Here are the biographies of IAVA Member Veterans who will be attending the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado. Please contact Michael Houston at michael [at] iava.org or (917) 697-6406 to arrange an interview with any of them.

Paul Rieckhoff
Patrick Campbell
Andrew Roberts
Carolyn Schapper
Tom Tarantino

Paul Rieckhoff, 33, is the Executive Director and Founder of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA).  A nonpartisan, non-profit founded in 2004 with tens of thousands of members in all 50 US states, IAVA is America's first and largest Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans group.  Rieckhoff was a First Lieutenant and infantry rifle platoon leader in the Iraq war from 2003-2004.  He is now a nationally recognized authority on the war in Iraq and issues affecting troops, military families and veterans. 

Honored by Esquire magazine as one of "America's Best and Brightest" in 2004, Rieckhoff has appeared on hundreds of radio and television programs. Recent appearances include: ABC's documentary "To Iraq and Back: Bob Woodruff Reports," "The Charlie Rose Show," "60 Minutes," "The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer," "This Week With George Stephanopoulos," "Good Morning America," "Anderson Cooper 360," "Countdown with Keith Olbermann," "Hardball with Chris Matthews," "NBC Nightly News," "ABC World News Tonight," "CBS Evening News," "Hannity and Colmes," "The Big Story with John Gibson," "BBC World," "The Colbert Report" and NPR's "Morning Edition," "All Things Considered," and "Fresh Air."

Rieckhoff has had opinion pieces printed by The New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, Knight-Ridder and The New York Daily News, and is a regular blogger for The Huffington Post and Military.com.  He has been featured in The Associated Press, U.S. News and World Report, Newsweek, The New York Times, GIANT Magazine, Washington Post, L.A. Times, Army Times, Wall Street Journal, Reuters, The New York Post, and Newsday. 

Rieckhoff's first book, a critically acclaimed account of his experiences in Iraq and activism afterwards, titled Chasing Ghosts, was published by Penguin in May 2006 and released in paperback in May 2007.

Rieckhoff enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserves on September 15, 1998 and completed Basic Combat Training and Advanced Individual Training at Fort McClellan, Alabama. He then served in the U.S. Army Reserves, as a Specialist with the 812th Military Police Company.  While working on Wall Street at J.P. Morgan in 1999, Rieckhoff transferred to the New York Army National Guard, graduating from Officer Candidate School in June 2001.  He was named a Distinguished Military Graduate. Rieckhoff selected infantry as his branch and joined A Company, 1/105th INF (Light).

Rieckhoff left Wall Street on September 7, 2001 with plans to travel and complete additional military schooling. Those plans would change dramatically. On the morning of September 11, Rieckhoff was at his apartment on 24th Street in Manhattan when the first plane hit the World Trade Center. He saw the smoke from his rooftop, and immediately joined scores of volunteers serving in the rescue effort at Ground Zero. His unit was formally activated for rescue and security operations later that evening.

In February 2002, Rieckhoff began Infantry Officers Basic Course at Fort Benning, Georgia. He graduated in June of 2002 and immediately volunteered for active duty and a place in the pending war in Iraq.

In January, 2003, Rieckhoff got the call to go to Iraq. Two days later, he was on a plane to join the 3rd Infantry Division at Fort Stewart, Georgia. Rieckhoff was then assigned as a Platoon Leader for 3rd Platoon, B Company, 3/124th INF (Air Assault) FLNG.

The unit was attached to 1st Brigade, 3^rd Infantry Division and spent almost a year conducting combat operations in Iraq, centered in the Adamiyah section of Baghdad on the Eastern bank of the Tigris River. Third Platoon conducted over 1,000 dismounted and mounted combat patrols. 3/124th INF was the first reserve component unit in the Army to be awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge since the Korean War. All thirty-eight of the men in Rieckhoff's platoon returned home alive.

Rieckhoff was released from active duty on March 2004 and the Nation Guard in 2007.  He is a staunch political independent, and his organization is tied to no political party or candidate.  A 1998 graduate of Amherst College, Rieckhoff now lives in New York City.

Patrick Campbell

Patrick Campbell is the Chief Legislative Counsel for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA).  IAVA is the country's first and largest non-profit, nonpartisan Iraq and Afghanistan veterans group.  Founded by Paul Rieckhoff in 2004, IAVA has more than 100,000 active veteran members and civilian supporters nationwide.

Campbell is a combat medic serving with the Washington, DC National Guard.  He returned from Iraq in October 2005 after serving a year-long tour of duty with the 256^th  Infantry Brigade, based out of Louisiana. During his deployment, he was assigned to regularly patrol the western region of Baghdad.  Campbell helped secure Iraq's first elections in January 2005 and later provided security at Abu Ghraib prison. He was awarded the Combat Medical Badge and the Meritorious Service Medal.

After returning from Iraq in 2005, Campbell drafted a bill to help veterans complete their educations.  Based on Campbell's leadership and recommendations, Senator Sherrod Brown (OH) and Representative Susan Davis (CA) introduced The Veterans Education Tuition Support (VETS) Act in Congress in June 2007.  Campbell was also at the forefront of the fight for a World War II-style GI Bill for America's newest generation of veterans, which passed in June 2008.  He works closely with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to improve the lives of servicemembers and their families.

Campbell has testified in front of both the Senate and House Veterans Affairs Committees and the Department of Veterans Affairs. His media appearances include "NBC Nightly News," "ABC World News Tonight," "Fox and Friends," "Anderson Cooper 360," "Lou Dobbs Tonight," and NPR.

Campbell received a J.D. from Catholic University and a B.A. in Political Science from UC Berkeley, where he served as the Student Body President.  He currently resides in Washington, DC.

Andrew Roberts

Andrew Roberts is the Veteran Membership Associate for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA).  IAVA is the country's first and largest non-profit, nonpartisan Iraq and Afghanistan veterans group.  Founded by Paul Rieckhoff in 2004, IAVA has more than 100,000 active veteran members and civilian supporters nationwide.

Roberts is a former Army officer who served in the Field Artillery Branch from 1997-2004.  In 2003, Roberts deployed to Iraq with the 4th Infantry Division and served as a Battery Commander for over 90 American soldiers.  After the initial invasion, Roberts was stationed in the city of Balad Ruz and served as the American liaison to the city's local government. Roberts was responsible for the city's security, as well as the reorganization and training of the local police, Iraqi National Guard units, and Iraqi Border Patrol. 

In 1998, Roberts deployed to Kuwait with the Army's 3rd Infantry Division out of Fort Stewart, Georgia. As part of Operation Southern Watch, he served as a Platoon Leader, Fire Support Officer and Fire Direction Officer for the 1st Battalion, 41st Field Artillery.

Roberts left the Army as a Captain.  For his service, Roberts has earned numerous awards including the Bronze Star, a Meritorious Service Medal, a Global War on Terror Expeditionary Medal, The Airborne badge, and The Air Assault badge.

Roberts' media appearances include FOX, RNN (New York), KUSI, Air America Radio, and XM Radio.

Roberts was born and raised in Suffern, New York and is a 1997 graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point.  He currently lives in New York City.

Carolyn Schapper 

Carolyn Schapper is a veteran spokesperson for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA).  IAVA is the country's first and largest non-profit, nonpartisan Iraq and Afghanistan veterans group.  Founded by Paul Rieckhoff in 2004, IAVA has more than 100,000 active veteran members and civilian supporters nationwide.

Schapper served as Human Intelligence Collector/Interrogator in Bayji, Iraq from October 2005 to September 2006 with the Georgia National Guard.  Prior to her deployment, Schapper studied Russian at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, CA and conducted her Military Intelligence training at Ft. Huachuca in Arizona.

While serving on a Tactical Human Intelligence Team (THT) in Iraq, Schapper participated in approximately 200 combat patrols.  She also had the unique opportunity to engage with a variety of Iraqis and hear their thoughts and opinions on a daily basis.

Schapper's media appearances include "NewsHour with Jim Lehrer," The Associated Press, Chicago Tribune, and The Salinas Californian.

Schapper holds a Masters Degree in International Relations from Boston University and B.A. in International Relations from San Francisco State University.  She currently resides in Washington, DC.

Tom Tarantino

Tom Tarantino is the Policy Associate for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA).  IAVA is the country's first and largest non-profit, nonpartisan Iraq and Afghanistan veterans group.  Founded by Paul Rieckhoff in 2004, IAVA has more than 100,000 active veteran members and civilian supporters nationwide.

Tarantino enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserves in 1997 as a Civil Affairs Specialist.  He served in Bosnia in 2000, where he assisted with the repatriation of over 3,000 refugees, and in Iraq in 2005, where he served as both a Cavalry and Mortar Platoon Leader with the 11^th Armored Cavalry Regiment.  As a Cavalry Platoon Leader, Tarantino led security patrols through North Baghdad, providing stability and support to Iraqis trying to rebuild their country.  As a Mortar Platoon Leader, he led a unit with multiple missions, to include quick reaction defense of the base at Abu Ghraib, observation and protection of the main supply route, and on-call fire support to units patrolling the city.  Tarantino was awarded the Bronze Star for his service in Iraq.

Most recently, Tarantino was stationed at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, CA, where he trained troops preparing to deploy to Iraq and Afghanistan.

Tarantino's media appearances include Fox New Channel's The Fox Report with Shepard Smith, CNN.com and CBS radio.  He has testified before Congress on topics including the cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the economic difficulties many returning veterans face. 

Tarantino attended the University of California Santa Barbara with a ROTC scholarship.  He graduated in 2002 with a degree in Global Studies and International Relations, and received his commission as an officer in 2003.  After 10 years of service, he left the Army as a Captain in 2007.  He currently resides in Washington, DC.