Military Vets?
 

This May have been done before but I’m not sure so here we go.

With Independence Day in the USA coming up I’ve been reflecting on my military days. I met my wife in the Army (same unit) and now one of our sons is a Marine.

For me I was. UAV Pilot. I flew the Hunter UAV. Now most call them “Drones”. Back then we would have acted insulted at the word but with a few years between now and then I know it’s just a word. We did real time video and many other intel ops as well as some laser guidance. We also dropped a few things that went boom. I was honored to serve and during my time went in three combat tours. Some of my best times and memories are from the days I served. I miss many friend from then but many keep in touch.

Would love to hear from other vets in here. Hear some old stories. Learn about each other etc.


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Thanks for your service brother. I did 12 or almost 13 years in the Marines. Yep, lots of combat time. Wish I were still there with my boys most days except for being able to be here with my kids is a worthy trade off. Such divisive times out here in the real world - none of that exists in the small team environment tucked away in the mountains days away from home. At least not in my experience. We didn't care about each other's skin color, political beliefs or religious philosophy. We cared about each other unconditionally in full acceptance of our faults. We relied on exceptional training, faith in each other, reliable recon and our own moral values.

First and foremost THANK YOU TO YOU and Your FAMILY for your Service I am not a Vet, but My 5th generation Grandfather Francis Letts served in the NJ Militia Middlesex County Regiment as a Corporal under Captain Morgan from the beginning to the end of the Revolutionary War. Also my Grandfather Nels J Petersen a Danish Immigrant came to the US when he was 3 in the early 1900's @ WW I He enlisted at Fort Slocum NY and was sent to Siberia to protect the Rail Road and was assigned to the 27th Infantry known as the Wolfhounds from July 1919 -1920 I remember one of his encounters as he told me They were Stationed in Box Cars as their sleeping quarters and also defending themselves from the Bolsheviks charging at them on horseback while being in the Box Car

The Transport list with my Grandfathers name to Russia Nels J Petersen

20 years in the Air Force as an Electrical/Environmental technician. Started on B-1Bs then onto C-17s and saw the world; I even reenlisted in Antarctica. I retired from the AF 7 years ago and I'm still doing electrical work. I miss it but it taught me a lot and a trade that's still going. Thank you fellow service members and fellow Net54er's!

I did 23 years in the Air Force. Entire career was as a Morse Intercept Operator/Supervisor/Superintendent. Retired in 1992 as a MSgt (E7) with my final assignment at Misawa Air Base, Japan.

I served in Biloxi, MS, Anchorage, Alaska, Clark Air Base, PI, RAF Chicksands, UK, NSA/Fort Meade, MD, Iralkion Air Station, Crete, Greece, HQ ESC, San Antonio, TX, Misawa AB, Japan.

It was a great career, I got to meet some incredible people and work with some of the finest people who ever walked the earth. I got to visit some amazing places and lived within the culture of most of the overseas sites.

I've been retired for 28 years now and there hasn't been a day where I wasn't ready to go back. The bad guys, for the most part, quit using High Frequency Morse communications but I'm adapt at using the equipment to intercept and analyze the various communion modes in use today. I'm old now, almost 70, and couldn't run the requisite distances but I'd give it my best try.

USAF 1984-1994 Telecommunications and Data Installation and Maintenance AFSC 362X4. Served at Torrejon AB Spain, Blytheville AFB AR and Kirkland AFB NM. Best years of my life and would enlist today if given the opportunity. I love my country and my Flag..

I remember my Mom sending me packs of Topps cards through the mail while I was in the army in Viet Nam and opening them up in the jungle in '67.

We don't normally talk about the care packages and letters so cool story. Any little piece of home is highly beneficial. Even in modern war zones it can take a long time to get "snail mail". I would sometimes spend six weeks forward and couldn't wait to get back to a hand written letter. Never got cards though - that would have been cool. Thank you for your service.

Getting newspaper clippings of box scores in the mail was the best. My mom used to send the standings and such and tell me who was hot and which teams were giving my Buccos a tough time. Always loved that connection to the real world when deployed.


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Active Duty Army for 30 years. Just retired at the end of 2018, and still trying to get used to wearing regular clothes. Like others, I do miss the military, but I used up my time.

Drafted in 1968 and spent 5 1/2 months in the jungles of Viet Nam--196th Light Infantry Brigade. I remember getting care packages from home and always looking forward to munchin them home made cookies and opening tins of Sardines and sharing with my buddies!!
Thanks to all you for your service!!

Thank you all for your service👍

US Air Force, 1986-1996, Information Systems Specialist 491X1, After basic and tech school served all of my time at Soesterberg Air Base, The Netherlands. Still live over here!

I served in the U.S. Army from 1996 through 2005 with tours in S. Korea, OEF 2 and OIF 1. Proudly served as a Cavalry Scout (Recon!) and have got the stress fractures and flat feet to prove it. I’m also a fourth generation Army VFW ( veteran of a foreign war) whose forefathers ate #hit at Meuse-Argonne, the Ardennes and Rhineland, as well as in Vietnam. By far, one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life. Scouts out!

Incredible....
 

I've seen so many Vietnam movies, docs, specials but I've never seen baseball cards in the jungle Too cool!

Thanks to all that serve, have served and those who have passed RIP!

25 Years US Army _ 13A Field Artillery

Commander of HHC 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Mountain) in Afghanistan 2010-11

Dakar, Senegal Africa 2015

USA today and forever!

Peace, Mike

I spent four years as a radio operator in the Canadian army (1995 to 1999). Never saw combat or any overseas service. Fun while it lasted but decided not to make a career out of it. I do sometimes miss those days though, not sure if its because I liked the army or I liked being young.

US Air Force 1977-1981

I enlisted in the guaranteed job program. You pass all the training and you are promised a certain job. So they turned a short order cook into an air traffic controller. After Basic (Lackland AFB) and tech school (Keesler AFB) my first assignment was Eielson AFB (Fairbanks AK) I drove the ALCAN Hwy in my 1974 Datsun pick-up 1,200 miles of gravel road. I worked in the control tower also along side the FAA guys in the RAPCON.

Then two years at George AFB GCA (Victorville CA) this base is now closed.

I got out in April 1981. President Reagan fired 11,000+ FAA controllers August 1981. I was hired by the FAA in November 1981 and retired in January 2011.

Needless to say but enlisting was the best move I ever made.

Larry

6+ yrs in US Army MEDCOM.
Never deployed due to an injury.
Met my wife, who is still active duty, while stationed a Walter Reed 10yrs ago last month.

Thank you all for your service and sacrifices.

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173rd Airborne
 

I enlisted in 1969 and spent almost 3 years in the Army. I became a paratrooper and I spent a short time with the 101st Airborne, 8 months with the 82nd Airborne in Fort Bragg, and 1 1/2 years in Viet Nam with the 173rd Airborne. Some good memories, some that are not so good.

NEVER served - THANK YOU to ALL who did and are!

Had a GREAT Friend, Don Puff, who was a Comic Book & Card Dealer when I met him at a Flea Market in 1979...

He was First Marines and earned his Purple Heart fighting on Iwo Jima. He usually wouldn't talk about his Service, but sometimes he would.

One cold rainy day at the Flea Market...

Don: We sailed out of Pearl and it was still blown to Hell...

Me: What was it like?

Don: I remember the noise and the smell!

Me: Did you ever kill anyone?

Don (staring holes in me): You're goddamn right I did. They killed my friends.

Me: (What am I supposed to say to that? So I say nothing.)

We lost Don in 2015.

Rest well, my Friend! Semper Fi!

Semper Fi to all the Marines on the board

A fellow Comm Squad member. I do remember way back in the old days, the 80's, those data centers were massive and very secretive.. I always wondered what you programmers actually did..LOL..

US Air Force (1960 -1964)
 

I was a RADAR specialist stationed for 2 years at a Strategic Air Command (SAC) base in Maine which was loaded with F102 Fighter planes and B52 bombers. Those big
flying machines (B52's) have been patrolling the skies since 1952.
In the Fall of 1962, the "Big Birds" were assigned to Florida as a result of the Cuban Missile Crisis. It was awesome to see all of them take-off from our 11,000-ft runway.
And, an even more beautiful sight when all the B52's returned 2 weeks later. One of my biggest thrills was sitting in the cockpit of a B52. The cockpit's instrument panel,
(meters, switches, Radar indicators) are absolutely mind-boggling.

The last year of my four year career was at the Air Force Technical Training Center (near Champaign, Illinois) teaching RADAR electronics and systems.

Fall of 1960, San Antonio, Texas.......
" Straighten out that tie, Airman ! " :)

https://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan...rantoulafb.jpg https://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan...rceribbons.jpg


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

HAPPY 4th JULY....everyone !
https://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan...rossingeve.jpg
George Washington mustering his troops Christmas Eve 1776 at Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania


Seven miles south of where we live in Pennsylvania is the site where our Independence was first executed. Christmas Eve 1776, George Washington and
his "rag-tag" troops crossed the Delaware River on their way to Trenton (NJ). There they were victorious in the Battle of Trenton.
Prior to this event, they were losing the War to the British and the Hessians. This victory provided a momentum that carried thru to subsequent victories
in Princeton, Morristown, Monmouth, Valley Forge, Fort Ticonderoga (NY), etc. And, finally at Yorktown, VA (which ended the War).

If you are touring in Pennsylvania, visit the Museum at Washington Crossing, and the Revolutionary War Museum in Philadelphia.

Have a great Holiday weekend,

TED Z
.

Went in Army in 1982 to work as unit supply specialist but was attached to a nuclear weapons maintenance branch. Lots and lots of training. Enjoyed my enlistment an Got college paid for so it was well worth.

Very Nice Ted.

Drafted - Korean War
Stationed at WWII bombed out Port Kobe, Japan.
Moved to Ashia Airforce Base, Japan. The brightly lite launching site of paratrooper flights to Korea and returning body bags.

God bless the vets!
 

What are enough thanks for someone who keeps you and your family safe? I don't know, but this is a great chance to say thank you in an unusual setting. A football injury kept me out of Vietnam. I'm was not at all sorry about it then, and am not now. However, I do know that the military experience would have helped me in my life, assuming I had made it through, and I am sorry about that. I hope this isn't too political, but I firmly believe that there should be a universal draft for two years service to the country, military or otherwise, draftee's choice. And since this is a sports collecting board, I'll also opine that all military displays--including the National Anthem--should be reserved for more appropriate occasions than sporting events--like today! So have a wonderful Independence Day, everybody, one thing I know we can all agree on is what a wonderful country we have and how lucky we are to have had so many talented young men who chose to defend her with their lives over all these years.

Hank
 

Hi Hank,
I agree with you about the mandatory two years service. I remember that many of my comrades in the military were the results of some bad decisions, and the judge gave them the choice of 3 years in jail or 3 years in the military. I wish that was still happening.

Rick

I spent 24 years in the Navy, 4 active and 20 as a reservist. My wife says it is the best thing I ever did when I stayed in.

Service
 

Fort Meade Maryland 1979-1981. Beckett's original price guide partner Denny Eckes had a print shop and sold plastic 9 pocket sheets for cards. He would set up at the local shows and sell the price guide. Still have my copy and a T206 Checklist called "The Monster" that he sold as a booklet. I served as a Telecom for NSA.

Usn
 

Spent 10 years in the USN asa Sonar Technician. Four Years in San Diego and six on the east coast.

USAF 1988-1995. I was an aircraft electrician and environmental systems specialist. After basic training and tech school, I was at Beale AFB in CA., Keflavik NAS in Iceland, Seymour Johnson AFB in NC, and Travis AFB in CA. I loved the Air Force and planned to do 20+ years, but after watching my daughter go to kindergarten, first, second, and third grades in different schools it started to get to me. I also was very unhappy at my last duty station, so I transferred into the reserves at that point to make life easier on my family. I'm in my mid 50's now, but I sure wish I could get back out there and turn wrenches on those big tankers!

I served eight years of active duty in the Marines, the last four of which led me to Desert Storm as a T.O.W. missile operator. Topps had produced a Desert Storm baseball issue for distribution to us troops in the Middle East, but all of the office pogues got to them first!

Wow. I moved to Kobe after it was devastated in the 1995 earthquake. Its an interesting coincidence that we both saw the city after it was destroyed, only half a century or so apart and for different reasons.

The junk wax era inspired my enlistment. I was working in a small card shop until it closed in 1994. The owner, like a lot of card shop owners, just couldnt make it work.

US Navy 1994-1998. My job was Cryptologic Technician. Holed up in a locked room listening to the world. Served on USS Cape St George (CG-71). Haze gray and underway most of the time. Served in the Adriatic Sea during the Balkan civil war. Saw ports from Pearl Harbor to all over both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Made some real friendships.

When I got out in 1998, I started this hobby up again and haven't stopped since.

A big 'Thank You' to all that have served and sacrificed for this country.

Happy 4th of July

The NJ state Miltia was often used to create distractions leading up to the battle of Trenton and other battles in NJ

Nearly 10 years on The Fast Attack Submarine USS Omaha during the 80's...
Loved Every Hard Core Minute of iT!

*The Filipina Steward Saluting the North Koreans was my 1st Boss when i Arrived to the OMAHA~

He was a Peach to work fir!

This is Something that i wrote in Honor of Those
Who have Served on Black Boats:

“A Silent Life”

Woke to a new day
Climbed up topside as we pushed through the waves
You See, We lived on and under the water
No one knew we were there
Our Chaotic lives Silently kept the worlds order

A Black Boat was our home
A football field long
Punchin' holes in the ocean
Diving Deep back to where we belong

Exhilaration flowed in our blood
When the Main Ballast tanks were flood
Oooga Oooga was the beginning
“Dive Dive” echoed
Man what way to make a living

Well there was About 100 of us
Taken ta Sea on a Silent Fighting Bus
Staying on course leaving it All behind
Never telling anyone what we did
Just holding the Stories deep below in our minds

“Surface, Surface” marked our return
With Tugs in Tow
Home port was our haven
Sort of a Refuge we’ve come to know

A 100 plus was our family
Teary eyed, I’ve miss them all
A Silent Life Never Saying No
Seems like just a short time ago…

**To Those of You Who Evar Left a Loved One Behind
in Service of THiS Great Nation...
Weather it was at Home or on the Battle Field ~

"You Have my Admiration!"

Hi Sean,
Kobe was a port used to access personnel from ships by harbor craft during the war. Ships did not enter.
Where are you now? You can read the cards?
Jerry

Thank you all for your service! this is a great topic for the holiday

Much of my family has served, but good old Dad told me to go to college that served in Korea and had one grandfather in WWI and one in WWII - not to mention just about all my uncles too! so I feel very blessed

I still ended up working for DOD projects much of my life and worked at a handful of military bases including Otis/MMR on Cape Cod and watched the 101st all the time flying in and out - shaking our work trailers. I also helped with the UXO cleanups and water treatment on the base and for other bases with similar issues. That is about all I can talk about it, as it can be "Top Secret" maybe ha ha, anyways interesting stuff. I always wanted to help out, if I did not serve, I wanted to at least work in civilian roll. I did meet some great people in the military from Cape Keyes in Augusta ME, Otis, Langley and many bases on the Pacific including Alaska. Currently I work for the Army Corp and it’s really good work! Buying and selling cards is fun too!

Jimmy

Wow, that is interesting. The port is quite a bit different now from when you were there, they've built artificial islands and filled a lot of it in.

I live in Nagoya now, been in Japan for about 20 years so I can read the cards!

I'm not sure who knows but ships were anchored a mile or two out to avoid another Pearl Harbor where they were easy targets for Japanese planes.

What would be the reason to build artificial islands? Are they populated?

We have a steam locomotive being restored here at the Florida Railroad Museum. The trains are not blue.

Here I am left with black glasses and that is my dear grandmother on the right RIP>..

1979 USMC boot camp MCRD....

Air Force for 10 years.
461 = Ammo troop.
1982-1992.
Stationed in Europe for 8 years, Alamogordo New Mexico for last two years.
TDY to Wales, Scotland, Norway, Germany and Italy.
Deployed to Saudi during the first Gulf War with my F-15's from Holloman AFB.
Exited as E-5. 20MM crew chief.
Started new career in Corrections.
Still there now.....

That makes sense!

Yes, the artificial islands are populated. Kobe is just too crowded and there wasn't enough land, so they literally made more!

That is nice about the steam locomotive restoration, I'm a huge railway enthusiast!

And since we're sharing pictures (or were until they all disappeared), this is me and my dad. He served 35 years in the army and was 2 years from retirement when I joined. This was after the grad parade for my GMT (basic training).