This is a little home coming ceremony at an airport somewhere in New York State the day that we returned from the Persian Gulf. It was a really neat thing to have a band there playing for us for a change. It was a surprise for both us and the guys in this band, to see people with whom we went throught the school of music. They let some of us sit in to play "The All-American Soldier" (82nd Airborne Division's March).

This is a picture of me and Julio Matos in Saudi Arabia practicing. Matos is from Puerto Rico, and didn't know English when he joined the Army. He is an intelligent and determined person though, and learned English quickly and was able to work his way into the Army Band. Matos was what we called an "OJT" (on the job trainee). He was originally in a different kind of unit (I believe he was an engineer if memory serves) and had auditioned for the 82nd Airborne Division Band at Fort Bragg. He is a very talented musician and I understand that he went on to attend the school of music, and not only reclassified as an Army Bandsmen, but also attained what is called a "Charlie 1 identifier" which means he is damn good and can serve in one of the "Special Bands" (one of the really good bands). The 82nd Airborne Division band has a much higher than average percentage of OJT's due largely to the fact that EVERYONE in the 82nd Airborne Division has to be a paratrooper, even the band.

(Me, home for Christmas from the school of music, 1989) My Army Band career has at least 1 odd aspect now that I can look back upon it. When I joined the Army I had to talk my dad into signing a waiver so that I could join before I was 18. He didn't much want to do it because of some losses he had experienced during Vietnam. He had been close to 3 of his cousins which were brothers that grew up in the Balsam area over in Jackson Co, NC. One of them was killed during the Tet offenses, another returned and died soon after from cancer, which is believed to be as a result of exposure to agent orange. The third is alive and well, but he also served in Vietnam. I laughed at my dad and told him "Look, I'm joining the Army band, what can possibly happen to me?". Then, as I got nearer to graduating the school of music, I got my orders to report to Fort Hood, Texas to be stationed in 1 of the 2 bands on that post. I wasn't happy about that because I had wanted to be stationed near home and had been "promised" the band at Fort Jackson, SC, by my recruiter.  Hah! What a home-body. In order to stay close to home, I only had one option which was presented to me by one of my drill-sergeants at the school of music, who was a former member of the 82nd Airborne Division Band. That option was to sign Airborne Volunteer papers and I would, without a doubt, be re-routed to Fort Bragg, NC. That really wasn't a good reason to go Airborne, but I wouldn't change a thing. I learned a great deal. My Dad about had a cow when he heard about that. "They're always sending those guys somewhere" he told me. Still, I maintained, "for goodness sake, I'm still in the band, what could possibly happen to me there?" Well, about 4 months later I was 8,000 miles from home in 140 degree weather, which really wasn't much worse than 102 degrees at Fort Bragg, it was just the 500,000 Iraqis across the border that kind of made it interesting.

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