What were your feelings and thoughts when you first opened your draft notice?

I was BCT at Ft. Leonard Wood it was the only Mail I got that day. I took it up to theDrill Sergeant and said I've been drafted! He laughed and said give it here I will take of it.

The draft had ended by the time I turned 18, I remember the senior class principal handing me selective service application when I turned 18. I handed it back to him and told him I didn't need to register for the draft. I had been in the Texas ANG for 4 months and had orders for basic and tech school later that summer.

I was already on active duty as a brand new Second LT in the USAF. I gathered from the tone of the letter that my draft board was really pissed with me, as I had failed to tell them that my student deferment was no longer applicable and I had failed to notify them. I was to report for a pre-induction physical on a date already past. I wrote back a nice letter on Agency letterhead asking if they could arrange an inter-service transfer to Armor retaining my rank. I should have thanked them for the nice new 1A draft card, as I had turned in my rather tattered 1D card when I reported for duty. Never heard back, but that draft card saved my butt a couple of times when I was in off-limits bars in the P.I. that were raided by the military police. If you could produce a draft card they ignored you, if not, they detained you.

I opened my second draft notice in June 1966. I know I had graduated from high school, but hadn't gone to the commencement exercises yet. Me, and another 18 year-old high school student received draft notices several months earlier, and had to tell the military we were still in high school. When I got the second one I joined the Navy the same day, and was sent to the Navy River Patrol in Vietnam. The other guy was drafted into the Army a few days after me and never left the states. Back then the draft was a crap shoot

Like Sgt. Duchesneau (Hi, Dave), I enlisted but under different circumstances. I wanted to go in the Navy after high school, but bowed to parental pressure and went to college. Flunked out after the 1st semester because I never went to class - literally (wonder why?!). About 3 weeks later, got a call from an old girlfriend's mother (no, she was not pregnant you gutter-minds) who worked at the local draft board. She said she couldn't say anything, but
if I was not interested in the Army, I should consider choosing another branch within the next day or two. I was an SREF (Seaman Recruit Electronics Field) that afternoon.

After I stopped laughing I went to my troop commander and told him I had to report for induction into the United States Army. He made some rather crude remarks about there being a few bugs in the Oedipus system. Who would have thought a West Point football player could be so elegant!

I got a big smile on my face.. My mother had forwarded it me in Alaska. I was in Alaska because I had enlisted about 8 months earlier. I took down to my Company Commander's office, was given a moment with him and showed it to him. He laughed also and to told me to drive on. Personally, I wanted to fly home and appear before the draft board in Class "A" but the CO didn't buy the excuse. Oh well, it was worth the the try. My only regret was I did not enlist for direct assignment to Vietnam. I chose 11B as my guaranteed MOS with a guaranteed basic training sight of Ft. Ord never thinking Nam was on the plate also. Oh well

Hey! I did not get a Token (NYC circa 1966)

Didn't think much about it until I got the draft papers. Then I enlisted. Used to drink with a couple of recruiters always told them they would see me when I got the notice. At that time I thought the war was for good reasons. Now not sure. Didn't serve in Nam wasn't you cant win if you don't fight to win. Too many died for it to end the way it did. God bless them and their family's. And last part of the question. No my family didn't put any ideas in my head about the war. they didn't discuss it that I know of.

SP5
Terry Adams
US Army 1969-1972

I was amused as I was in boot camp (Great Lakes) doing service week (KP for you army types)... this was in 1963.