GENERAL CHARLES B SMITH
“Life is not a private affair. A story and its lessons are only made useful if shared.”
Dan Millman, Way of the Peaceful Warrior
Following graduation from West Point in June, 1962, it was off to Winter Haven, Florida for a couple of months working at Cypress Gardens as a photography assistant followed by eight months at Fort Benning, Georgia…Airborne School, Ranger School, Infantry Officers Orientation Course, Jumpmaster School, 4.2” Mortar-Davy Crockett School…and then it was off to the first duty station, Fort Carson, Colorado, at the time, home of the 5th Infantry Division (Mechanized). The first assignment was 3rd Brigade, 2nd Battalion, 10th Infantry, Charlie Company, Platoon Leader, 2nd Platoon. The next assignment, Battalion Reconnaissance Platoon Leader, began on the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Then it was on to a short stint as the Battalion Intelligence Officer, followed by the opportunity to serve as Aide de Camp for Brigadier General Charles B. Smith, Assistant Division Commander, Operations, 5th Infantry Division (Mechanized).
On June 25, 1950, the North Korean offensive struck, claiming the Republic of Korea Army had invaded North Korea. Subsequently, General MacArthur ordered the 24th Division from Japan to Korea. A delaying force, Task Force Smith, commanded by Colonel Charles B. Smith, was flown to Pusan, while the rest of the division followed by ship. Task Force Smith fought to the north and made its stand north of Osan. (A high school in Pusan is named after General Smith.) Lacking effective antitank weapons, Task Force Smith was overrun as elements of the arriving 24th Division, commanded by Major General William F. Dean, began delaying actions. For his heroic efforts while commanding Task Force Smith, Colonel Smith was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, Legion of Merit, and Combat Infantry Badge. (Chief Editor Colonel Vincent J. Esposito, The West Point Atlas of American Wars Volume II, NY, NY: Praeger, Map 3, The Korean War)
The staff serving General Smith at Fort Carson was simple: a jeep-sedan driver, a stenographer, a military van driver, and an aide de camp. My introductory chat with General Smith was in his office and was quite simple. Lieutenant DeVore, when something goes haywire, I would like to have you tell me before anyone else does… and what a great life-long lesson that has been…no surprises offer comfort for those concerned. General Smith and his wife, Betty, treated my wife and I like we were their kids. Will never forget when my daughter was born General Smith dropped me off from his sedan at the Fort Carson Army Hospital to be with my wife and brand-new daughter…at the time Dads were not allowed in the delivery room at Fort Carson Army Hospital. When Betty made her trip to visit the new parents at our Fort Carson quarters, she arrived to tell us she had signed us up for diaper service. Wow! What could be a better gift for new parents than diaper service!
Scheduling for General Smith was a slice-of-heaven. Coordinate the schedule with folks to be visited, have the schedule typed and distributed, and coordinate the schedule and uniforms for the next day with General Smith and office staff. We visited a bunch of operational units during training exercises and inspections. Some interesting memories…
- The 5th Infantry Division (Mechanized) played war games across the Colorado River with the 82nd Airborne Division from Fort Bragg. General Smith slept in the military van; the van driver slept in the front of the van; and the jeep driver and I slept in a mountain tent adjacent to the van. The rattlesnakes were huge, and I recall one day taking General Smith to a motel in Kingman, Arizona for a shower… a nice privilege that the field troops would certainly not experience.
- An orientation flight in an F101-F jet from Canon Air Force Base, New Mexico was a neat experience. General Huston, the Administrative Assistant Division Commander could not make the trip to Canon Air Force. This offered the opportunity for the author to make the trip to Canon with General Smith, make a strafing run in an F-101 jet on a range at Fort Carson and have some fun…maybe… on the return trip to Canon AFB. The F-101-F pilot for my jet was Sam Schirk. I had met Sam when he was in flight training at Bartow AFB, Florida. On the return trip Sam did barrel rolls, loops, climbed straight up and tipped the nose of the jet, and down we went, breaking the sound barrier… I have fond memories of the G-suit compressing on my name-tagged flight suit, tummy, and legs… and it was about that time I needed to puke… fortunately, I was able to catch the vomit in my flight gloves, and I secretly dumped the gloves in the trash as we returned to the terminal at Canon AFB.
- Playing golf with General Smith and guests at the Broadmoor Golf Club, adjacent to the Broadmoor Hotel, was always a blast. This hotel is close to Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, always a fun place to visit when in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
- A fond memory is visiting the Northern Air Defense Command (NORAD) hard site that was under construction in Cheyenne Mountain. General Smith and I arranged the tour of the hard site during a visit by General of the Army H. K. Johnson, then Chief of Staff of the United States Army. During the trip into the hard site, we wore yellow boots and raincoats… lots of water on the ground and dripping…and noticing the huge springs that supported the buildings being constructed is an awesome memory.
Being an Aide de Camp for Brigadier General Charles B. Smith was an awesome job for a new Second Lieutenant. Daily, picked up from quarters in an Army sedan, pick up General Smith at his quarters, go to the Division Headquarters, prepare schedules, accompany the General on his visits, go to parties with General Smith, his wife, and my wife have offered wonderful memories and lessons that have been with me since June 1965. At that time General Smith and I chatted about our wonderful time together and agreed it was time for the author to go off to Vietnam for a first tour of combat duty.
Next steps were to move my wife and six-month old daughter to Florida to live near my dad for a year, make a six-week trip to Fort Bragg, North Carolina for Military Assistance Training for Advisors, and then it was emotionally off from Tampa, Florida to Military Assistance Command Vietnam (MACV), Que Son, Republic of Vietnam, as an Assistant Battalion Advisor for the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) 2nd Division. Subsequent 2nd Division Advisor duties were Division Reconnaissance Company Advisor, Division Strike Force Company Advisor, and Division Air Intelligence Officer.
