REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. -- Family legacy. Opportunity. Helping others.
Those were the themes shared with more than 600 7th and 8th grade students at Buckhorn Middle School on Nov. 9 when Soldiers from the Aviation and Missile Command spoke about what it means to serve in the military. Beginning with AMCOM Command Sgt. Maj. Glen Vela and Maj. Jennifer Guerrero, the day of presentations included stories of heroism, duty and selfless sacrifice along with a bit of Army culture.
Vela, a helicopter crew chief, and Guerrero, a maintenance officer, both spoke of their family legacy of military service. Vela remembers as a boy hearing war stories from this four uncles, who all served in Vietnam. Guerrero, who grew up as the only daughter in a family with three sons, followed her brothers into military service.
The two talked about their deployments, shared helmets and other military equipment with the students, and mentioned the working relationship between officers and enlisted Soldiers. While officers make policy, it's the enlisted Soldiers who follow and enforce policy, Vela said.
"If we don't make a good team, then, as an officer, I fail because the Soldiers look to Command Sgt. Maj. Vela for guidance. So, if we aren't a team, then I fail," Guerrero said.
They shared several aviation helmets and equipment with the students along with a Stetson hat worn as part of the uniform of the Army's cavalry Soldiers.
"They use to use these hats to give their horses water," said Vela, who has served in the 1st Cavalry Division at Fort Hood, Texas. "My Stetson is a legacy hat from those days. You always used your Stetson to give your horse water first and then you got water. Today, they are worn for parades, ceremonies and formals."
In the second session, Sgt. First Class David Matthews paired with Sgt. First Class Jonathan Grover to test a few students and Buckhorn teacher and program organizer Rusty Hughes on how to do Army pushups. The two Soldiers then demonstrated a few self-defense moves.
At the age of 54 and with 36-years of military service, Matthews is one of the oldest Soldiers in the Army. His son also serves and is stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C.
"I love the Army," said Matthews, who is a military police officer. "I've been sent to several different schools for training, I have no college debt and it's been a great opportunity … We both like being Soldiers. Being in the military is an honorable thing."
They called the Army a "big melting pot," where Soldiers build camaraderie with others from different walks of life and different circumstances. They also mentioned travel opportunities, rank structure, and training that tests a Soldier's physical and mental capabilities so that they know how to cope if they get captured by the enemy.
Matthews and Grover queried students about what it takes to be a good Soldier. Answers included strong work ethic, fierce, friendly, dedicated, brave, trustworthy and being a "good shot with a projectile weapon."
"The better you do in school, the better job you can have in the Army," Matthews said.
"Being a good student, being a good person and being physically fit are all important to serving in the military … Prepare early just like you prepare for your education and you'll do well. Preparation is the key. That's why the Army trains all the time. With a lot of training, tasks become muscle memory and then Soldiers don't have to think about it. They just react."
Grover, a Black Hawk helicopter crew chief with 850 flying hours, talked about his responsibilities while flying a mission and the differences between the Army's helicopters.
"A Black Hawk costs $12 million but a Chinook is more expensive," he said, answering a student's question. "A Black Hawk can fly 18,000 feet. I've been up to 13,000."
In the day's third session, Maj. Curt Schultheis and First Sgt. Lee Dalton, who work together to lead AMCOM Headquarters and Headquarters Co., schooled the students on how to yell the Army "Hooah!" They talked about the Army experience.
"Joining the Army is the best thing that I did in my life," Dalton said. "It has taught me a lot of things. I decided from the beginning that I was going to push myself to the limit and see how far that is."
He told the students about airborne training, the Army's training missions and deploying with the 82nd Airborne to Iraq.
Jumping out of an airplane "was the most crazy, intense thing this small town boy had ever done," he said, and defending freedom in Iraq with "show of force" is an experience Dalton will never forget. Dalton said the camaraderie he built with his battle buddies made him understand why veterans like his grandfather enjoy reunions with their Army units.
"To me, Veterans Day is about all the stuff our forefathers have done to allow us to do what we do today," Dalton said. "It recognizes what happened in the past to prepare us for the future … It's about a brotherhood. It's a celebration of what past veterans have done for us and to reflect on what our country has done for us and what our country has done for other countries."
Dalton was asked by one student about what he thinks about women in the military.
"There are women Soldiers out there who have put me to shame in PT (physical training)," he said. "I'm proud to stand beside a Soldier that's better than me."
In another session, Master Sgt. James Eastman and Sgt. First Class Cameron Evergin took the students through a few physical training warm-up exercises.
Eastman told the students about his grandfather, who served as a Marine on an island in the Pacific during World War II. Eastman's Army career as a paratrooper, field artilleryman and air defense artilleryman is something he dreamed about since the age of six. Evergin told them he viewed the Army as an escape from the rough neighborhood where he grew up. The Army offered a lot to a kid who liked guns and military equipment, and who had a strong need to protect his family.
"There were not many opportunities to get out of that neighborhood, and to see and do other things. The Army was an opportunity for me to do that," he said.
"Nothing comes easy. You have to work hard for your grades and to get where you want to go. You have to work hard, but there are rewards."
Session leaders Sgt. First Class Ryan Sims and Sgt. First Class Crystal Basham showed the students a few Army stretching exercise. They went on to tell the students they both had parents and other close relatives who have served in the military.
"I saw how they carried themselves and I wanted to be part of that," Sims said.
"I grew up around the military. I saw how much people respected the military and that's what I wanted to do," added Basham.
During his 11 years of service, Sims has deployed twice to Iraq and once to Afghanistan.
"That makes you appreciate things a lot more," he said. "And going over there with your battle buddies is what drives you. There is pride in that, and you feel the appreciation of others in the care packages and letters you receive. This is all about giving up yourself for others. It's no longer about you anymore. It's about what affect you have on others. And, it's about taking care of your family. My wife and two kids look up to me."
Basham talked about her son, who just turned 15, and how her military career has made a difference in his life.
"As a single parent, I wanted to provide a good lifestyle for him," she said. "My son has so much pride in me wearing this uniform. I don't want to let him down. I want my son to be proud of me."
But, it hasn't always been easy. When they were living in Texas, Basham deployed, leaving her son in the care of family members. His classmates embraced him during that time, and supported Basham by sending her care packages.
"Little things like that mean so much to us. I knew my son had a good support system there at his school because of the letters they would send me," Basham said.
Sims recalled a trip back home from Iraq for the birth of his son when he was a 22-year-old Soldier. After only a few days at home, he had to get back on an airplane to return to his unit. While he was waiting in the airport, a stranger thanked him for his service.
"I was feeling pretty down. I knew I was going back for nine more months and I just had a baby and I was leaving my wife," he said. "That 'Thank you' lifted my spirits. It made me remember it's not all about me. I raised my head, and I was able to go back to Iraq with my head held high and finish those nine months.
"It's never about us as Soldiers. It's about protecting you all. We don't want the fight to come here. That's why we make sacrifices."
Sims and Basham were asked if they had ever lost a friend in combat. Both said all Soldiers have lost someone in the war of the last 10-plus years.
"As Soldiers, that's the risk we accept. Some make it back. Some don't. In the end, we are all brothers and sisters, and when they don't come back that's part of my family," Basham said.
The risk is the reason training is so important, Sims said.
"You train how you fight. There are difficult, long days of training. You do a lot of things that you probably don't want to do. It's going to be hard, it's going to be rigorous so that the end result is that combat is a little easier for us," he said.
In the last session of the day, the students ran in place to cadence with the help of Sgt. First Class Fualole Gaston, Sgt. First Class Kellisea Thompson, and Staff Sgt. Sherrie Wooten.
"I appreciate everything I do for my country, and also for my family, for my child, for all of you guys," Gaston told the students. "Our job is to protect our country. It makes us appreciate what we have in our country. As a Soldier, you learn to appreciate the little things. Military service makes me appreciate the freedom I have and the freedom that you have."
Thompson, who was raised in Jamaica, has wanted to be a Soldier ever since she was a little girl. She deployed to Afghanistan in 2011.
"I was very nervous. But I also want the experience of deployment," said Thompson, who works in Human Resources. "Every Veterans Day, I hear the stories from veterans. I wanted to have my own Army story, one that people could come up to me and I could share my own Army story with them.
"I enjoy what I do as a Soldier. I've learned so much. I've encountered good people. I am very thankful for what I've become."
As a chaplain's assistant, Wooten is the "eyes and ears for the commander," providing input on Soldier morale and supporting Soldiers in their faith. She is also trained to carry a weapon to protect a unit's chaplain, who is a non-combatant.
"I don't shoot for one. I shoot for two," she said of her job in protecting a unit's chaplain. "When I put on this uniform, I think about my father and about my husband (both veterans), and I think about all of you."
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