Considering enlisting in the PA Army National Guard

[jtkratzer]

Originally Posted by Stryker_11a

One of the things that has been brought up in this thread is what is the impact on the wife.

I am an infantryman, no need to explain what that is all about. During my last tour, whenever I got a chance to talk to my wife on the phone it was no different than if I was down the street and asking if she needed anything from the store.

When I got home she told me that the only time she knew that I was alive was for those 10 minutes when we talked. She lived in constant fear. Each time the phone rang, every knock on the door, every announcement of a casualty on the TV sent her into a panic. She is a worrier by nature and the strain of my deployment was hard on her. I was going to resign my commission so she wouldn't have to do it again, but decided to stay so I could be with my Soldiers. Odd thing the military does to you.

We have a 2 year old son now and one due in August. I am going back and I am still on the line. I am going to tell her that I am either a battle captain or that I have been moved to a staff position so she can have a little piece of mind.

My wife will without a doubt be concerned, she loves me, I wouldn't expect anything else, but at the same time, I'm not going to be going in with a combat-oriented MOS. That was part of the agreement I had with my wife. I wouldn't be kicking doors in or doing patrols like her cousin who nearly lost his leg to a grenade while in the Marine Corps.

[switchfoot]

I am in the Guard now, and I am a Federal Technician. I did eight years active duty also, so I know quite a bit about all three. I have spent some time at Indian Town Gap myself, in an aviation NCO school a couple of weeks ago.

I am a Scout Helicopter Repairer (15S) now, I used to be a Blackhawk crewchief, and was in the Signal Corps before that. So, if you need any information about the following, shoot me a post, reply, or email or whatever:

Active Duty
National Guard
Federal Technician Program
AGR Program
Army Aviation
Deployments-Active Duty, or Guard
Family and Deployments

Feel free to contact me if you want to.

[Paparock]

I salute anyone willing to serve!


Former, 2Lt. Air Defense Artillery, U.S. Army
U.S. Army Drug Suppression
E-5 Army National Guard, Airborne Infantry (refused to accept officers rank back, carried M21)

[jtkratzer]

The meeting with the recruiter went very well on Thursday evening. It looks like the best way to capitalize on the bonuses and incentives is to go in enlisted and as soon as I complete BCT and AIT to submit my packet for OCS. If I go from BCT to OCS on the 09 Sierra route, I don't qualify for any bonuses nor do I get any of the student loan repayment options. Just those two things alone will be work over $30,000 to me.

The Intelligence Analyst is changing from 96B to 35F and obviously requires a security clearance, as does anyone going into OCS. The recruiter is checking with her lady who handles the security clearances about two moments of retardedness while I was in college in a 3 - 4 month period of time. I have no convictions, but the details of what happened are in the public records. She says that with it being two isolated incidences and that it was 4 years ago and I don't have anything prior to that or since then, that I have everything going for me.

If everything is a go on the clearance, I think I should be able to make a decision fairly soon.

[switchfoot]

If you are going Guard, you better make sure that there is a unit in your state, within driving distance, that has an officer slot open for you to go into. In the guard, you have to have a slot before you can to to OCS. And, you are at least six months away from graduating AIT, depending on your MOS. You can't "hold" a slot before you are a member of the guard, and who knows who will be in it when you get back.

Not trying to discourage you, just making sure you know the deal. Are you going Guard? In PA?

[jtkratzer]

Originally Posted by switchfoot

If you are going Guard, you better make sure that there is a unit in your state, within driving distance, that has an officer slot open for you to go into. In the guard, you have to have a slot before you can to to OCS. And, you are at least six months away from graduating AIT, depending on your MOS. You can't "hold" a slot before you are a member of the guard, and who knows who will be in it when you get back.

Not trying to discourage you, just making sure you know the deal. Are you going Guard? In PA?

That is the original plan. I don't want to go active duty as I lose all freedom on where I live and what my wife can do with her career.

Fort Indiantown Gap is a huge facility that is only growing here. The Stryker Brigrade is moving there and they're working on expanding the run ways to bring all the C-130s and Air National Guard stuff up there as well.

The facilities is growing like a weed and there are a number of jobs there that are open in addition to the traditional Guard soldier route.

[switchfoot]

Sounds like you have a plan. My only advice for you would be to try a fairly short enlistment first. Three years or so, probably. I work in aviation, so I have spent a little time at the Gap. I like it there. I bet it would be a great place to work if you decided to get a technician job later on down the line. Feel free to bounce anything by me if you have any questions. Good luck.

[jtkratzer]

Originally Posted by switchfoot

Sounds like you have a plan. My only advice for you would be to try a fairly short enlistment first. Three years or so, probably. I work in aviation, so I have spent a little time at the Gap. I like it there. I bet it would be a great place to work if you decided to get a technician job later on down the line. Feel free to bounce anything by me if you have any questions. Good luck.

I'm going to try to work it out that as soon as I complete BCT and AIT that I can get into OCS.

I like the prospect of going into a federal agency with an intelligence MOS.

[jtkratzer]

Looks like I will have to interview with the security clearance lady about my history.

If the wife is ok with it and everything is alright with her (she has all her questions answered), I will be taking the ASVAB on the 29th and doing the physical and interview on the 30th.

[jtkratzer]

Looks like it may be a bit challenging for me to get in at all. I took Ritalin as a kid for what they called ADD, I called it being smart and bored to death with not being challenged in school. Anyway, it sounds like that could be an automatic disqualification, which I would not be happy about. If that ends up being the case, I'd like to find out of it's possible to get my hands on a list of anything and everything that disqualifies a person from military service so that I know when I have kids and I'd be able to at least have an idea of anything I could do to protect their options.

I find it amazing how people with criminal convictions and what not can get in the military and serve, but because I took a minimal dose of a medication that stopped almost 10 years ago, I might be disqualified. Weird.

We'll see what happens.