PRESERVING A MILITARY LEGACY FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS
The following Reflection represents Sgt Jack Riley’s legacy of their military service from 1966 to 1972. 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.
In what ways has serving in the military influenced the way you have approached your subsequent life and career?:
The brotherhood of the Corps!
Coming from a family where my dad and two of my brothers were veterans, my enlistment into the Marines during a time of war was what American men do. The boot camp experience at Parris Island was inspiring; it spent a lot of time teaching the history of the Corps and the legendary Marines who had served. It was not until I joined the fleet in Vietnam that I witnessed what being a Marine truly encompassed.
Men bond in war! We became a family who would and did willingly sacrifice their lives for one another. Those were Marines, where the term Valor can never fully describe their sacrifice. Some were recognized with our nation’s highest three medals. Yet others, whose Valor went undecorated, were some of our biggest heroes. One of my corpsmen, Doc Chuck Dockery, was shot 6 times, losing both legs yet saving numerous lives and never decorated.
My entire working career at NASA and as an executive for the largest aggregates company in the USA was spent utilizing not just my college education but the leadership lessons I learned as a Marine Corps NCO in the numerous battles of Vietnam.
My retirement gave me the opportunity to meet and work with MGen. Tom Jones and his Semper Fi Oddsey program for wounded service men and women being discharged from active duty. Serving as a team leader, I am able to mentor young people about achieving their goals in life. Seeing them achieve these goals is extremely rewarding for me personally.
One of my lifelong close friends from the Corps was former ACMC General Butch Neal, who served with me in Vietnam. We spent time together discussing how our military experiences directed our lives in the business world. Butch was kind enough even to let me read and comment on the draft of his now-published successful book, What Now, Lieutenant?
When Butch unexpectedly died, I was honored to meet one of the Marine officers, ACMC General Eric Smith, whom he had mentored. After 55 years, the Marine Corps recommended me for the Navy Cross. Butch was so sure of the approval he was planning on presenting me with the medal himself. Covid hit, and all the decorations came to a halt. Then Butch died. The Navy then reduced my award to the Silver Star, still more than I deserved!
Meeting General Smith at Butch’s funeral and reception at HQMC was an opportunity to tell each other how much Butch had meant to us. General Smith was such a genuine young man, and we struck up an immediate friendship. I was so surprised when he flew to Huntsville, Alabama, on Veteran’s Day to present my award. He spent far more time than expected, meeting the Gold Star families and Vietnam veterans with whom I served. We continue our communications now that he has been named our next CMC. Just this week, he recommended me as one of the veterans to include in his first Marine Corps Birthday videos.
Our Corps is in good hands!
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