April 9, 2003 Grandparents watch child for journalist By NORA K. WALLACE The war in Iraq has exhausted Kate and Gary Belanger, but not for the reasons you might expect. The Santa Barbara retirees are among the family and friends pitching in to care for their grandson, 21-month-old Zachary Wharton, whose father, David, is a Los Angeles Times reporter covering the war. "Having a little one at this age, we're exhausted," said Mrs. Belanger with a smile, as she chased a ball thrown by the energetic boy. With their son in Kuwait, and his wife, Morrine Sosnow, working full-time at the newspaper, the couple offered to help care for Zachary. Mrs. Belanger, 61, goes to Los Angeles for one day each weekend to care for the toddler, while Ms. Sosnow runs errands or takes some private time for herself. One weekend each month, the Belangers pick up Zack and bring him to Santa Barbara. It is not the first time the family has been impacted by war. Their eldest son, Lt. Cmdr. Jon Belanger, was a pilot during Operation Desert Storm. His squadron flew more air hours than any other in the war. "We feel lucky that he came home with some medals instead of in a body bag," his mother said. Though their son had a dangerous role in the first Persian Gulf war, the Belangers supported that military effort, because "the world agreed with us. They built a coalition," Mrs. Belanger said. But they faced this conflict with more trepidation. "This time it seems like all we're doing is making enemies," Mrs. Belanger said. "The repercussions, diplomatically, are going to resonate in the United States for a long time to come." It has "put us back 50 years" in international relations, believes Mr. Belanger, 65. That didn't stop them, however, from helping out their son's family when called upon. Mr. Wharton, because he often worked from home, was a primary caretaker of Zachary. His ability to go write about the war, his mother said, meant that the "war is, essentially, going to be a family team effort." Mr. Wharton, 41, has been with the Times for 20 years, and is normally a sportswriter specializing in features and investigative reporting. But he flew to Doha, Qatar, about 2 1/2 weeks before the war started. The day after the war began, he moved to Kuwait City. "It has been such a relief to have my parents watch Zack from time to time," Mr. Wharton wrote in an e-mail. Another cousin has pitched in as well, and a neighbor watched the little boy recently when his mother needed to get a prescription for his cold. "I'm not sure how we would have gotten through this without their help," wrote Mr. Wharton, who has ridden in a military convoy to southern Iraq to write about blazing oil wells and sailed on a Navy patrol boat with sailors watching the coastline from Kuwait City to Umm Qasr in Iraq. Mr. Wharton said it's difficult to be gone from his family, but as a journalist says he feels compelled to cover the story. "There have been times when I get down about being away from home," he wrote in an e-mail. "But there's a soldier who stands guard outside the briefing center, a guy from Chicago who I have gotten to know -- he'll be away a year and miss the birth of his first child. There's a sailor on that Navy patrol boat, an older guy from West Texas, who has yet to see his new grandson. He, too, will be here long after I'm gone. When I talk to men and women like this, it puts the whole thing in perspective." |
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