Posted on 06/15/2005 3:47:45 PM PDT by Michael Goldsberry
The Army's top 19 drill sergeants from across the nation will gather at Fort Monroe, Virginia, June 19-24 to compete for the title of 2005 U.S. Army Drill Sergeant of the Year.
This year 13 active and six U.S. Army Reserve drill sergeants will compete. One winner from the active component and one from the reserve component will be selected as top drill sergeant for 2005.
The four-day event begins June 20; the running of the Army Physical Fitness Test is set to start at 7 a.m. Push-ups, sit- ups and a two-mile run along Fenwick Drive, Fort Monroe, will test each candidate's level of physical fitness. Print and electronic media are invited to attend this event. Candidates will be made available for interviews following their completion of the test. Updated information on the competition will be available at:
http://www.tradoc.army.mil/pao/Web_specials/DSOY04/index.htm
Later in the week, candidates will also be tested on their knowledge of Soldier tasks and how they teach those tasks to new trainees and Warrior Tasks. The selection process concludes with each candidate appearing before a board of senior command sergeants major to answer questions on leadership and training.
U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC), headquartered at Fort Monroe, will host an awards ceremony and announce the winners June 24 starting at 8 a.m. at the Post's Continental Park.
The ceremony is free and open to the public.
Drill sergeants are top-quality, professional noncommissioned officers (NCOs) from virtually all branches of the Army. Their role is to turn citizens into soldiers. During every recruit's initial entry training period, these NCOs set the tone for their entire military career. Currently there are approximately 2,900 Army drill sergeants in the active component and 3,000 in the reserve component.
Each year, TRADOC trains over 300,000 soldiers. Drill sergeants play a critical role in the success of this training and, therefore, have a direct impact on the readiness of the entire U.S. Army.
The active Army Drill Sergeant of the Year receives the Meritorious Service Medal and the Stephen Ailes Award, initiated in 1969. Ailes was Secretary of the Army from 1964-1965 and was instrumental in originating the first Drill Sergeant School at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.
The Army Reserve winner also receives the Meritorious Service Medal and the Ralph Haines Jr. Award. Haines was commander of the Continental Army Command (the forerunner of TRADOC) from 1970-72.
Both winners receive the "Army Times" Eugene P. Famiglietti Award, named for the late editor of the "Army Times."
The Association of the United States Army (AUSA) will present each winner with a gold watch and sponsor both drill sergeants at the 2005 AUSA Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., in October. Also, the Non Commissioned Officers Association (NCOA) will present each winner with the NCOA Military Excellence Award. The American Military Society and Armed Forces Insurance will make presentations in the form of plaques and books.
Presently, 12 TRADOC installations have drill sergeants: Fort Bliss, Texas; Fort Benning, Ga.; Fort Gordon, Ga.; Fort Huachuca, Ariz.; Fort Sill, Okla.; Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.; Fort Rucker, Ala.; Fort Knox, Ky.; Fort Eustis, Va.; Fort Lee, Va.; Presideo of Monterey, Calif., and Fort Jackson, S.C. Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md. and Redstone Arsenal, Ala., both Army Materiel Command installations, have drill sergeants in Ordnance Advanced Individual Training. The Army Medical Department Center & School, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, and U.S. Army Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, N.C., also have drill sergeants in Advanced Individual Training.
Reserve component drill sergeants represent training divisions from throughout the United States.
Greatest drill sergeants of all time:
Sgt. Vince Carter, USMC
Sgt. Emil Foley, USMC
Gunnery Sgt. Hartman, U.S. Army
So9
Well, Sgt. Foley (Louis Gossett, Jr.) is still my favorite.
Sgt Hulka our newest best buddy and big toe
LOL!!! Good one!
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