Callen caps 27-year military career

SANDPOINT — Armies, as the saying goes, march on their stomachs.

Recently retired U.S. Army Sgt. James B. Callen can attest to the importance of military forces being well-provisioned, having served as a cook and heavy equipment operator for 27 years.

Callen, whom you may recognize as an overnight stocker at Safeway, said there were perks that came with both of his assigned duties.

Army cooks work closely together and he counts them as among the most reliable coworkers, Callen said. Equipment operators, meanwhile, get to play in the mud.

“You got to play with big machinery,” said Callen, who retired from his military service on Nov. 19.

Callen, 45, enlisted in 1990, during Desert Shield operations in Iraq. He served with the Idaho Army National Guard’s 116th Brigade Engineering Battalion. He went on to serve with the Army Reserve’s 659th Engineer Company in 1998.

Callen went into active service in 2002 with the 2-82 Field Artillery, 1st Calvary Division, and was stationed in Berlin, where he serviced artillery pieces. He was deployed in 2004 for Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Military service is a fairly constant thread that runs through Callen’s lineage. Callen’s grandfathers have served in the American Revolution and as a Union soldier during the Civil War. Uncles fought World War II campaigns, in addition to wars in Korea, Vietnam and the Berlin Crisis.

Callen said he is proud of his service and has no regrets.

“If I could change anything, I would not,” said Callen.

Among his fondest memories are teaming up with fellow soldiers to complete projects.

Although he won’t miss the commutes to and from Fairchild Air Force Base for drills.

Callen plans on using his military retirement to spend more time with his child and the outdoors.

“I can get in some more fishing time,” he said.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.