SSG (R) Curtis Harris

SSG (R) Curtis Apollos Harris sat down with me for Heroes I Know. Ninety minutes. Air defense soldier memories.

April Fool, 1973. His mother kept him a secret. Dad was still in. Retired in 1980. Curtis did not meet the man until he was nineteen. Unlike most kids, his father did not know he existed.

Five years old he told his mother he was joining the Army. Crisp clothes before he ever had a uniform. 14 Tango. Patriot crew member and maintainer. AIT at Bliss. Close to the border. Then Germany. Always looking for the one soldier to compete against.

CSM James Carr. First Sergeant James Matas. They stuck him in HHB the first time in Germany when he wanted the line. Korea later. ANCOC when they still called it that. Saudi. The talk of moving across the border into Iraq. Rough for a minute.

April Fool in theater. Everybody knew the birthday was coming. Thank you, Curtis. That is why we hit record. Get the story on tape before we are too old or too sick to tell it.