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Devotional Thoughts

 Devotional Thoughts
 The Spiritual Side of Our Website

This part of the site features monthly devotional thoughts by the Association's Chaplain, with the goal of encouraging Signal Corps OCS Graduates to be exceptional in their lives and to live life at a higher level. Our current Chaplain is of the Christian faith, so naturally, his devotionals are fashioned around his Christian beliefs. Your comments and suggestions are welcome and can be offered directly to the Chaplain by eMail at: MaxHolt@ArmySignalOCS.com


by LTC (R) Max Holt, Class 02-67

 April – May 2016

WOMAN OF THE YEAR

LTC (R) Max Holt - TodayLTC (R) Max Holt

I could have been Woman of the Year – 1969!

Let me explain. My full name is Maxie Gene Holt. Some of you know that I grew up on a small East Texas farm. So, “How did a Texas farm boy get a name like Maxie?”…you may ask. In the months prior to my birth my oldest sister Neecie, (I have 3 sisters and 6 brothers) had met a German boy, named Maxie, in town and they were pretty seriously dating. I believe he was the son of German immigrants who had come over before WW2. Since she thought maybe she would marry the guy she convinced my mother to name me after him. Not long after I was born in 1946 they broke up and she never heard from him again. But…my Birth Certificate was already written and I became the first Maxie any of the farm folks had ever heard about. Neecie was mad at Maxie so Mama decided to give me the nickname, Mack. I was Mack to everyone who knew me until the Army changed all that.

Fast forward to 1969. I was a U-21 fixed wing pilot in Vietnam, assigned to the Command Aircraft Company, with the 210th Combat Aviation Battalion, stationed at Long Thanh North Airfield. We were located about 20 miles east of Saigon. One day in early 1969 I checked mail after a mission. In addition to the usual letter from my wife there was a letter from the Washington D.C. Office of the National Organization of Women. It was addressed to MS. MAXIE G. HOLT. Inside was a letter to me and a blank form for me to fill out and return. 

The letter went something like this: 

Dear MS. Holt,

It has come to our attention that you are one of the first women pilots in the military to be flying in a combat zone, risking your life for our country. As a women you are a first, In that you have broken the barriers to women in the armed forces serving alongside men in combat. Your service makes you uniquely qualified to be considered for the prestigious honor of WOMAN OF THE YEAR – 1969.

If you would like to be considered among other applicants please complete the enclosed form and return it to our Washington D.C. office no later than July 1, 1969. We look forward to giving due consideration to your experience and position in the military. (The letter was signed by the President, N.O.W.)

I showed the letter around to my fellow pilots and we all had a good laugh. Then, my hutch-mate, Johnny Stewart, suggested that I fill it out and enter the competition. Other pilots joined the attempt to persuade me to send it in. I thought about it but decided I didn’t have time to mess with it. In retrospect, I should have entered. Just imagine the looks on the N.O.W. faces when I would have walked in for their interview. 

The mistaken identity happened because the N.O.W. staff didn’t do their homework and check the details of their potential applicants. Had I pursued my application there would most likely have been an embarrassing moment for N.O.W. somewhere along the way. They had not learned one of the early lessons we all learned in OCS…the devil is in the details.  Failure to consider the details can jeopardize any mission.  

In the New Testament, Luke 14:28-29 says, “For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it—lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him.” It would be prudent for all of us to count the cost in money, time, and resources as we decide what kind of legacy we intend to build for our families.

Max Holt, Class 02-67
Association Chaplain

 



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George Jones - Lord You've Been Mighty Good to Me; Length: 2:28


Prior Month Devotionals
May '11 Jun '11 Jul '11 Aug '11 Sep '11 Oct '11 Nov '11 Dec '11 Jan '12 Feb '12 Mar '12 Apr '12
May '12 Jun '12 Jul '12 Aug '12 Sep '12 Oct '12 Nov '12 Dec '12 Jan '13 Feb '13 Mar '13 Apr '13
May '13 Jun '13 Jul '13 Aug '13 Sep '13 Oct '13 Nov '13 Dec '13 Jan '14 Feb '14 Mar '14 Apr '14
May '14 Jun '14 Jul '14 Aug '14 Sep '14 Oct '14 Nov '14 Dec '14 Jan '15 Feb '15 Mar '15 Apr '15
May '15 Jun '15 Jul '15 Aug '15 Sep '15 Oct '15 Nov '15 Dec '15 Jan '16 Feb '16 Mar '16 Apr '16

Click the picture below to listen to The Lord's Jukebox... a compilation of all of the devotional music posted since May 2011:

The Lord's Jukebox


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