by | Oct 16, 2019 | Stories
I tell anyone who asks where I was during the Vietnam war, that I wanted to beat the draft and I also didn’t want to sweat out being called up for years. I joined the Marine Corps at age 16 with my parents’ consent, arrived for boot camp on my 17th...
by | Aug 6, 2019 | Stories
I was drafted in early winter of 1972 (lottery numbers came on tv right after the Mannix detective show). I was 18. I was ordered to go to the federal building in downtown Cleveland, Ohio the following Monday. This I did. Upon arrival I was given a physical, after...
by | Jul 7, 2019 | Stories
When the number was called, my mom freaked out. My older sister fell apart. Having just turned 18, I wasn’t sure what the fuss was all about. Then a friend told me. OMG I thought, I’m gone for sure. I got the letter telling me to report to St. Louis for a...
by | Jul 7, 2019 | Stories
We had a small party on the day of the draft and I drew number 65. Out of the group of maybe 6 one other guy had a low number and he ended up going into the Army Reserves because he was married with a baby on the way. I talked to a recruiter with a couple of my...
by | May 31, 2019 | Stories
Bearing in mind that as it’s been nearly 50 years, and as I kept no written record of the details of my experience with the draft, what I recount below is accurate to the best of my knowledge. When I registered for the draft in 1966, my draft board was located...
by | May 31, 2019 | Stories
I got a two-year deferment for school then dropped out in 1969 when I was 21. Although I passed my draft physical when I turned 18, I had to take another one when I was facing the draft in the summer of 1969. For some crazy reason that I still don’t understand,...
