Coming Back Home

By James Richmond

Coming Back Home is one mans journey through twenty years of his life. A journey of leaving what he loved, doing what he loved, and returning with the ones he loved. The book is an answer to the question that James has heard hundreds of times: What did you do in the Air Force?

James enlisted in the Air Force after graduating high school for two reasons: he did not cherish the thought of being a farmer and he wanted to serve his country. When he left, he felt alone. As he made new friends and visited and lived in new places, he became a man. He became an airman. As he progressed through the ranks in the Air Force, he met and married the love of his life, and they started their family.

Coming Back Home is Jamess storyhis life of leaving and returning. It is the fulfillment of his dream.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Apr 28, 2017
• ISBN: 9781543418910

James Richmond

James Richmond is a country boy at heart. He was born in rural Wetumka, Oklahoma in 1957. Growing up he knew that someday he wanted to serve his country, just as his Father and two Brothers had, then return to his hometown, rural life. He served twenty years in the United States Air Force as both a Security Policeman and an Intelligence Operations Technician. James traveled extensively in the Air Force, often away from his wife Debbie, and their two children, Travis and Lynnsey. Throughout his military career James knew that someday he would settle down where his roots were. In rural Oklahoma, with his Family. James enjoys playing guitar, singing, hunting, fishing, and spending time in his vegetable garden. He and Debbie love spending time and playing with their Grandchildren now.

Book preview

COMING

BACK HOME

JAMES RICHMOND

Copyright © 2017 by JAMES RICHMOND.

Library of Congress Control Number:     2017906469

ISBN:           Hardcover                     978-1-5434-1892-7

                  Softcover                       978-1-5434-1890-3

                  eBook                             978-1-5434-1891-0

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Rev. date: 04/28/2017

Xlibris

1-888-795-4274

www.Xlibris.com

760013

CONTENTS

Introduction

1. Leaving

2. Welcome To The United States Air Force

3. Becoming A Security Policeman

4. Welcome To California

5. Now I’m a Security Policeman

6. On To The Orient

7. New Base, New Mission

8. Back to the States

9. A New Home

10. The beginning of a new career

11. Hello Texas

12. Welcome to Strategic Air Command (SAC) Headquarters

13. Back to the Orient

14. Hello Again Nebraska

15. Headed west

16. Deployed in Support of Operation Desert Shield

17. Back to the Family

18. On to our last Air Force home

19. Welcome to HQ Air Mobility Command (AMC)

20. Retirement - The End And The Beginning

21. Looking Back

22. Someday

Dedication

In loving memory of my Mom, Geneva Richmond, my Dad, Don Richmond, and my Brother, Keith Richmond. Special thanks to my Wife, Debbie, who heard most of the stories and proof read the ongoing project.

Introduction

The inspiration for this book came from friends and family asking, What did you do in the Air Force?. After years of giving generic answers to that question, I wanted to explain the many aspects of being an Air Force Security Policeman, an Intelligence Operations Specialist, and serving my Country. I hope this book does just that.

In order to come back home, one first has to leave. This is my story of leaving, serving twenty wonderful years in the Air Force, and coming home. When I left home I had two main goals, to make a career of the Air Force and return to Oklahoma.

I left home shortly after graduating high school. Being raised on a farm, I had already decided that I didn’t want to be a farmer the rest of my life. My Father had spent some time in the Air Force, one Brother was in the Air Force, and one Brother was in the Army. After hearing their stories, I knew I wanted to join up. I was a typical eighteen year old farm kid. I was in great condition and knew I could make a soldier, or in my case an Airman. In August of 1975 my oldest Brother, Keith, was in on leave and I asked him to go with me to the local Air Force recruiter. He did, I liked what I heard, and joined on the delayed enlistment program. That meant I could sign up now and report for basic training in October. My Father didn’t really understand why I actually wanted to join up, although he had. My Mother just hated to see her little boy go. So, the stage was set.

1. Leaving

I moved out of the family home before I actually left for Basic Training. Again, I was eighteen years old. I knew everything and was ready to take on the world. I didn’t think I had to follow the rules of the house as my Father had set forth. He and I had an argument so I moved into a local motel for two weeks with a friend of mine before leaving for Texas. For those two weeks I did not speak to my Father, or my Mother. Why should I? I knew it all. I was free. No rules, no curfews, no worries. Life was good. Boy, did I have a lot to learn.

The day came for me to get on the Greyhound bus, make the ride to Oklahoma City, and be inducted into the United States Air Force. On October 17th, 1975, I spent the day with friends. Saying goodbye to everyone I knew, except my parents. At the bus station I was with a few close friends when it rolled up. I started to step up into the bus and there he was. My Father, alone, walked up, stuck his hand out to shake mine and said, Son, take care of yourself and always do what you think is right. We shook hands as I held back the tears. I stepped up into that bus, took a seat, and as it pulled out of Wetumka, Oklahoma I cried and wondered what I had gotten myself into. The life I had known for eighteen years was changing. It was ending. I was in unknown territory. I had that feeling for almost two hours. I was alone to conquer the world, but not for long.

When I arrived in Oklahoma City I met up with five other young men at the bus station that looked about as lost as I was. We were shuttled to a motel for the night and given instructions to be ready to go at 0600 hours the next morning. We assumed that meant 6:00 a.m. The military time is based on a 24-hour clock. 1:00 a.m is 0100 and midnight is 2400. Our military careers had begun.

We spent the evening getting acquainted, eating dinner, having a couple of beers, and wondering what lay ahead in the next few weeks. Sure, most of us had heard the horror stories about Basic Training or Boot Camp, but surely they couldn’t be as bad as we had heard. Little did we know.

We were up early, 0500, not really knowing what to expect. At precisely 0600 a white van pulled up in front of our rooms and honked once. We all got in and the driver read our names from a list he had. All accounted for, we headed downtown to the induction center. We each traveled light, one small ditty bag with our essentials. The recruiter had told us to bring only what we wore and what we needed for the overnight stay in the motel. Arriving at the center we piled out, looking like a half dozen lost puppies. As we learned quickly though, in our new world we didn’t have to wait long before somebody would give us instructions.

An Air Force Sergeant met us, introduced himself as Sgt. Wilson, and said Follow me. We did exactly that. Up two flights of stairs and into a large meeting room. Another Sergeant again called each of our names and then handed us a stack of paperwork which he said we would need to fill out completely. What he said next was an instruction that we would hear numerous times in the next few weeks. He instructed us to print our names, last name first, first name, middle initial.

Once we had the paperwork filled out to their satisfaction we were led into another larger room, where there were seated several other young men, each joining other branches of the military. The six of us for the Air Force, eight for the Navy, six for the Army, and four for the Marines. As we sat down an older