Posted by Karl Oelke on December 12, 2002:

I remember Charlie most prominently from our time serving in the infamous 6th Missle Battalion (HAWK), 61st Artillery, first at Ft. Bliss,TX, as we activated and trained the unit for deployment, and then in southern Germany as we deployed. We joined the battalion in the spring of 1961, with two other of our classmates (Loren "Tank" Reid was one, but I can't remember the other), and were assigned as Execs of the four firing batteries. We had all just come from our first assignments after graduation, so had some sense of what a well-run unit looked like. And 6/61 was not like that. At that time, the Artillery branch was in the process of training and deploying one HAWK battalion after another. The 6/61 was some number down the line, several battalions having been trained and deployed before us. One of the consequences was that we received many of the officer-rejects from the previous battalions--i.e., our battalion commander, the staff majors, and most of the captains were duds and it was obvious why previous battalions had dumped them. The four of us gave it our best shot, but by the time we had completed our tours some three years later in Germany, we realized we weren't going to set any records for career success. When I next ran into Charlie, the 40th reunion I think, his sole comment on that time in our lives was something like, "Wasn't that the worst damned unit you ever served in!?" He said he had either destroyed or thrown away every bit of memorabilia associated w/the 6/61. And as far as reminscing about the unit, he absolutely refused. A sentiment I share. A good man, Charlie Glover. And, with his integrity and commitment, someone to be despised by the incompetents in life. Godspeed.

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