Page 34 - A Soldiers Exposition

A SOLDIER

As it turned out, deciding to add a year would be eventful and important. It opened the door for this poor,
uneducated boy to become a soldier, and an officer who served twenty- two years as a proud member of
The United States Army.

The Army offered all the basics:

a. Money
b. Food
c. Clothing
d. Shelter
e. Education
f. And, the all-important escape from poverty.

My service began on 11 August 1967, and as mentioned above:

The Vietnam War was in full swing.

After basic training at Fort Lewis, I was transferred to Fort Ord, California. I was close to home; the
weather was nice. No more Washington rain. I had chosen my MOS, and I was on my way to Europe,
not Vietnam.

Little did I know, Advanced Individual Training (AIT) at Ford Ord, was more than learning how to be a
supply clerk, my chosen MOS.

The training included two weeks of Republic of Vietnam (RVN) training. All soldiers regardless of MOS
were required to undergo the RVN training in case they were needed on an “as-needed” basis for service
in Vietnam.

Fifteen weeks after that airplane ride, I was no longer a recruit. I was a soldier.
I was granted a fourteen-day leave. I went home. Things were not as I had left them. I had changed, I
was a soldier. I had direction and goals. I was no longer the uncertain person of the past.

I was recalled after only six days. On arrival back at Fort Ord we were told we would be shipping out for
Vietnam in five days, and that we were not allowed to call home. What! We had agreed to that additional
year – Europe, not Viet Nam. We had chosen (what we had been told) a “safe” MOS and was
guaranteed Europe. How could the Army possibly be doing this? There had to be a mistake.

Perhaps the most important education we received during AIT was “the government always has an out”,
and “Other Duties as Assigned” would follow us every step of the way.

We got lucky. As it turned out, one of the guys in our unit just happened to be the grandson of a state
congressman. He broke the rule, called grandpa, and we were soon told our next duty assignment would
be in Germany.