Andy Hefty

Andy Hefty sat down with me for Heroes I Know.

United States Marine Corps. There is a pride there. I salute it.

Navy brat. Born in Memphis at the Naval Hospital. Twins. He and his sister. Numbers six and seven. Every two years they pulled up stakes. Virginia Beach. California. Albuquerque. The Philippines. Patuxent River. Dad retired to Orange Park, Florida. Two years later Andy joined.

Seventeen. Turned eighteen in boot camp running the infiltration course. First hot meal in a week. It included a donut. Birthday cake.

Joined in 1982. Got out eight years later. A couple months before Saddam went into Kuwait. Aviation. They moved him to aviation ordnance. That was the niche. F-4 Phantom. Eight years. Same work his father did. Pylons. Sidewinders. Centerline bomb rack. Grease and hydraulic fluid. A greased pig. He shook the sergeant major's hand in Charlies and the man backed up.

First station Kaneohe Bay. Deployments to Iwakuni. Kadena. Subic. Cubi Point. Then Andrews. Cherry Point. Tyndall. Yuma. Twenty-nine Palms. They rode the Herky. He never sat in the Phantom. Marine of the Quarter. The cockpit ride was already gone. A young Marine had taken an A-4 for a joyride.

Team Spirit. About a hundred intercepts of Badger and Bear bombers. Locked and loaded. Never shot one down. Best time was the Philippines. Cope Thunder.

Call sign Bags. Last name Hefty. The CO asked what he was up to. About five-seven sir. Dead silence. Books at dearmomdontworry.com. Dear Mom Don't Worry. He signed off. That is why we hit record. Get the story on tape before we are too old or too sick to tell it.