I enlisted in October 1963 and arrived at Ft. Leanord Wood for basic training.

We were in our seventh week, I believe, and it was time for bayonet training. We were using M-14's and marched out to a training field early in the morning. Many of us were excited as we had seen lots of movies where soldiers from the Revolution on used those long knives to subdue their foes. After some demonstrations we paired off and begun practicing the moves.

A couple of hours later and a smoke break "light 'em if you got 'em" we were quickly called into formation and told that President Kennedy had been shot. We then went back to trying to master the moves. I said to my buddy that "they must be really serious about bayonet training to fire us up with something like that."

Shortly thereafter, we were called back into formation, told the President was dead and marched back to the billets. Training stopped for two days and on two occasions we were assembled in class A uniforms for official announcements that the Commander in Chief was dead.

Rumors, of course, flew as US Forces around the world were put on alert. In retrospect, as I stood in formation with four training units and looked down the rows of soldiers in dress I was witnessing the future cadres who would form the nucleus of our army in Vietnam.

It was a powerful moment then, and is now.