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

I was already married and had started a career in Wall Street working the New York Stock Exchange when I got my notice. Surprised he'll yes! My lottery number came out and it wasn't for the millions. I did what any responsible person would do. Sucked it up....put on my big boy pants and met my appointment. I don't regret a moment that I spent in the Force. Retired almost 23 years later.

Mike: The draft was still going on when I enlisted in the Marines on my 18th birthday right out of high school. My friends sweated the draft but some of us didn't care - We volunteered anyway. I don't even know what my number was. My twin brother became an Army paratrooper and he joined with two friends; however, I could not find one friend that would enlist in the Marines with me. It worked out well - It is probably the best decision I ever made to join. Thank you for your distinguished service! Semper Fi, Jon

COL Mikel J. Burroughs At that age i had no thoughts on Vietnam,that was just something on the tv.Personally never received a draft notice,joined the Marine Corps with my brother.

Draft Notice? I never got one of those, I enlisted 10/65 at the age of 18.

"My Stance" on the war? I didn't really have much of a stance on the war, it was the only one we had going on at the time, so it was the only one I could go to.

The only idea either of my parents put into my head was when Dad told me "The Democrats will always be the people who will send you off to war.", when I was going to enlist in the Marine Corps, he seriously started in' "Join the Navy, the food is better", or "In the Navy you'll always have a warm place to sleep." In the end, it was "Budweiser clouded thinking" that got me to enlist in the Navy. Dad had been a 'Tin Can Sailor' in WWII, and had provided the aforementioned Budweiser. I don't think he ever understood that, as a Seabee, I was never going to be on a ship.

Way back in December 1964 I did receive my Notice from my Local Draft Board. However at the time I was a recruit at the U. S. Marine Corps Recruit Depot at Parris Island, S.C... So I took the Formal Notice to My Drill Instructor and Informed Him and the U.S. Marine Corps Should take necessary action to Solve this MINOR PROBLEM.. He did inform me the Corps would take care of this and they HAD me and where the Draft Board should stick it.. We both had a very good Laugh about it.. as you can see I retired form the U. S. Army. after my tour with the U. S. Marine Corps I became one of the First Paramedics in this Great Nation. Being in the Alabama National Guard the Army wanted me to go Active Duty. So I did and I retired in 1996 as a Sr Medical NCO at DDEAMC in Augusta, Ga. Total service 27 Years.. But Once a U. S. Marine, always a United States Marine.....

I'd screwed around and lost my college deferment so I was expecting it. Didn't really have strong opinion about Nam. We I got to Induction center in Oakland, CA in 68 I was offered the chance to to Marine bootcamp. Not sure why but I did. 25 years later retired as an LDO Captain after first becoming a Warrant Officer.

I thought it was funny when I got my draft notice. It was 1968, at the time I had already been in the Army 3 years and was in South Korea.

I never received a draft notice. I enlisted before I received one.

I was a young PFC stationed in Alaska when mine came. My mother forwarded it to me in Fairbanks. I took it down to the CO and asked him what I should do. He told me just ignore it.

Never got one, enlisted at seventeen in ‘65, did 3 tours flying Markets and Yankees in P3s. Got out in’72 AO1 (AC)