There Are Still Old Soldiers Serving in Army Reserve Units … The Lucky Ones

By Master Sgt. Jack Gordon

LOGISTICS SUPPORT AREA ANACONDA, BALAD, Iraq (September 15, 2004) – Jack Cormack graduated from high school in 1969. “In 1971 I was in college in Toledo, Ohio in my fraternity house. We were anxiously awaiting the draft lottery that night. We had a poster on the wall with all our birthdays on it. The second number pulled was Dec. 10 … my birthday,” said Sgt. Jack Cormack, 362nd Military Police Battalion.

Such luck marked his decision to beat the Army to the punch – he’d enlist instead of waiting to be drafted and in doing so, perhaps have more control over his destiny in green.

Sgt. Jack Cormack, 362nd Military Police Battalion, Ashley, Pa., uses a speed gun to track speeders on Logistics Support Area Anaconda, Balad, Iraq. Photo by Master Sgt. Jack Gordon

Here now, where the younger 362nd soldiers – some of the much younger, call him “Pappy,” Cormack’s service is continuing.

“They kid me about being in so long,” Cormack said. “I was in before some of my boys were born – I call them my boys, but they’re men … every one of them. Sometimes they call me ‘Grandpa,’” he mused.

Like the rest of the unit’s soldiers, Cormack performs patrols every day within Anaconda’s perimeter. It’s a ride – Anaconda is home to some 23,000 soldiers. It’s the centralized hub for distribution of material and supplies in Iraq . Patrolling isn’t always uneventful. Take last night when a round whizzed past “Pappy’s” head.

The incident is still under investigation, but after discovering the exit hole, ballistics examiners determined that the hole in the glass was indeed made by a bullet.

“Some nights are so quiet you’d think you were back home in Pennsylvania or West Virginia,” Cormack said, “and other nights … it gets pretty intresting.” Intresting – is a good word to describe his military career. His first stint lasted 10 years, from 1971 through 1981.

His first assignment was with the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment and within months found himself in Thailand , where his unit was assigned as a security force for the 7th Air Force. Cormack’s service during the next year in Southeast Asia is something he keeps close, but it isn’t because he can’t remember it.

“I look back on that period as the Army’s darkest days – the public wasn’t behind the army like it is today,” Cormack said. He contrasted the early ‘70s perception and awareness of military service to that of today.

“When I went to Ashley , Pennsylvania , I was shown patriotism like never before,” he said. “The people of Ashley will remain as my ‘other’ hometown for as long as I live. It’s something I didn’t experience in the early days.

Cormack said he's glad to see soldiers today “getting their due” from America . In fact when he was returning home on R&R, he was moved into a first class seat and on the final leg of the long flight, was presented with a set of wings from the collar of a Delta pilot.

Before being called to duty again for Operation Iraqi Freedom, Cormack served as a Hometown Hero recruiter during operations Desert Shield/Storm. The taste of military life again was enough to jumpstart his interest again. After his tour he joined the Army Reserve and was assigned to the 492nd Replacement Company in Beaver, West Virginia. After a few more unit changes, he served a year in Bosnia in 1996-97 with the 335th Military Police Battalion. His law enforcement experience with the Department of Public Safety made his training as a military policeman much easier. He graduated in the top 10 percent of the class.

Cormack enjoys his role as the old soldier in the 362nd, and is always ready to crack a joke to maintain the morale of his troops. He is proud too, to still be serving … again.

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