Fort Living Room: From Army Recruiter to Rehab

By Kenneth Lugo

Kenneth Lugo asked to be a recruiter, even though it came with a reputation of being a thankless job that required long hours.

Suddenly, instead of using a firearm, he was taught how to use a laptop. Pushing keys became much more important than pulling triggers.

It was a huge adjustment for him and his peers, with some of them changing from driving armored fighting tanks to compact cars. Instead of killing techniques, they were taught interpersonal skills.

At times, he found himself worrying that his post-traumatic stress disorder would get in the way of his learning. Flashbacks from his time in Iraq could creep into his mind at any time, and it was never fun.

In this memoir, he shares how he dealt with PTSD, how he embarked on a new military career, and the challenges a military recruiter must overcome as they encourage people to fight for their country.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Archway Publishing
• Release date: Jul 23, 2020
• ISBN: 9781480892781

Kenneth Lugo

Kenneth Lugo served in both the active duty and Reserve components of the U. S. Army from 1983 through 2014. He worked in several occupational specialties, including field artillery, transportation, as a drill sergeant, and finally as a recruiter. Although he enlisted out of Miami, Florida, he grew up on the streets of the Bronx, New York.

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Copyright © 2020 Kenneth Lugo.

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ISBN: 978-1-4808-9277-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4808-9278-1 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2020912866

Archway Publishing rev. date: 07/23/2020

Contents

Prologue

1    Put ’em in Boots

2    The Grand Canyon State

3    Making Mission

4    The Hunt

5    Somebody, Save Me, Please

6    Welcome to Therapy

7    Room Dawgs

8    Burn It

9    Paying the Price

10    I Want to Be an Airborne Ranger

11    Patients with Benefits

12    Thanks for Sharing

13    Forward, March

Epilogue

Military Abbreviations

Acknowledgments

This book is

dedicated to all the men and women who have served and sacrificed for our country, past and present, during peacetime and war. It’s for those who have returned home and are now facing new struggles they never expected. Those trying to fit back into today’s society, the so-called civilian world they fought for so gallantly. Those frustrated souls who, while in uniform, were entrusted to lead others on the battlefield and trained to maintain million-dollar equipment, only to have a difficult time finding anything more than a minimum wage job.

For some coming home, it’s a blessing, and for others, it’s hell to find a roof to put over their head, a place they can call their own, a place they can call Fort Living Room.

Fort living room is a term used in the military for when a

soldier is done with his or her service and goes back home.

A true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front

of him, but because he loves what is behind him.

—G. K. Chesterton

Prologue

J anuary 2008, The Fort Jackson Recruiting School, South Carolina.

It’s 0700 (7:00 a.m.), and it’s a chilly morning. There’s a class room full of potential army recruiters all gathering inside. The room is large enough to hold almost sixty soldiers. Up front, there’s a platform with a podium, and to its side is a large American flag beside a Recruiting flag. There are rows of desks with chairs from one end of the room to the other.

Some are here by choice, serving proudly, ready to put the finest America has to offer into the army. Others are here for other reasons like being voluntold by Uncle Sam. Voluntold is a term meaning they didn’t actually volunteer to be here. They received orders to be here and had no choice otherwise. If Uncle Sam needs you, you go. Period.

Most have recently returned from either one of the ongoing wars taking place. I can see that many have fresh new combat patches on the right sleeves of their uniforms, either from serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) or Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). Everyone is chatting, telling war stories to each other and bumping into some familiar faces from somewhere from their past duty assignments as they wait.

While some consider recruiting to be a thankless job with long hours, I asked to be here, as crazy it may seem to others. Why? A couple of things drew me in. First, it was a moral and career decision to be able to assist young adults to find a new life and career, as I have. Second, I was up for the challenge, even if it meant that I would work long hours, eight days a week.

Other than the countless of horror stories I heard from past recruiters trying to scare me away from the job, no one has a clue what they’re actually getting into. But either way, I am ready as I’ll ever be for the long ride, despite the PTSD I live with.

1

Put ’em in Boots

A ll of a sudden, you hear a loud voice from a cadre member saying, On your feet! The chairs move back, and the chatter stops. There’s total silence as everyone immediately stands to attention. The school’s commandant walks in the room and across the platform almost in a marching fashion. You could hear a grenade pin drop to the floor, it is so quiet. I’m sure plenty are considering how to get kicked out of this class already, and it’s only day one.

The school’s commandant says to the class, Take your seats. He begins his awaited speech. Welcome to Fort Jackson, home of the Recruiting and Retention School. He says jokingly, "I know some of you are wondering, What did I do to deserve to be here? or Who did I piss off to be here? or simply Why me? Allow me to sum it up for you. Uncle Sam wants you here, and you will not disappoint him. I know."

I look around the room. No one seems the least bit amused.

The commandant smiles as he tries to sugarcoat things. You’re in luck. This duty is nondeployable. It’ll give you a three-year break from the mainstream army. Plus, it provides more stability time near your loved ones.

This means we won’t have the possibility of being deployed and will be doing daily soldierly things like marching around all day. So far, it sounds good.

He continues, For some, this may offer a stepping stone to advancement in your careers above your fellow peers in your last unit.

Again, this all sounds good to me. Where’s the catch? I whisper to the guy sitting beside me. He shrugs his shoulders.

The commandant tries to motivate the room by giving out a loud, Hooah! The class gives him one back with hesitance—as an acknowledgment out of courtesy but not really as motivating.

Then the commandant suddenly ends his smiling and begins to point out some negative points to be aware of. He says, I’ve mentioned a few positive things about promotions and family, but there are also some things you need to be aware of that can make or break your career. Recruiters get into more trouble than any other position in the US Army. You may see one of your peers in your recruiting center office get demoted. You may also see someone possibly get arrested. Among the most serious cases, someone might even get dishonorably discharged within your three years as a recruiter. This is because you’ll all be entrusted to work alone within the civilian population, for hours. In many cases, you will be working with minors and the opposite sex, which may cause temptations. You will also have plenty of freedoms without a sergeant breathing down your neck to keep you in check.

He continues, Unfortunately, some soldiers are not used to handling the freedom, and they end up abusing it. In this job, you must be mature and professional and take more responsibility than you can imagine. You will be watched and tempted, and your integrity will be tested every day you put on that uniform and go out into the schools and communities. Just because you may be far away from the flagpole—meaning you’re away from a military base—you must not forget that you are still soldiers and someone is always watching.

Everything he says is very true. I witnessed some of these things happen during my five years as a recruiter. But as I listen on this first day, it seems the negatives outweigh the positives by a large margin. Yet I’m not worried. I’m motivated to begin this journey.

After putting the fear into everyone, the commandant closes his greeting. I wish you all success in your new recruiting careers.

Then we hear again, On your feet! We all stand at attention again. He then executes a left face and marches off the platform. He’s probably done this speech so many times, it is second nature to him.

Another cadre member steps up to the podium and begins to talk to the people in the room. He says, "Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I now have a serious question