Chris Lilienthal

My name is Christopher, or Chris, Lilienthal. I grew up in the small town of Manchester, Michigan, and graduated from Manchester High School in 2006. I am the second of three children. Military service was in my blood from a young age. My grandfather served in the Marine Corps during World War II, and his father and uncles had served in previous wars. Growing up, almost every Halloween I dressed up as either a soldier or a hunter.

During my senior year of high school, I remember standing in my living room, looking out the window and wondering what I was going to do with my life. I ended up calling the most recent recruiter I had spoken with. I joined the U.S. Army Reserves in December of 2005 as a construction equipment operator. I was told that if I wanted to switch to active duty, it would be pretty simple, and if I didn’t like the Army, I could just do one weekend a month and two weeks a year and then get out.

I shipped to Fort Leonard Wood for basic training and AIT in July 2006 after graduating high school. At Fort Leonard Wood, I trained as a 21E, a heavy construction equipment operator. Upon graduation, I was transferred to a reserve unit in Southfield, Michigan. I spent several years there and later changed my MOS to 12K, plumber/pipefitter.

In 2009, I was transferred to the 808th Engineer Company out of Houston, Texas, for mobilization and deployment to Iraq. I was a 21-year-old specialist. During that deployment, we ran convoys and helped build infrastructure. On one mission, we trained Iraqi police on how to erect tents. After returning home in 2010, I was transferred back to my Michigan unit.

In 2014, I was again involuntarily transferred, this time to the 304th Engineer Company out of Ohio, for mobilization and deployment. On this deployment, I served as an E5 team leader. We began in Kuwait as theater engineer reserve and were later forward deployed to Afghanistan, where we helped tear down bases and prepare for the anticipated pullout. About two months before returning home, there was discussion of extending us and sending us to Iraq to assist in the fight against ISIS. Ultimately, a fresh unit was sent instead due to the logistical challenges of moving personnel and equipment from Afghanistan to Iraq. We returned home in February of 2015.

In 2017, I was mobilized again and transferred to a unit out of Missouri, the 279th Engineer Utilities Detachment. I served as an E5 squad leader. This deployment took us back to Iraq in support of operations against ISIS. My squad moved around to various bases, assisting other squads due to my experience in construction. We spent the longest period in Baghdad at a base supporting special operations. There, we built an office building, bathrooms, decks, and a memorial plaque honoring fallen service members. We returned home in 2018.

In 2019, I was promoted to Staff Sergeant (E6) and assigned as a squad leader. My parent unit, the 486th Engineer Vertical Construction Company, was activated and mobilized. We reported to active duty just one year and seven days after I returned from my third deployment. We deployed to Kuwait as theater engineer reserve. After about a month, half a platoon was sent to Afghanistan, and I was selected due to my prior deployment and civilian construction experience.

My squad, along with another squad and our platoon sergeant, deployed to a coalition base where Americans were the minority. Once again, I worked with special operations, building a housing complex, while the other squad worked for the base command. This deployment was unique because it occurred when COVID first emerged. Afghanistan was hit early, and about three-quarters of the base became ill with respiratory issues. Initially, we thought it was caused by the heavy winter smoke over Kabul, but once testing began, many of us tested positive for COVID. My project site became a quarantine area, and we were tasked with building a temporary morgue due to fears about COVID’s severity. We returned home in July 2020 to a very different world and were quarantined in Texas for two weeks before being allowed to return home.

In 2024, I was mobilized for the fifth time and sent back to Iraq, this time as an E7 platoon sergeant. I had an outstanding platoon of men and women. During this deployment, one of my squads was sent to Syria, and I traveled there for a couple of weeks to deliver mail, tools, and supplies. This deployment was especially meaningful because my younger brother was deployed at the same time. Before leaving Kuwait for Iraq, I was able to spend time with him, take photos, and send them to our family.

I later left Iraq with most of my platoon in December 2024 to return to Kuwait and prepare equipment for shipment home. I was able to spend Christmas with my brother, which meant a great deal to both of us. Before he joined the military, we joked about trying to deploy together, and it just happened that his active-duty unit deployed during the same timeframe. He arrived in Kuwait two weeks before I did and left the day after I departed.

Between deployments, I attended college and earned an associate degree. I began working toward a bachelor’s degree, but life and work got in the way. I am currently still in the reserves and have reached 20 years of service, and I am considering retirement. What holds me back is my love for teaching and mentoring new soldiers and non-commissioned officers. My girlfriend likes to say I will never get out, and in a way, I think she may be right.

I love the camaraderie of the Army, and after so many deployments, nearly every engineer unit within a 200-mile radius of my home has people I have deployed with. In my spare time, I am an avid outdoorsman. I enjoy hunting, kayaking, and scuba diving. I love spending time with my dogs and riding my motorcycle.

I am proud of my service, and I jokingly tell people that joining the Army was the worst decision I ever made. You can’t beat the people, but the things you see and experience will change you.