09/10/05 Wharton resident Missy Benoit, whose two sons have served in Iraq, has received word that her son, James, was critically injured in a roadside bomb attack in Baghdad.

Wharton GI critically hurt in Baghdad bomb attack Morris Hills grad has had five surgeries by laura bruno and zenaida mendez daily record

WHARTON -- Army Spc. James "Jimmy" Benoit was critically injured in a roadside bomb attack in Baghdad on Thursday morning, his mother said on Friday. Margaret "Missy" Benoit received a call from the Army on Thursday evening, alerting her that the vehicle that her 23-year-old son was driving was attacked and that he was seriously injured. By Friday evening, she was told he had undergone his fifth surgery to repair extensive internal injuries. "There's no anger right now. I'm just totally numb," Benoit said. "This doesn't seem real. How can it be my son?" Jimmy Benoit, a 2001 Morris Hills High School graduate, had five months left on his second tour of duty in Iraq. He has been serving as a military police officer, training the Iraqi police force. He also served in Afghanistan for Operation Enduring Freedom. Benoit last spoke with her son on Sunday. She said he was upbeat about the progress that American forces were making with the Iraqis. He said they were seeing improvements, and that Iraqi police were beginning to come into their own, running operations without American help. He also talked about coming home soon. "We were talking about Christmas. Jimmy wanted colored Christmas lights for his room," Benoit said. "He was in good spirits at that point." He also said he bought a refrigerator and wanted frozen ice pops. Meanwhile, Benoit's oldest son, Pvt. 1st Class David Benoit, 25, is scheduled to return for his second tour in Iraq early next month. He is stationed at Fort Campbell in Kentucky. Missy Benoit had hoped that her sons would be able to see each other this time. Although both were serving in Iraq at the same time before, they had not been able to meet. Benoit has been looking forward to her sons' being home for good by Christmas 2006, joining her and her youngest son, Marc, who is going to college and training to be a firefighter. Now, Benoit is thinking about the difficult recovery that Jimmy will face. The Army will fly her either to Germany or to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Maryland on Sunday. "How do I deal with this? How do I get him through it? It's going to be a long recovery," she said. "We need lots of prayers. He needs everyone's prayers." The Benoits are well-known in Wharton, and the family already is receiving calls of support, she said. Her sons are Eagle Scouts, and Jimmy Benoit is a member of the local American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars posts. The second time her son was deployed to Iraq, Benoit said it was almost more stressful than the first, because she knew what he had gone through. Jimmy Benoit joined the Army's Delayed Entry Program during his senior year at Morris Hills. His brother, David, joined the Army after being encouraged by Jimmy and seeing what he was doing, Benoit said. "They have no regrets," Benoit said in an interview earlier this week, before the news of her son's injury. "They say the Iraqis needed us." Benoit said she had conflicting feelings about whether it was right to invade Iraq in the first place, but now that the United States is committed, the country must see through its obligation. She has been impatient, and, like any mother, she wants to see her sons come home. But she does not believe that American soldiers can immediately pack up and leave the country. "If we pulled out, we would be showing it was all pointless," Benoit said. "It's not American to give up." Laura Bruno can be reached at (973) 428-6626 or lbruno2@gannett.com. Zenaida Mendez can be reached at (973) 989-0652,Ext. 227 or zmendez@gannett.com.