{"id":7312,"date":"2024-06-18T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-06-18T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/azadkinsiii.com\/blog\/?p=7312"},"modified":"2024-06-17T17:26:04","modified_gmt":"2024-06-17T21:26:04","slug":"170-an-honor-and-a-privilege","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/azadkinsiii.com\/blog\/170-an-honor-and-a-privilege\/","title":{"rendered":"#170\u2014An Honor and a Privilege"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Trivia Questions (Answers @ end)<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. Who said, \u201c<\/em>Tact is the ability to tell someone to go to hell in such a way that they look forward to the trip.\u201d<\/em>?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. In what movie did we hear, \u201cI don\u2019t want to talk to you no more, you empty-headed, animal-food-trough wiper. I fart in your general direction.\u201d<\/em>?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Who sang (and name the title) the following?
    Mother, mother<\/em>
    There’s too many of you crying<\/em>
    Brother, brother, brother<\/em>
    There’s far too many of you dying<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
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    This year marks the 80th<\/sup> Anniversary of D-Day. My father-in-law, Dr. Rufus K. Broadaway<\/strong>, dropped into Normandy with the 82nd<\/sup> Airborne Division<\/a><\/strong>. My father, A. Z. Adkins, Jr.<\/strong>, landed on Utah Beach the first week in August with the 80th<\/sup> Infantry Division<\/a><\/strong> and fought across Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Both came home after the war. A lot of men didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    But know that there are many (MANY) celebrations happening all over Europe this year and next\u2026 remembering those who helped to liberate their towns, cities, countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    They will NEVER FORGET<\/em><\/strong>!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I didn\u2019t follow in my dad\u2019s footsteps. Instead of the Army, I chose the Navy, serving two duty stations from \u201973-77. I\u2019ll spare you the details, but since I\u2019d flunked out of college after a year at Florida State University<\/a>, <\/strong>I didn\u2019t have a clue what to do with my life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    So\u2026 I joined the Navy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Even though I had registered for the draft, I wasn\u2019t drafted into the military\u2014I enlisted. I believe the last \u201cdraft call\u201d was in December 1972.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    But this was also during the Vietnam War<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"USS
    USS Kitty Hawk, CV-63. November 1970.
    (Official US Navy Photo)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    I never stepped foot in Vietnam, like many of my veteran friends. The closest I came was when USS Kitty Hawk<\/em><\/strong> (CV-63)<\/a> cruised through the South China Sea during Westpac \u201975<\/strong>. I worked on the aircraft carrier flight deck as a Crash & Salvage<\/a><\/strong> crew member and later, after the \u201976 Bremerton Shipyards<\/a><\/strong> period, I transferred to a Yellow Shirt Director<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u201cThank you for your service\u201d<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    In my last blog post, Military Ball Caps and\u2026 Rocks<\/a><\/em><\/strong>, I mentioned that many times while wearing my Kitty Hawk<\/em> ball cap, people often say, \u201cThank you for your service.<\/em>\u201d It\u2019s never bothered me one way or another. But I know some veterans don\u2019t necessarily like the phrase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When I came home in July 1977 after being discharged, I was a proud veteran (still am) and enjoyed the time I\u2019d spent in the Navy. I was certainly more mature (I joined when I was 18 years old). While there were some days better than others, I tend to remember the good times and the men I served with, both while at NAS Agana, Guam<\/a><\/strong> and aboard Kitty Hawk<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"NAS
    NAS Agana, Guam (1974); Glenn Law, John O’Mara, Gary Cuzner (R.I.P.), Andy Adkins<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    The thing is\u2026 that phrase, \u201cThank you for your service<\/em>,\u201d wasn\u2019t commonplace until the Global War on Terror<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I can\u2019t remember what people said to veterans back in the 70s when I left the service. For me, if I knew a person was a veteran\u2014it didn\u2019t matter if s\/he was Navy, Army, Marine, Air Force, or Coast Guard\u2014they got higher marks in my mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Years later, when I assumed the role of an IT Director or a CIO (Chief Information Officer) and needed to expand my team, I paid closer attention to the experience of men and women who had served.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    It may have been a bit biased on my part, but since I was the HMFIC (Head Mother **** in Charge<\/em>), I made the decisions, although not everyone I hired was a veteran. If they\u2019d committed time to serve our country, I wanted to know a little more about what they did.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In fact, when I was the CIO for a large law firm in West Virginia, I interviewed folks for a manager position. One applicant was a former Marine\u2014served 10 years. His job was demolitions. I was so intrigued that I spent more time listening to his stories in the Marines than I did about his experience in IT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I hired him and he helped me build out a Support Team we needed in the firm, since the firm had grown significantly with attorneys, staff, and physical offices. I just laid out my vision, we brainstormed how to make it work and what he needed. After that, he made it happen. That made my job easy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Back on the Flight Deck<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    One thing that strikes me\u2014even to this day. I know I\u2019m not the only one who thinks this. During the last few months of my time in the Navy, I couldn\u2019t wait to get out of the Navy, get off the ship, and get back to civilian life. However, a few years after<\/em> my discharge, there were times where I wanted to go back for a visit, go back for a short time\u2026 just to feel that ocean breeze on my face, observe flight operations, and feel that adrenaline rush<\/a><\/strong>, one more time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Believe it or not, I got that opportunity several years ago when I was writing my Navy memoir, \u201cThree Years Eleven Months & 29 Days: But Who\u2019s Counting.<\/em><\/strong>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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    \"USS
    USS Ronald Reagan (2009). E-2 Hawkeye on Cat 2.
    (Photo credit: Andy Adkins)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

    I asked the Navy (actually, the Navy Public Affairs Office) for three things: First, to spend a few days at Great Lakes and talk to a few recruits and company commanders. I wanted to compare the time I spent at boot camp (Orlando RTC<\/a><\/strong>, Jul-Sep \u201973) with today\u2019s current boot camp experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Second, I asked to spend a few days aboard an active carrier, observing flight ops, walk the flight deck, and spend a little time with Crash and the Yellow Shirts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Third, to experience a recovery and a catapult launch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When I was in New York for a Legal Tech Conference<\/strong>, I took the opportunity to visit the Navy PAO, which was only a few blocks from the conference hotel. When I introduced myself to the Lieutenant and explained my visit, she pulled my request out of a pile of papers and informed me that my requests (all three of them) had been approved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    That was easier than I thought. I spent 3 days at Great Lakes, 3 days aboard USS Ronald Reagan<\/a><\/em><\/strong> (CV-76), and got a recover & launch on a C-2 Greyhound<\/strong>. When I got to the Reagan<\/em>, I thought I’d be able to observe flight ops from Vulture’s Row, up on the island superstructure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Wrong!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Flight Deck Officer had been a former ABH, like me. He gave me a float coat, a cranial helmet, and said, “Follow me!” Wow! After 30+ years, I was back on the flight deck. Just like riding a bike. I knew where to go and, more importantly, where not <\/em>to venture, during flight ops. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Times Have Changed\u2026 for me<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    I recently read somewhere that some veterans feel the phrase, \u201cThank you for your service<\/em>,\u201d is almost like a canned speech. Meaning that some folks believe it\u2019s way overused. I don\u2019t believe that. I personally think it\u2019s a way for someone to express their appreciation for our veterans, no matter what age or what war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Back when I was first discharged in 1977, there was still anger about the Vietnam War. Not as much as in the late 60s and early 70s, but it was still there. No one said anything to me about my service and at the time, I was fine by that. After all, I\u2019d done my time, and I was moving forward with my life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I used to say, \u201cYou\u2019re welcome,\u201d but even that, for me, seemed a bit shallow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Now, my response is, \u201cIt was my honor\u201d or \u201cIt was an honor and a privilege.\u201d Sometimes, I\u2019ll add in, \u201cI\u2019d do it all over again, too.\u201d That, to me, gives my response a little more meaning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    One thing I\u2019ve been doing the past few years, time permitting, is when I do see a veteran\u2014either with a ball cap or something that identifies him\/her as a veteran\u2014I\u2019ll ask the usual questions, if appropriate:<\/p>\n\n\n\n