Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Timothy Hamlin | Staff Sgt. Stephen Mix reenlists in the U.S. Army on top of the highest peak in...... read more read more
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Staff Sgt. Stephen Mix, 4th Squadron, 2d Cavalry Regiment, experienced the unique opportunity to reenlist on the peak of Zugspitze, a 2,962-meter mountain located in the Bavarian Alps of Germany. After 10 years of service in the U.S. Army, Mix committed to an additional six years as a Stryker Infantry Carrier Vehicle mechanic.
The climb to the top was steady and slow as Mix and his reenlistment team scaled the bulky limestone massif. They began their journey after exiting the train station into the brisk alpine air, and they craned their necks toward the lone spur on the summit adorned with a shimmering golden cross, which is the highest point in Germany.
A cable car lifted them to the observation deck just below the summit. The group was comprised of Mix’s wife, Staff Sgt. Joanna Mix, and 14 other members of his Saber family. In support of his journey, they took pictures leading up to the final ascent.
While visitors shuffled around the observation deck against a crisp wind, only their faces were exposed in order to get the perfect photo of the rivers of ice below them. Mix, his wife and two others made their way to the start point.
The quartet gradually navigated the icy route to the summit. As they approached their final position, those remaining on the observation deck cheered, beckoned for photos or held their breaths as their loved ones walked the slick, serpentine trail.
Others looked to Mix awaiting the moment to begin the ceremony they planned weeks in advance. Mix took a deep breath, turned around, smiled and said, “Let’s do this.”
The team unfolded the American flag, its colors set ablaze against the dark white and grey backdrop with the golden post behind it. Mix gathered his wits, lifted himself from his knee and raised his right hand.
1st Lt. Kevin Fidler stood across from him and matched his stance, both of them deliberately ignoring the gusts of wind and steep rocky chutes surrounding them. Fidler, the squadron’s previous maintenance officer, and now the Forward Support Troop executive officer, issued the Oath of Enlistment.
“I am extremely grateful for this experience, especially in that location,” said Fidler. “Reading the oath for one of the best [non-commissioned officers] in the Regiment made it that much more special.”
A massive grin stretched across Mix’s reddened face as claps rang out from the summit and observation deck simultaneously. Onlookers pointed, smiled and snapped photos of the momentous event on top of the mountain. The clapping was contagious even to those that were not part of the ceremony. People took turns congratulating Mix before they slowly moved down the summit.
“Words can’t describe what happened up there. It was so surreal,” Mix recalled. “Just thinking about it motivates me to go the extra mile for my Soldiers and family every day, and I will never forget it.”
Mix will forever remember this event and the support his unit gave him to achieve such a memorable reenlistment.
| Date Taken: | 11.03.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 11.20.2018 11:20 |
| Story ID: | 300057 |
| Location: | GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, BAYERN, DE |
| Web Views: | 171 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, 2CR Soldier reenlists on the highest point of Germany, by SFC Timothy Hamlin, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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