Army National Guardsmen Learn To Be All That They Can Be In Training
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By David [email protected]
Two of the Indiana Army National Guard’s recent recruits just finished basic training in August, while another recruit finished Advanced Individual Training. On Monday, the recruits, Harlan and Sfc. Dan Murphy, discussed the Guard and training during an interview at the Warsaw Armory.
Pfc. Tyler Murphy and Pvt.2 Austin Ritenour were at basic together at Fort Benning, Ga., for 11 weeks. Pfc. Caitlin Kamp just graduated from AIT, the step after basic training, at Fort Lee, Va.
The first three weeks of basic are probably the hardest, Tyler said. During the first week, there’s a reception and soldiers get all their equipment like their uniforms.
“It’s just really boring. When you’re done with all that, you sit in a classroom in an auditorium and have to study a book they give you,” Tyler said.
The book contains the soldier’s creed, rank structures and general orders.
“You’re extremely exhausted, too, because at Benning, we went to bed at 7:30 (p.m.) and they woke us up at 3, 3:30 every morning. The first night when I got down there, I got there at like 11 and I didn’t sleep until the next day, until probably 9:30 at night. So I was exhausted from that. We never got caught up on sleep until it got down to actual training,” Tyler recalled.
Ritenour said, “They treat you like a man. They get it through your head that you’re pretty much grown up so they’re going to pretty much beat the man into you. It’s pretty much what it is. You’re not to act like a kid anymore.”
“If you act like a child, they’re going to treat you like a child,” Tyler added.
Starting about the fourth week, Tyler said they got into rifle marksmanship. They went to the shooting range every day for three weeks straight and qualified on their M4s.
“Once we qualified, we got to shoot Assault 249s and then the 240 Bravos. We also got to shoot grenade launchers, AT4s and some hand grenades, which was pretty fun,” Tyler said.
During basic training, Ritenour said he enjoyed the physical fitness aspect of it “quite a bit. They’re pretty much forcing us to do it. And going to the range every day and being able to shoot your weapon.”
Ritenour said he also enjoyed the camaraderie and “building bombs with new people.” Tyler said he misses some of his buddies from basic, but still keeps in contact with them.
During the last couple of weeks, Tyler said they turned stuff in, had personal training tests and got ready to go home. There was a lot of down time, but they had to pass their tests in order to graduate basic.
Both men graduated training and took part in the ceremony.
“I felt really proud of myself,” Tyler said.
“I felt like I took an extra step in a big journey,” Ritenour said.
Kamp said when she first went to AIT she expected everything to be very high stress like basic training was.
“But it wasn’t like that at all. They expected us to know where to be and when to be there, so they gave us a lot more freedom, which nobody was used to. It was really nice in that aspect and they treated us like we were soldiers. It was more like you were learning your specific job. They still instilled discipline in us, but wasn’t so drilled into us,” Kamp said.
Her job in the Guard is 92 Foxtrot, a petroleum supply specialist.
As for her daily schedule, she said she woke up at 4:30 a.m., had room checks, formation at 5 a.m., PT from 5 to 6:30 a.m. and ate after that and got ready for classes. School went from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
“And then, it depended on the different annexes we were in with our training. So either we would be outside with our hands-on or you’d be in the classroom doing PowerPoints and book work. And then we’d come back, have dinner, and get ready for another day,” Kamp recalled.
Done with all her training and having graduated from Rochester High School, her next step is college. She needs to finish her Recruit Sustainment Program Drills and go to her next unit.
Kamp will study psychology with a minor in business management at college.
Tyler and Ritenour must still graduate high school at Warsaw. They both will return to Fort Benning July 7 for AIT.
“With us being together, and since we’ve known each other since elementary school, it helped a lot,” Tyler said.
“It’s fun going with someone you know,” Ritenour said. “That’s why you should try to get your buddies in when you join the Guard. Just try to get a buddy to join with you. Or even a couple of buddies. Because it not only gets you ranked up, it gets you to possibly go to basic with someone you enjoy.”
Tyler said, “I kind of feel like being back at the high school, it kind of puts me on the spot like people know that I act different now because I’ve got more discipline instilled in me. So teachers are always putting me on the spot about being back from basic. So it not only makes people look up to me, but it also makes people expect more out of me than a normal person because behind this person is a soldier now.”
Dan said, “I think when they went down, they were not only mentally challenged but physically challenged as well. I think this is true in all the young kids we send down – they just grow up and come back with a little added discipline. Mental toughness. I think it’s a great opportunity all the area youth should consider.”
For more information on the Indiana Army National Guard, Dan can be contacted directly at 574-226-1476.
Harlan is the noncommissioned officer in charge of the recruiting team. He covers everywhere from St. Joe and Elkhart counties down to Howard County. He supervises recruiters on a day-to-day basis, and for one weekend a month he’s the first sergeant for the RSP Drills.
From his perspective, Harlan said recruiting for the Guard is constant.
“We’re always looking for more,” he said. “These guys are a living example that even in their generation there are young people who appreciate what we have here in the country and step up to defend it. We’re always looking for those ones that are motivated to put the uniform on and wear it proudly,” Harlan said.
Of all the counties he covers, he said Kosciusko is one of the Guard’s best.
“It’s a very patriotic county. It’s very military friendly. The community itself is phenomenal. When we’re out in the community, people come up and shake our hands and stuff like that. It’s one of the better counties that we cover,” Harlan said.
While the Guard’s future depends on people up the “food chain” – like Congress and the President – Harlan said, “The future for Indiana looks bright. We’re adding a special forces unit down at Camp Atterbury. We’re adding another infantry battalion down around Central Indiana. ... We have a new tag now. A new general, Gen. (Courtney) Carr, he’s coming in and he’s got big plans to help us grow.”[[In-content Ad]]
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Two of the Indiana Army National Guard’s recent recruits just finished basic training in August, while another recruit finished Advanced Individual Training. On Monday, the recruits, Harlan and Sfc. Dan Murphy, discussed the Guard and training during an interview at the Warsaw Armory.
Pfc. Tyler Murphy and Pvt.2 Austin Ritenour were at basic together at Fort Benning, Ga., for 11 weeks. Pfc. Caitlin Kamp just graduated from AIT, the step after basic training, at Fort Lee, Va.
The first three weeks of basic are probably the hardest, Tyler said. During the first week, there’s a reception and soldiers get all their equipment like their uniforms.
“It’s just really boring. When you’re done with all that, you sit in a classroom in an auditorium and have to study a book they give you,” Tyler said.
The book contains the soldier’s creed, rank structures and general orders.
“You’re extremely exhausted, too, because at Benning, we went to bed at 7:30 (p.m.) and they woke us up at 3, 3:30 every morning. The first night when I got down there, I got there at like 11 and I didn’t sleep until the next day, until probably 9:30 at night. So I was exhausted from that. We never got caught up on sleep until it got down to actual training,” Tyler recalled.
Ritenour said, “They treat you like a man. They get it through your head that you’re pretty much grown up so they’re going to pretty much beat the man into you. It’s pretty much what it is. You’re not to act like a kid anymore.”
“If you act like a child, they’re going to treat you like a child,” Tyler added.
Starting about the fourth week, Tyler said they got into rifle marksmanship. They went to the shooting range every day for three weeks straight and qualified on their M4s.
“Once we qualified, we got to shoot Assault 249s and then the 240 Bravos. We also got to shoot grenade launchers, AT4s and some hand grenades, which was pretty fun,” Tyler said.
During basic training, Ritenour said he enjoyed the physical fitness aspect of it “quite a bit. They’re pretty much forcing us to do it. And going to the range every day and being able to shoot your weapon.”
Ritenour said he also enjoyed the camaraderie and “building bombs with new people.” Tyler said he misses some of his buddies from basic, but still keeps in contact with them.
During the last couple of weeks, Tyler said they turned stuff in, had personal training tests and got ready to go home. There was a lot of down time, but they had to pass their tests in order to graduate basic.
Both men graduated training and took part in the ceremony.
“I felt really proud of myself,” Tyler said.
“I felt like I took an extra step in a big journey,” Ritenour said.
Kamp said when she first went to AIT she expected everything to be very high stress like basic training was.
“But it wasn’t like that at all. They expected us to know where to be and when to be there, so they gave us a lot more freedom, which nobody was used to. It was really nice in that aspect and they treated us like we were soldiers. It was more like you were learning your specific job. They still instilled discipline in us, but wasn’t so drilled into us,” Kamp said.
Her job in the Guard is 92 Foxtrot, a petroleum supply specialist.
As for her daily schedule, she said she woke up at 4:30 a.m., had room checks, formation at 5 a.m., PT from 5 to 6:30 a.m. and ate after that and got ready for classes. School went from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
“And then, it depended on the different annexes we were in with our training. So either we would be outside with our hands-on or you’d be in the classroom doing PowerPoints and book work. And then we’d come back, have dinner, and get ready for another day,” Kamp recalled.
Done with all her training and having graduated from Rochester High School, her next step is college. She needs to finish her Recruit Sustainment Program Drills and go to her next unit.
Kamp will study psychology with a minor in business management at college.
Tyler and Ritenour must still graduate high school at Warsaw. They both will return to Fort Benning July 7 for AIT.
“With us being together, and since we’ve known each other since elementary school, it helped a lot,” Tyler said.
“It’s fun going with someone you know,” Ritenour said. “That’s why you should try to get your buddies in when you join the Guard. Just try to get a buddy to join with you. Or even a couple of buddies. Because it not only gets you ranked up, it gets you to possibly go to basic with someone you enjoy.”
Tyler said, “I kind of feel like being back at the high school, it kind of puts me on the spot like people know that I act different now because I’ve got more discipline instilled in me. So teachers are always putting me on the spot about being back from basic. So it not only makes people look up to me, but it also makes people expect more out of me than a normal person because behind this person is a soldier now.”
Dan said, “I think when they went down, they were not only mentally challenged but physically challenged as well. I think this is true in all the young kids we send down – they just grow up and come back with a little added discipline. Mental toughness. I think it’s a great opportunity all the area youth should consider.”
For more information on the Indiana Army National Guard, Dan can be contacted directly at 574-226-1476.
Harlan is the noncommissioned officer in charge of the recruiting team. He covers everywhere from St. Joe and Elkhart counties down to Howard County. He supervises recruiters on a day-to-day basis, and for one weekend a month he’s the first sergeant for the RSP Drills.
From his perspective, Harlan said recruiting for the Guard is constant.
“We’re always looking for more,” he said. “These guys are a living example that even in their generation there are young people who appreciate what we have here in the country and step up to defend it. We’re always looking for those ones that are motivated to put the uniform on and wear it proudly,” Harlan said.
Of all the counties he covers, he said Kosciusko is one of the Guard’s best.
“It’s a very patriotic county. It’s very military friendly. The community itself is phenomenal. When we’re out in the community, people come up and shake our hands and stuff like that. It’s one of the better counties that we cover,” Harlan said.
While the Guard’s future depends on people up the “food chain” – like Congress and the President – Harlan said, “The future for Indiana looks bright. We’re adding a special forces unit down at Camp Atterbury. We’re adding another infantry battalion down around Central Indiana. ... We have a new tag now. A new general, Gen. (Courtney) Carr, he’s coming in and he’s got big plans to help us grow.”[[In-content Ad]]
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