CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It’s been a whirlwind couple of days for the families of soldiers recently deployed from Fort Bragg. Over the last couple of days, some 3,500 members of the 82nd Airborne Division, stationed at Fort Bragg, deployed for the Middle East.
The soldiers are part of the division’s ‘quick-deployment brigade,’ who train to be ready to respond quickly to crises abroad.
WCNC is told some of these soldiers were in the air within 18 hours of being notified of their deployment.
“I was so proud when he put it in my hands,” said Fostoria Pierson, a proud Blue Star mother whose son was recently awarded an army service medal after returning from a deployment to Kuwait just a few months ago.
“It just gives me the pride that mom this is for you, this is for our family, this is for our neighborhood and this is for our country,” Pierson said.
Pierson serves as the president of the Blue Star Mothers chapter of Charlotte, a support group for parents who have children in active service.
“I’ve had four or five that I’ve spoken with already,” Pierson said.
She said her phone hasn’t stopped ringing, over the last few days as thousands of troops stationed at Ft. Bragg were given just days notice they would be deploying to the Middle East.
One of those soldiers is 22-year-old Mason Fox from Gastonia.
“He just, that love for country just never died," his mother Lisa Fox said. "He always felt the call to serve.”
Lisa Fox said her son was home to celebrate the new year and was working out at the gym when he received the alert to report back to base.
“We just frantically packed him up, you know just kind of numb really, and got him on the road," Lisa Fox said. "You know at that point we weren’t really sure that anything was going to come of this.”
She said she put on a brave face.
“When you have a soldier, you have to be strong, you can’t let them worry about you," Lisa Fox said. "I just immediately went into 'mom role' and helped him get packed and get everything in his car so he could get out the door and get there."
But once her son pulled out of the driveway, Lisa Fox says that’s when it really hit her.
“You can imagine what happened, I broke down," she said. "It is an intense fear when you have a child in the Army or any of the armed forces; intense fear, you know, he’s my baby.”
Lisa Fox says her son deployed Sunday and already sent word he made it to the Middle East, but she said she’s now scared not knowing what comes next; not knowing where her son will be, or how long he’ll be there.
“They’ve gone dark," Lisa Fox said. "There will be no more communication."
As troops continue to deploy, this is the time Pierson says Blue Star Mothers need the community the most.
“It can be full of anxiety, depression," Pierson said. "This is why we need to be there for our Blue Star Mothers, to help them along the way, for the ones whose sons and or daughter are leaving for the first time and they don’t know what to expect."
Pierson said the community can help by simply reaching out.
“Our children serve for everyone," Pierson said. "Our children just don’t serve for us, and the community could do more by just reaching out to some of the Blue Star Mothers and say, ‘Hey, I’m thinking about you, I’m praying for you, hey, I’m here for you if you just need to talk.'"
Pierson said anyone looking to get more information on Blue Star Mothers or for ways to help, she can be reached at president.nc15@bluestarmothers.us or by calling 704-352-0313.