by KIM HILSENBECK
In 2001, Jason Payne was in the Texas Army National Guard – he had been part of the guard since 1994. At the time, he was an officer with the Martindale Police Department.
When the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the United States happened, Payne, who is currently a Hays County deputy constable, said he felt he “wasn’t doing enough to give back to the nation what it’s given to me,” speaking in a recent interview with the Hays Free Press.
In 2003, he became an active member of the U.S. military, joining the Army’s 1st Battalion 22nd Infantry. He was among the first wave of soldiers who went to Iraq. His wife was two months pregnant with their first child – a son he didn’t get to meet until the boy was a month old.
Over the next five years, Payne was deployed to Iraq twice, the first time for eight months, the second for a year. Payne missed significant chunks of time with his three children while serving in the Army.
He was there when the military captured Saddam Hussein and is mentioned in the book “We Got Him: A Memoir of the Hunt and Capture of Saddam Hussein” by Col. Steve Russell.
In 2008, Payne left the Army with an honorable discharge as well as a medical retirement. He experienced several injuries during the battle, including one to his brain and shrapnel in his left knee.
“I’ve been blown up about six times,” Payne said.
Pulling up his pant leg, he showed the scars on his knee.
Payne said he is grateful that he was given a chance to continue working as a peace officer even after being injured in combat. He said some employers won’t give returning soldiers a chance, especially if they have injuries or suffer mental health issues.
“I believe everyone who serves in an overseas war has PTSD,” Payne said, referring to post-traumatic stress disorder, or what he says the military now calls combat stress.
While he misses the kinship among soldiers and even talked with his wife, Melissa, about going back, Payne said he needs to be here with his family.
He is proud of the U.S. military and credits the Army with helping him learn respect and dignity, things he often finds lacking among younger generations.
“Some people don’t have respect for everyday life, they don’t have a strong work ethic or even pride in how they dress,” Payne said.
As far as any advice he might offer employers, Payne said, “Give vets a chance. They have a high work ethic.”
