Basic training. (Photo by Ed Sabec)
KOOL AID KID
FORT BRAGG, NORTH CAROLINA
It is September 1967. I’m 19. I’ve finished school and have a decent job.
“Fighting soldiers from the sky”
But have no car, again. I’m 1A in the draft and had my summer
“Fearless men who jump and die”
Need to depend upon Larry L to take me to work and bring me home.
“Men who mean just what they say”
Eddie S stops over. He “Whatcha doing?” Me “I don’t know, what u doing?”
“The brave men of the Green Beret”
“Supposed to start my junior year at Temple,” Eddie says, “But don’t know what to major in?” “Well I just wanted to get through the summer without being drafted” I replied. (As U.S. troop strength in South Vietnam increased, young men were drafted for service there and from a pool of approximately 27 million, the draft raised 2,215,000 men for military service in the United States, South Vietnam and elsewhere during the Vietnam War era).
“Do you want to join the Army on the buddy system?” Eddie asks me.
“And do what? Was my reply. “Go airborne” Eddie said.
“The Ballad of the Green Berets” was a number one hit for five weeks in 1966 on the Billboard Hot 100 and in fact was named Billboard’s #1 single for the year in 1966!
The U.S. Army parachute team known internationally as Golden Knights.
So we told our parents what we wanted to do and went to a recruiting office and signed the enlistment papers and were told to report on October2, 1967.
Eddie and I went back to my room at my parents and put on the turntable –
“Fighting soldiers from the sky”
“Fearless men who jump and die”
“Wait! What did he say?” I asked –“Fearless men who jump and die?” “Nah” Eddie said - “He said Fearless men who jump and TRY!” “I don’t think so” I said.
“Maybe it was Fearless men who jump for PIE?” Eddie said. It didn’t matter of course. We already enlisted and had a report date.
We reported on October 2 and took our oath to protect the United States and got on a train. We stopped in Baltimore and picked up more ‘cruits either draftees or enlisted guys. Then we made another stop in Washington, D.C. for another load of recruits before we arrived in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
We were bused from the train station to Fort Bragg which is the largest military installation in the world with more than 50,000 active duty personnel.
As we stepped off the bus the Drill Instructors started yelling at us “You’re a bug!” “Lie on your back and put your feet and arms up in the air!” “Now rollover and give me ten!” “Ten pushups!” “Now!”
I learned how to peel potatoes “The Army Way” when I had KP (Kitchen Patrol)
After learning you do what the Drill Instructors tell you to do our first stop was the Reception Station for in-processing, physical examinations and receiving our army clothes and, oh yeah, getting a buzz cut hair cut.
Our eight week of Basic Combat Training consisted of receiving instructions, practice of those instructions, exercise and testing in twenty-nine subjects.
Me wearing my dog tags in the barracks. (Photo by Eddie S)
We were “Buck Privates” with the lowest rank in the military with a military enlisted pay grade of E1 making about $99.00 a month.
Are we having fun yet? Mom would mail me packages that had Kool Aid in them as well as other goodies about once every two weeks. I would mix the Kool Aid with the water in my canteen. Thus I became known as the “Kool Aid Kid.
I’m in top and bottom left side photos and all on the right side while Eddie is in both of the second row photos as well as the left side of the third row.
Boot camp consisted of getting up at 4 am and going on long runs before breakfast. To enter the Mess Hall we had to swing ourselves on horizontal bars.
Since I was overweight I was not permitted to eat any potatoes or dessert and had to give them to those who had to gain weight.
Our training consisted of Character Guidance, First Aid, Guard Duty, weapon cleaning, and individual weapons qualification, inspections, individual tactical training, close combat training, CBN (Chemical, Biological and Nuclear), hand grenade throwing, bayonet drills, hand to hand combat and weapon qualification on the firing range.
We went on plenty of marches and our physical training included the forty yard low crawl, a run/dodge/jump course, climbing a horizontal ladder and a mile run all of which was part of our Physical Combat Proficiency Test.
The military did ask me if I wanted to go to Warrant Officer’s School because I had 20/20 vision in one eye and 20/15 vision in the other eye.
“And do what?” was my reply. “Learn to fly helicopters” they said. Since the Viet Cong were shooting them down as if it was an arcade game I said “No”.
Playing Army as a kid was fun. Being in the Army was not. When I was going through the 100 yard infiltration course I thought “What am I doing here?” My first time away from home I decided then and there I wasn’t going to jump out of any airplane. No way.
Thanksgiving meant just a few more weeks and basic would be over
I’m sixth from left top row and Eddie is fifth from right first row.
More than 200,000 young men underwent basic combat training at Fort Bragg during the period 1966 to 1970 and at the peak of the Vietnam War in 1968 Fort Bragg’s military population rose to 57,840.
Who knew North Carolina could get so cold but I’ve never been as cold as I was those two and a half days of bivouac in December 1967.
Then it was over. Carrying those sand bags I lost fifty pounds and went from 240 to 190 and a 42 inch waist to a 36 inch waist.
Now it was time for graduation. A parade, rest and relaxation before getting ready to ship out.
Eddie would be assigned to Fort Banning where he would learn to jump out of planes and I was assigned to Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas where I would receive AIT (Advanced Individual Training) to become a medic.
Basic training. (Photo by Ed Sabec)
KOOL AID KID
FORT BRAGG, NORTH CAROLINA
It is September 1967. I’m 19. I’ve finished school and have a decent job.
“Fighting soldiers from the sky”
But have no car, again. I’m 1A in the draft and had my summer
“Fearless men who jump and die”
Need to depend upon Larry L to take me to work and bring me home.
“Men who mean just what they say”
Eddie S stops over. He “Whatcha doing?” Me “I don’t know, what u doing?”
“The brave men of the Green Beret”
“Supposed to start my junior year at Temple,” Eddie says, “But don’t know what to major in?” “Well I just wanted to get through the summer without being drafted” I replied. (As U.S. troop strength in South Vietnam increased, young men were drafted for service there and from a pool of approximately 27 million, the draft raised 2,215,000 men for military service in the United States, South Vietnam and elsewhere during the Vietnam War era).
“Do you want to join the Army on the buddy system?” Eddie asks me.
“And do what? Was my reply. “Go airborne” Eddie said.
“The Ballad of the Green Berets” was a number one hit for five weeks in 1966 on the Billboard Hot 100 and in fact was named Billboard’s #1 single for the year in 1966!
The U.S. Army parachute team known internationally as Golden Knights.
So we told our parents what we wanted to do and went to a recruiting office and signed the enlistment papers and were told to report on October2, 1967.
Eddie and I went back to my room at my parents and put on the turntable –
“Fighting soldiers from the sky”
“Fearless men who jump and die”
“Wait! What did he say?” I asked –“Fearless men who jump and die?” “Nah” Eddie said - “He said Fearless men who jump and TRY!” “I don’t think so” I said.
“Maybe it was Fearless men who jump for PIE?” Eddie said. It didn’t matter of course. We already enlisted and had a report date.
We reported on October 2 and took our oath to protect the United States and got on a train. We stopped in Baltimore and picked up more ‘cruits either draftees or enlisted guys. Then we made another stop in Washington, D.C. for another load of recruits before we arrived in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
We were bused from the train station to Fort Bragg which is the largest military installation in the world with more than 50,000 active duty personnel.
As we stepped off the bus the Drill Instructors started yelling at us “You’re a bug!” “Lie on your back and put your feet and arms up in the air!” “Now rollover and give me ten!” “Ten pushups!” “Now!”
I learned how to peel potatoes “The Army Way” when I had KP (Kitchen Patrol)
After learning you do what the Drill Instructors tell you to do our first stop was the Reception Station for in-processing, physical examinations and receiving our army clothes and, oh yeah, getting a buzz cut hair cut.
Our eight week of Basic Combat Training consisted of receiving instructions, practice of those instructions, exercise and testing in twenty-nine subjects.
Me wearing my dog tags in the barracks. (Photo by Eddie S)
We were “Buck Privates” with the lowest rank in the military with a military enlisted pay grade of E1 making about $99.00 a month.
Are we having fun yet? Mom would mail me packages that had Kool Aid in them as well as other goodies about once every two weeks. I would mix the Kool Aid with the water in my canteen. Thus I became known as the “Kool Aid Kid.
I’m in top and bottom left side photos and all on the right side while Eddie is in both of the second row photos as well as the left side of the third row.
Boot camp consisted of getting up at 4 am and going on long runs before breakfast. To enter the Mess Hall we had to swing ourselves on horizontal bars.
Since I was overweight I was not permitted to eat any potatoes or dessert and had to give them to those who had to gain weight.
Our training consisted of Character Guidance, First Aid, Guard Duty, weapon cleaning, and individual weapons qualification, inspections, individual tactical training, close combat training, CBN (Chemical, Biological and Nuclear), hand grenade throwing, bayonet drills, hand to hand combat and weapon qualification on the firing range.
We went on plenty of marches and our physical training included the forty yard low crawl, a run/dodge/jump course, climbing a horizontal ladder and a mile run all of which was part of our Physical Combat Proficiency Test.
The military did ask me if I wanted to go to Warrant Officer’s School because I had 20/20 vision in one eye and 20/15 vision in the other eye.
“And do what?” was my reply. “Learn to fly helicopters” they said. Since the Viet Cong were shooting them down as if it was an arcade game I said “No”.
Playing Army as a kid was fun. Being in the Army was not. When I was going through the 100 yard infiltration course I thought “What am I doing here?” My first time away from home I decided then and there I wasn’t going to jump out of any airplane. No way.
Thanksgiving meant just a few more weeks and basic would be over
I’m sixth from left top row and Eddie is fifth from right first row.
More than 200,000 young men underwent basic combat training at Fort Bragg during the period 1966 to 1970 and at the peak of the Vietnam War in 1968 Fort Bragg’s military population rose to 57,840.
Who knew North Carolina could get so cold but I’ve never been as cold as I was those two and a half days of bivouac in December 1967.
Then it was over. Carrying those sand bags I lost fifty pounds and went from 240 to 190 and a 42 inch waist to a 36 inch waist.
Now it was time for graduation. A parade, rest and relaxation before getting ready to ship out.
Eddie would be assigned to Fort Banning where he would learn to jump out of planes and I was assigned to Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas where I would receive AIT (Advanced Individual Training) to become a medic.