ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:
Personally, there is no individual I am more thankful to for being in my life than my wife, Ann, who is also my “best friend”. Since we first met in high school she has been very supportive of me even when I turned down a path she did not support or understand. But it was through her friendship while we were in high school that I was led to understand the need for God in my life. And it has been her love, support and encouragement through the many years of our relationship, notwithstanding my actions and idiosyncrasies, that have helped me develop a firm foundation for my life over the past 47 (1971-2018) years of marriage. On 19 June 1971 we started our life together and The Basic School was the beginnng of our life travels through the Marine Corps.
FRIENDS:
Members of the USNA Class of 1971
Jim Zumwalt - son of Adm Zumwalt, the CNO
John Westmoreland - nephew of Gen Westmoreland
Best Moment There were many memories from The Basic School - TBS. Many of my TBS Class were from the Class of 1971 at the Naval Academy. And many of them had opted for the Marine Air option and would be heading to Pensacola for flight training following TBS. While the Naval Academy offered its own unique view of being an officer, The Basic School like Parris Island made you understand the importance of being a Marine and part of a team. Whether in the field for an exercise, on the parade field or in the classroom, teamwork is the thread that binds the Marine Corps “band of brothers” together. As with all organizations there are outliers that will be weeded out. But those that remain are semper fidelis.
As graduation neared from TBS we were asked to submit our MOS and duty-station preferences. But when we received our MOS and duty station assignments this was an event that offered everyone an emotional rush. For each of us this was truly the beginning of our Marine Corps career as Officers. I had anticipated that my enlisted Combat Engineer 1345 MOS would lead to being assigned a 1302 (Construction Engineer Officer) or 1303 (Heavy Equipment Officer) MOS – similar to Lt. Bob Shoff therefore I made 1303 my last choice. However, because I did want to stay with tracked vehicles I put Tanks (MOS 1802) and Amphibian Tractors (MOS 1803) as my first and second choices respectively. For my duty-station choice I put Camp Lejuene, NC, Camp Pendleton, CA and Twenty-Nine Palms, CA as my choices. However, it appears that those who made the MOS assignments took a look at my 1345 MOS and the fact that I graduated from the “Boat School” and with a smile on their face they assigned an 1803 MOS – Amphibian Tractor Officer. But I was truly shocked when I saw my Duty Station as Kaneohe Marine Corps Air Station, Hawaii with the Delta Company, 3rd Amphibian Tractor Battalion, First Marine Brigade.
For me there were 11 Marines from my TBS Class who were assigned to Hawaii, but I was the only one assigned to the Amphibian Tractor Unit with the First Marine Brigade. Being assigned an 1803 MOS and given orders for a 3-year accompanied tour with Delta Company, 3rd Amphibian Tractor Battalion, First Marine Brigade at Kaneohe Marine Corps Air Station, HI was more than I could have asked for. Ann was extremely happy with our future duty station when I gave her the good news. However, for both of us the move so far away from family and friends would be an adjustment. Although we did anticipate that we would have the opportunity to be entertaining a number of friends and family over the next 3 years. I had only been west of the Mississippi twice once was in 1958 when our family drove from Indiana to Texas to take my brother to SMU in Dallas, and a second time in 1965 when I reported aboard at Camp Pendleton, CA to join the 9th Engineer Battalion. Our move to Hawaii was bound to be a real adventure.
Worst Moment There were many field exercises at The Basic School that taught us the “art of war”. Tactics, command and control, weapons, planning, etc., but then there was the Night Compass Exercise that was not a friendly event for me or many others. I did okay meaning I did not get lost, but I did not come out exactly where my coordinates said I was supposed to come out. I was only a few “stakes” away from my designated destination, but I could see where I was supposed to be when my problem was completed. In my opinion I passed the exercise because it was “close enough for government work”. But at the same time the future infantry officers that I knew were highly irritated when some of them missed their final compass destination by only 1 “stake”. Also, in a similar fashion as at ITR when training at Camp Geiger and while with other Marine Corps organizations, there was the infamous command inside the gas filled chamber of “take off your mask”. Fortunately, because we were officers, we were given a minor but important modification to our gas chamber experience. Unlike my enlisted gas chamber experience we did not get the command to “take off your mask and start singing the Marine Corps Hymn with gusto”. But in all cases, you cannot hold your breath long enough or cover yours eye completely to avoid the impact of the tear gas.
Instructors Commanding Officer, The Basic School - Col. George W. Smith, USMC Company Commander, First Basic Class of 1972 - Major John S. Sirotniok, USMC
Other Memories Having just gotten married on 19 June 1971, and after our honeymoon at Hilton Head (only a stones’ throw from Parris Island) we moved to the thriving Virginia metropolis of Triangle, VA. Triangle is just outside the Quantico Marine Base Main Gate. Ann and I moved into the Belleau Wood Apartment complex just down the road from the infamous Drussilla Hotel. TBS convened on 28 July 1971, and our Class graduated on 9 February 1972. We were fortunate to know several couples whose Marine was in my TBS Class, many of whom were in my Class at the Naval Academy. Also, several members of my TBS Class had moved into the Belleau Wood Apartments. These friendships allowed for both a special relationship as well as a practical transportation solution for many of us who lived at Bellow Wood and only had one vehicle. However, following TBS we all went our separate ways throughout the Marine Corps family.
Any of our live fire events were more than impressive. Our 3.5 Rocket Launcher demonstration and training allowed us to fire at a car “donated” by Major Sirotniok our Company’s Commanding Officer. In addition, we went to the Rifle Range and the Pistol Range. Unlike my experience at Parris Island where I was a Rifle Marksman, at TBS I was an Expert in both the Rifle and the .45 Cal. pistol. I would later use my pistol shooting skills in Okinawa where I was on our Company’s Championship Pistol Team as well as winning the individual Pistol Competition for the 1st Amphibian Tractor Battalion. Another interesting event was the night live fire demonstration. What a show of Marine Corps firepower. It brought a lot of “ooo’s” and “aaah’s” from the audience.
A Marine who was in my TBS Class who I did not know at the time because the Platoons in our TBS Class were organized alphabetically was Mike Boyce. (In 2016 Mike was elected as the Chairman of the Cobb County, Georgia County Commission.) In July 2012 I met Mike at a Johnson Ferry Baptist Church 4th of July Concert. We were both wearing our Dress Blue uniforms and that common bond brought us together. After a short conversation we discovered out TBS connection. Through additional discussion Mike offered to help me get back in touch with the Veterans Administration concerning my diabetes and the possible impact of Agent Orange. He noted that the VA had changed its position about Agent Orange after a class action filing in the 1990’s. The VA had denied me medical assistance when I received my Medical Discharge in 1977 because my diabetes was “not service related”. In 1977 the Government was not taking any responsibility for diseases that were later linked to exposure to Agent Orange. As an enlisted Marine and a heavy equipment operator in Vietnam I tell folks that I enjoyed “playing in the dirt too much”. After 10 months from August 2012 to May 2013 the VA completed its evaluation of my exposure to Agent Orange and identified my diabetes and my heart problems as being Agent Orange induced.
