At age 17, my brother Tyler Reedy enlisted in the Army National Guard as a helicopter turbine engine mechanic. Most of the trainees in Tyler’s Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, basic training company were, like him, only there for basic training, with a hard deadline to return home for civilian school.
This deadline was important. Failing to progress in Tyler’s company meant that a soldier would go home, only to return and restart basic training the following summer, wasting the advantages of his early enlistment.
Pvt. Tom Breakinridge was an average guy. But while the other 17-year-olds, psyched about the Army, tried to be macho, Breakinridge was super sensitive. “He cried and went to sick-call a lot,” Tyler remembered. Every basic training company has a squad of “sick-call rangers” who frequently claim medical problems and miss a lot of training, but Breakinridge was different. If someone said, “Hurry or we’ll get in trouble,” Breakinridge would explode, “OK! Leave me alone!”
“He threw a crying fit with me at least 12 times,” Tyler said. The sick-call hospital had vending machines offering refreshments for permanently stationed soldiers. These treats were absolutely forbidden to trainees. One day, Tyler’s drill sergeants were furious. One of their privates had consumed a vending machine candy bar and a soda! For this, all privates endured a punishing session of pushups, situps, and other torments. The privates soon figured out that Breakinridge, the only private at sick-call that day, must have been the guilty one.
“I was Breakinridge’s squad leader,” Tyler said. No basic training private wants to be in a leadership position. It only means extra punishment when someone messes up. Tyler and the guys asked Breakinridge why he had bought the forbidden treat. “I was hungry!” Breakinridge screamed. “How were you f***ing hungry?” Tyler said. “You sit in bed all day, you disgusting fat-ass.” Breakinridge wasn’t fat, but in basic, eating a candy bar is enough to warrant such condemnation. The others yelled at him. These days, Tyler sounds ashamed of how they went after Breakinridge, but they were all 17 and under a lot of stress.
Breakinridge cried, shoving Tyler. Tyler pushed back. Breakinridge crumpled and ran down the hall, screaming hysterically. “We heard this loud BOOM! Then a scream.” Breakinridge had punched his locker, breaking his arm.
Days later, Tyler and Breakinridge stood at attention in Sgt. Hammer’s office, Breakinridge’s arm in a cast. “What happened?” Hammer asked. Tyler recited favorite Army phrases, “Sergeant, I tried to motivate him to think of the unit instead of himself as an individual.” Breakinridge burst into tears. “Bulls***! You said I was fat!”
“Were you fighting?” asked Hammer. “We pushed each other. Then he ran away crying,” Tyler tried not to laugh. “I guess he punched his wall locker and broke his hand.” Tyler was dropped for pushups. “Breakinridge, you crying like a baby!” Hammer shouted. “Punching a locker? Think you gonna beat a locker? You were almost through training. Now, you got to come back next summer, start all over.” Tyler did pushups, fighting to avoid breaking into laughter.
Finally, Breakinridge was dismissed, and Tyler stood at attention. Hammer’s drill sergeant persona broke. “Damn it, Reedy. This is my job! Messes me up when you laughing.”
“I’m sorry, drill sergeant.”
“Never laugh again,” said Hammer.
Later, Breakinridge boasted, “I don’t mind redoing basic training. I’ll enjoy the rest of summer at home while you’re all stuck here.”
Breakinridge didn’t realize the Army makes sure no private returns home quickly for medical reasons. Breakinridge was still at Fort Leonard Wood, struggling to do chores one-handed, when Tyler’s company left after graduation. “It was a good day,” Tyler said. “Not for Breakinridge, of course.”
The Army was a little hard on Pvt. Breakinridge. But the Army is a tough environment designed to prepare soldiers for even tougher situations, and Breakinridge had been given every opportunity to succeed. Hopefully, his second summer of basic training was more successful.
*Some names and call signs in this story may have been changed due to operational security or privacy concerns. Trent Reedy served as a combat engineer in the Iowa National Guard from 1999 to 2005, including a tour of duty in Afghanistan.
