After asking the crowd of people attending the Drill Sergeant Hall of Fame ceremony to stand up if they've went through U.S. Army Basic Combat Training, retired 1st Sgt. Leonard M. Hutton
pauses for a second before asking his next question.
"Now, if you do not remember your drill sergeant, sit down," he said. No one moved an inch.
"When I was a drill sergeant leader I did this with all my students," he said. "The point in the demonstration is to show how important the drill sergeant is."
Hutton, along with Command Sgt. Maj. Blaine Huston and retired 1st Sgt. Thriso Hamilton Jr. were inducted into the U.S. Army Drill Sergeant Association's Drill Sergeant Hall of Fame Sept. 9 at Fort Jackson, joining eight other members.
The drill sergeant hall of fame was created to honor current and former drill sergeants as well as other individuals who have made significant contributions that have impacted the drill sergeant program.
The hall of fame was created in 2014.
"I'm sure a lot of us can remember that one drill sergeant that did nothing but cuss and scream at you, but somewhere in the group was the one who taught you how to be a Soldier, that taught you the skills you needed to have," Hutton said.
The one in the group for Huston helped him escape being "recycled."
In his speech, Huston mentioned how his drill sergeant took some time to help him with shooting his rifle.
"I couldn't shoot that rifle. I had put so much pressure on myself and one day he came up to me and asked do I chew gum," Huston said. "I said 'I used to drill sergeant because you know it's not authorized in basic training.' He said 'Do you like big red? Would you like a piece?' And he gave me one then said 'Now let's relax and shoot some targets.'"
Huston said he believes if his drill sergeant didn't take that moment to talk to him about the targets, he would have not been able to start a career in the Army.
Huston said his drill sergeant was "like a father."
Hamilton proposed during the ceremony that the way to give drill sergeant candidates a better understanding of what a drill sergeant really is to use the winner of Drill Sergeant of the Year competition.
"We should give the drill sergeants a prepackaged briefing to go out into the force a couple times of year and provide the facts of being a drill sergeant to non-commissioned officers to help them make
the decision," he said.
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