Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
From his early childhood, Daniel Rouse (Dan) wanted to be a soldier. During elementary school classes, the question to the students was: "what do you want to be when you grow up?" Most of the kids' answers were about being teachers, policemen, firemen, astronauts, etc. Dan's was consistently "soldier".
On graduating from high school, many of his friends wanted to go into the Iowa National Guard. In that it was a good way to pay for college, he joined. Dan passed all the requirement of enlistment and headed for Fort Dix, New Jersey to get the basics of the US Army. There was nothing this young soldier-in-training couldn't handle as Initial Entry Training (IET) went on. He grew up in Iowa on a farm so the challenges were easily met. He did get to know the Drill Sgt well and remembers the flat stiff brim of the Drill Sgt's hat seemed to catch the bridge of his nose often.
After the usual eight weeks of training, Dan was immediately bussed to Fort Lee, VA. Here he got advanced training in logistics supply.
Upon graduation from this course, he returned to Iowa so he could continue his college education. He enrolled in ROTC as well. In ROTC, Dan would learn the fundamentals of being an Officer in the US Army. By coupling that with his IET and AIT time, he was well prepared to go on the next level.
His recruiter advised him that the only thing available to him was a position in the US Army Reserve. Since he had a college degree in the finance field, Dan thought it was wise to move to the Washington DC area to establish a career and see what might be available for Active Duty in the Army.
Dan made friends and contacts while in Washington DC. He had several items going for him and obtaining influential friends was certainly a plus. After about two years of planning and networking, things began to work for him. Many times, a person doesn't move through channels of influence. His packet of information is what moves. The packet has all the information available about the subject. Dan's packet was expedited and finally fell onto the desk of a testy Colonel. Dan quickly found himself on Active Duty and in Ranger School!
After a grueling piece of training at Fort Benning, GA, Dan became a US Army Ranger. He was then sent on the Fort Lewis and into a unit that was commanded by an Army Ranger. All positions of leadership were filled by the same. Perfect! Performance here was electric! Everything this unit did was way over the top in expectation and excellence.
Dan was sent on to Basic Officer Infantry Course from there. He finished near the top of his class and was offered his choice of units for the next assignment. He chose the fabled 101st Infantry Division (Screaming Eagles) at Fort Campbell, KY. A Captain now, he was appointed a Company Commander in an infantry unit there.
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