I graduated from high school in June 1965, a couple of grades behind my same age friends. I was born on Dec. 23, 1945, which puts you in a class of friends who could be an entire year older. My mother thought me a bit slow in school, although it was because of my interest in everything other than normal!
Once out of high school I applied to the University of Delaware and got turned down. I worked all summer long and by September I received my draft notice inviting me to come to the Philadelphia induction center. I was talking to one of the chaps gathering information and I mentioned wanting to join the Air Force -- maybe get stationed in the UK and not Vietnam. I’d already lost three friends there and wasn’t interested in getting sent there. He said, “How about Germany?” and I immediately said OK! Turned out I’d quickly gone from a two-year draftee to a 48-month enlistee! Later that day I was on a train to Columbia, S.C., and Fort Jackson for basic.
We started out in GP tents on platforms but later got barracks. Basic training was fairly easy, all the basic stuff because they wanted as many trained quickly for the buildup for Vietnam. Towards the end I came down with pneumonia, spent a week or so in the infirmary and then shipped home in time for Christmas.
On Jan. 4, I shipped out to Fort Sill for Artillery training. I’d spend the next 10 months there waiting for orders to Germany. I got educated in the finer points of manning a 105mm howitzer, then assigned to a Little John missile outfit, a month as a guard at the local stockade and got my first Article 15 -- busted from PFC to E2, loss of pay and restricted to post all for a for a 5 mph speeding ticket in Lawton, Okla.
Interestingly, I was offered both OCS and Warrant Officer flight school, which I turned down. Both would have guaranteed a trip to Vietnam..
In November 1966 I went home on leave and on Dec. 12 shipped out to Germany. I was assigned to the 6th Battalion 9th Artillery unit in Giessen, Germany, a 175mm self-propelled gun outfit. I was assigned to the FDC section and over time got promoted to E5, head of Headquarters FDC.
By the spring of 1969, I started to look forward to coming home for the first time in almost three years and reapplied to the University of Delaware for an early out. I was accepted and rotated home in July just in time for Woodstock and the moon landing. I was no longer a soldier but absolutely loved my time in Germany. I’ve been back a couple of times, still have friends over there and have great memories of my time in the Army. I now tell people when asked about where I went to school I say I went to four years and graduated from the U.S. Army. I’m a veteran of the Vietnam era, came home with no PTSD and am getting ready to celebrate my 80th birthday in December.
A greater education could never have been had.
.
