Only about 10 of us in the Headquarters Company actually worked in the Headquarters Quonset hut, while the others worked in the motor pool as drivers, mechanics, or the Division Band that was assigned to us. I was the only DISCOM (division support command) S-1 clerk for 13 months. During my last month my replacement had arrived and I was training him for his new job.
I never worked with Lieutenant Bixby, though he knew who I was, but I didn't see him very often--pay days, or around the compound. On the compound we had 23 officers--Lieutenants, Captains, Majors, Lt. Colonel, and frequent visits from the Division General.
Of course I worked with Lieutenant Sales every hour of every day, and Col. Tominac about once every two weeks, though I saw him daily. Colonel Tominac had won the Congressional Medal of Honor during World War II. Click here for his story - Pictures - Part 1 - Part 2
I also worked with Captain John Stumer, who was in charge of personnel coming into and leaving the Division. He was also in charge of all enlisted promotions along with the Division Command Sergeant Major, Leo W. Coats. I was the promotion board clerk, handling all of the paper work--gathering applications, assigning interview times, and calculating points, and then sending out notification results. Towards the end of my tour Captain Stumer was given a court martial and released from the Army. A sad time. (Maybe I'll find time to tell the story later.)
I was drafted into the army as a Private E-1 on February 4, 1969 and was sent to Fort Bliss, Texas. After basic training I was sent to Fort Huachuca, Arizona for AIT (advanced individual training), in other words, clerk school. There I learned all about Army Regulation and how to find information in their many volumes. I had a whole set of these behind my desk in Korea. From Arizona, I had a 17 day leave home and then on to Fort Lewis, Washington, where I spent a week processing out for Korea. I arrived in Korea on July 2, 1969. I left Korea on September 7, 1970. While in Korea reading Army Regulation I discovered I could leave the Army early by extending my tour in Korea, which is what I did. Landing back in Washington on September 7 1970, I was released at midnight on September 8, 1970, because all of the paper work was dated September 8, 1970. Every promotion I received during those 19 months was at an accelerated rate, leaving the Army as an E-5, Specialist Fifth Class.
Lt. Bixby knowing that my time was up in the Army asked me on two different occasions to stay in the Army and he would promote me to E-6 Staff Sergent, but I turned him down on both occasions. Having had an opportunity to go to Officer Candidate School earlier in the Army, I knew that I was not going to make the Army my career.
Army Certificate - after 14 months and one week in Korea
Specialist Fifth Class William Stephenson
Specialist Fifth Class William Stephenson, xxx-xx-xxxx, while serving in
the position of DISCOM S1 clerk during the period of 10 July 1969 to 28
August 1970, has performed his duties in an outstanding manner. While
assigned to this position he readily accepted the responsibility and
excelled in a manner unsurpassed by anyone of the same rank and grade.
He continually maintained the respect of all those associated with the
mission of the S1 Section. Specialist Stephenson's dedication to his
work and the example he set for his colleagues to follow could not go
unnoticed. He could be called upon at any hour to furnish aid in
processing special incident paperwork. Throughout the night and into the
morning, Specialist Stephenson responded with a positive attitude and
remarkable efficiency. Specialist Stephenson's dependability cannot be
surpassed. He is a credit to himself, 2d Infantry Division, and the
United States Army.
Dated 5 September 1970
Signed -
S. H. Matheson
Major General, United States Army
Commanding
DISCOM - Division Support Command - The 2nd Infantry Division
("Indianhead";[1]
"2ID," "2nd ID", or "Second D") is a formation of the United
States Army. Its current primary mission is the pre-emptive
defense of South
Korea in the event of an invasion from North
Korea. The 2nd Infantry Division is unique in that it is the only
U.S. Army division that is made up partially of South Korean soldiers,
called KATUSAs
(Korean Augmentation to the U.S. Army). This program began in 1950 by
agreement with the first South Korean president, Syngman
Rhee.
Army Laundry Bag - with serial number before we changed to Social Security numbers
Pictures - taken in Korea
In 1965 at Fort Benning, Georgia, the 2nd Infantry Division's stateside units, the 11th Air Assault Division's personnel and equipment, and the colors and unit designations of the 1st Cavalry Division, returned from Korea, were used to form a new formation, the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile). The personnel of the existing 1st Cavalry Division in Korea took over the unit designations of the old 2nd Infantry Division. Thus, the 2nd Infantry Division formally returned to Korea in July 1965. From 1966 onwards North Korean forces were engaging in increasing border incursions and infiltration attempts and the 2nd Infantry Division was called upon to help halt these attacks. On 2 November 1966, soldiers of the 1st Battalion, 23d Infantry Regiment were killed in an ambush by North Korean forces. In 1967 enemy attacks in the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) increased, as a result, 16 American soldiers were killed that year.
In 1968 the 2nd Infantry Division was headquartered at Tonggu Ri and responsible for watching over a portion of the DMZ.[18] In 1968 North Koreans continued to probe across the DMZ, and in 1969, while on patrol, four soldiers of 3d Battalion, 23d Infantry were killed. On 18 August 1976, during a routine tree-trimming operation within the DMZ, two American officers of the Joint Security Force (Joint Security Area) were axed to death in a melee with North Korean border guards called the Axe Murder Incident. On 21 August, following the deaths, the 2nd Infantry Division supported the United Nations Command in "Operation Paul Bunyan" to cut down the "Panmunjeom Tree". This effort was conducted by Task Force Brady (named after the 2nd ID Commander) in support of Task Force Vierra (named after the Joint Security Area Battalion commander).
