A new memoir by Toby James Nunn, reveals personal stories of the faces behind the military uniforms as young men learn about the Army and about themselves during combat in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Nunn presents both his own experience as an infantry squad leader and the experiences of the soldiers under his command. Northern Disclosure is about their exploits, but it is also a coming of age story. Soldiers mature quickly in a war zone, and it is not uncommon that an inner struggle ensues, pitting their natural humanity against an aggressiveness programmed by years of training.
Nunn follows his unit’s progress as their training moves from the U.S. to the desert sands of Kuwait before heading into Iraq for combat. Nunn’s unit was the first to train and fight as a Stryker Brigade Combat Team. Northern Disclosure rides shotgun as Nunn and his soldiers take the Stryker vehicle into combat scenarios in Iraq.
Readers will also be given a ground level perspective of the middle stages of the effort to reestablish the Iraqi nation. Nunn was one of the first leaders to face the challenge of training and establishing local security forces in Iraq while dealing with the cultural differences between his soldiers and the Iraqis they trained and fought with.
Northern Disclosure is a military and human interest story that will appeal to readers who are interested in a true insider’s account of the war in Iraq.
SFC Toby J. Nunn is a Canadian Citizen earning his citizenship for the United States of America. Born and raised in the mountains of northern British Columbia by a single father he moved to the United States to gain an education and obtain opportunities not available to him in Canada. Faced with several adversities in life he turned to the United States military to validate himself as a man and citizen of the nation he is proud to be a part of without taking away from the pride he holds dear about where he is from and family still resides.
As a soldier in the US Army he has excelled, gaining rank as fast as legally possible by attaining responsibilities far beyond his pay grade from the start of his career. He has also been blessed with great leadership and wonderful duties. He is a charismatic leader known for his ethically based decisions.
SFC Toby Nunn is a well-decorated veteran of the War on Terror being deployed several times and places. He is also one of the fastest inducted members of the very elite Sergeant Audie Murphy Club being recognized as being in the top percentile of all Non Commissioned Officers in the Army. He has received a spectrum of awards ranging from an Army Commendation for Valor to the Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal.
SFC Toby Nunn is married to the lovely Reagan Hutter Nunn together having two boys, Tristan and Jeffrey and one girl Scarlett Taylor.
After the raid we drove all the way back to FOB Pace Setter, arriving early in the morning. I greeted the sun with a great cup of coffee and a cigar. We were told that the showers they had built for us were ready, so SFC Kelley and I went to the showers. It had been about three weeks since we had bathed, and our uniforms could stand up all by themselves. We got to the showers to find them deserted. What could be wrong? Well we turned on the faucets and realized what the problem was. When I was a kid growing up in Terrace, B.C., they had a “polar bear swim” competition every New Years in which brave souls jumped into a frozen Lakelse Lake. The water in the showers would have tested even the resolve of those brave men; it sure tested mine. I had my pride though, and didn’t want to be the only fool who used the freezing water. I did my best not to make a sound that would tip off SFC Kelley to the fact that the water was cold. He asked how it was, and I pretended not to hear and acted like I was too involved in the lathering of my body to know what he was saying. He entered the water and let out a very slight gasp, then looked at me and acted like nothing was wrong. From that point on, we tried outdoing each other by staying under the faucet the longest to rinse off the soap. The water was so cold it was gave me a headache and affected my motor function. A few of the Charlie Mortar men entered the shower tent, and we spoke nothing but praise for the best showers we had ever taken. Being completely honest, it was one of the best showers I had ever taken. My best friend, Jenn, sent me a hokey-pokey Elmo, and my former girlfriend, Elizabeth Miles, a schoolteacher from Texas, had her junior class send all my guys Christmas goodies. I got a great package from my son and his mother. It was truly the best Christmas ever!