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Family tradition
Joining the National Guard in 1977 was just a "family thing" for Linda Switlik of Nevada. Her dad was a World War II U.S. Army veteran who was in on the Battle of the Bulge. Her uncle died, as a young Marine, on Iwo Jima in World War II, and her husband's aunt served in the Army in that war, also.
She has a younger brother who has retired after 20 years in the U.S. Marine Corps and another brother who served in the National Guard. Her husband was an ex-Marine from the Vietnam era, with six brothers that served in various branches of service as well. "You could say I come from a military background," Switlik said.
However, Switlik does not consider herself newsworthy.
"I was a background person for soldiers. You might say I was a sort of "tour director" for the soldiers as I never traveled, but got them ready to go. I was a facilitator to get them from here to where they needed to go."
When she joined the local National Guard in Nevada it was 204th General Supply Unit, but it has been reorganized several times since then. She was a part-time soldier until 1985 when she was selected for a full-time position as personnel administrator. Her title was administrative NCO.
"My responsibility was to keep the personnel records in order, medical, dental, life insurance, family care and next-of-kin plans--all that's necessary for a soldier to deploy. The unit had from 200 to 250 soldiers at any times depending on positions needed."
Switlik explained that her office was at the National Guard Armory in Nevada. They work with Camp Clark, but are separate entities. As a full time support staff, the supply staff was responsible for attending the equipment, clothing -- whatever was needed along those lines. The training staff trained the soldiers on the weekends and in the summer on how to do their mission and do it under a battle situation. The administrative staff made sure the soldiers' paperwork was in order, that they met requirements and were ready to cross from routine employment to active duty.
"We were trained and trained until it became a habit so when on active duty, you didn't have to think about it -- just do what was needed. I always felt National Guard soldiers had a rougher job than a full-time soldier because they have a full-time job elsewhere and never enough time to train properly, yet they agree to do the job, and possibly even be fired on. You couldn't ask for a better group of people. I have great admiration for them. Any time I asked for assistance, they were always there, and even in civilian positions --that's just the type of people they are."
When mobilization is required, a certain number has to do the jobs to perform the mission. If 100 positions are required, the roster is screened, and perhaps 10 percent might not be able to deploy on active duty. Information is sent to other units to fill the needed positions. A lot of soldiers come in for a weekend drill from Kansas City, Springfield, and even St. Louis. About 50 percent will be local people. The administration has to go over the records and select the needed person.
"9-11 was an eye-opener for me. I looked out my window and within a half hour after the event, people were lined up at the gas station so much that traffic came to a standstill on Highway 54. It was a panic situation here even though we were far from the tragic happening. We were operating under orders from our headquarters in Jefferson City and our soldiers went about their jobs calmly and did what needed to be done. Preparedness is the absolute key. Have a plan. Do what you can ahead of time. Go over that plan until it is second nature to you."
Switlik retired in April 2005, shortly after her outfit had deployed to Iraq. Since it was so near her retirement, she stayed with the rear detachment and helped work the reorganization of the unit. There were 50 or so left here who hadn't finished all their training and each of those files had to be gone through so they were ready to be sent to Fort Leonard Wood or Fort Riley.
During those 28 years while Switlik was in the military, she and her husband were also foster parents. She couldn't remember how many children had been in their home, but three stayed there most of their growing up years. They are grown and have moved on, but she manages to keep in touch with several of them. "It was a very difficult, but rewarding time in my life."