Cpl Dennis F. 2188142 <div class="images-v2-count-0"></div> 2016-12-25T14:12:41-05:00 Cpl Dennis F. 2188142

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2016-12-25T14:12:41-05:00 2016-12-25T14:12:41-05:00 SFC George Smith 2188150

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>most interesting... <br />I still talk and in fact see troops I have known as many as 35 years... <br />Many of My Civilian Friends go back 50 years + to the Days out Fathers were in RVN at the same time... we still do Birthdays and Holidays as family....<br />2 of the &quot;Rat &quot; Team Chiefs I had in Okinawa on the 80 Live close and we do dinner at asian restaurants every 2-3 months...<br />there are others we still talk on the Phone and exchange cards...

2016-12-25T14:20:27-05:00 2016-12-25T14:20:27-05:00 PO3 Michael James 2188157

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Cpl Fresch, Sir; Met my wife after fulfilling my Military obligation, she has been my loyal friend and partner for .. 41 years now... I do have one friend (civilian) of 27 years.. I used to work with, and we still stay in touch... Although, I feel that I could be a better friend, it takes two !

2016-12-25T14:25:38-05:00 2016-12-25T14:25:38-05:00 Capt Seid Waddell 2188173

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Yes, my classmates from our church&#39;s boarding school. Just as with the military it was a close shared experience which changed our lives and formed our thinking.

2016-12-25T14:37:02-05:00 2016-12-25T14:37:02-05:00 1SG Cameron M. Wesson 2188193

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>yes... quite a few actually. That said, you can not expect a &quot;straight up&quot; civilian friend to understand or fathom the military/combat relationships... nor should you really.<br /><br />This is not unlike myriad of other &quot;truths&quot; for understanding another persons &quot;survival experiences&quot;.... law school, medical school, basic training, OSUT vs AIT, Combat Arms vs Combat Service Support, and the list continues.<br /><br />the important aspect is to have a mutual respect... or even love... for the friend.... person(s). If you have that... and they have the same for you... the rest really doesnt matter.<br /><br />well thats my 2 cents<br /><br />peace out

2016-12-25T14:55:41-05:00 2016-12-25T14:55:41-05:00 SFC Frank DeJulius 2188197

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I have more friends now than ever, in my second retirement. The majority have no military background, but these guys are respectful of my service, especially my Vietnam time.

2016-12-25T15:00:41-05:00 2016-12-25T15:00:41-05:00 SPC Jeff Castle 2188232

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Have 1 army buddy I&#39;ve maintained contact with, and there are a few good civilians out there

2016-12-25T15:40:26-05:00 2016-12-25T15:40:26-05:00 MSG Private RallyPoint Member 2188280

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>There are a few people from high school that I still talk to. Ironically, they are now military related. There is my wife....whom her and I stayed friends for many years before we got together. Then there is another friend (and best friend of my wife, actually), whom I have been friends with since high school as well who is now a MAJ in the Air Force.

2016-12-25T16:17:59-05:00 2016-12-25T16:17:59-05:00 SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth 2188338

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Have a few old friends from my schools days I talk to now and then.

2016-12-25T16:55:06-05:00 2016-12-25T16:55:06-05:00 LTC John Shaw 2188358

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I have friends from grade school, boy scouts, high school, college, military and civilian work. Many folks I have known 40+ years. So friendship and loyalty are not just unique to the military.

2016-12-25T17:08:17-05:00 2016-12-25T17:08:17-05:00 MAJ Raymond Brooks 2188380

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Have one buddy and his wife, both from high school that I have kept up with. In fact, just got off the phone with him.

2016-12-25T17:32:26-05:00 2016-12-25T17:32:26-05:00 Cpl Dennis F. 2188408

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I have one friend from grade school, one female from High School. and three Marine friends from RVN that I keep in touch with. One ex is dead and the other one out of contact for many years. Other than racers and track workers. they have all fallen away. Perhaps its the PTSD withdrawal from everyone, but none of the post Vietnam friends survived. I am glad to see everyone else has become well adjusted.

2016-12-25T17:59:58-05:00 2016-12-25T17:59:58-05:00 Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen 2188607

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I have one friend from high school that I still keep in contact with. It&#39;s really amazing because he has no idea of what I did in the military and I have no idea about his civilian occupation.

2016-12-25T20:03:05-05:00 2016-12-25T20:03:05-05:00 SSG Private RallyPoint Member 2188657

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Nope not really, vets are the friends that are always there when you need something or they need something. We have each other&#39;s backs, civilians don&#39;t understand this and friendships don&#39;t last

2016-12-25T20:32:12-05:00 2016-12-25T20:32:12-05:00 SGT Frank Leonardo 2188709

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I have found a friend for the last 10 years who is a civy non military I don&#39;t think we will ever disband ever a great person and great personality

2016-12-25T21:10:19-05:00 2016-12-25T21:10:19-05:00 PO1 Tony Holland 2189060

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Still friends with several classmates from my final two years at Yamato High School which was part of Tachikawa AFB in the 60&#39;s. Friends from Sunnyvale High in California have come and gone. Being a service brat meant making and losing friends all too common - sixth grade was in three different states due to military orders. Friends from both colleges and my fraternity have disappeared over time.

2016-12-26T01:19:25-05:00 2016-12-26T01:19:25-05:00 CAPT Kevin B. 2189102

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I don&#39;t know if it&#39;s significant friendships, but I&#39;ve noticed we tend to pick up right where we left off when I run into an old shipmate. Could have been 40 years, but we still remember that Alpha Hotel in Deck Division like it was yesterday.

2016-12-26T02:06:59-05:00 2016-12-26T02:06:59-05:00 1LT Private RallyPoint Member 2189104

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div><a class="dark-link bold-link" role="profile-hover" data-qtip-container="body" data-id="327804" data-source-page-controller="question_response_contents" href="/profiles/327804-1811-tank-crewman">Cpl Dennis F.</a> - The civilians I recruited and trained for intelligence collections and more to the point operations have remained deeply loyal to me. Former lovers, men and women, except for my first husband who tried to kill me for reasons I will not discuss - have remained deeply loyal to me. Pilots, security, medical, and support personnel who were recruited and worked on foreign relief missions with me - have remained deeply loyal to me. Civilians we helped remained deeply loyal to me. So, I would say, beyond school mates and combat relations - civilians certainly exhibit deep loyalty - including those who continue to risk their lives in support of our efforts - perhaps because many of us owe each other our lives. Warmest Regards, Sandy :)

2016-12-26T02:13:45-05:00 2016-12-26T02:13:45-05:00 Sgt Joshua Seavey 2189142

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I have one buddy and his two brothers (one of which joined the Navy) that I&#39;m still friends with. Otherwise, I don&#39;t really have friends that aren&#39;t veterans or in the military.

2016-12-26T03:15:33-05:00 2016-12-26T03:15:33-05:00 Maj Kim Patterson 2189176

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div><a class="dark-link bold-link" role="profile-hover" data-qtip-container="body" data-id="327804" data-source-page-controller="question_response_contents" href="/profiles/327804-1811-tank-crewman">Cpl Dennis F.</a> Absolutely! I am in touch with friends who were born just 2 doors down 3 days after me, twins:1 joined the military and was estranged until recently and the other is a pillar of the communty on the other side of the continent. Schoolmates from everywhere, civilian volunteers are very warm, welcoming and compassionate. My service differs greatly from anyone I know. I am in touch with 2LT friends who have gone on to greatness, I did not lose a single friend through the political debate and they range from far right to far left. I recently traveled to my hometown after being gone almost 40 years and several friends gathered to share memories of long ago. I am the one who left. But we laughed, remembered, and of course promised it would be less than another 40 years before we gathered again. Civilian friends were quicker to come to my aid when I needed help than other vets. I suspect it may have something to do with being a woman with many interests. What I find amazing when I talk to civilian friends are the stories of the cousins, aunts, uncles etc that remain in the same town and gather for weddings, funerals, holidays and just because.

2016-12-26T04:33:54-05:00 2016-12-26T04:33:54-05:00 MSgt Mark Bucher 2189197

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>A couple of civilian friends have been there through the years, as far as loyalty? The only things civilians are loyal to is the pursuit of the almighty dollar. Took me a while to get used to, and understand that after I retired

2016-12-26T05:08:12-05:00 2016-12-26T05:08:12-05:00 CWO2 John Markiewicz 2189705

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>While many, if not most, of my friends are Veterans, I also have a significant number of non-veteran friends. You have to be a friend to have a friend. I am one who is outgoing in nature and make friends easily, I am also forgiving of most transgressions, but not forgetful of them.

2016-12-26T12:06:50-05:00 2016-12-26T12:06:50-05:00 Cpl Justin Goolsby 2191609

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Well I&#39;m not that old, but it has been 15 years since high school. But I will say I find civilian loyalty very rare. Even more insulting is with this social media craze, people can&#39;t even say it to your face. They just delete friend and leave you sitting there wondering what the hell you did wrong. I&#39;ve had friends who I&#39;ve been to their weddings, I&#39;m on a friendly terms with their parents just remove me from their lives without a second thought. I would have expected that kind of thing from acquaintances, but not people that I thought were friends.

2016-12-27T08:51:50-05:00 2016-12-27T08:51:50-05:00 SSgt Private RallyPoint Member 2193382

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>My wife. 26 years now and still going strong. Past that, almost none have survived the test of time. A lot because of distance, some due to diametrically opposed political views. &lt;sigh/&gt; I do still have friends on FB that used to be F2F friends. Have not seen them in over a decade though. The only ones that have survived were the ones willing to invest in me and my life as I invested in theirs. Still working on those! :)

2016-12-27T18:35:17-05:00 2016-12-27T18:35:17-05:00 PVT Raymond Lopez 2193831

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Not like the people I served with in combat with in Vietnam. My friend and I have been friends for almost 52 years and his kids and grandkids treat me like family!!!

2016-12-27T22:30:50-05:00 2016-12-27T22:30:50-05:00 SP5 Steve Powell 2214999

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Friendship is a rather subjective concept when asked in the context of civilian versus &quot;other&quot;. Let me explain...I was a &quot;brat&quot;. My father was a career soldier 1946-1966. As many of you know unexpected or unanticipated moves (transfers) were normal during those years. 90% of the schools I attended were military impacted. There weren&#39;t alot of friendship rituals since time did not permit such things. You made friends quickly. Many of the friendships I made as a youth still exist today and are strengthened through Facebook, Classmates.Com and other social media. High school reunions have played an important part of helping maintain our contact. Yes, many of those friendships remain 46 years later. But making friends over the years is a fluid environment. People come into our lives and depart with varying levels of our friendship. Previous posts point out some of the difficulties like relating to others who do not have common ground (experiences) and so I say create some. I meet alot of people, for example, in the Scouting Movement. Many are pure civilians and we are friends based upon that commonality. I meet ex-military there as well and have developed friendships. Does that mean we get together and talk war stories? Maybe. My best friend of 20 years now has helped me build my greenhouse and fix my car. He&#39;s a pure &quot;Iowa&quot; civilian. Loyal? He joined my motorcycle club as a &quot;support&quot; member. It&#39;s a military dominated club (VOVMC). Friendships survive if you want them to. Friendship, like marriage, can be a long road with many turns and obstacles. Your friendships will survive and flourish if you work at it. If not, there&#39;s always an exit sign a few miles down the road. :)

2017-01-04T01:21:05-05:00 2017-01-04T01:21:05-05:00 Col Carl Whicker 2247625

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Actually, we have several friends that have remained loyal and true friends over the years, including some from our high school days. Friendships are based on common experiences, likes, dislikes, etc. Of course, I think the friendships we made while stationed overseas may be some of our most precious. At the same time, friendships, of all types, are precious and should be treasured for the richness they add to our lives

2017-01-14T08:08:23-05:00 2017-01-14T08:08:23-05:00 2016-12-25T14:12:41-05:00