Richard
02-24-2009, 11:01
FYI - Jerry is a retired LTC and former 10th SFG Officer who writes these weekly pieces for our local papers to give those who don't know an idea of what some of their neighbors are quietly doing and why. He also writes about those FOGs like George Petrie, one of the Son Tay Raid's Blue Boy element leaders who lives in nearby Greenville. :lifter
Richard's $.02 :munchin
Active and Reserve Force—Both All-Volunteer
Jerry Hogan
Many of the Soldiers from our area who have been deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan are part of the active Army. They are volunteers who have either enlisted in the service, or been commissioned as an officer through West Point or ROTC. They have generally committed a minimum of four years of their life to being in the military. Some continue in the service after their initial obligation is up and some leave to go on to a civilian job. But all of them are volunteers and they make up part of the All-Volunteer Army.
There is another group of volunteers that also make up part of the Army. These are the Soldiers from the Reserve and National Guard units. These men and women generally work in a civilian job within their community, but spend many of their weekends and part of their summers training as Soldiers. Most of them have served on active duty but upon their discharge have made the decision to maintain their military ties by joining one of the Reserve or Guard units. They too are deployed to combat zones like Afghanistan and Iraq.
Brennan Wallace has served in both the Active component and the Reserves. His story helps explain why men and women continue to be part of the military even after their initial obligation has been fulfilled.
Brennan grew up in Dallas and graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in 1995. Knowing that money was tight as his father was a non-denominational pastor, Brennan started at the age of 16 to prepare to earn an appointment to West Point. As he said, “My parent’s didn’t have much money and were not going to be able to put me through college, so I knew I had to find my own way.”
Receiving an appointment to West Point from Congressman Sam Johnson, Brennan left Dallas after graduating from high school and started his military career. Four years later he completed his schooling at West Point and was graduated as a second Lieutenant in the Armor Branch of the US Army. First it was to Fort Knox, Kentucky, where he learned how to command a Platoon of Tanks, and then an assignment to Fort Hood, Texas. And for the next three years he was an officer in the 1st Cavalry Division where he learned the skills and tactics of Armor on the battlefield.
Promoted to Captain in late 2002, it was back to Fort Knox for additional training. Once finished, he again headed back to Fort Hood, this time being assigned as the junior officer in the III Corps Plans shop. In January of 2004 the Corps headquarters deployed to Iraq where Captain Wallace was located on Victory Base adjacent to Baghdad International Airport. Thirteen and a half months later, his deployment was up and it was back to the States.
With his obligation of service completed, Captain Wallace was released from the Army in April of 2005. As he said, “I got off of active duty because I was tired and needed a break. I had been in the military system for 10 years including my college years and I think I wanted to experience something different in life for a while. I can tell you now that the grass is always greener on the other side!”
While initially going into the Inactive Ready Reserve (no drills, no summer camp, just available for recall in an emergency), after almost three years, he converted to the Drilling Reserve and started once again being back in the military. Why? Here’s what he said: “I came back for several reasons. I missed the service. I missed wearing the uniform and being a part of something greater than myself. I missed the structure and commitment that people have within the Army. I am an engineer by occupation and thought I could lend some expertise to the Reserves.”
Like many Reservists, it is not always possible to belong to a unit in the town where you live as “personnel assignments” for your particular skill may not be available. Thus, while Captain Wallace lived in Austin, his reserve unit was located in Houston. In April of last year he took command of a Reserve Engineer Company and commuted between the two cities. Shortly after he was placed in command, the unit was alerted for mobilization and deployment to either Iraq or Afghanistan. As Captain Wallace explains, “It became very apparent that I was not going to be able to mobilize my company and have a civilian job too, so I was placed on active orders in July and took a two year leave of absence from my civilian job in Austin.”
I asked him the differences he saw in the active Army and the Reserves. “On active duty, all of your resources, support, and Soldiers are right there on the military installation. If you need to get something done, you execute. In the Reserves it’s all about planning and fighting to get resources. You have a massive amount of requirements and not enough time or personnel to get it all done. The funding is there for deploying units, but it’s a bureaucracy and difficult to get anything quick. In addition, I have had 72 Soldiers from Toledo, Ohio, assigned to my unit when we deploy to fill my personnel shortages. Another 24 Soldiers from Pittsburg, Pa, have been assigned to a unit that I have attached to me for deployment. Thus I am responsible for mobilizing and deploying 211 Soldiers from 4 different locations across the US to include all of their associated equipment.
The Army Reserve is really a very interesting animal. In many units reserve Soldiers do their military job as a civilian. In those cases, they can provide a better quality of service than an active duty unit as that is the only job they have performed. Like the All-Volunteer Army, the reserve Soldier is there because he wants to be; his motivation definitely overcomes inexperience on some Army tasks. About 70 percent of my Soldiers have been deployed at least once to Afghanistan or Iraq. About a quarter of this group have been deployed at least twice.
When I asked Captain Wallace what he would tell a person thinking about coming into the service, his answer was pretty clear: “I would tell someone that was thinking about joining the service that it’s an excellent life experience. It isn’t always fun. It sucks sometimes, but you have so much opportunity to travel, see the world, work with different people, learn skills, learn things about yourself, and be part of a team that exists for something greater than yourself. I have a lot of pride in the fact that I serve my country, and encourage everyone to do the same. The benefits are really great too. Thirty days of leave each year, free medical and dental care, educational assistance, and the ability to travel are only a few of these extra incentives.”
So here is another example of a young man from our area who received his education through the Army, spent a little over six years on active duty, left the service, and then came back once again because of missing “being a part of something greater than myself.” What an endorsement on the men and women who are protecting us, our values, and our way of life. I hope you appreciate what they are doing for us, our family, and our friends. Please tell them “thank you” when you have the chance.
Richard's $.02 :munchin
Active and Reserve Force—Both All-Volunteer
Jerry Hogan
Many of the Soldiers from our area who have been deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan are part of the active Army. They are volunteers who have either enlisted in the service, or been commissioned as an officer through West Point or ROTC. They have generally committed a minimum of four years of their life to being in the military. Some continue in the service after their initial obligation is up and some leave to go on to a civilian job. But all of them are volunteers and they make up part of the All-Volunteer Army.
There is another group of volunteers that also make up part of the Army. These are the Soldiers from the Reserve and National Guard units. These men and women generally work in a civilian job within their community, but spend many of their weekends and part of their summers training as Soldiers. Most of them have served on active duty but upon their discharge have made the decision to maintain their military ties by joining one of the Reserve or Guard units. They too are deployed to combat zones like Afghanistan and Iraq.
Brennan Wallace has served in both the Active component and the Reserves. His story helps explain why men and women continue to be part of the military even after their initial obligation has been fulfilled.
Brennan grew up in Dallas and graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in 1995. Knowing that money was tight as his father was a non-denominational pastor, Brennan started at the age of 16 to prepare to earn an appointment to West Point. As he said, “My parent’s didn’t have much money and were not going to be able to put me through college, so I knew I had to find my own way.”
Receiving an appointment to West Point from Congressman Sam Johnson, Brennan left Dallas after graduating from high school and started his military career. Four years later he completed his schooling at West Point and was graduated as a second Lieutenant in the Armor Branch of the US Army. First it was to Fort Knox, Kentucky, where he learned how to command a Platoon of Tanks, and then an assignment to Fort Hood, Texas. And for the next three years he was an officer in the 1st Cavalry Division where he learned the skills and tactics of Armor on the battlefield.
Promoted to Captain in late 2002, it was back to Fort Knox for additional training. Once finished, he again headed back to Fort Hood, this time being assigned as the junior officer in the III Corps Plans shop. In January of 2004 the Corps headquarters deployed to Iraq where Captain Wallace was located on Victory Base adjacent to Baghdad International Airport. Thirteen and a half months later, his deployment was up and it was back to the States.
With his obligation of service completed, Captain Wallace was released from the Army in April of 2005. As he said, “I got off of active duty because I was tired and needed a break. I had been in the military system for 10 years including my college years and I think I wanted to experience something different in life for a while. I can tell you now that the grass is always greener on the other side!”
While initially going into the Inactive Ready Reserve (no drills, no summer camp, just available for recall in an emergency), after almost three years, he converted to the Drilling Reserve and started once again being back in the military. Why? Here’s what he said: “I came back for several reasons. I missed the service. I missed wearing the uniform and being a part of something greater than myself. I missed the structure and commitment that people have within the Army. I am an engineer by occupation and thought I could lend some expertise to the Reserves.”
Like many Reservists, it is not always possible to belong to a unit in the town where you live as “personnel assignments” for your particular skill may not be available. Thus, while Captain Wallace lived in Austin, his reserve unit was located in Houston. In April of last year he took command of a Reserve Engineer Company and commuted between the two cities. Shortly after he was placed in command, the unit was alerted for mobilization and deployment to either Iraq or Afghanistan. As Captain Wallace explains, “It became very apparent that I was not going to be able to mobilize my company and have a civilian job too, so I was placed on active orders in July and took a two year leave of absence from my civilian job in Austin.”
I asked him the differences he saw in the active Army and the Reserves. “On active duty, all of your resources, support, and Soldiers are right there on the military installation. If you need to get something done, you execute. In the Reserves it’s all about planning and fighting to get resources. You have a massive amount of requirements and not enough time or personnel to get it all done. The funding is there for deploying units, but it’s a bureaucracy and difficult to get anything quick. In addition, I have had 72 Soldiers from Toledo, Ohio, assigned to my unit when we deploy to fill my personnel shortages. Another 24 Soldiers from Pittsburg, Pa, have been assigned to a unit that I have attached to me for deployment. Thus I am responsible for mobilizing and deploying 211 Soldiers from 4 different locations across the US to include all of their associated equipment.
The Army Reserve is really a very interesting animal. In many units reserve Soldiers do their military job as a civilian. In those cases, they can provide a better quality of service than an active duty unit as that is the only job they have performed. Like the All-Volunteer Army, the reserve Soldier is there because he wants to be; his motivation definitely overcomes inexperience on some Army tasks. About 70 percent of my Soldiers have been deployed at least once to Afghanistan or Iraq. About a quarter of this group have been deployed at least twice.
When I asked Captain Wallace what he would tell a person thinking about coming into the service, his answer was pretty clear: “I would tell someone that was thinking about joining the service that it’s an excellent life experience. It isn’t always fun. It sucks sometimes, but you have so much opportunity to travel, see the world, work with different people, learn skills, learn things about yourself, and be part of a team that exists for something greater than yourself. I have a lot of pride in the fact that I serve my country, and encourage everyone to do the same. The benefits are really great too. Thirty days of leave each year, free medical and dental care, educational assistance, and the ability to travel are only a few of these extra incentives.”
So here is another example of a young man from our area who received his education through the Army, spent a little over six years on active duty, left the service, and then came back once again because of missing “being a part of something greater than myself.” What an endorsement on the men and women who are protecting us, our values, and our way of life. I hope you appreciate what they are doing for us, our family, and our friends. Please tell them “thank you” when you have the chance.