I got my next assignment, Shaw AFB South Carolina. Fell in there with a HUGE
crowd of other Christians. Met my wife, Becky, there. She used to
be in the Air Force. She was one of the huge crowd.
In South Carolina they had this house that was actually a Christian ministry
to the military at Shaw AFB and nearby Ft. Jackson. It was called "Victory
Ranch".
It was this gigantic house with a big lake and a dog named Heidie who caught
Frisbees. Way out in the middle of the woods in near Columbia SC.
My guitar playing was getting pretty descent and I started playing guitar
there on Saturday nights when we would have a song time and a speaker who'd
give a sermon.
And, no kidding, we'd have 50 people there on a Saturday night. These would
be us permanent party Air Force people from Shaw but the majority would be
Army folks going through AIT at Ft. Jackson who'd get weekend passes and
come out to the ranch.
This was a way of life for me for three years. Every weekend going out to
Victory Ranch. Playing guitar. Hanging out with all the other Christians.
(And there was a pack of us. Well, I say "pack". I literally mean
around 20 of us. All in the Air Force from different squadrons. All of us
around the same age. Male and female too. Matter of fact, in 1987 seven
couples of us all got married to each other within the same year. This
includes Me and Becky. We got married March 21st 1987. But I'm getting ahead
of myself.)
I got to go on some pretty wild TDY's while I was at Shaw. In 1984 I spent
three months in Honduras. (Made $5,000 in hazardous duty pay and per diem
and all that for going down there. Came back to the states and bought me
a Toyota Corolla with that money.)
In 1985 I went for another three months to Saudi Arabia. (Had a good time
over there. Got to go swimming in the Persian Gulf. Had a house boy from
Sri Lanka who cleaned the place up and did my laundry.)
But I have no pictures.
Well, my four years was up. My decision was to get out. At Victory Ranch
there had been students from the local
Columbia
Bible College who would come out to do evangelism work and I got to meet
a bunch of them out there.
At the time, I thought that was just the place for me. Columbia Bible College.
I filled out the forms and took the SAT again and applied. Whatta ya know,
I got accepted.
In December 1985 I was honorably discharged from the Air Force. Lived out at Victory Ranch for a month. Then started class at Columbia Bible College in January.