Elmer D. Pendleton

West Point, 1951

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by john h perry on June 26, 2011:

Then Major (P) Pendleton, was troop commander on the USS Geiger in 1964, taking troops to Germany. I, ( a young private) was honored to be on board with him and on one occasion we talked and he invited me to drop in if I was in the area when we got to Germany. Even at sea he led us in PT on deck and kept us motivated. Later, after being assigned to my new unit, 1 Bn 21st Inf, I bragged to my fellow soldiers about being on board with "PT Pendleton". Imagine my surprise when the new Bn commander arrived and it was "PT Pendleton"! He remembered me from ship and over the time he was my Bn CO we often talked and he even offered to help sponsor me if I wanted to go to West Point. Unfortunately I was young and naive and never pursued that, but I still remember his offer and the way he cared about the unit and his soldiers. Because of his confidence in me, after my tour in Viet Nam I did go to OCS and finished my career as an officer. Later I patterned my focus on traing after his and ultimately I was able to use the lessons he taught me when I was in charge of training the OPFOR at the National Training Center Ft Irwin. Unknown to him, he left a mark on the Army through NTC because of what he taught me. I last saw him before NTC while I was in 7th SFG at Ft Bragg and he was a BG in 18 ABN Corps. The 1st bn 21st Inf was called the Gimlets, and forever in my mind Elmer D Pendleton, will always be "The Gimlet"! Thank you sir for all you taught me and in me and thousands more you led, your legacy lives on.

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