As I Recall by George H. Tsegeletos

Author:George H. Tsegeletos [Tsegeletos, George H.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781410756183
Publisher: AuthorHouse
Published: 2003-12-29T05:00:00+00:00

RUN LIKE A DEER

This is a good spot to tell you about my new assignment in the Platoon. About a month after the Hill 902 engagement the new Platoon Lieutenant had asked me if I wanted the position as Platoon Runner. The Lieutenant (A second lieutenant, pictured in the photo with the caption—Another 3rd Platoon Lieutenant) was a young officer and had just taken over the platoon only a short time before this engagement. Contrary to what most would think, he was immediately liked by all of the men in the platoon. A Gung Ho officer he was, but not one that was careless in exposing himself or the men under his command to unnecessary danger. I did not hesitate when asked to be Platoon Runner I accepted the position gladly. It would be a pleasure to serve this Lieutenant as his runner. The job seemed to suit me perfectly, having been in Item Company for many months I knew most of the officers and NCOs in the company. Being small of stature also had its advantages in performing this job well and besides as a high school athlete I was known to be fast.

I had to chuckle to myself when I remembered holding the same title as a Boy Scout, at that time I was a runner for the United Nations. It happened six years before I had entered the corps, when the international body the United Nations was being organized in San Francisco. The city had picked a number of Boy Scout volunteers from different Troops to run messages between delegations to the United Nations. We were given special scarves with a UN patch on it and turned loose to run messages. Certainly this past position in Scouting is not meant to imply that I had prior experience as a Platoon Runner, but only to point out the coincidence of again being picked for another UN job with a similar title, however the similarity between the two ends with the title.

It was the job of the Platoon Runner to deliver messages from his Platoon Lieutenant, to other commanding officers or NCO’s in the Company and at times if the need arose to deliver a message to officers of other units as well. Usually the delivery of a message by runner is most needed while the unit is heavily engaged with the enemy, at a time when the lieutenant has no other means in which to send a message whether by wire or radio.

This new position allowed me to carry any weapon I chose. The obvious rule I would need to follow when choosing a weapon was to be sure it was light and easy to handle, a weapon primarily to be used for my own protection. I started by carrying a carbine because of its lightweight small design and readily available ammo. The carbine with a 15 round magazine weighed a little over 6 pounds, now that was pretty light.

One day the platoon had been in a short but fierce firefight and when the engagement was over, I had the opportunity to acquire a .

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