Widow courage: I wanted to show he was my hero

THE slow march of coffins through Wootton Bassett has become a familiar sight as the war in Afghanistan takes its terrible toll.

Afghan war widow Christina Schmid Afghan war widow Christina Schmid

Staff Sergeant Olaf Schmid of the Royal Logistic Corps, killed while attempting to dismantle a bomb, was the 224th British soldier to die and it has become a tradition for families and ordinary folk to line the Wiltshire town’s main street in tearful tribute.

There was, however, something markedly different about the latest homecoming. As the 30-year-old’s body was borne by his best army mates, a striking blonde began applauding at the moment the cortege reached her. Then a broad smile lit her face and she gave a thumbs-up.

The bravery of Sgt Schmid’s widow Christina is one of the most powerful images from the war. Wearing her husband’s medals and ornamental Commando dagger alongside her poppy, she was suffering a multitude of emotions. Yet it was her determination not to be defeated by grief which shone through on this darkest of days.

Christina applauds as the body of her husband Olaf comes home Christina applauds as the body of her husband, Olaf, comes home

“I was overjoyed to have him home on english soil,” says Christina. “I wanted to show that he was my hero.

I was so proud of him that I was beam- ing but afterwards when all the cameras were gone I cried so much that I didn’t have an ounce of make-up left.

“My stoicism was my way of showing him respect. It was always a joke between us that he trained with the Commandos but I was harder. We shared the Commando spirit and nothing was going to break that.” her final gesture was to place two red roses on her husband’s coffin.

Deep down the 34-year-old had feared all along that he might suffer this fate. For any soldier serving in Afghanistan death is never far away but Olaf’s job exposed him more than most. he was a “high threat operator”, among a group of elite bomb disposal experts selected to defuse the most dangerous devices planted by the Taliban. he’d previously made 64 bombs safe, potentially saving the lives of countless comrades.

Christina, who has a son, Laird, from a previous relationship, had known Olaf since childhood but they fell in love four years ago and were married two years ago in Winchester.

Because of his army duties they didn’t have time for a proper honeymoon and afterwards were often apart.

During their precious time together, the possibility of his luck running out was something that Christina and her husband – known as Oz – discussed.

“We laughed and joked about it, not to trivialise it but we had to be aware of it,” she says. “There was pressure to make the most of the time we had and we never wasted time arguing. he loved cooking and we’d go off trek- king, sailing and camping.

“We crammed so much into our time together but I feel cheated that all our plans have been taken away. I also feel angry on his behalf that  everything he hoped for going into his 30s has been taken away.”

The couple, who lived in army quarters near Winchester, were due to exchange contracts on a home in two weeks but were already dreaming of moving to Cornwall where he grew up.

“We just wanted a quiet life with Laird and our dog. We wanted to be near the sea and rear chickens,” says Christina. “We were truly the best of friends.”

They’d also spoken about repatriation to Wootton Bassett, the nearest town to RAF Lyneham, the arrival base for the remains of the fallen.

While her husband was away on the front line Christina regularly attended informal ceremonies for other victims.

“I always stood on the same spot, on a raised bit of concrete because I’m quite short,” she says. “every time I dreaded that one day I’d be on the other side of the road where they always place the families.

“We didn’t dwell on it but Oz said that if he was killed he’d love me to watch him come back. he said: ‘You’d better bloody be there for me. I expect you to have your head held high.’ I didn’t want to let him down.”

The death of Sgt Schmid has added poignancy because his five-month tour of duty was due to end this week- end.

Olaf had planned his leave around Laird’s sixth birthday in a little over a week’s time. They would also have visited Olaf’s new niece Agnes, born three weeks ago. his widow reveals that they’d also spoken about having their own children. Although Olaf treated Laird as his own and was adored by the little boy, they wanted a bigger family.

“Absolutely my biggest regret, which is overwhelming me now, is that we put it off,” says Christina. “We both wanted a big family – at least two or three more kids – and Oz was keen to start trying but I said we couldn’t risk it while he was serving in Afghanistan. I would never have tried to stop him doing his job, though.” Olaf joined the army from school aged 16 and spent 10 years training to be an elite bomb disposal expert.

However Christina says he’d begun to feel guilty about leaving his wife and stepson at home while he carried out such dangerous work. he’d been considering taking a step back and going into a training role.

When the knock came at her front door on Saturday night Christina was tucking her son up in bed. She looked out of the window to see officials arriving and her heart sank.

“Laird thought it was his dad com- ing home,” says Christina, an account manager for a pharmaceutical company. “I knew what it was about and at first I wouldn’t answer the door. It was Laird who ran down. Oz was on his last active day before the tour ended and as the hours passed on Saturday I’d thought we were home free.”

Olaf and Christina had last spoken two days before his death when they’d chatted about how much he was looking forward to getting home. Christina doesn’t want to be drawn into a debate about whether our troops should be pulled out of Afghanistan.

“I have my own views but it’s not the right time. Oz’s view was that he was in Afghanistan to preserve life and not destroy it.

“It’s difficult to express my feelings about those who killed him but I do believe that anyone who plants these bombs is a murderer.

Since he died the army has been brilliant but I worry about the future. I want to try to be as positive as I can. My life and Laird’s life will go on but at the moment all  I can see is a black void.”

Olaf’s parents were from Germany and Sweden but moved to england to open a restaurant in Truro, Cornwall, where he was born. Despite his continental roots, Olaf considered himself ‘My stoicism was my way of showing him respect’

‘He said: I expect you to have your head held high’ “a true Cornishman”. His father Hans died two years ago but his mother Barbara and brothers Torben and Greg still live in the area. It was the death of Hans, and Christina’s mother suffering a stroke at about the same time, that prompted Olaf to propose on a beach in his beloved Cornwall.

Had he lived, he and Christina would have spent time there during his forth- coming rest period, when they planned to begin pinpointing an area where they would one day settle for good.

Olaf was a former chorister at Truro Cathedral, where it’s expected a memorial service will take place  following a full military funeral. He was educated at Polwhele House Pre-Prep School, and later Penair comprehensive school, both in Truro.

Sgt Schmid’s army superiors paid tribute this week. Major Tim Gould, one of his commanding officers, described him as a man of extreme courage who revelled in the most challenging and dangerous environments.

“In all my time in the army I have never met, nor am I ever likely to meet, a man like Staff Sergeant Schmid again; he truly was a once in a generation phenomenon.”

There’s talk of an honour for Sgt Schmid to go with the medals his widow pinned to her black dress and yester- day a letter of sympathy from the Queen arrived at Christina’s home. She says: “I will frame it and hang it high.”

Another letter she cherishes is one from Olaf to Laird in which he explains his reasons for being in Afghanistan.

He wrote: “Hopefully the people over here will have a better life because we are here. Must go. I really miss you Laird. Look after Mummy.”

Christina says: “Laird has never known another father and as he grows older I will do everything to keep Oz’s memory alive. There will be pictures everywhere and we will celebrate his life each year. Laird will know what a fantastic father he had. I will make sure of that.”

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