BAGHDAD - When a Soldier is wounded by an improvised explosive device and is about to be medically evacuated out of Iraq, one of the last things he would think about is extending his military career.

 

Not if you are a noncommissioned officer in the Black Lions.

Staff Sgt. Redic Jordan, an infantryman with Company B, 1st Battalion, 28th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division reenlisted in the Army June 30 at the Combat Surgical Hospital in Baghdad, despite being in a roadside bomb attack the day prior and was being prepared to fly to Germany for medical treatment.

 

For the senior noncommissioned officer in the brigade, Jordan's choice shows the dedication of the NCO ranks.

 

"This is an indicator about what Soldiers believe, and how committed they are in the fight here in Iraq," said Command Sgt. Maj.

 

Jim Champagne, the 4th IBCT's top NCO. "They are doing it for their brothers.

 

"It is a great testament that Soldiers who are in the middle of the fight choose to give the Army more years."

 

Jordan didn't reenlist for the bonus, said the brigade's career counselor who spoke to him about reenlisting the day he was wounded.

 

"He came in yesterday asking about what his options were for reenlisting," said Sgt. 1st Class Tito Reed, the 4th IBCT's senior career counselor. "I was called by 1st Sgt. Gerald Cornell today asking me to get paperwork ready for Jordan's reenlistment. I immediately got it done."

 

Reed, from Long Island, N.Y., said that Jordan told him he wanted to reenlist not for any incentives, but because he loved the Army.

 

"He was talking more about reenlisting because he loved the Army itself," he said. "He needed a way to support his family and the Army was the best way. He said he was going to stay in until they told him couldn't anymore."

 

Capt. Brian Ducote, Co. B. commander administered the oath of enlistment to Jordan at the ceremony. 

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