THIRD PLATOON ALPHA COMPANY 1/39 INF (M), 1987 - EMs

Alpha Company 1/39 Inf (M) was without question the best fun I had in the Army, despite the frequent attention of a couple of relatively senior officers who took a personal interest in making my life miserable. Not that there was anything unusual about that. Anyway, the airmobile mission we had (that I've written about elsewhere on this web beacon) just couldn't be beat.

Here are a few names from Baumholder days to add to those I've already mentioned:

SP/4 Bowie – Mad Max in an APC. We were racing down a narrow path through the woods in our M-113 one winter, and somehow Bowie got the right track up on a long stack of pine logs lying parallel to the road. When the logs ran out the M-113 got a bit of air and came down with a mighty crash, still going flat out like the hammers of hell and bouncing up and down on the shocks . . . I figured the old girl was going to come apart at the seams. Bowie didn't let up on the accelerator for even a second, he just looked back with a crazy grin and kept on flying. That was the same exercise where we got caught out in a hail storm, suffering little frozen marbles bouncing off our faces in the lead track while we whipped along the backroads at the GDP.

SP/4 Darnell – I remember Darnell as a smart and relatively quiet guy with a sense of humor and an interest in music. Perhaps the passing years have fooled me but I remember him as a big fan of The Cure. I'm pretty sure that when Darnell left Baumholder he went back to the States for university, but I lost track of him after I went across to the Mortar Platoon at the end of 1987.

SP/4 Boyer – Boyer returned to the States in 1987, as I recall, for a tour with the 82nd Airborne Division. He was one of the good guys and I wouldn't be surprised to learn that he either stuck it out and became a CSM or else went back to the private sector and got preposterously rich.

Now, readers, I know you're out there so let's have some more correspondence with the names of fellows you remember and those you'd like to find again.

AAAO!

Sergeant Mike Prall, B Co 1/39 Infantry (Mech) 1971-1975

Folks,

A sad message today from Jerry Stern, which I've reposted from the comments:

For anyone who was in the 1/39th from 1971 thru 1975, we lost a member recently. Sergeant Michael (Mike) Prall, who was with B Company from 71-74, passed away in May 2006 in Sugar Land Texas.

Sgt Jerry Stern
B Co. 1/39th

Vale Sergeant Mike Prall

AAAO

Jerry, please drop me a line at matthewginn-at-gmail.com -- thanks

BAUMHOLDER FRG 1986-1990

During the four years or so I spent at Baumholder with 1/39 Inf and 4/12 Inf, I ran into a number of people who were in other units. Of course, there was always a degree of mission overlap and you may have bumped into these folks as well, so I'll post a few names here on the 1/39 Inf web beacon and cross-post it on the 4/12 Inf web beacon.

1LT Keith Altmeier

I met LT Keith Altmeier and his wife during the induction program run by the Baumholder Milcom back in mid-1986. He was assigned to 4/29 FA and I used to run into him from time to time around the post or out in the field. For a while there he was a Fire Support Team (FIST) leader which, as I've mentioned before, always struck me as being one of the best jobs in the Combat Arms. Keith and his better half were good folks and I had many an enjoyable afternoon talking to them back in 1986. Hope life's treated them well over the years.

1LT Paul Pressler

LT Paul Pressler was also with 4/29 FA, and he used to room in the BOQs not far from the MLRS unit and 25th Chemical Company. Paul had a number of German girlfriends over the years and I heard that he married one from up near Bochum and took a European Out to stay in-country. He already spoke pretty good German when he arrived and I learned a lot from him in early days. At one point he was looking for a transfer down to the 1st Armored Division down at Ansbach where they had a liaison posting for someone who knew the language. Funny to think that in a few short years the 1st AD would move up to our AO and replace the 8th Infantry Division. . . .

1LT Rick Morgan

I knew Rick from the induction program, too, and we worked not far from each other since he was with 1/13 Infantry just down the road from us in Paddy's Gang. We had some merry times in Idar-Oberstein, and we both took a European Out in 1989. He stayed in Baumholder and I moved down to Heidelberg, but we were both studying at Boston University Overseas Programs so we managed to stay in touch. Rick's in Texas right now, running his own oil company and doing well.

Ms Normal Danzie

Just about every new face in Baumholder would have known Normal Danzie because she was a leader in the induction program there. I ran into her again several years after I arrived in Baumholder and was amazed that, despite the fact I was in civvies, she still remembered my name. That ain't bad, considering she must have met thousands of people coming through the program. Somewhere at the bottom of one of my old footlockers I've still got my certificate of "graduation" from the induction program and will see about scanning it the next time I have a good Spring cleaning.

OK, folks, who knows where they've ended up?