A Place-Based Biography, by Michael Yurkivich

One place that I feel connected to and had a life changing experience is where I was trained to protect the United States from all enemies, both foreign and domestic. Fort Sill the Fires Center of Excellence is located in Oklahoma and is one of the largest military training installations in the United States. Completing basic training at Fort Sill was the start of my military career, and is the reason I am where I am today. At Fort Sill, not only did I meet people from all over the country but also people from different countries around the world. Completing Basic Combat Training is the first step to a potentially long lasting military career, one of the ultimate tests to see how people from different places with different backgrounds will interact with one another when thrown together and also where most people learn new morals and learn to live by a certain Ethos.

Upon arriving at Fort Sill on April 4, 2011, I had hardly any idea what to expect. I had only heard stories from soldiers that I knew in my life, but the stories seemed to vary greatly, and did not exactly give me a good idea of what things were actually going to be like. Some said I was going to hate my life and have a very hard time, the food was going to be terrible, and I was going to be picked on a lot by the drill sergeants due to having a quiet and reserved personality with a high level of physical fitness. Some said I was going to have no problem at all; I was going to breeze through it, since I had the perfect personality for a soldier and that I was going to be liked due to having good domain knowledge and physical fitness, and possibly be given privileges like going to the Post Exchange on weekends. The only thing that I knew was going to be true, is that it was going to be extremely hot. I had no idea what the base or training center was going to look like, or who I was going to be around. This did not worry me too much since I wrestled for thirteen years of my life and had the same experience before every tournament and dual meet (what the gym would look like? how many people would be there? Who would I be wrestling?). I had a pretty good feeling that some of the people I talked to were over exaggerating the toughness of BCT (and I was right). Anyway, I and one of my friends that I enlisted with and happened to also attend Ohio University with step off of the bus that took us from the airport to the training center, and from there it began.

I was not afraid or scared of what had just started like many of the other people were, I was just anxious to what it was really going to be like and just saw it as something that I had to get through to continue on with life. The first thing we did was get issued some of our equipment, then we were assigned to a barracks where we were able to sleep for about 2 hours before having to get up for breakfast at 0430. We were in the ‘Reception Phase,’ which is the first couple days of arriving on base where everyone gets their equipment, vaccinations, blood drawn, dental records, hearing test, and so on. This is surprisingly, the worst part of BCT. It involves a lot of sitting in benches, staring at a wall, and absolutely no talking. I was in the reception phase for nine days (a little longer than normal), and would have rather have spent nine days in a federal prison (at least I can talk and do other things other than staring at a wall). After reception, we finally went to the actual Basic Training part.

From the start I basically kept to myself, did not really talk to anyone unless talked to, and did everything I was required to do. The first day of actual Basic Training is when the change actual started to occur. Most people call it the change from a civilian to a soldier. This change consists of several steps of teaching an individual some values to follow. In the Army they are called to seven Army values. They are: loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage. These are all taught at BCT. They teach you to be loyal not to the people appointed above you, but also the people that you work with. This is done throughout BCT when teamwork must be done to complete tasks, and also to listen to whoever happens to be appointed Platoon Guide (PG). At the beginning many people would not listen to the PG or go against their ideas due to disagreements, and this lack of loyalty and team work would often lead to consequences. Duty is doing what you are told and doing a sufficient job. If one person in the platoon does not do what they are told, or mess up by doing it wrong, then the whole platoon gets punished for it, and this only leads to more problems because, then many people in the platoon will start to dislike the person that got everyone into trouble. This enforces the people in a platoon to learn to do their duties and to help those that may need help (team work). Respect is taught in more than one way at BCT. One way is through the Drill Sergeants; they will yell at you a lot, but you have to respect them and accept that they are only doing it to make you better (or at least pretend to) and any disrespect can get you in even more trouble and possibly sent home. One must also respect the PG’s decisions whether they disagree with them or not or at least approach them in a respectful manner and address the situation. Selfless service is placing the wellbeing of others before your own, and to never be selfish and allow someone else to do something wrong when you could have prevented it. This goes with team work; help those who need it and don’t screw someone else over just to make your life a little bit easier. Honor is every value combined, and having honor in being a soldier. This is taught in every aspect of BCT. Integrity is doing what’s right, which is taught in just about every aspect of BCT, especially when it comes to accepting the consequences and taking the blame for your own wrong actions. Personal courage is overcoming your fears to get the job done. This is taught at many different parts of BCT, like rappelling down a seventy-five foot tower although one may be afraid of heights, going through multiple obstacle courses, and going through a gas chamber when you know that it is not going to be a good time. Learning all of these values is the process of becoming a soldier.

Basic Combat Training is the first time I was put together with a large group of people that I did not know and people from different parts of the world. I have never really been a talker and always tend to keep to myself unless approached, so I thought getting along with thirty five other people in my platoon who I did not know might be troublesome. Because of this, I still kept to myself, but eventually I got to know everyone. On top of people that lived in other states around the U.S. in my platoon there was a man from Nigeria, one from Mexico, and one from Puerto Rico. At BCT I got to interact with people of different backgrounds and from different parts of the world. Talking with some of them, I became more comfortable interacting with people outside of my social circle, and not just that but got to learn a lot about their lives and what life is like where they come from. My knowledge of other types of culture and lifestyles broadened. Everyone in the platoon had to work together in order to accomplish goals and tasks assigned to us. Some people were good at this and some not. There were definitely many fights in our barracks due to some people not getting along with each other. Shockingly, I got along with everyone just fine and was well respected by everyone else due to keeping myself, and not bothering anyone, talking anybody down, or refusing to do my job, and so on. I was just the guy that kept to himself, did what he was told, didn’t complain, and offered help to anyone who may need it. I feel like working and interacting with people at BCT gave me better skills for using team work with people I have never seen before.

Basic Training gives soldiers a new set of morals and a set of ethos to live by. These may vary from person to person, but I do believe that everyone that graduates BCT changes the way they live and compose their selves a little differently than they did before. I personally learned better ways to approach different situations whereas before, I may have ignored the situation or approached it in the wrong manner. I respect other people and their opinions more than I used to. I am still told that I am a quiet and reserved person, but I do find it easier to approach other individuals that are very different from myself. Most of all, I try my best to live by all of the Army Values which I believe made me a better person all around.

I graduated BCT as honor graduate on June 15, 2011 and from there went to Fort Leonardwood in Missouri for Advanced Infantry Training. I feel that I learned a lot and became a better person at Fort Sill, although many people will say I have not changed much at all. I would most definitely be a different person if I had never gone to Fort Sill for BCT, and would not be where I am today. For one, I would not be a soldier of the United States Army. Second, I would not be living life the same way I do now. I probably would not even be attending Ohio University and may have never even started writing this paper. I would not be living my life following the same values and set of morals that I do now. I never would have met the many friends that I have met through the Army. I would be in a very different situation and a different person from who I am today if I did not attend BCT at Fort Sill, and because of this I feel very connected to Fort Sill, and feel that it strongly impacted my life.