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

Never really got the official draft notice.I enlisted in the army at age 17 while I was living in Childress TX. I was released from active duty 23 Dec 1959.Got home got a job in a city about 60 miles from Childress.Summer of 1960 I got a warning letter from draft board Childress county saying I had not registered for draft and the next message I got from them would be draft notice,I made copies of my DD214,my Selective service card,mialed them to draft board,I asked them if that was enough info or did they need more.At this time I have not yet recieved a reply.

I was 20 years old, working for IBM. I had a 2-year-old house, a new car and a motorcycle for a playtoy. I was shocked. My dad had been a marine and I believed that when the country called a man responded. I reported, served a tour in 'Nam, made it home. No regrets

I was sorting through my mail and thought it was my tax refund. Opened it up... "Greetings". When I reported to the draft board, they gave me a voucher for lunch at the greasy spoon next door. Ah, my first meal after being sworn in... beans.

I was already in the Navy when my draft notice came and deployed to the Med. I wrote back and explained my situation and that I already had an active duty classification. Draft board replied that I had better report or else. Ship's captain sent a letter verifying I was on active duty, it was unreasonable to expect me to travel so far back to Virginia, and forme to join another service without being first being discharged constituted desertion. I never heard from them again.

June, 1964 found me driving home from Ohio State. Two years of ROTC were mandatory for all male students at the time and I was joyous that I had completed the requirement and sure I would never have to wear a uniform again.

When I arrived in Dayton, my mom met me at the door with a stack of mail. "Open the one on top," she ordered, "I think they're going to draft you." Sure enough, I was invited to take a free physical courtesy of my friends and neighbors.

I went to the phone and soon had the Commandant on the phone, "Is it too late to sign up for advanced ROTC?"

"I'm packing everything up for summer camp," the colonel stated. "Can you get here before two?"

I piled back in my 55 Chevy and headed east. An hour and a half later I stood in front of the man dressed in madras shorts, knit shirt, and Jack Purcell tennis shoes with my right hand in the air. I was back in ROTC for two more years, the unexpected start to a career.

While in Air Force medical tech school my mom said I got this letter; what should she do with it. I had her open it and it was my order to report. I laughed, and told her to do what she wanted with it....even send it back, but I had a laugh.

I was already accepted in Army flight school and Ft. Wolters TX and Ft. Rucker AL. I did not realize what was in store for me when the plane landed in Vietnam. I was sent to I Corp which was the worst area for helicopters; but I was flying UH1B and C gunships so I was a little better off than lift birds. My dad was a tanker at the battle of the bulge in WWII and was not liking the idea of me going infantry or armor. My stance of the war, too youung to know what was going on politically.

Hah! My experience was a bit more startling than one other responder here. My Mom forwarded a letter she had gotten addressed to me. I opened it and there was my notice to report for pre-induction physical. I write back that I would be happy to present myself but would need permission from my CO. They should write to him at “Commanding Officer, Golf Co., 2nd Bn, 4th Marines, 9th MAB, Vietnam”. Yes, I gave the CO’s name but am not putting it here. We were, when I got the notice, somewhere near the Laotian border.

I received my draft notice while I was in Navy boot camp in San Diego. It said that I was to report to Fort Leonard Wood for basic training. I was, to say the least, shocked by this. I took it to the company commander who said that he would take care of it. I, also, thought that it was a little weird since it was addressed to me at "Co. 944 NTC/RTC San Diego".

I was many, many miles from home serving as a 1LT when mine found me in 1965.