LIVERMORE FALLS – Army Reserve Capt. Andy Love of Livermore is happy to be back with family but constantly thinks about his military family still in Iraq.

Love returned to his family Oct. 15 after eight months in southern Iraq.

The company commander is a member of the U.S. Army Reserve’s 619th Transportation Company in Auburn. The unit transports cargo and supplies within Iraq in armored vehicles.

On Tuesday, Love, who has served 11 years in the military and is still on active duty but doesn’t have to return to Iraq, attended a veterans program.

His daughter, Brianna Love, a fourth-grader at Livermore Elementary School, was in the audience.

Before arriving home after leaving Iraq Oct. 1, Love spent some time in Germany and Fort Drum in New York.

It was an “awesome” reunion with his family, including his wife, Amy, daughters Brianna and Monica, and son Nicholas, Love said.

“It’s amazing,” he said.

“I definitely miss my family,” he said. “Some of my soldiers are still over there, and I wish I was with them because soldiers are your family as well. The military as a whole are doing good things over there. Schools are being built. Children are being able to go to school that weren’t able to before, especially girls. They got clean drinking water in areas they haven’t had it before.”

People there are not as afraid as they were before, Love said.

He spoke to some Iraqis who said “they were very glad we were there.”

“I’ve heard from reports that the economy is getting better,” Love said.

People should keep supporting American troops over there, he said.

“It means a lot to guys to receive things from home and know that American people are behind them,” Love said.