Charles Thomas tended to wounded soldiers on the sweltering killing fields of Vietnam, helped hurricane victims in Honduras and oversaw finances for soldiers in Bosnia.

Sometime in the next few weeks, the 58-year-old Army National Guard command sergeant major will leave his wife, Jeanette, their 11-year-old Maltese, Pebbles, walk through the door of his Old Bridge home one final time and head to Iraq.

"I don't want to leave my wife, but I have to go," Thomas said during an interview last week at his house, which the couple is selling. "I made her a deal. I promised her this is my last tour of duty, and she gets a new house."

Thomas is among a group of soldiers age 50 and over being called to active duty . Like many, he is a "citizen soldier," a member of the National Guard or Reserves, where soldiers serve part-time. They tend to be older than their active-duty counterparts and are increasingly being deployed overseas to augment active-duty troops.

Of the 160,000 men and women deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan, 4,119 are 50 or older. At a time in life when most people are looking forward to retirement or eyeing Florida real estate, these soldiers are leaving behind corporate jobs and grandkids. Some even voluntarily postpone military retirement to go to war.

"The hardest part about going," Thomas said, "is when my granddaughter asks me why I'm not going to be home for Christmas."

A stout man with chiseled Irish facial features and a crewcut, Thomas has 28 years in the military, six in the Navy. He has four children and four granddaughters, the youngest 6 months old. He works as an NJ Transit police officer and is a former state trooper.

He thought of retiring from the National Guard after 21 years, shortly before November 2003, when it became clear the 50th Finance Battalion in Flemington, his unit at that time, was headed to Iraq.

"I contacted a couple of people and said, 'No more, there's no way my wife is going to let me go,'" Thomas said while taking a break from packing last week.

Instead of retiring, Thomas was offered and accepted a promotion as the command sergeant major of the 42nd Infantry Division Support Command, the highest rank for a noncommissioned officer. The part-time role allowed him to stay in the U.S. and use his experience to help prepare troops to go to Bosnia while holding his full-time civilian job. His military salary is $60,000.

"My words to my wife were, 'Everyone will have to go to Iraq before I get called.'"

But with military manpower stretched, the 42nd Infantry Division Support Command was called up in March. The tri-state unit, located in New Jersey, New York and Vermont, provides logistics and health service support to all units of the 42nd Infantry Division. They assist in weather disasters at home and typically prepare the equipment for troops heading overseas and are rarely deployed.

"We were shocked," Thomas said. "But everyone is going, and you don't want to show a kink in your armor."

"He's put in so many years," Jeanette Thomas said as her eyes locked with her husband's from across the living room of their Middlesex County home where paintings and sculptures of angels adorn the small space and their frail Pebbles bounces lovingly between the couple. "My first thoughts were, 'Why don't they send someone else?'"

As of late last week, 10 of the more than 1,085 soldiers to die in Iraq were 50 or older, according to the Associated Press' War Casualty database. That is a tiny fraction of overall fatalities and those men were more likely to die of medical causes, including heart attacks and heat stroke, than their younger counterparts.

Three of the 10 older soldiers died in action, including New Jersey National Guardsman Frank Carvill, 51, who was killed when his convoy was attacked in Baghdad on June 4.

Army Command Sgt. Maj. Edward Barnhill, 50, of Shreveport, La., died of a heart attack, collapsing in the hallway of the Coalition Provisional Authority headquarters in Baghdad in May.

"His age was never a concern to him," said Barnhill's widow, Paula Barnhill, in a recent interview. "His son told him, 'Daddy, you're too old to go,'" Barnhill said. "But he was in good physical condition."

STAYING PHYSICALLY FIT
The military has mandatory retirement rules that can take effect anywhere from age 40 to 62, depending on a soldier's length of service, and whether they're active duty or in a Reserve or National Guard. Reservists and guardsmen cannot draw retirement benefits until they turn 60, unlike active duty soldiers who can collect their retirement benefits after 20 years of service.

For that reason and others, there are more older reservists than active-duty soldiers.

No matter what their age, all troops must pass a physical examination and periodic fitness tests that include a two-mile run, push-ups and sit-ups. The rules require an exam every five years and Thomas last had his in 2002. The military also allows soldiers to take medication for blood pressure and other illnesses.

"It gets harder as the years go on, but it's not as hard if you train every day and stay in good physical shape," said Lt. Col. Joseph Richard, 53, of Pennsauken.

Richard, a spokesman for the Pentagon, has served in the Army 22 years and was among the first troops to go to Iraq. He was the public affairs officer for a ground commander from March to July 2003.

"We saw our share of death and destruction and close calls," Richard said. Still, he has no plans to retire for at least another seven years.

"When you sign on the dotted line, the possibility of war is always there," Richard said. "That's what we train for, and that's the life we've chosen to lead. There is an element of the warrior spirit that you keep in you mind day-to-day, because you never know when you'll be called up to engage the enemy."

Most older soldiers, like Sgt. Maj. Thomas, tend to view their age as an asset.

"I'm going to take my leadership experience and mentor the younger troops, the middle managers," Thomas said. "My whole job is to motivate the troops. I lead from the front. If I go into push-up position, so do they."

PRIDE AND CONCERN
Once in Iraq, where temperatures can range from freezing to 120 degrees, Thomas will oversee the health and welfare of soldiers. He will travel from base to base overseeing logistical and equipment issues and family related matters for enlisted soldiers, among many other duties.

Thomas' family said they are worried.

"I cry every night over it," said Thomas' 32-year-old daughter, Kristen Thomas-Graichen of Forked River. "This is something a military family is used to, but this time, it's frightening. The playing field in Iraq is frightening. He has served his country, but at the same time, they can't do without his experience and knowledge."

As for her father's age, Thomas-Graichen thinks he is as sharp, as fit and as disciplined as the best soldiers.

"He's logical, he's calculating. He gets up and runs every day at 4:30 a.m.," she said, describing how her health-conscious father even turned down a banana ganache one night -- his favorite dessert.

Thomas' 10-year-old granddaughter, Jocelyn Thomas, said she's "sad" that her grandfather is leaving for so long.

"But I'm mad at the same time because he's going and I don't want him to go, but kind also happy because he's helping our country and I just want him to be careful."

While Thomas is away for 18 months, his wife, Jeanette, will move into their new house in South Jersey. She, too, said she is scared but knows her husband feels a duty to the younger troops and will " have to teach them how to stay alive over there."

WITH AGE, EXPERIENCE
Younger troops sometimes have mixed feelings about serving with men and women old enough to be their parents or even grandparents.

"We have quite a few older guys in our combat unit, and some it seems close to the time they should be retiring," said Joseph Bates, 34, of Montclair, an Army National Guardsman deploying in several weeks for Iraq with the 250th Signal Battalion out of Westfield.

"I don't mean disrespect, but some of them are physically starting to slow down," Bates said. "It's 50-50. I also think they're a great asset, a lot of them Vietnam vets. They know what they're doing, even if they don't talk about it."

Chief Warrant Officer Kevin Barth of Macungie, Pa., 49, who served in Vietnam and Desert Storm and drilled for 20 years with a Marine Reserve unit in Red Bank, said he took a ribbing from the fresh-faced troops in Iraq last year.

"It was primarily along the lines of 'Hey, grandpa' or 'Hey, old man,'" Barth said.

But Barth's experience in war and as a general manager for Impress Packaging in Emmaus, Pa., was invaluable, according to his commanding officer, Marine reserve Lt. Col. Daniel Colfax.

"He had a lot to offer the unit. I suppose you want an 18-year-old to run a marathon, but the experience that the older ones bring is extraordinary," Colfax said.

Barth said he was "in agony" after hand-to-hand combat training, but felt his experience was useful while on convoy operations in the desert.

"Leadership is the same in the military world as the corporate world. You have to be able to make decisions and have the strength of your convictions, whether you're wearing a uniform or a three-piece suit," Barth said.

Master Sgt. Carl Shissler, a 58-year old Army reservist from Lancaster, Pa., served three tours in Vietnam, took an 18-year break from service and then joined the Marine artillery reserves before transferring to the Army Reserve. He's also preparing to ship off to Iraq in several weeks.

"It's about mentality. The young boys don't always think before they act. The older guys take their time," Shissler said. "You can be in shape all you want, but you can't outrun a bullet."

Shissler said his granddaughter told him "Poppy, you're too old to go, turn in your badge," but he refused.

"Gen. MacArthur said, 'Old soldiers never die, they just fade away,'" Shissler said, quoting the military icon Douglas MacArthur.

"Well, we're not fading away yet."

Ana Alaya may be reached at aalaya@starledger.com or (201) 646-3421.

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