GRUMPY'S PAGE
Bringin' 1966 thru 1970 Back At-Cha!

I was a member of The Army Security Agency from 12AUG66 through 11AUG70.
During that time I was at Fort Dix NJ for basic training, Fort Gordon,GA for signal school (31E20 field radio repair), Fort Carson, CO with the 352nd ASA Co. 5th INF.DIV. (MECH), the 330th Radio Research Co. Pleiku, RVN, and HQ Co. USASATR, Fort Devens, MA as an instructor in basic electronics.

While with the 352nd ASA Co. I acquired a secondary MOS of 33C20( terminal intercept equipment repairman), and was promoted to SP/4. Duty at Ft. Carson was as good as stateside duty gets. Colorado Springs, Pikes Peak, Royal Gorge, the ski areas, Denver, and many other places always seemed to beckon. We were tasked with supporting the 5th Infantry Division, so whenever someone from the 5th was in the field, we were too. I used to volunteer to go to the field so that one of the married guys wouldn't have to do it, and also because field exercises were always over on thursday and if you were in the field you always got a 3 day pass after the exercise was over. I LIKED to have 3 days off, and traveled quite a bit during those long weekends. Other memories include guarding the parking lot for the civilian vehicles (POV'S), listening to KDKA radio (Pittsburgh, PA) at night (I'm originally from western PA.), the old wooden barracks, the coal/wood fired stoves that had trouble keeping ANYTHING warm, and watching the 1967 Pikes Peak Hill Climb from Devils Playground on the mountain. I eventualy tired of "the good life" and put in my request for a transfer. The company CO (CAPT Fallon) would only approve the request if Vietnam was listed. I requested Spain, Germany, and Vietnam in that order and CAPT Fallon approved the request. Guess which one I got!

I arrived in Vietnam in April 1968 and made my way up country finally winding up at the 330th Radio Research Company in a place called Pleiku. I spent the next 19 months of my life with the 330th at Pleiku, as well as detachments in An Khe and Qui Nhon. During my first tour I was promoted to SP/5, and always seemed to be on the 7 P.M. to 7 A.M. shift. I decided at some point during the tour that I would extend my time there by 10 months and take advantage of the 6 month early out that the Army was offering. I applied for, and received a 6 month extension, and took advantage of the "free" 30 day leave that was given out for extending. I went home (where else) in May of 1969, and returned to the 330th in June. When I got back, i found that we had gotten a new company XO, and that he carried a Court Martial manual with him at all times. He was not a very nice man and we were on opposite sides of the fence on a few occasions. I always ended up as the "loser" and figured that I best not stay any longer than necessary. I decided to not extend my tour any longer. In October 1969 I was promoted to SP/6 in my secondary MOS with 3 years and 2 months in service, and on 24NOV69 I DEROS'ed back to 45 days leave, OD'ing on football with my dad.

On 04JAN70 I reported in to HQ Co. USASATR as an instructor in basic electronics. Had a lot of fun training guys that were fresh out of basic, and did that job until ETS on 11AUG70. When I first reported in, the 1SG took me to my room (single room,top floor,end of the hall) and said "take as much time as you need, but get this room ready for inspection". Hell.....after 19 months in Vietnam I couldn't even SPELL inspection nevermind get ready for one! B-U-T, I stripped the floors, washed the walls, took down the screens and washed them outside, got all of my uniforms starched, pressed, and had all of the correct insignias sewed on, put wax back on the floor, and got my locker and foot locker ready for inspection. Got the 1SG to inspect my room, and he said it looked fine. He gave me a padlock and key and said "whenever there is a barracks inspection, a parade formation, or anything else going on, put this lock on the door and screw". HOT DAMN....after that my room looked like a shit hole 'till I got out. THANK YOU 1SG. However,.....the best thing about my time at Devens was that I met my wife while I was stationed there. Dotty and I met in February of 1970, and got married in October. This October (1999) will mark 29 years, and I love her more today than ever before. We have 3 kids-27, 24, & 21, and they are all great people. Thanks ASA for helping me meet my wife!

After I got out of the ASA, I went back to my job at the NSA (National Security Agency) in Fort George G. Meade, MD. I had originally enlisted in the ASA because I already had the necessary clearances, and thought that the Army would send me right back to NSA after my basic training. WRONG! The closest that I got to Ft. Meade was my basic training at Ft. Dix. Went from NSA to California Computer Products, to a service bureau in Massachusetts, to Storage Technology Corp, to my current job with Amdahl Corp. It's really been a fun ride, and The ASA has been a big part of it. Hopefully the future will continue to be a fun ride and I'll be able to re-establish contact with more of those that I served with in The Army Security Agency.

Thanks for visiting my site! W. B. "Andy" Anderson aka "Grumpy"

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