Sargent First Class Mason

In case you have been wondering where the name Hawg Jaw came from, the following story will enlighten you. I really never thought my jaws were particularly hoggy looking, but I guess someone did.

Sargent First Class Mason

 

After I finished Army Basic Training at Fort Bliss, Texas, the Army ask me if I would go to officer candidate school. Since I would have had to spend an additional year in the army,I told them no. They then sent me to Fort Gordon Georgia to attend nineteen weeks of avionics communications equipment repair school. I arrived and was assigned to a company and got moved in. We had a barracks, a headquarters building, a chow hall, and a marching field in our area. SFC Mason was in charge of the office function in the head quarters building. SFC Mason had a very large strawberry colored birthmark covering more than half his face. It was so unusual it was very hard for me to stop staring at it when I first met him. He approached me and asked me if I’d like to work for him it the office. The offer came with a guarantee of no additional company duty including KP (kitchen police) and company work detail so I jumped on it and started working for him. Each morning from 6 AM to 8 AM I worked in the office. most of my job was writing Buck slips to excuse guys from school when they had KP, Company Duty, or were on sick call and such. At 8:30 AM, we would form up and march the 3 miles to the school. A lot of the Avionics school basics classes were very boring for me as I had had much tougher similar classes in college. I got to be very good friends with SFC Mason and one day he asked me if I wanted to go fishing with him that day. I told him I had classes that day so I couldn’t go. He said no problem just write yourself a buck slip and I’ll sign it. So we had a lovely day at the lake fishing. We continued having special outings every once in a while for the whole 19 weeks of classes. I became very close to him and the birthmark completely disappeared. When I looked at him I just saw a good friend. I don’t know where he came up with it, but he gave me the nickname Hawg Jaw and he used the name every time he saw me so I got used to being called that. When I finished the the school and graduated, I got my orders for Vietnam. The Army sent me to Artillery Hill near Pleiku, Vietnam, but the Air Section there was not allowed to work on avionics equipment. So I ended up being the PLL ( helicopter parts guy) Clerk. This seemed like a terrible waste of schooling costs to me, but I did the job they needed me to do and trained myself.

 

I ran into SFC Mason in Vietnam and we spent a day together. He of course reminded me of my Hawg Jaw status and I never saw him again.

SFC Mason at his apartment with his dog, Racket, and daughter, Marianne, in Augusta, Georgia neat Fort Gordon.

 My picture coming out of Avionics School at Fort Gordon Georgia. Can you see why SFC Mason called me Hawg Jaw?

Thanks for reading Sergeant First Class Mason,

Hawg Jaw Bill