PRESERVING A MILITARY LEGACY FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS
The following Reflection represents 1LT Al Bedrosian Jr.’s legacy of their military service from 1968 to 1970. If you are a Veteran, consider preserving a record of your own military service, including your memories and photographs, on Togetherweserved.com (TWS), the leading archive of living military history. The Service Reflections is an easy-to-complete self-interview, located on your TWS Military Service Page, which enables you to remember key people and events from your military service and the impact they made on your life.
What memorabilia/souvenirs have you kept from your military service? What special meaning do these have for you?:
Broken Glass
It took place in anticipation of an IG inspection of our AIT (Advanced Individual Training) barracks Fort Dix, New Jersey back in 1968. I d been in the Army for only eight weeks, having recently completed basic training.
As was typical on every IG Inspection, the latrines always got the most attention–the sinks, the showers, the shi**ters (toilets), the floor. Our DI (Drill Instructor) pointed out that one of the latrine windows was cracked. He then looked directly at me and said, See that window private . . . get it fixed, and do it quickly! Repairing a broken window without proper tools and equipment, and with no replacement window, I was left standing there thinking, I m screwed.
The next morning, before the bugler could belt out Reveille , I had already been awake for over an hour nervously going over my options. It then hit me like a bolt of lightning. Also at that moment, I thought of my friend Larry, a guy I met in basic and, luckily for me, he had been assigned to my inspection team. What was even better, Larry loved the Army and at that moment, I did too.
The plan was hatched. Over the next several days, we managed to procure (Army term for pilfer ) a putty knife, a can of putty, razor blades, and a couple of other items from the battalion supply room. How we gained entry will be a topic for another time.
Dressed in our green military fatigues and tee shirts, we took on the persona of two overworked grunts who had been tasked with a crappy assignment. Like two undercover operatives, we placed our procured equipment in a burlap sack and made our way to another company s latrine. We proceeded directly to the first-floor latrine and casually pried away at the window frame to remove what was a virtually pristine pane of glass. All during this time, Larry and I were interrupted by curious trainees coming over to watch us work. Ironically, not one of them ever asked us why we were there or what we were doing. Our charade had been a success.
Following the inspection, Larry, me and the other guys on our team received no accolades for our ingenuity. The closest we came to any recognition was when our DI shook my hand, gave me a quick wink, and commented, Nice job private, you re going to do fine in the Army . I just smiled back.
I kept a very small piece of glass from that cracked window as a souvenir from that experience to remind me of a lesson I learned early in my military training; be creative, think on your feet, and execute your plan without trepidation. Sadly, in 1970, while I was stationed down in the Mekong Delta, my friend Larry was killed in a firefight up in II Corps just three months before his DEROS date. He will always remain an inspiration to me.
Former USA Lieutenant Al Bedrosian
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