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Army Reflections

Service Reflections of SPC Justin Olson U.S. Army (2003-2006)

Service Reflections of SPC Justin Olson U.S. Army (2003-2006)

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I joined after September 11th after the two towers fell. I wanted to be a pilot. There were no current positions, so I was going to be an aircraft mechanic. There were also no positions, so I was offered the 63 Alpha Abrams system maintainer main battle tank mechanic position. I said, “But that’s the opposite; tanks are heavy. Aircraft are light.” I was told the main battle tank had the same AGT 1500 turbine engine as the Blackhawk helicopter. I was told I could double mosQ to aircraft engines after 3 years, and that’s the first people that I would look to for pilots. So I looked at it like a six-year-goal. My military career didn’t quite pan out that way. I went to Fort Knox, Kentucky, for unique training for five and a half months, then 2 weeks of hometown recruiting back in Utah and Ogden. I got married. I then reported for duty in December 2003 to Fort Hood, Texas, where within a short few months, I was already at the real head and leaving for Iraq, where being wounded doesn’t take mechanic would end my career. Luckily, I got to use my skills while using my post-911 GI Bill to go to college at Texas State Technical College as an aircraft mechanic, where I also got to do my initial flights. That’s not currently what I do today.

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Service Reflections of SSG Randy Cross U.S. Army (1980-1998)

Service Reflections of SSG Randy Cross U.S. Army (1980-1998)

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Initially, I had no intention of joining the military. However, right before I graduated High School, Lee Iacocca announced that Chrysler was bankrupt. There was no place in Michigan where the impact of this wasn’t felt. I lost my job in a furniture factory and was unable to find one, even at McDonalds. After a fruitless day of job hunting, an Army recruiter asked if he could talk to me. I signed up for the Army National Guard in hopes that after basic and AIT, the job market would become better. During my time in basic, I began to understand what the military was and how it served the nation. I fully intended to stay in the military, so after two months in the Guard, I enlisted to become active duty. It is a decision I have never regretted.

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Service Reflections of CPT Sam Carlson, U.S. Army (1967-2010)

Service Reflections of CPT Sam Carlson, U.S. Army (1967-2010)

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My father was a career soldier, enlisting as an Infantry Private in 1937 and retiring as a LtCol in 1963.
As an Army Brat and as far back as I can remember, joining the military was always something I had in my mind to do.
For a while, I thought that goal was out of reach since I married and had a child and was not eligible under the enlistment criteria in place at the time. With the helpful advice of an Army Recruiter in Tacoma, Washington, I found two ways to enlist. The first was to join the National Guard and, while in Basic Training, I could transfer to the Regular Army. The only other alternative was to volunteer for the draft and reclassification to 1A. Upon reclassification to 1A, I would be allowed to enlist. I visited the National Guard Armory in downtown Tacoma, Washington, and spoke with a CWO and told him what I was trying to do. He showed me his status board and advised that there was a six-month waiting list to enlist in the Guard. I opted for the Draft reclassification and wound up in Basic Combat Training about two weeks later. During my second or third week of Basic, I received a draft notice and a letter of acceptance from the CWO for enlistment in the National Guard. From the recruiter and the CWO, I learned that there is always a way to make things happen.

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Service Reflections of LTC Guy Edmondson, U.S. Army (1982-2010)

Service Reflections of LTC Guy Edmondson, U.S. Army (1982-2010)

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As a young man, I had no father figure in my life. My father passed away at the early age of 37 (I was 7 at the time). As I was entering my teenage years, my mother dated a retired Air Force Colonel who got me thinking about joining the military. I joined the ROTC Corps in high school and was mentored by a World War II veteran and a Viet Nam veteran, both retired Master Sergeants.
During my senior year in high school, my mother married the man who I consider to be my father. He pushed for me to continue my education in college. With his help, I got through college in only four and a half years. William “Chile” Childers assisted in putting my gold bars on and received my first salute. In exchange, he got a 1932 silver dollar from me.
In essence, it was not one person that influenced my decision to enter the service, It was a host of people. My high school instructors, a retired Air Force Colonel (Robert Hull) and my dad. All were equally responsible for my career.

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Service Reflections of CW3 Robert Cox Jr., U.S. Army (1958-1980)

Service Reflections of CW3 Robert Cox Jr., U.S. Army (1958-1980)

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I grew up in a family with a rich military history. My great great grandfather fought in the Civil War but never came home and is presumed dead. My grandfather Anderson was a soldier in WWI and served in France. Five uncles on both sides of the family served in WWII, three in the Army, 1 in the Navy and 1 in the Marine Corps. Two of these uncles made careers in the Air Force that continued from WWII through the Vietnam War. My father served three years in the Army from 1936 into 1939 and then again from 1944 into 1946.
As a youngster, I relished all the war stories and was old enough to keep up with all the news about the Korean War. My friends and I were always playing with toy soldiers and fighting our own wars. At an early age, I started with Cub Scouts then Boy Scouts and loved wearing the uniforms and going to all the Scout Camps. Later I joined the Cadet Division of the Civil Air Patrol keeping a fascination with things military. Perhaps it was a foregone conclusion that I would be in the military, but what branch?
One of the adult members of the Civil Air Patrol was a Texas Highway Patrolman and I became very interested in pursuing law enforcement. By this time I was becoming a senior in high school but you had to be 21 years old to apply to the Texas Department of Public Safety. The military draft was in effect at this time and I determined that the US Army had an excellent Military Police Corps. My plan was then to join the Army after school and spend three years in the Military Police to prepare me for civilian law enforcement and not have to worry about being drafted later to interfere with my goal.

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Service Reflections of COL John R. (Dick) Power, U.S. Army (1963-1992)

Service Reflections of COL John R. (Dick) Power, U.S. Army (1963-1992)

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It was straightforward. My father, a WWII veteran who left the Army as a Captain, gave me sage advice. I was about to enter my freshman year in college in 18. There was still a draft. He told me to get into the ROTC program because it was better to serve as an officer than an enlisted soldier. I would not challenge his credibility about this and so on. Unusually for an 18-year-old, I listened to my father. And went on to serve for almost 30 years and retired as a Colonel. I sure wish he had lived to see that!

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Service Reflections of SFC John Westlake, U.S. Army (1967-2010)

Service Reflections of SFC John Westlake, U.S. Army (1967-2010)

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I was influenced by a few factors. I was brought up in a patriotic New England family. I had uncles who fought in Vietnam, Korea, and WWII, and my grandfather on my mother’s side fought in WWI. I remember as a young boy going with most of them to the local Memorial Day parade. We would always stand near a bridge where the parade would stop and a wreath would be thrown into the water.
The other factor that influenced me was the 6 o’clock news. As I was growing up in the ’60s, the Vietnam War was in full swing, and the daily body count of US GI’s and Viet Cong would always be announced. I remember how it bothered me when there were more GI’s killed on any given day than VC. My mind was made up just as I started high school. I wanted to go over there and even the odds. Having grown up on a farm and already having handled rifles and shotguns, I felt I was ready.

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Service Reflections of CSM Michael Sweeney, U.S. Army (1969-1999)

Service Reflections of CSM Michael Sweeney, U.S. Army (1969-1999)

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When I turned 17 in October of 1969, I hadn’t much going for me. In fact, I had nothing going for me except trouble. I dropped out of high school in my junior year. I had not held any job longer than receiving my first paycheck. I had been arrested for grand larceny and was given the chance to leave home by joining the Army.
I was released to my father’s custody to make my decision. While talking about it with one of my friends, we decided to visit the recruiting station on our own. We signed right up for the prospect of leaving our hometown, getting away, and starting a life on our own.
We joined on the buddy basic program for training as Cooks. e enlisted on the very last day of the ’60s, 31 December 1969. It was a special ceremony, and we spent the next five days on administrative leave, then reported for basic training. I like the old cadence song I joined the Army to, “Go to war or go to jail.” Who influenced them? Well, the Judge, my friend Mike Hoyden, and my Father. Then my Dad dropped me off and told me, “This is not just another job you can quit.” I didn’t…. for 29 years and two months.

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Service Reflections of CW2 Martin Leddy, U.S. Army (1976-2010)

Service Reflections of CW2 Martin Leddy, U.S. Army (1976-2010)

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I think it was a series of events. I was influenced by having my college scholarship pulled by the school finance office because they felt my father should pay my way through school. They offered me a full ride, then pulled it before the first day of school. Frustrating.
I went home and found two part-time jobs to help out. Dad had just resigned from the Director of Technical and Vocational Ed at Illinois Central College which he helped found.
Dad had an old Army buddy who had been SF in Vietnam and who was medically retired. He had cancer and came to stay with us for a while. He and I talked a lot about opportunities. I think more than anyone, he influenced my decision to serve. He was truly a great guy.

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Service Reflections of SSG Michael Kurtzman, U.S. Army (1971-1996)

Service Reflections of SSG Michael Kurtzman, U.S. Army (1971-1996)

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My first look at the military was with an Air National Guard Unit in Mansfield, Ohio. It looked very promising and in an area that interested me (computer programming). They showed me the computer and how it requires to be programmed (wires). But the reason that I didn’t choose to go this route was that they wanted me to cut my hair (still attending OSU) just for a photo. It was still over six months until I would enter basic. I couldn’t let my hair go.
The military draft lottery drawing held August 5, 1971, to determine the order in which men born in 1952 were called to report for induction into the military.
The highest lottery number called for this group (year) was 95; all men assigned that lottery number or any lower number, and who were classified 1-A or 1-A-O (available for military service), were called to report for possible induction. My draft number was 17. I was also classified as 1-A.
26 August 1971 I signed my enlistment contract for delayed entry into the US Army. I enlisted for four years which got me my choice of military occupational specialty (MOS) and where I wanted to be stationed. My choice for MOS was communications, specifically Communication center specialist. My choice of where I was to be located was Europe. It also meant that I entered active duty as an E-2.

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Service Reflections of SSG Clentis D. Turnbow, U.S. Army (1962-1982)

Service Reflections of SSG Clentis D. Turnbow, U.S. Army (1962-1982)

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Family members who served in the Army had the greatest influence on me. My brother, Bill Turnbow, my uncle, Stanley Scott, and another uncle, Leland Scott, all served in the Army. I was from a small town in southwest Kentucky called Hickman, and there wasn’t much opportunity for a young man there, so I had pretty much decided I was going in the Army after school. Four days after getting out of high school, one of my best friends decided he was going to enlist in the Navy. He wanted me to go with him, and even though I really didn’t want to go in the Navy, he finally talked me into it. The Navy recruiter was from our hometown, so we went to see him. On May 29th, 1962 Eddie Cagle and I were on a Greyhound bus headed to Memphis, Tennessee for our physicals.

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