48 Years on Tanks: GRIC Veteran Returns Home

Submitted by

Joey R. Whitman

Continued from the Previous Issue of the GRIN:

In 1995, I retired from the Army. As I was getting my final out processing, I was told I was a Vietnam-era Veteran. I applied with General Dynamics to be an instructor to train Kuwait’s Army on the M1A2 tank.

In 1996, I was accepted to be an instructor. I was trained on the M1A2 at Fort Knox, passed my certification, and then went to Kuwait. I was assigned an interpreter, and we trained soldiers until 1999. We trained the Kuwaiti Army to fight and defend their country. A soldier said, “Mr. Joey, if they come, you fight, I go south (Saudia Arabia). Here’s the key to the tank.”

In 1999, I was asked if I wanted to go to Fort Hood and train soldiers on the tanks. Soldiers were returning from Bosnia and they needed to be re-trained on tanks. This was the same as I did in the Army. Again, I would go to different Forts and National Guard Camps like Camp Shelby, Mississippi, and Camp Ripley, Minnesota, and train the Moroccan Army on the M1A1 tank. In Morocco. I would also learn other types of vehicles to teach the M104 Wolverine, a bridge laying vehicle, the Assault Breacher Vehicle, used to clear minefields.

In 2007, I was hired by the Department of Defense to do the same things as I did working for General Dynamics, but I would also be a lead instructor in charge of other instructors. I would also make lesson plans and coordinate with the units for training.

In 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, and Poland bought M1 tanks to defend their country. I was assigned to go to Poland to train their Army on the M1A2 tank. I reminded the Polish soldiers that Russian President Vladimir Putin said Poland is next, “You need to learn about this tank; the tank was designed to kill, a good crew makes the tank a killing machine, So Learn it to kill Russians, that’s your job to kill,” I said this to build their confidence in themselves and the tank.

I also told them that I was trained to kill Polish soldiers when I was young. The soldiers told me that they were under Russian rule, and they were told we were going to attack them; if we attacked, they would turn against Russia and help us fight Russia, and that they were glad our countries are friends. I learned the phrase “cześć i chwała bohaterom” (“respect and glory to heroes”)

United States President Joe Biden announced that the U.S. will give Ukraine 31 M1 tanks. I was still in Poland, so I volunteered for this mission. I returned to Fort Hood for two weeks, then sent to Grafenwöhr, Germany, to train the Ukrainian army. Training the soldiers was an honor; the soldiers I noticed were old, a few young ones, and eager to learn. I learned a new phrase, “Slava Ukraini” (Glory to Ukraine), and the answer back was “Heroyam Slava” (Glory to Heroes).

After my morning brief, I would yell, “Slava Ukraini!” and the soldiers yelled back, “Heroyam Slava!” I told a platoon leader that I listen to a song called “Slava Ukraini,” the English version on YouTube, and I will always listen and sing along until the war is over… I would write down the words in Ukraine and have a soldier read the verse, and the soldiers would say the words back.

I would observe the training, and soldiers would come by and say, “THANK YOU, AMERICANS, THANK YOU!” or make other gestures and give a hug. A soldier looked my age (66). He sat by me, didn’t say anything, and offered sunflower seeds, so we sat there for about 30 minutes eating sunflower seeds. He got up, shook my hand, and said, “AMERICA, AMERICA!!” and gave a thumbs up and walked away.

When the training was going on, I would watch and think after the training, “They’re going straight into combat.” I thought of the Battle of the 73 Easting, how will these soldiers do? Will the soldier I’m looking at now will be killed, or will he be wounded or maimed; will he suffer from PTSD. I felt like crying for them.

The training ended, and it was time for graduation; I told the soldiers I WAS PROUD OF THEM, and they gave a loud yell. The Regimental Commander was told by my supervisor that I was retiring. So, in front of all the soldiers, he shook my hand and said, “When you’re sitting at home watching the news, you will see, we will kill many Russians and watch M1’s roll into Moscow,” then he presented me with a Ukraine Flag. A VERY PROUD MOMENT FOR ME. To be HONORED BY THE UKRAINE ARMY.

I returned to Fort Hood; it was time to retire, time to go home for good, back home to Arizona. After 48 years of being on tanks, I could’ve stayed on the Abrams New Equipment Training Team, but I needed to do something else. I traveled to different states, to Germany six times, and to Korea four times. I have also been to France, Spain, Italy, Morocco, England, Kuwait, and Austria. I had a good life.

 I’m glad I made the decision to join the Army, way back in 1975. I have a lot of memories some good and some bad, mostly good. I met a lot of good friends, and we did a lot; things that people wouldn’t believe, only you and your friends believe it because you did it with them. 

THE BEST FRIENDS, “BROTHERS”, are the ones you met in the Army (military). The bad memories, my “MOM” (Jeanette) passed away in 1981, and my “DAD” (Dayton) passed away in 2021. I would tell my friends about my mom and dad, and several of my friends would come home with me to meet them, see Arizona, and visit the Gila River Reservation. It made me feel good that my friends wanted to do that; several friends from Poland and Ukraine wanted to see the reservation and Arizona. I wished to see Mom and Dad.

Bartholomew Soban (Polish Soldier) wants to come here to have an American Thanksgiving; he has heard of Thanksgiving and wants to experience one. I hope he can. I’m going to try to help him make it.

And what I missed was I didn’t get to see the birth of my daughter, “NATALIE”, and watch her grow up to be a WONDERFUL DAUGHTER, NATALIE has a family of her own now.

As I write this, I relive and remember what happened 33 years ago every year at this time. I ain’t dead yet; I still got more to do… I plan to live past 100! (with God’s help)

                                      “THE END OF 48 YEARS OF MY LIFE ON TANKS”

My nephew, Darrell, asked me to write this. Darrell and his brother Joey also served with the 82nd Airborne in Afghanistan; I am VERY PROUD of them both. Darrell and Joey are the sons of Malcolm and Julie.

To the veterans of the Gila River Reservation, to me it would be an honor to read about your time in the military. We have all severed with HONOR, not only for our tribe and family but also for ourselves. Nobody will ever know of what we went through, or understand. Some will say he’s bragging about himself. No, I believe for the veterans that this is also a way of talking to each other… I can relate to that what he did; maybe I should reach out… call a friend or a fellow veteran… talking always helps...