For U.S. Army Spc. Kelly Capuano, serving her country also means serving several generations of Kalaheo Momoharas. Capuano, 32, daughter of Meryl Momohara of Kapa‘a and Melvin Momohara of Kalaheo, is “carrying the torch” for her uncles, some of whom
For U.S. Army Spc. Kelly Capuano, serving her country also means serving several generations of Kalaheo Momoharas.
Capuano, 32, daughter of Meryl Momohara of Kapa‘a and Melvin Momohara of Kalaheo, is “carrying the torch” for her uncles, some of whom were wounded in World War II combat as part of the famed 100th and 442nd combat teams, and fighting so her 4-year-old daughter, hopefully, won’t have to, she said.
A fill-in dental technician at the base clinic at Balad, Iraq, Capuano is a “91 Whiskey,” military lingo for a medical technician, and a firefighter in civilian life.
While that means she spends much time in the clinic, that doesn’t necessarily mean she’s out of harm’s way. While she has told her Kalaheo grandparents she works in a “cushy” dental clinic, the truth also is that the clinic has come under mortar attack during her time there, making her fear for her life.
She has also been called on to do tower duty, keeping watch so that her “buddies” can sleep without worry. She takes the tower duty “very seriously,” knows that sometimes it means long hours, and sometimes nothing happens, which is good.
If she does her job, her buddies sleep well, and when her buddies do their jobs, she sleeps well, too, she said.
While stationed in Florida at the start of the Gulf War, she lost some friends who were in Army Ranger units which were among the first to deploy.
In Iraq, she has been called on to render medical aid to wounded comrades as well. “We see a lot of injuries that come into our clinic.”
When people she knows come in, “you kind of take it to a more personal level,” she said of the care. “It’s almost like taking care of your family,” she said. Capuano has treated someone close to her who was injured while in a vehicle convoy, she said.
While her firefighter training has taught her coping mechanisms, she admits she’ll never get used to seeing trauma.
She would do anything for her buddies, including laying down her life for them, she said. “No doubt in my mind. I am ready to die for my country. I am ready to die for my buddies,” she said.
Keeping her going is a constant stream of cards, letters and boxes from friends and relatives all over the world, she said. “I got stuff to last me three deployments,” she said of toiletries and other personal-care items.
She gets so much stuff that she oftentimes mails boxes to buddies in the camp who don’t get as much mail as she does. “One box can boost morale for a month, and sharing with others doubles it,” she said.
She has gotten packages from friends and family at Kalaheo Missionary Church, where she worships when she is on Kaua‘i, and from leaders of the family-support groups on Kaua‘i and elsewhere. “Everybody’s been supportive. Kaua‘i’s the best. They’re always there to support.”
Serving is one of her ways of giving back to an island community that has given so much to her, she said. She calls, e-mails and writes home when she gets the chance, and has frequently sent e-mails to Ron Wiley of KONG Radio Group.
She will get some leave time sometime this year, when she plans on thanking lots of people in person for all the support they’ve shown her and other Kaua‘i soldiers in the war zone.
“It feels good just to be appreciated. People at home make a difference, even with a yellow ribbon on their car or a T-shirt with the U.S. flag on it,” she said.
If she had been asked to speak at Saturday’s Armed Forces Day celebration at Kukui Grove Center, she would have said “thank you for everyone’s support, letters and packages.”
When told of the Kauai Chorale’s concert dedicated to those who fight for the freedoms all Americans enjoy, she said, “I would pretty much be all choked up” if she attended. “It reaches deep in the heart.”
And although she won’t be here for Memorial Day services next weekend, she has some thoughts on the holiday: “Enjoy the freedom, because it’s worth it. Memorial Day is not just for the dead. It’s for the living.”
Home for the time being is an airconditioned, 20-foot-by-25-foot space akin to a shipping container, which she shares with a Vietnam native who just achieved U.S. citizenship, as did two of her other buddies from Kaua‘i, Spc. Belinda Butac and Gilly Valdez.
“I’m proud of these guys,” she said. “They do anything to fight for their country.”
Her Vietnamese “bunk buddy” has been teaching her conversational Vietnamese, and giving her cooking tips, she said.
And while she misses home, she is making the best of her time away. “I enjoy it. I want to be here.”
She was born on Kaua‘i, raised in Kalaheo, and now lives in Hanapepe. Her husband, Scott Capuano, is active-duty Navy, and currently deployed aboard a submarine out of Pearl Harbor. She had just transferred from Georgia before being called up with the Hawaii Army National Guard Company C 29th medical support battalion, out of Kalaeloa, O‘ahu.
