but for a photo of Millard, lying on a gurney awaiting a medivac helicopter. The shot was published on the cover of Time’s October 12 issue, which featured a story on the war in Afghanistan.

In a blog about the unit, one reporter noted, “They bear the burdens of the bombs they found, or worse yet, the ones they missed.”

His parents, wife and four kids welcomed his return in November, the end of a 15-month deployment for the soldiers of the 951st.

Council 24 Exec. Dir. Marty Beil reflected on Millard’s heroism, saying, “You see and hear about these kinds of things on the six o’clock news. But when it’s in your family, it sends goose bumps and a new sense of respect and appreciation for what these brave individuals do and the risks they take to protect our country.”