People join the military for various reasons: to get a college education, for the adventure, for the money or to serve and protect their country.

Last fall, at the ripe old age of 32, Geoffrey Smigun did a complete about-face, left a promising career in the computer industry and joined the U.S. Army.

“I just got the feeling my country needed me,” said Geoffrey, who has lived on Snoqualmie Ridge with wife Tarah, for more than three years. “After 9/11, I wanted to secure my family’s safety by serving my country in the U.S. Army.”

Geoffrey sat down with his wife of 10 years last April and told her that he wanted to join the Army.

Tarah, an account executive for STAR 101.5 radio station in Seattle, said her whole world crumbled before her as Geoffrey spoke. “We’re in our 30s … we own a home, we have careers, we want to start a family, we’re settled. This was not how I saw my fairy-tale life [happening].”

After the initial shock wore off, Tarah realized this “calling” was something her husband felt very strongly about. “We had an honest conversation to determine if Geoffrey’s joining the Army could work for our family,” Tarah said. “The answer was yes … we’ll make it work.”

Geoffrey began to research the U.S. Army in earnest, wondering if he was too old to even be considered. (He wasn’t.) He spoke with a recruiter and began negotiations with the Army, wanting to ensure that he would be stationed close to home.

Tarah was adamant about not moving. “Honestly, we love it here … our home, our neighborhood. We bought this house knowing that we would raise our family here,” she said.

Geoffrey enlisted with a six-year contract as an information technology specialist, a job that would utilize his computer skills, along with a guarantee he would be stationed for four years at Fort Lewis.

In September, Geoffrey flew to Fort Benning, Ga., where he spent a week being processed. He was then bussed with other new recruits to a different part of the base where his Army experience officially started: basic combat training, more commonly referred to as boot camp.

Drill sergeants were waiting for the new recruits outside the barracks. “We had to get off the bus in 30 seconds, run over and get in formation while drill sergeants were shouting and yelling at us for an hour. It was a bewildering experience,” said Geoffrey.

Geoffrey was assigned to the 1-38 Infantry Regiment. He was trained on Sand Hill, the nation’s largest infantry training center with the reputation of having the most rigorous boot camp program in the country.

Boot camp was challenging, difficult, exhilarating – unlike anything Geoffrey had experienced before. “It’s tough,” Geoffrey said. “You’re demoralized. They break you down, build you back up … you become disciplined, focused, committed.”

As Geoffrey adjusted to his new life, Tarah continued to be his biggest supporter. “I couldn’t have made it without her,” Geoffrey said. “It’s hard being away from home. I miss her. Despite the hardship, our relationship is now so much stronger.”

Neighbors in the Silent Creek neighborhood of Snoqualmie Ridge miss Geoffrey, too, and about 12 neighbors baked cookies with Tarah for Veteran’s Day, sending a box of letters and home-baked treats weighing more than 50 pounds to the 40 soldiers and seven drill sergeants in Geoffrey’s platoon.

Geoffrey has been a positive role model to younger soldiers in his platoon, setting an example for the younger recruits. Only four of the soldiers in his platoon were older than 30, and the older soldiers “did well in whatever they did. We were at the top of our game every time,” said Geoffrey.

Geoffrey’s determination led him to win top basic rifle marksmanship honors in his company as a qualified sharpshooter, despite never having shot a gun before. He earned the opportunity to fire a live M136 AT4, the Army’s primary light anti-tank weapon. As Geoffrey nailed the target, his entire company cheered him on. The moment was proof to him that older soldiers could excel in the youthful environment.

Geoffrey graduated from basic combat training the day before Thanksgiving. Tarah flew out for the event and spent the holiday weekend with her husband before he was sent to Fort Gordon near Augusta, Ga., for his next phase, advanced individual training.

Geoffrey’s computer background combines his love of technology with his new career. “I see the U.S. Army becoming even more technologically advanced, requiring soldiers with technological backgrounds and experience. I want to be on that leading edge, using the technology to accomplish the mission,” he said.

In May, Geoffrey will be assigned to Fort Lewis. The Smiguns are expecting their first child in August and Geoffrey will be home in time to share the last trimester of Tarah’s pregnancy. Tarah undergoes her first ultrasound this week, and the doctor will enclose the baby’s sex in an envelope. This weekend Tarah flies out to visit Geoffrey, and they plan to open the envelope together while they spend a special weekend at a bed and breakfast in Augusta. “This has been a tough year,” said Tarah. “But it has also been one of the best. I cherish every moment.”

Friends, neighbors and students can write to Geoffrey at: PFC Geoffrey Smigun, D Co. 369th Signal BN 15th Signal BDE, Fort Gordon, GA 30905.