Stories

In 1992, after my second tour in Turkey, I made sure that I was reassigned to the 82nd Airborne. I made master sergeant while I was there and was looking forward to being a first sergeant of a rifle company. The 3rd Brigade command sergeant major, I forget his name, assigned me to my old battalion, the 2nd Battalion of the 505th, in a slot in the S2 intelligence shop while I waited for a company to open up.

When Charlie Company's first sergeant was fired, I was promoted to first sergeant by COL Dan K. McNeill, a guy I had known since I was a private. I was delighted to be going to Charlie; It was my first company as a private, and it was where I began my platoon sergeant time before my first tour of Turkey in 1984.

I was very successful as the top sergeant in Charlie, maybe too successful. Captain Casey Griffith and I had the company running like a fine watch and led the battalion in all metrics. I was having a blast teaching 110 paratroopers to be solid parachute infantrymen.

About a year later, I was told to report to the battalion commander, LTC Lloyd Austin. He told me that he needed his strongest first sergeant in HHC and asked if I would consider being the guy. I didn't want to, but I agreed, being the Gunga Din that I always taught my troopers to be—all for the regiment.

I gave up my dream job to be the "first shirt" for 220 scouts, mortarmen, clerks, drivers, mechanics, medics, and cooks. Honestly, when I got there, I was overwhelmed. The guy before me, who everyone loved, had no systems in place—no SOPs for operation, no file system, nothing. My good company commander, McMahan, who was keeping the company afloat, was on the way out, and the captain I was getting, Doug Hendy, was weak.

About three weeks into this job, I got a call from a medic whom I didn't know, calling from Fort Sam Houston. He had just reported to the Basic NCO Course and had failed the army height and weight test. He was being sent home. This was huge. I had seen this happen to other first sergeants. The commanding general had given them all a 2-star letter of reprimand placed in their permanent file.

This was career-ending stuff.

I called the battalion sergeant major, Henry Behr, who called the new brigade CSM, Frank Mantia. Both told me there was nothing they could do for me.

When the young sergeant returned the next day, I did the smartest thing I could have done. I weighed and taped him myself and then took him to be taped by the Brigade School NCO, the designated expert. Both tests showed him underweight.

The inevitable call came the next day. I reported to the division sergeant major, Steve Slocum. CSM Slocum had been my battalion sergeant major when I was the scout platoon sergeant, just before England. He didn't like me and I didn't like him. I thought my proverbial goose was certainly cooked.

He asked me what happened. I explained that I was new in the company and didn't even know the kid had a school slot. I explained that the medics had weighed and taped him before he left and that the Brigade School NCO had accepted that instead of taping the medic himself. I showed him my test results and the Brigade School NCO's. Lastly, I told him that it was ultimately my responsibility and my fault.

He told me to see him again the next day.

The next day, he asked me what I had done since this happened. I told him that I added schools to my daily platoon sergeant meeting and added a schools status board to my office wall. I would now weigh and tape anyone going to a school myself. I had words with the medic platoon sergeant and the Battalion School NCO, and I had shared my system and lessons learned with the other first sergeants.

He said, "If it happens again, I assume you know that your career is done."

He gave me a local reprimand, signed by him, which he said he would keep in his desk in case he needed it in the future.

I was shocked. I expected him to hammer me for all the times I refused to do his bidding or crossed him. It was an honorable thing to do.

I had survived.

Note: I firmly believe that CSM Slocum kept me from making the CSM list when I was in the academy. He sat on that selection board, and that is the only possible reason that I can imagine. I should thank him. Not making CSM set me on the path to my second career at VMI.