By: Richard Erschik | richarderschik.com
The landscape of what I remember as my Army base at Fort Hood, Texas, has transformed beyond recognition. What once stood as a familiar, vibrant hub of military activity during my service from 1965 to 1967 has all but disappeared. The base itself, renamed in 2021 to Fort Cavazos, no longer bears the iconic title that marked it as a cornerstone of U.S. Army tactical operations. The 16th Artillery Honest John Field Rocket Artillery Unit, where I spent the most formative years of my life, is gone, as is the storied 2nd Armored Division tagged “Hell on Wheels.” The insignias I wore on my uniform have all faded into history, leaving behind only memories—vivid yet intangible.
While in the military, I served alongside an unforgettable group of (young) men from across the country—Bill Ensminger, Wayne Hannusch, Ed Baker (RIP), Ken Curran, Fred Newhouse, Dave Lundberg, and Bill Nesiba. We were more than just comrades; we were a brotherhood, united by the disciplines of shared experiences and challenges, always in preparation for overnight deployment to Vietnam if/when the ‘big’ weapons might be needed to bring the enemy to its knees. Each of these men played a part in shaping those years at Fort Hood into something that earns the forever-lasting term–unforgettable.
As life moved on after our service, we each found different paths. Bill Ensminger returned to coal mining in PA and later worked as a security guard; today, he resides in Central Florida. Wayne Hannusch became a truck driver and youth baseball umpire and still calls Chicago home. Ed Baker, who took on his father’s machine shop business, has sadly passed, but his family remains in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Ken Curran became a union plumber and now lives in a suburb of Boston. Bill Nesiba earned national recognition for his work in classic car restoration and sign painting, and he now resides in Grand Island, Nebraska. Dave Lundberg took a different route, becoming a diesel mechanic for Cummins Engine, and still resides in Amarillo, Texas. We are all still in touch, thanks to social media.
As for me, after my military service, I ventured into business, becoming the founder of a national marketing services organization and a speaker and presenter in the trade show industry. I also wrote seven books, including one about my military service, titled “My Time Served in the United States Army,” which is available on Amazon and Apple Books. Nearing 60 years since those days, this book is my lasting tribute to a vanished era—and reflections on my ties to Fort Hood, the 2nd Armored Division, and the 16th Artillery.
While Fort Hood, now in its new incarnation, may no longer resemble the place where I served, the impact of that time still shapes who I am today. Though the base name has changed, and the units in which I served have faded from history, the spirit of those days and the brotherhood we formed lives on. It exists now only in the hearts and minds of those of us who served there—a memory of a time when we were young, driven by duty, and bound together by a shared experience that will never be forgotten by any of us.
