Military Myths & Legends: Can You Be Too Rich for Military Service?

One old urban legend that invariably finds its way into the barracks is the story about a friend of a friend (of a friend) who hit a lottery jackpot. When he finally got to pocket the massive sum of prize money, he also received an unexpected surprise: his separation paperwork.

Having too much money, the story goes, makes it unlikely that a soldier, sailor, airman, or Marine will have any inclination to do their job, follow orders or even show up for work. This means the military has an unspoken policy of giving its suddenly wealthy troops the boot. 

In a way, such a policy would make sense. In other ways, people don’t join the service solely because they need a job or career training. Some people join the military to serve their country because they believe in the mission of the armed forces or because it's an answer to a call of duty. No amount of money could replace that call to service.

Does being rich suddenly make people unfit for military service? No. Will the military kick them out anyway? No to that as well, with one caveat: the military might prefer if they separated, but it won’t force its troops out. 

Military personnel have won big in the past. In 2016, a Coast Guard officer won $1 million in a Powerball drawing. A soldier from Fort Bragg won $2 million later that year. In 2017, another soldier won $5 million with a scratch-off ticket. Did they leave the military? Only one chose to leave the military. One served until retirement, and the other, Andrew Norberg, is still serving in the Coast Guard. 

The soldier that won $5 million and chose his discharge papers was able to do so through a clause in his enlistment contract that allowed for a discharge under “unique circumstances.” The clause allows military members to voluntarily separate if it's in the best interest of their branch of service. 

Departments of the Army, Navy, and Air Force regulations all have provisions for voluntary separation in the best interests of the branch, and the Marine Corps and Space Force will have them, too, being housed under the Navy and Air Force, respectively. 

No matter how a service member comes into their newfound wealth, be it through Powerball winning, gambling in Las Vegas, or finding the lost Nazi train full of gold, they will all be offered the same choice: to stay in their original enlistment or commission or take a voluntary separation in the best interests of their branch of service. 

Never has a service member been shown the door to the civilian world just for having a bit of good luck on lottery night.