The US Military Service of Jim Schurr
October 17, 2019
by Karen Schurr
As of October 2019 at the age of 73, Jim Schurr is still enjoying
his family, friends, fishing, traveling and his other retirement benefits to
the hilt. His story was added to the
Heros Wall early to take advantage of the open tile space beneath his father’s,
George “Neman” Schurr.
At the age of 21, Jim was drafted into the United States Army on August 21st, 1968. He had his two-month basic training at Fort Lewis, Washington. He was then stationed at Fort Ord, California for two more months for radio operation school. His final training before deployment was in teletype operation at Fort Gordon, Georgia for eleven weeks.
On March 7, 1969 he got orders to go to an American base at Bad Kissingen, Germany where he started his first assignment as a teletype operator.
In the spring of 1969, he was reassigned to Butzbach, Germany and his wife Jerrie and eight- month-old son Sean soon joined him.They first lived in a rural area near Neider Weisel, which was a small town about three miles SSE of Butzbach.They rented the upstairs apartment of a farmer’s house whose name was Krausgrill. Later they would move to an apartment in Butzbach. Jim’s work consisted of 12 hour shifts in a small basement room of his base where he communicated in code by teletype to other allied installations.
Jim left active service on August 12, 1970, after one year, eleven months and nine days. He had spent one year, four months and nine days of his total military service in Germany. His final rank and command was SP4 in the HHB 6th Battalion 562 ARTY USAREUR. His character of service was Honorable, and he received the Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal and was deemed an Expert with an M14 rifle.
In June 2000, Jim was able to show his daughter Jill, freshly finished with her two-year Peace Corps experience in Nepal, the buildings where he had performed service to his country during the Vietnam War. What was once an Army base was in the process of being converted to condominiums...solid evidence of peacetime.
At the age of 21, Jim was drafted into the United States Army on August 21st, 1968. He had his two-month basic training at Fort Lewis, Washington. He was then stationed at Fort Ord, California for two more months for radio operation school. His final training before deployment was in teletype operation at Fort Gordon, Georgia for eleven weeks.
On March 7, 1969 he got orders to go to an American base at Bad Kissingen, Germany where he started his first assignment as a teletype operator.
In the spring of 1969, he was reassigned to Butzbach, Germany and his wife Jerrie and eight- month-old son Sean soon joined him.They first lived in a rural area near Neider Weisel, which was a small town about three miles SSE of Butzbach.They rented the upstairs apartment of a farmer’s house whose name was Krausgrill. Later they would move to an apartment in Butzbach. Jim’s work consisted of 12 hour shifts in a small basement room of his base where he communicated in code by teletype to other allied installations.
Jim left active service on August 12, 1970, after one year, eleven months and nine days. He had spent one year, four months and nine days of his total military service in Germany. His final rank and command was SP4 in the HHB 6th Battalion 562 ARTY USAREUR. His character of service was Honorable, and he received the Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal and was deemed an Expert with an M14 rifle.
In June 2000, Jim was able to show his daughter Jill, freshly finished with her two-year Peace Corps experience in Nepal, the buildings where he had performed service to his country during the Vietnam War. What was once an Army base was in the process of being converted to condominiums...solid evidence of peacetime.