BY CHRISTOPHER DELA CRUZ
Star-Ledger Staff

After a year serving the National Guard in Qatar, Afghanistan, and Kuwait, Rosa Barillas was ready to go home. On the day of her scheduled departure from the main Baghram base in Afghanistan, a loud explosion shook the entire facility.

"I was excited, I was going to go home," said Barillas. "And all of a sudden, 'Boom!' And I'm talking about the biggest boom I've heard since I've been there. And then I hear a loud voice, 'Everybody get your weapon!'"

A suicide bomber struck at the main gate in an attempt to target Vice President Dick Cheney, who was making a brief visit. Armed soldiers rushed the doors to protect the base as doctors hurried to treat the wounded, many of them American and allied soldiers. Despite the brush with danger, Barillas re turned home and resumed her studies at Middlesex County College with aspirations of becoming an on-field military nurse.

Barillas, 28, will join more than 1,000 students graduating from Middlesex County College today at 10 a.m. The Guatemala-native will receive an associate degree in health science with plans for additional studies for a career in nursing, but she didn't always feel hopeful about her future.

READ MORE: http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/middlesex/index.ssf?/base/news-3/1211431070318780.xml&coll=1

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