Barb Woodruff has always been enthralled by two things in particular: basketball and the armed services. The Warrenton girls basketball coach says the two challenges have their similarities. She is …
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Barb Woodruff has always been enthralled by two things in particular: basketball and the armed services. The Warrenton girls basketball coach says the two challenges have their similarities. She is most attracted to the adrenaline rush that each offers. "During high school I was always intrigued with the military," said Woodruff. "It's something that's always been in the back of my mind." It's why Woodruff might have an easier time transitioning into a stint overseas that she is about to embark on. For the past five weeks, Woodruff has been enjoying her first love - basketball. On Friday she will coach her last game of the season. By this time next week Woodruff will be tending to wounded soldiers in the back of a C-130 airplane. It's part of fulfilling a lifelong desire to serve her country. But it won't be the first time Woodruff has entered the line of fire to offer aid to injured troops. She was called to duty in Iraq during 2003 with just one day's notice. This time, the progress has gone much smoother, with more preparation time. Woodruff knew prior to the school year that she would be leaving at the semester break. She opted to coach the first several games of the season, before turning the program over to assistant coaches Mike Twiehaus and Andrea Hawkins. "I'm leaving the program in very good hands," said Woodruff. "It would be difficult for me to leave if I were leaving the team in disarray. I know they will finish on a positive note." Woodruff will spend the next several months as an air medic technician. She expects to return in early June. "I'm going to miss the girls," said Woodruff. "They're my borrowed daughters, and I adore each and every one of them. Even after they graduate I consider them family." Woodruff, who also teaches physical education and health, has been head coach at Warrenton since the 2001-02 season. She grew up in Galt, a small town in north central Missouri. Woodruff starred on the Grundy County basketball team and went on to play at what is now North Central Missouri College in Trenton. Woodruff also played ball at Graceland College, where she received her degree in physical education and health. She began her career as a head coach at Richland High School in 1986. Woodruff then spent four years at Skyline High School, before pursuing an opportunity to join the armed services. "There was an opportunity that came up to talk with a recruiter," said Woodruff. "Next thing I knew I was headed to Fort Jackson, S.C." She spent 10 weeks training to become a combat medic at Fort Sam Houston in Texas. Woodruff returned to Missouri in 1995, where she took over as girls basketball coach at Highland High School. She moved to St. Louis in 2000 and began her job at Warrenton the following year. This will be Woodruff's second journey into enemy territory. She served in Iraq, Qatar and Kyrgyzstan among others during the spring of 2003. Woodruff received a phone call that she would deploy the very next day. She coached the Warriors to a district win, then immediately left the comfort of everyday freedoms. Woodruff says the greatest risks are the uncontrollable factors she faces. "When you get into the back of a plane for a mission, you never know what is going to happen," said Woodruff. "So much of it is out of my control, so I just focus on the work I do with my patients." Woodruff says she hopes to treat as few soldiers as possible, as that would indicate Operation Enduring Freedom is going well. Woodruff's crew will be responsible for treating the wounded while they are being transported by air to a stationary care facility. She likens the trips into enemy territory to a down-to-the-wire basketball game. "You get that adrenaline pumping and that fight-or-flight instinct kicks in," said Woodruff. She says only a few months on duty can change her life forever. "When I see a young soldier hurt, it really puts life into perspective," said Woodruff. "It makes me feel lucky to have such a wonderful job and family. When you see that, it sort of intensifies how much we take things for granted." Woodruff plans to return to Warrenton in time for summer camps. She witnessed the team pick up its first win of the season during last Wednesday's seventh-place at the St. Dominic Tournament.