I don’t recall recruiting new cadets on campus for the VTCC, but obviously we must have done it. Otherwise, why would I have drawn this cartoon? I’m sure any rat who brought in a prospective new cadet would have received various priviledges as reward, and any company that failed to meet its recruiting requirements would have made life living hell for its rat class. At least I think that’s how it would have worked. Again, I can’t really remember.
I do recall going to my old high school to recruit for the VTCC. One of my former teachers saw me, dressed up all in my uniform, and was shocked. She actually told me she was very disappointed. The military was not a path she thought I would have chosen. I used to like that teacher, and while I did only join the military and the VTCC thanks to some arm twisting, I was rather hurt by her comments. I may not have been overly enthusiastic about my career as an officer, but to this day I am still rather proud of the work I did and the obstacles I overcame, both in the VTCC and in the Army Reserves.
Do you recognize the prospective cadet captured in this cartoon? Yes, that’s Mick, from the previous year’s adventures. I had a number of civilian friends, many of them just as counter-culture as Mick, who could not fathom the VTCC lifestyle. And yet they were never disappointed in me. Gobsmacked by some of the wacked out things I ended up doing for the military and ROTC, but never disappointed. My thanks to all of them. Even if you didn’t understand, you did stand by me.
