MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

‘Get a razor!’

Ft. Dix, N.J. April 1968 – As a 19-year-old draftee, I found myself two weeks into the Army and being..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

‘There’s a bloody road ahead’

After being drafted in 1951, my first stop was Ft. Sheridan, Chicago. We were being issued uniforms, clothing, shots, etc.,..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

A risky demonstration

On a bright, sunny, spring morning in 1950 at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, 120 of us..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

How to report to an officer

It was late January 1970 at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas. We Airmen were standing in line outside..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Snow watch

I reported to Naval Station Great Lakes in December 1963. Being from Jacksonville, Fla., I had never seen snow in..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

The white glove ‘test’

At Naval Station Great Lakes in December 1963, everyone in my company decided our barracks would be perfect for an..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

It pays to volunteer

Sometimes it IS beneficial to volunteer, even in basic training. While stationed at Lackland Air Force Base (AFB), Texas in 1964,..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Urinal rules

In August 1959 I enlisted in the Army for three years. When I got to Fort Carson, Colo., we were..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

‘Shot’ during class

My days in Boot Camp at Naval Station Great Lakes were long and filled with instruction on everything from firefighting..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

First day = all day

In December 1943 I enlisted as a young, innocent, 17-year-old in the U.S. Army Air Corps. A month later I..
2,391 views
MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Wash your own dishes!

I was drafted in 1953 at St. Louis, sent to Ft. Custer, Mich., and then to Camp Atterbury, Ind., for..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Phone call to Mom

When I went to basic training in 1970, it was the first time I was on an airplane and woudn't..
2,785 views
MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Basic combat training at Fort Leonard Wood

Basic combat training definitely pushed me beyond my comfort zone. It didn't take me long, however to realize that..
2,880 views
Hollywood encounter
MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Hollywood encounter

Drafted in 1971, we were bussed from Detroit to a barracks complex at Fort Knox, Ky., which served as home..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

‘Heavy equipment’ training

In April 1975 I enlisted in the Army. The very nice recruiter suggested after my testing that I pick combat..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

NO basic training!

The Korean outbreak started in June 1950. I was fresh out of high school and, like many young men, was..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

KP duty on Christmas

It was Christmas Eve, 1956. I had joined the Air Force in July and was stationed at Sheppard Air Force..
2,751 views
MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Good-bye, Lieutenant, a true American hero

My story will, I hope, remind people that there was a war in Korean that cost almost 37,000 American lives,..
2,681 views
MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Dad was right

Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, summer 1962. Disregarding my father’s advice to never volunteer (he, a WWII Army Air Corps..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Little drummer boy

I joined the Navy in May 1951 and was sent to the Naval Base at Newport, R.I. for 12 weeks..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Weather changes

After reading about the guys who mowed the grass at Great Lakes Naval Base in December 1945, I could not..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Guard duty and KP duty

I was drafted into the Army at 18 in my senior year of high school at Wolf Point, Mont., August,..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Homesick cured

The year was 1962. Ft. Jackson, S.C. in August seemed to be the hottest place on the face of the..
2,410 views
MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

A fast right hook

It was the summer of 1952. I was but 16, so Mom had to sign for me. I was sent..
2,350 views
MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

They don’t miss a thing

In 1966 I quit school and enlisted in the Army. I was 17 years old. I was sent to Ft...
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Big feet and babysitting

My basic training memories were at Sampson Air Force Base, N.Y., February 1954. The one moment I recall is marching..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Undeserving of stripes

I was drafted out of high school in 1949 at 18 years old and sent to Honolulu, Hawaii. We were..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Not a seamstress

If ever there was one not cut out to be a soldier, it was most probably me. Two classmates and..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Remember your password!

During the Korean War my first assignment at Ft. Dix, N.J. (16 weeks of heavy weapons) was guard..
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MEMORIES OF BASIC TRAINING

Yes, I’m from the ‘South!’

March 1951 – Due to a heavy backlog of new recruits, Flight 1014, 3703 Training Squadron, Lackland AFB, Texas ..
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