Promotion Ceremony

I'm not sure if we ever thought this day would come. Like with any job, Thomas has had good and bad moments in the Army. When at Bragg, he was asked to try out for the Scout platoon. He tried out and was successful. However, with this good moment came a somewhat hardship I guess you could say. Here he was in a better platoon, but he was having to start from scratch once again. He had to prove himself all over again. This all made it take a little longer for him to become a SPC. Eventually while deployed in Afghanistan, he was able to achieve this rank. A few months after Afghanistan, Thomas was up for his E5 board. He could become a Sgt after about a year of being a SPC. Of course, this was one month before he was supposed to leave for Italy. So, his company didn't feel it was necessary to promote him since he would be leaving. It would not benefit them. So, yes, Thomas was given a once in a lifetime opportunity to live and work in Italy. However, with this amazing opportunity came the fact that he was the new guy again. He would have to prove himself once more. Surprisingly, with Italy came opportunities for Thomas to lead. Because someone was unable to, Thomas became a team leader as a SPC and the new guy on top of that. He proved himself and became CPL soon after. He was sent to schools and given invitations to try out for the Scout platoon here. Thomas felt loyal to the guys who had been supportive of him and decided against trying out. For months and months, he was told he'd be going to the E5 board. Month after month something would happen to prevent it from happening. Trainings, getting forgotten on the list, etc. Finally, one day, his name was indeed on the list. He studied and studied and studied. I could probably recite all of the creeds and such myself. Nerves interfered a bit during the mach (spelling??) board.  But, after calming down a bit, he blew them away. He was told if he did this for the real board he would most definitely pass! Well, the day of the board came and I was on pins and needles. I know how hard Thomas works and how much he wants to succeed in the Army. My hope is always that others will see it too. Well, he passed. So, it was then a waiting game for him to get pinned. The day of the pinning ceremony I felt very proud of him. I was so thankful to be there to pin him. I missed out on a lot while in grad school. I appreciate the opportunity I have nowto be there for him and enjoy these important moments. He looked very happy the day of the ceremony. He smiled and laughed. He was truly in his element. Now, he is still basically doing the same job as before except now he gets paid for it and he gets to watch guys pee during the pee tests. I'm pretty sure he was more excited about the first part. In fact, the day of his promotion ceremony thats what he was doing. His words to me as he ran off real quick were, "Ive gotta go look at penises." Ummm..yeah, okay. Nice to know honey, is what Im thinking. Thomas does have a way with words...not always the right way with words, but he has some kind of way with them. 


Here are a few pictures from his special day...