OKLAHOMA CITY -- A military father, desperate for money to visit his son, is hoping to find work through a popular Web site, Craigslist. James Waterman comes from a family full of Army veterans. His oldest son, private first class Gary Waterman, now works with explosives as a combat engineer. A roadside bomb exploded 30 yards away from Gary in Iraq, last year.
"You're terrified every time you see bad news," James says. "Then the first thing you do is start watching the driveway for the white car to pull up. It's just torture."
So imagine how tough it is for James to know that his son is back in the United States, but neither one can afford to visit the other.
That's because the state is Hawaii.
Gary is stationed on Oahu and he will be there until he's sent to Afghanistan this fall.
"To be able to hug your kid," James says, "it's everything."
However, it's a struggle for James to even walk around his house, near Noble.
After suffering three strokes and getting a pace maker, every penny the Watermans make goes toward endless medical bills.
So James decided to place an ad on a popular Web site, www.craigslist.com, offering to do odd jobs to raise money for airfare.
His youngest son, John, has offered to help out; war has a way of ending a sibling rivalry.
"We used to fight tooth and nail; ever since he joined the Army, we've been close," John says. "Real close."
Even though long hours of labor jeopardizes James' heart, he's willing to sacrifice his own health for a son who might make the ultimate sacrifice.
"When you know life is that fragile, you take every opportunity you can, even if it's at your own risk," he says.
Gary has told his dad he wants to return to war because he now realizes the importance of what he's doing.
"You're terrified every time you see bad news," James says. "Then the first thing you do is start watching the driveway for the white car to pull up. It's just torture."
So imagine how tough it is for James to know that his son is back in the United States, but neither one can afford to visit the other.
That's because the state is Hawaii.
Gary is stationed on Oahu and he will be there until he's sent to Afghanistan this fall.
"To be able to hug your kid," James says, "it's everything."
However, it's a struggle for James to even walk around his house, near Noble.
After suffering three strokes and getting a pace maker, every penny the Watermans make goes toward endless medical bills.
So James decided to place an ad on a popular Web site, www.craigslist.com, offering to do odd jobs to raise money for airfare.
His youngest son, John, has offered to help out; war has a way of ending a sibling rivalry.
"We used to fight tooth and nail; ever since he joined the Army, we've been close," John says. "Real close."
Even though long hours of labor jeopardizes James' heart, he's willing to sacrifice his own health for a son who might make the ultimate sacrifice.
"When you know life is that fragile, you take every opportunity you can, even if it's at your own risk," he says.
Gary has told his dad he wants to return to war because he now realizes the importance of what he's doing.
