Missing Link

Yesterday I wrote about a friend of mine, Kyle Purple, who has positively influenced my life. Initially, I had no immediate plans to write more such posts about other people who had influenced my life. The key word there being immediate. I DID have plans to write more posts like that, just not right away. While thinking last night, though, I decided to write one a day until I’ve written them all. (Hey, MattyP, do you have any pictures of you and/or Jay? can you send them to me?). Today, I have decided to write about someone who is, arguably, a second father to me. Back in January of 2000 I made the decision to go to military school. Normal high school just wasn’t working out for me. So, I got packed up and, a week before my 18th birthday I made the trek into the unknown. It quickly became clear that this wouldn’t be easy, as I had no idea what to do, where to go, what to wear or how to DO anything. I knew nobody there, and knew nothing of the environment. Add to that the fact that I couldn’t leave, even if I wanted to. Initially, there was one man who made the transition from normal high school student to cadet a much easier process (later on there were others, MattyP and Jay, who also made it a much easier process), and that man was Sergeant Major William Poe.

His staff Bio from the St John’s website describes Bill Poe as follows:

Sergeant Major Poe served in the U.S. Army from 1969 to 1998. During that time, he served as an infantryman, performing at all levels of responsibility within the noncommissioned officer’s corps in Ranger, light infantry, and mechanized infantry units. Sergeant Major Poe has many years of experience as an instructor in senior ROTC detachments and as a Ranger instructor. He is a graduate of the U.S. Army Sergeant Major’s Academy, Ranger School, Pathfinder Course, Airborne School, Jumpmaster Course, Master Fitness Course and Battle Staff Course. Some of his military decorations include the Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal (fifth award), Army Commendation Medal (second award), Army Achievement Medal (second award), and the Humanitarian Service Medal.

Sergeant Major Poe brought me into his office after a fellow cadet finished showing me how to make a 10-10 bed with square corners. He could tell I had realized I was in way over my head. My parents had already left, and the realization that I couldn’t leave had just sunk in. He told me about himself, and what his job was, and gave me some more background on the academy, on Echo Company (the company I was assigned to), and what I could expect for the next few days before the rest of the cadets came back. I had a couple of days before that happened in whcih to learn the very basics so that I didn’t get into too much trouble.

Bill also told me that he was a devout Christian and that he took that very seriously. I had just left a very christian high school, so that actually brought a sense of comfort. It was something I knew in a vast ocean of unknown. We ended up starting a bible study where we would read passages from the Bible and attempt amateur analysis of what it meant for us in the world today. It was, again, a chance for me to cling to something that I knew.

One week after I arrived at SJNMA, I turned 18. Normally, cadets aren’t allowed contact with their parents for the first month they are there. This is so that they can adjust to the atmosphere and not cling to mommy and daddy. Bill, however, realized that keeping me from talking to my parents on my birthday was stupid and called my parents, then called me into his office so that I could talk to them. That was awesome.

There was no questioning an order given by SGM Poe. When he’d tell you to do something, you did it. You didn’t want to find out what would happen if you didn’t. He was big, strong, and left no question as to his ability to kick ass. He also had the “I can kill you with my bare hands” stare down. There were a few times when I was on the recieving end of that stare, and even a few times when I was yelled at for stupid things I had done. Overall, though, those were rare occasions.

Sergeant Major Poe was nothing short of my second dad, keeping an eye on me and raising me while I was at St John’s. He did a damn good job of it, too. I hold him in the highest regard. I probably would have survived St. John’s without him having been there to help guide me, but I’m sure it would have been a much less meaningful experience.

Tomorrow, I continue on the topic of St. John’s when I talk about Matt Plotkin and Robert Jason Gore… the two good friends I found there who made me feel like I wasn’t alone.