Three South Shore families with loved ones serving in the Massachusetts National Guard agreed to let Patriot Ledger readers follow their lives at home while those loved ones serve in Iraq. This is part of an occasional series on those families as they live, cope, love and wait.

Long wait
almost over

Hours alternately fly and drag for wife
of guardsman as tour of duty nears end

GARY HIGGINS/The Patriot Ledger

Solveig Sheehan of Weymouth holds a wedding photo of herself and her husband, Richard. 1st Sgt. Richard Sheehan is expected home from his tour of duty in Iraq by early May.

STORY BY KAREN GOULART
THE PATRIOT LEDGER

WEYMOUTH

When 1st Sgt. Richard Sheehan returns home from Iraq, chances are he won’t be too surprised at all the renovations and new furniture. Certainly he’ll be well acquainted with the new tile in the kitchen - he insisted on installing it when he was home on leave in January.

But he’s also already familiar with some of the changes made since he returned to Baghdad. His wife, Solveig, has been documenting them in photographs and e-mailing them overseas.

“He wants to see pictures from every angle,” Solveig said “He’s very excited.”

A plumber should be stopping by in the next day or two to install new faucets. Richard is expecting pictures of those, too.

“I said, ‘Are you serious?’ and he said, ‘Yes!’” Solveig said with a laugh. “It’s a way for him to stay in touch.”

But actually running those faucets, preparing a meal on shiny new countertops and snuggling with Solveig on a plush new couch will soon be more than wishful thinking from the other side of the world.

In a matter of weeks, Richard should be home for good.

A date is not certain, but Delta Company, 1st Battalion of the 181st Infantry Regiment of the Massachusetts National Guard should be stateside at the end of this month or early May.

Depending on the moment, time is alternately dragging and flying by for Solveig.

The hours that zip past, she said, are the ones spent readying for Richard and his company’s arrival. As leader of the company’s family readiness group, in addition to organizing family meetings she has lately been entrenched in planning fundraisers.

There will be a walk this Saturday, and the group has also compiled a cookbook to raise money for a suitably big welcome home party.

AMELIA KUNHARDT/The Patriot Ledger

“I’m glad my husband is coming home,” says Solveig Sheehan, who’s keeping busy preparing for the return of her husband and his company.

Delta Company includes more than 200 soldiers from towns all over New England, including Abington, Hanover, Quincy and Weymouth.

“I’d rather do bigger things than a lot of little things,” Solveig said. “We have a lot of people spread out everywhere, so I’d rather do fewer, bigger events.”

The party will take place during the summer.

“It’s not going to be the same day they get home,” Solveig said. “Believe me, you just wanna take your soldier and go home.”

That’s precisely what she did when Richard returned in January for a two-week visit.

“It was awesome, but it went by too fast - too, too fast,” she said.

Through time relaxing together, working on the house and visiting family she tried not to count the dwindling days.

“It’s awful, it was a good thing knowing he was going to be home again in two months, but saying goodbye again is absolutely the toughest thing,” she said.

The next time family readiness group members see each other will most likely be when they come together to greet the returning soldiers.

In the course of their 12-year-relationship, Richard has been called to active duty three times including his Iraq tour. So, Solveig has some idea of what to expect.

“This is when it gets nerve wracking,” she said with a laugh.

Now is the time, she said, when rumors usually start to fly about when - exactly - the soldiers will be home. Luckily, so far, she said, that hasn’t happened.

As soon as the military can offer the closest thing to a date-certain, Solveig will activate the readiness group’s phone chain. Families likely will get information from their soldiers. But, she said, the group wants to provide as much solid information as soon as possible so families can plan to take off from work or school. Experience has taught her that waiting for solider’s arrival can be an all-day affair.

Still, experience and keeping busy doesn’t always make the wait easier. Richard is technically a member of 1st Battalion’s Charlie Company, but agreed to fill a spot in Delta Company last May. With a bit of wistful lament, she notes Charlie Company returned two weeks ago.

But it’s a small price for the pride they both feel in his service, and she’ll take the two additional weeks.

“Some soldiers (in Delta Company) decided to stay another nine months. It’s their choice, they all love what they do,” Solveig said, then smiled. “But I’m glad my husband is coming home.”

Karen Goulart may be reached at kgoulart@ledger.com.