Whatever it takes to bring her husband, Phillip Hauser, home to his family is fine with her.

"We need to finish what we started so he doesn't have to go back," Kelly Hauser, 29, said Monday.

Phillip Hauser, 33, is on his eighth overseas tour since he joined the U.S. Air Force in 1995, just a year after graduating from Salina Central High School.

The Associated Press photographed Air Force Technical Sgt. Phillip Hauser as he was on patrol Monday in the town of Maidan Shar, Warkak province in Afghanistan.

In Salina on Monday, Hauser's mother, Sheryl Brown, and stepmother, Sharon Hauser, both of Salina, were putting together and mailing packages to Phillip and his unit.

"I miss him and I want him home," said Brown, who is a Title I reading teacher at Cottonwood Elementary School.

Brown would not comment on President Barack Obama's plan to send up to 35,000 more troops to Afghanistan and make plans to end the war. The president is expected to make those announcements public tonight.

"That's a good idea. The more help you send, the better it is," said Jerry Brown, Sheryl's husband.

Sharon Hauser said the plan is "like pouring sand down a rat hole."

"I honestly don't think it's going to make that much difference," she said, while filling a package for her stepson.

"Look what we've done. We sent all the troops to Iraq and that's semi under control, and now there's more going to Afghanistan," Sharon Hauser said. "There will be something that breaks up somewhere else that we think we have to go to the rescue for."

Asked if she thinks an influx of troops will finish the job in Afghanistan, Kelly Hauser said, "I don't know."

It's difficult being the head of a splintered family, she said. In her seven-plus years of marriage to Phillip, he's been gone more than three years. The last deployment began Sept. 20 and will last until April.

"He's here maybe six months, then he's gone for eight or nine," she said.

Kelly and their 5-year-old son, Michael, live in south-central Kansas. Phillip is stationed out of McConnell Air Force Base, near Wichita, and is part of an explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) unit.

A spirited tyke, Michael is no longer buying explanations that his "papa" is at work.

"Now we have questions. 'Where is he working? Why are there dead guys there? Did Papa's airplane land?' It's hard," Kelly Hauser said.

The holidays are the most difficult, she said. She's a native of Buffalo, N.Y., and is unwilling to travel there in the winter. It gets lonely when she misses her side of the family, she said.

Kelly, a full-time student at a college in Wichita, (personal information is kept vague for security reasons), stays busy pursuing a secondary education degree.

They speak to Phillip once or twice a week on the telephone, she said. Calls that last 15 minutes are consumed with updates from home.

"Other times, we try to figure out how to fix the house, stuff like that," Kelly Hauser said. "There are definitely man things, and until you've done them, you don't know what to do."

A former Air Force senior airman, Kelly Hauser notices when Phillip isn't telling the "whole truth" about his duty.

"I can tell when he's kind of glossing over things and not being specific," she said. "But I don't want to know. I was in the military, so I know more than the wives who have always been civilians."

Kelly Hauser won't let herself worry and is determined to stay tough for her husband while he's gone.

"I have the mentality that when he goes, he's not coming back, and then it's a bonus when he does," Kelly Hauser said. "Being an EOD wife isn't for the faint-hearted. You have to be able to suck it up and push forward."

n Reporter Tim Unruh can be reached at 822-1419 or by e-mail at tunruh@salina.com.

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Navy Veteran says....
We all know the cowards who started this were of Saudi heritage but they were based and trained in Afganistan. The Afgans allowed these Taliban cells to exist. We went to the source not to where they were born. Wars can be quick if we anniliate the entire country. That is not the objective here because the country is not the problem. It is a group that is occupying space there. The civillian world does not always know the complexity of the situation or the objective. Our military leaders are not war mongers. We did stuff in the 80's that no one knew about to keep the US safe. With the media and technology everyone is a critic. Some of us have given years of our lives (and some with their life) protecting this country. I pray for a safe tour Phil.
12/2/2009

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says....
When you sign up to be a soldier, you have signed up to be a soldier. Thank god for men like this who protect our freedoms. Also, you cant compare ww1 or ww2 to this as its not the same kind of fight.
12/2/2009

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Ms Army says....
As someone who served in the military, It never surprises me... the amount of negative comments people make. Regardless, Great job for your husband, you and your son. May God bless you all!
12/2/2009

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jake says....
um...pretty sure "concerned" is probably a family member of phil's.and the people who flew the planes into the wtc were from saudi arabia, ps.Phil, we're proud of you and we want you to come home and STAY.
12/1/2009

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Chris Hauser says....
This is going to cost my brother some cases of beer to his EOD shop!
12/1/2009

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EOD Vet says....
I love you big D! p.s. your vest looks heavy :)
12/1/2009

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concerned ex military says....
Why 8 tours? Is there bonus money involved? Or are we that short of people in the field?
12/1/2009

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familyofafrend says....
i have meet tech sgt.Hauser a few times. He is frends with some of my family members. He is a true Hero. He wanted to go there to better protect his fellow solders.
And Thank you to all the men and women how portect are counrty and to the police for keeping us safe
12/1/2009

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Four Years to Win or Come Home says....
We won World War I in less than two years. We won World War II in less than four years. Four years should be the maximum amount of time needed to win any war. Time to bring our troops home!
12/1/2009

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Born Genius says....
Afghanistan is a waste of time, money and American lives. Fifteen of the nineteen hijackers were from Saudi Arabia, not Afghanistan and we let Osama bin Laden escape. The best thing to do is to withdraw our troops from the Middle East and invite Osama to accept the Nobel Peace Prize, where we can capture him!
12/1/2009

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AF Buddy says....
Phil, you can be my wingman any time!
12/1/2009

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Thankful says....
I would like an address for him to receive thank you package for Christmas. And one also for his EOD crew and the number of men. Also is there a list of what they can receive. Thank you Phillip for your service and that of your family.
12/1/2009

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Army Mom says....
As a Mother of a soldier who has been deployed 5 times, soon to be # 6, I thank you all for your sacrifices!!
12/1/2009

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Dayna says....
Thank you Phillip, Kelly and Michael... You and all military families sacrifice so much for everyone else.
12/1/2009

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Fellow EOD Brother says....
What a hero! It's brave heroes, such as you Phil, that make me proud to be an American! Thanks to the Salina Journal for telling us stories about these heroes and these heroic families. Kelly and Michael, you also are heroes. Thanks for your sacrifices!
12/1/2009

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EOD Buddy says....
Phil is my hero!
12/1/2009

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Navy Veteran says....
Ditto on what Grateful says - these families sacrifice so much.
Concerned must have a bad memory. What did WE START???? It was started by a group from Afganistan that FLEW SOME PLANES INTO OUR BUILDINGS!! If they had not done this - we would still be the peaceful sleeping giant. Now quit your liberal whining..... UNBELIEVABLE - you disgrace this story on a great American family with your inaccurate comment!
12/1/2009

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Humbled says....
I can't say thank you enough to this soldier and his family, as well as all of the military personnel who give so much for us. I am honored and humbled by your service. Thank you.
12/1/2009

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Kelly's Mom says....
Hands down to my daughter, Kelly, for hanging tough when Philip is gone. I remember worrying about her when she was in S Korea for a year, and that wasn't in the midst of war. She is a very strong woman, and I'm as proud of her as I am of my son in law for fighting for our Freedoms!
12/1/2009

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Grateful says....
Thank you to Kelly and her family, and to all the soliders out there, for their sacrifice of service to our country.
12/1/2009

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Concerned says....
What did we start over there?
12/1/2009

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