Two months after returning to Pittsburgh from a tour of duty in Iraq, police Officer Robert Zollars will ride his patrol motorcycle at the head of the Veterans Day parade through Downtown today, with his 14-year-old son Zachary seated in the side car.

But Officer Zollars, a corporal in the Pennsylvania National Guard's 56th Stryker Brigade, emphasizes that he's only one of dozens of military veterans among the ranks of the Pittsburgh Police Bureau, including many who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"I'm just glad to be back home," he said yesterday in the parking lot of the West End police station, home of the city motorcycle unit. "I missed my job."

Several officers from the unit will join the parade today. Lt. Joseph Tersak, a supervisor, recommended that Officer Zollars ride at the front.

A native of the North Side, Officer Zollars, 42, joined the Army in the late 1980s, becoming a member of the honor guard that carries caskets and folds flags during funeral services at Arlington National Cemetery.

He was sent to Germany during the first Gulf War in 1990-91, but Operation Desert Storm ended before his unit could be deployed to the Middle East. After his time with the Army had ended, he became a Pittsburgh police officer in 1993.

Officer Zollars maintained an interest in military service. He decided to join the National Guard in 2006, when many soldiers were being forced to serve extended tours as the fighting in Iraq intensified and the Bush administration contemplated a "surge" of troops to stabilize the situation.

"I just got tired of watching these guys get 'stop-lossed,' " he said, referring to the military's practice of extending service time.

After training in Mississippi and Louisiana last year, Officer Zollars deployed to Iraq in January. His unit was stationed at a sprawling military base in Taji, north of Baghdad.

As a corporal, he commanded a Stryker combat vehicle. Almost every day, he and a group of soldiers went on patrols "outside the wire" of their home base.

One of Officer Zollars' worst moments in Iraq involved news from the homefront. On April 4, a fellow police officer serving in the military told him that a gunman had shot and killed three officers in Stanton Heights.

Officer Zollars had been friends with one of the victims, Officer Eric G. Kelly.

"That was a punch in the gut," he said. "You knew how far away you were and you felt helpless."

Officer Zollars returned to Pittsburgh in September, and he spent several weeks "decompressing," spending time with his wife and two children.

During the officer's time away, his older son, Thompson, 20, had decided to also join the Guard. A student at Pitt, he's now in the Reserve Officer Training Corps.

Officer Zollars has another three years remaining in his Guard service. He doesn't know if he'll have to deploy again to Iraq or possibly Afghanistan.

In the meantime, he's thrilled to be back at work. He returned to the police bureau last week.

"I have the best job in the world," he said. "I get to ride a motorcycle every day and go out and help people."

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