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The Best Decision I Ever Made in my Life
September 23, 2011
The day I walked through the front doors of Warner Hall on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Platteville (UW-P) in the early 1970’s was the best decision I made in my life. As an incoming freshman, with no military experience, I was motivated to enroll in the new Army ROTC program on the campus during the final years of the Vietnam War. Not a popular decision by my peer group unless one had a low draft or lottery number. My decision was simply predicated by receiving a marketing letter from the Professor of Military Science (PMS) at a neighboring university to my hometown the summer following my high school graduation. I wasn't attending UW-P because of the presence of AROTC, in fact the this AROTC program arrived on campus due to a twist of fate. Another Wisconsin State University System (SUS) icampus in late spring of 1971 was originally designed to host it. But their school’s faculty and students protested to hosting the program creating quite a dilemma and an embarrassing position. The Wisconsin’s SUS decided to backdown by not forcing this school to accept their decision Carte-Blanche but had entered a formal agreement with the US Army to establish or activate another AROTC program on a University of Wisconsin campus. The logical choice was to move it to a small conservative and sleepy campus in the southwest rural portion of the state, namely Platteville, Wisconsin. After a token protest by a small liberal group of students the program moved quickly to set up and establish its campus presence in the late summer as classes begun in the fall of 1971. This was light years before computerized registration, although I had registered for fall term classes during my summer freshmen orientation, returning students were registering for the fall at the campus field house the week before the fall term begun. Now not knowing what to expect when I walked through the doors of the new Army ROTC home, Warner Hall, I was immediately greeted by the only military Cadre member in the building, LTC Bill Spencer, the new Commander or PMS. Here LTC Spencer smiled as he introduced himself with a hand shake wearing his Class A uniform in the middle of a hot and humid late August day. LTC Spencer was a southerner from Georgia who attended and graduated from West Point, the Class of 1952, an officer and gentlemen of the highest order. LTC Spencer was an engaging and warm personality who took me under his wing and escorted me down to the field house to sign up for the freshmen military science class. As we walked the 500 meters from Warner Hall to the field house LTC Spencer asked me a series of questions -- "where are you from", "how big was my family", and "what was my intended major", which was Criminal Justice at the time. As quickly he asked me about myself he adroitly told me about his background, skillfully finding some common ground, as he explained his father was the chief of police in his Georgia home, all the long offering “good morning greetings” to other students we passed on the campus. Now what happens next will fascinate and interest you as I continue my story in my next blog entry.
submitted by Chuck Arneson on Sep 23 2011
Comments
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what is so great about the army because i want to join but i don't know if i could be strong enough or fast enough
Reply
jessica ethier
Oct 1, 2011 2:36 PM