thedrifter
04-18-07, 07:16 AM
At 51, military dad approved to re-enlist
The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Apr 18, 2007 7:15:01 EDT
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Cliff Brackeen took his fight to join the Army National Guard all the way to the nation’s capital, where he did 55 push-ups on the sidewalk outside the White House in freezing February weather.
That’s the kind of determination that helped the 51-year-old southwest Missouri man realize his goal of getting back into the military, despite being nine years over the Guard’s age cutoff.
Now, Brackeen is looking forward to springing the news of his enlistment on his 19-year-old son, Marine Lance Cpl. Jesse Brackeen, who is due home later this month following a year in Iraq.
With his wife, Winona, and several of their eight children on hand Tuesday at Springfield’s National Guard Armory, Cliff Brackeen raised his right hand and promised to “support and defend the Constitution.”
Brackeen, of Aurora, said he was driven to serve partly by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks but also by his son’s example.
“That’s my inspiration,” Brackeen said, pointing to a lapel button imprinted with a photo of Jesse. “That’s my hero.”
Brackeen will soon trade his horseshoeing tools for thick training manuals on how to repair UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters.
Brackeen said he served nearly three years in the regular Army in the 1970s and had tried to rejoin the military in 1992, when he was 38. Then came Sept. 11.
“I felt like I was doing nothing for my country when I should be doing something,” he said.
When Jesse joined the Marines, he added, he knew where he needed to be.
Brackeen filed papers to join the Missouri Army National Guard in August 2005, well aware he was above the cutoff age of 42.
His physical fitness wasn’t an issue. He scored a 243 out of 300 on a military physical endurance test and outran other National Guard members half his age.
In February, he flew to Washington, D.C., to meet with congressmen and National Guard officials to press his case for re-enlistment.
While staying in shape, he also changed his looks in hope of improving his chances.
“I used to have a huge mustache, a real Yosemite Sam kind of mustache,” Brackeen said. “In 27 years, my wife never saw me without hair on my face and neither did the kids. But I figured if I wanted to be taken seriously by the officers, I had to look the part.”
He shaved off the mustache and got a military-style haircut.
All that effort paid off Monday when he heard from Sgt. Lawrence Welty.
“Sgt. Welty called me while I was out spraying a field and said, ‘Is this Specialist Brackeen?”’ Cliff said. “I was whooping and hollering. I was ecstatic.”
Welty said Brackeen’s tenacity and exceptional physical fitness overcame his age limitation.
“He needed quite a waiver to get in,” Welty said. “He is an exception to the age policy, but we do look at these on a case-by-case basis.”
Winona Brackeen said she’s proud of her husband for pursuing his dream. She said there’s a small chance he could see duty in Iraq, and she’s prepared to cope.
“This is his dream. He’s totally and completely excited,” she said. “It’s the desire of his heart to serve.”
Ellie
The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Apr 18, 2007 7:15:01 EDT
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Cliff Brackeen took his fight to join the Army National Guard all the way to the nation’s capital, where he did 55 push-ups on the sidewalk outside the White House in freezing February weather.
That’s the kind of determination that helped the 51-year-old southwest Missouri man realize his goal of getting back into the military, despite being nine years over the Guard’s age cutoff.
Now, Brackeen is looking forward to springing the news of his enlistment on his 19-year-old son, Marine Lance Cpl. Jesse Brackeen, who is due home later this month following a year in Iraq.
With his wife, Winona, and several of their eight children on hand Tuesday at Springfield’s National Guard Armory, Cliff Brackeen raised his right hand and promised to “support and defend the Constitution.”
Brackeen, of Aurora, said he was driven to serve partly by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks but also by his son’s example.
“That’s my inspiration,” Brackeen said, pointing to a lapel button imprinted with a photo of Jesse. “That’s my hero.”
Brackeen will soon trade his horseshoeing tools for thick training manuals on how to repair UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters.
Brackeen said he served nearly three years in the regular Army in the 1970s and had tried to rejoin the military in 1992, when he was 38. Then came Sept. 11.
“I felt like I was doing nothing for my country when I should be doing something,” he said.
When Jesse joined the Marines, he added, he knew where he needed to be.
Brackeen filed papers to join the Missouri Army National Guard in August 2005, well aware he was above the cutoff age of 42.
His physical fitness wasn’t an issue. He scored a 243 out of 300 on a military physical endurance test and outran other National Guard members half his age.
In February, he flew to Washington, D.C., to meet with congressmen and National Guard officials to press his case for re-enlistment.
While staying in shape, he also changed his looks in hope of improving his chances.
“I used to have a huge mustache, a real Yosemite Sam kind of mustache,” Brackeen said. “In 27 years, my wife never saw me without hair on my face and neither did the kids. But I figured if I wanted to be taken seriously by the officers, I had to look the part.”
He shaved off the mustache and got a military-style haircut.
All that effort paid off Monday when he heard from Sgt. Lawrence Welty.
“Sgt. Welty called me while I was out spraying a field and said, ‘Is this Specialist Brackeen?”’ Cliff said. “I was whooping and hollering. I was ecstatic.”
Welty said Brackeen’s tenacity and exceptional physical fitness overcame his age limitation.
“He needed quite a waiver to get in,” Welty said. “He is an exception to the age policy, but we do look at these on a case-by-case basis.”
Winona Brackeen said she’s proud of her husband for pursuing his dream. She said there’s a small chance he could see duty in Iraq, and she’s prepared to cope.
“This is his dream. He’s totally and completely excited,” she said. “It’s the desire of his heart to serve.”
Ellie