Who was your Drill Sergeant/Drill Instructor in Basic Training?

My TI was A1C Koko at Amarillo AFB because Lackland AFB has a spinal meningitis outbreak so basic was moved to Amarillo. Koko had just gotten married in San Antonio so after a few days he took off to visit his new bride. I was in morning formation with the rest of my flight when the TI TSgt VanPatton from the other side of the barracks kicked me in the butt and said "Get out there! You're the dorm chief." I had never been told that. I knew some of what to do because I had been in Army ROTC at my university and a brother in the military fraternity Pershing Rifles before dropping out of college. For the next month I as an airman basic TI and proud to say our flight was #1 in that training class - the guys responded well to having "one of us" as their TI. Must say though, not very popular with the other TIs in the quadrangle.

Last names Butts and Glade, Ft McClellan 1983

Staff Sgt. Clawson and Cpl. Rudy is the main two I remember.

B-1-2. Sgt (E-5) Archie, and SFC (E-7) - damn can picture him but can't think of his name this 10 secs.

Drill Sergeant Fernandez
Fort Bliss, Texas
Middle summer 1969
After AIT Fort Gordon Georgia
199th /1st Cav
Grunt-Viet Nam 1970

My farther was a boot at Fort Dix before the War (1940).
He and his platoon had just been given their first lesson with a rifle and the primary lesson was NEVER point a gun at anyone because it might be loaded.
Within five minutes the Sgt has them in a circle around him so he could show the boots the parts of the rifle. When he pointed it at a boot in the circle my farther disarmed him.
He was brought to the CO by the MP's one of whom had witnessed the incident for NJP.
Long story short, my father was released and the Sgt spent the week parading the grounds for cigarette butts.
Because of bad eyesight he couldn't re-enlist for the War but spend the War putting rivets in planes at Republic Aviation in Farmingdale on Long Island.

Unfortunately, in AFROTC, we had Field Training with FTOs, Captains who were NOT trained Drill Sergeants. I learned little valuable after being told we would receive helpful information about our possible careers. The first weekend when they had EVERYONE marching Tours for demerits, we whistled the theme from Bridge on the River Kwai, which pissed them off mightily. A three-day mini-survival school taught by some NCOs was informative. This was during the later portion of the Viet Nam War. Besides a Fill In Box checkmark, it had little career development about being an Officer and did little to make us Warriors. You Fight Like You Train. My later Law Enforcement Academies were much tougher and taught survival skills. A sad commentary on Officer Development.

My Company Commander at GLakes in 1974 was an 18 year drunk EM1 pushing recruits while he was waiting for a spot to open up for him so he could re-enlist again to get his pension.
While we were there he took the Chief's exam expecting to fail like the other five times he failed BUT this time the bulk of the exam was on Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation. He passed with flying colors as did several thousand First Class drunks and drug addicts.

SA Barney Schockly

Mender the mind bender, let the games begin