CLIFTON SPRINGS, N.Y. — The 9/11 terror attacks inspired people from across the nation to enlist in the armed forces, including one pastor from Clifton Springs.
Army Chaplain Daryl Densford had served and retired from the military in the years before 9/11. But the attack served as a call from a higher power for him to rejoin the armed forces, and he spoke with News10NBC’s Tom Kowalski about his journey.
Densford, originally from Cincinatti, had first served as an Army Chaplain Assistant in the late 1980s before serving as pastor at the now-closed Church of the Nazarene in Clifton Springs during the mid-to-late 90’s. He said it’s there he felt God pushing him to rejoin the armed forces, but it wasn’t until that infamous day that Densford officially reenlisted.
“A chaplain recruiter happened to be at one of our district assemblies, and it got me thinking again, and I felt like that was the direction God wanted me to move,” Densford said. “And, as it turns out, I think it was providential that I was starting that process in the late 90s, right before 9/11.”
Densford sensed his presence was needed overseas, to help those enlisting in the War on Terror.
“As a minister, I was serving in the civilian parish at the time. I knew I had something to offer. They’d be leaving home. They’d be leaving their churches, I knew I wanted to be able to be there for them. To give some spiritual help,” Densford said.
Over the course of his deployment, Densford traveled around the world from Fort Jackson in South Carolina to Qatar, Afghanistan, Iraq and Germany. One year, he traveled more than 50,000 miles to provide support to troops across the Middle East at the height of the War on Terror.
But what does an Army Chaplain actually do while they’re abroad?
“Well, chaplains, I mean, they’re essentially a minister in uniform,” Densford said.
“There’s three important things that the chaplains do. We nurture the living. So those are the things you get at home: Bible studies, worship experiences, the rights and sacraments.”
“And then caring for the wounded. When soldiers are wounded, somebody needs to be there for them. Of course, the medics take care of the medical side, but it’s good to have someone there for the spiritual side. And often the chaplains who would co-locate in combat situations with the medic so that we’re there for them.”
And then the third is to honor the fallen,” Densford said.
Densford also shared what he wants younger generations to know as conflicts continue abroad.
“We have to differentiate between Muslims or Middle Eastern people and the extremists. We remember the terrorism. We remember the extremists. But we remember that it was the terrorists. It’s not the average Muslim or citizen that took part in that,” Densford said.
‘I knew I had something to offer’: Former Army chaplain shares why 9/11 brought him back to military service WHEC.com.
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