Photo By Sgt. Patrick Mayabb | .S. Army Maj. Gen. Paul D. Rogers, adjutant general of the Michigan National Guard...... read more read more
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“COMMITMENT:” Michigan National Guard Soldier caps 42-year career with Annual Training mission in Latvia
Born in 1961 to sharecropper parents from Selma, Alabama, Sgt. Gene Olds lived as a child with his eight siblings, seven brothers, and one sister. Things changed considerably in 1973. When Olds was 12, his father found work in Detroit and moved the family. A whole new world opened for Olds. Coming from a small-town community in Alabama to urban Detroit changed his life.
"At first, it was scary,” said Olds.
At the age of 20, unable to find much work and trying to stay away from street life, Olds found his way to an Army recruiter's office. Olds was unsure at the time if he wanted to commit full-time to the Army, but the recruiter suggested he could stay in his community and serve part-time in the Michigan Army National Guard. Olds committed. In fact, at the age of 62 (42 years later) he is still a Soldier in the Michigan National Guard. He recently spent his last annual training overseas at Camp Adazi, Latvia.
Olds said it was a typical Michigan fall day, September 26, 1981, when he enlisted with HHB, in the 1-182nd Field Artillery Regiment, Michigan National Guard. He had a ship date in January 1982 to Fort Sill, Oklahoma.
To this day he still remembers the harsh, open plains of Oklahoma. His first experience at basic training, after getting off the bus at Fort Sill, was the yelling and screaming from the drill sergeants.
"You're just afraid because you don't know what's going to happen next", said Olds. "It's kind of amazing that you get through all that stuff – basic training in the early ‘80s was still a bit rough for those who did not want to conform to the new way of life.”
One thing Olds remembers from basic training is the number of people who had not seen snow.
“We had snow on the ground, and they went crazy the first time they saw it,” said Olds.
After basic training, Olds went to Fort Lee Virginia, which he still remembers as one of the best places he has ever been to school, to become a 92Y unit supply specialist.
“Being a supply specialist allowed me the ability to help soldiers and make sure they have what they need,” said Olds.
In the ‘80s and ‘90s, his unit would routinely set up camp at Jones Lake near Grayling, Michigan and stay in tents. It was a similar setting, staying in tents, for his final annual training with the unit at Camp Adazi, Latvia. Olds felt like it was meant to be, full circle that it was.
It was not until after he had 20 years of service, enough years to retire, that 9/11 happened. Olds decided to continue his career with Alpha company and completed multiple deployments in the Middle East.
In 2005, Olds found himself on his first deployment helping victims of Hurricane Katrina. Olds remembers taking a convoy of 77 vehicles to Louisiana and teaching soldiers along the way how to drive a Light Medium Tactical Vehicle, as he was one of the few trained drivers they had on the LMTV.
Another memory from Katrina was of him helping people get off planes and getting to safety. For that he was presented a humanitarian award from the State of Louisiana.
In 2006, at age 45, Olds deployed to Iraq where he served an entire year in Baghdad as a vehicle gunner. He remembers how there was almost always a major event going on every day while he served in Baghdad, to include night support missions flying in a Chinook Helicopter.
From 2010 to 2011, he deployed to Kuwait and conducted base defense missions.
His last deployment from 2015-2016 took him from Fort Bliss on a C-130 Hercules loaded with equipment to the United Arab Emirates in support of Operation Spartan Shield. His unit would be training with UAE and Jordanian military units using the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS)
Olds says he continues to serve the Michigan National Guard because of the camaraderie with fellow Soldiers and the feeling of being a part of something that’s bigger than himself. Alpha company is a tight group of 10 to 15 soldiers. The sons or daughters of former members are now serving alongside him in Alpha company.
Olds, who will retire later this year, appreciated spending his last AT overseas at Camp Adazi Latvia, where the 1-182nd Field Artillery Regiment trained with NATO partners using the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS).
It was a fitting end to 42 years of service – a feat not many in uniform will ever accomplish.
| Date Taken: | 06.09.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 06.09.2023 13:42 |
| Story ID: | 446621 |
| Location: | MINNESOTA, US |
| Web Views: | 403 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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