The United States Army Officer
Candidate Schools Alumni Association

WHAT OCS MEANS TO ME

I had never been out of Pennsylvania until I went to Fort Benning. The Army showed me a part of the world that I never knew existed. As a commissioned officer, I learned to accept responsibility and attain self-confidence.

I arrived at Fort Benning in late December 1942 to attend OCS Class 208-A. Upon completion of OCS, I was appointed 2LT Infantry-Res. and assigned to 389th Infantry Regiment, 98th Infantry Division where I spent the remainder of my WWII service.

While ostensibly a rifle platoon leader in A Company, 389th Infantry, 98th Infantry Division, I was repeatedly challenged by unusual and interesting assignments:

1. Air-ground umpire during the conduct of the Corps Maneuvers that included my own Division in Tennessee in fall, 1943. I had the opportunity to personally interact with a number of combat experienced tactical observers who freely critiqued the actions of the various commanders¿ decisions.

2. A member of my Division¿s advance party sent ahead to Hawaii to coordinate the relief of an ¿in place¿ Division, and our assumption of its defense and training mission on Kauai.

3. A member of a small team to attend Jungle Training on Oahu for the purpose of learning how to construct and operate our own regimental Jungle Training Program on Kauai.

4. A member of a team attending the Transport Quartermaster School on Oahu to learn how to combat-load my own battalion combat team on ships then join staff planning and execution of amphibious ship-to-shore operations. 5. Upon arriving in Japan, I was placed on TDY with our Division Ordnance Company to coordinate the collection and disabling of Japanese weapons and military equipment within my regiment¿s area of responsibility, and

6. On 1 November 1945, my Division transferred me to the Legal Section, General Headquarters of General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers, Tokyo, Japan, to investigate war crimes committed by the Japanese against Allied airmen who were killed or held as POWs.

In 1947 after 4 ½ years of Army service, I realized that I wanted a life of science but with a tie to the Army. I left the Army in Japan, married a girl from Milwaukee, and joined the Army Reserve. In 1948, I left Japan to study in Hawaii and New York. In 1951, I was recalled to active duty as a captain (MOS 1542) and sent to Camp Zama, Japan, for deployment to Korea as an Infantry officer. Because of my technical background, I was assigned to the Okinawa Engineer District to support a massive construction program. I was released from active duty in December 1952 and returned to New York. In 1955, I moved to Auburn, Alabama and continued reserve and active duty for training mainly at Fort Benning. I retired a Colonel O-6 in 1973 and still visit the post several times a year. I have loved the challenge of being a citizen soldier. To this day, I still consult and write not only in my professional activities but also in an attempt to get the Japanese to pay compensation for slave labor performed by POWs. This is how OCS has affected my life.