Veteran served entire military career with the 1035th Maintenance Company

Following a stint in the U.S. Army, Johnnie Porter enlisted in the Missouri National Guard in 1971. The veteran went on to serve more than three decades in the same company, with whom he deployed to Iraq.
Following a stint in the U.S. Army, Johnnie Porter enlisted in the Missouri National Guard in 1971. The veteran went on to serve more than three decades in the same company, with whom he deployed to Iraq.

Editor's note: This is part of a series of articles highlighting former members of the 1035th Maintenance Company. The 1035th reunion scheduled for April 18 at American Legion Post 5 has been canceled and will be rescheduled for the fall.

The anticipation of new and emergent opportunities characterized the life of Johnnie Porter when he graduated from Eugene High School in 1965. He soon found employment with the former McGraw-Edison plant in Jefferson City and married his fiancée, Lynda, the following year.

His plans for the future, however, soon embarked upon an unforeseen path with the receipt of his draft letter, which heralded his entrance into the Armed Forces and later inspired a military career that spanned more than three decades.

"I was drafted into the U.S. Army on Nov. 14, 1967, and they sent me to Fort Leonard Wood for my basic training," Porter recalled. "At that time, they kind of put you where you were needed so they sent me to Fort Lee, Virginia, for a stock control and accounting specialist course."

When finishing the training in April 1968, half of his class was soon on their way to Vietnam while Porter and his remaining classmates received orders for an overseas assignment to Korea.

"The USS Pueblo was seized by the North Koreans shortly before I was sent overseas and Korea was considered a combat zone," Porter said. "I was assigned to a transportation company near the DMZ (demilitarized zone), and since supply activities were contracted, I became a truck driver and spent the next 15 months delivering supplies to units along the DMZ."

Porter received an early discharge in June 1969, after having spent 19 months in the Army. Returning to Mid-Missouri, he reunited with his wife and soon began working at the former Chesebrough-Ponds plant in Jefferson City.

The encouragement of a friend inspired his decision to enlist in the Missouri National Guard in 1971, followed by his assignment as a wrecker operator with the 1035th Heavy Equipment Maintenance Company.

Two years later, he applied for a full-time job as a federal technician with the National Guard and became a canvas repairman with the Combined Support Maintenance Shop. In his full-time capacity, Porter remained at the CSMS for the next three decades, eventually becoming heavy equipment mechanic.

Part time, he continued his service in the 1035th, which was reorganized as the 1035th Maintenance Company in 1974. Continuing to ascend through the ranks, he recalls the excitement of being part of the company during their first overseas training mission in 1977.

"We were sent to Kaiserslautern, Germany, in 1977 for our annual training and actually went to Germany six times during my service with the company," Porter explained. "Part of our duties were to tear down engines for various types of military vehicles, perform rebuilds and engine replacements and everybody was doing the type of work they had been trained to do."

The veteran went on to explain the CSMS, along with the Missouri National Guard Headquarters, was moved from its previous location on Industrial Boulevard in Jefferson City in the early 1990s to its current location on the east end of the city. In 1995, he accompanied the 1035th Maintenance Company when they were moved from Jefferson City to their new location at Jefferson Barracks in St. Louis.

"When we transferred to St. Louis, we lost a lot of good people in the unit but we picked up a lot of engineers from around the St. Louis area - bulldozer operators you name it," he said. "It wasn't long after that, we were sent to Germany again for training and the new soldiers were concerned since they didn't have much maintenance experience."

Porter noted during the training, they set up assembly lines and soldiers were assigned specific tasks in rebuilding the 6.2-liter diesel engines used on Humvees and other military ground vehicles.

"In about three days, you'd have thought those former engineers had been working on engines their entire lives," he said, laughing. "In about three weeks' time, the company successfully rebuilt and repaired about 63 engines, I believe."

In 2004, Porter made the decision to retire from his full-time position with the CSMS but continued drilling with the 1035th Maintenance Company. The following year, in 2005, he deployed with company to Iraq, where he continued his service as the first sergeant.

"Initially we were stationed in Tikrit, but a few weeks later they moved us to Kuwait," he said. "The primary part of our duties was to prepare equipment of the 42nd Division for shipment back to the United States."

Following completion of their deployment in 2006, Porter remained in the National Guard until retiring in 2007. He was soon hired as a maintenance contractor with the National Guard, a position he held until 2014.

The parents of four children, Porter and his wife continue to enjoy the retired life while living in the small community of Eugene. His lengthy career in a single company of the Missouri National Guard has resulted in enduring relationships with individuals he views as "extended family."

"When we were preparing to deploy to Iraq, they sent us through a pre-deployment medical screening at Fort Bliss (Texas), where a doctor noted that I had hearing loss. He basically said that it was up to me whether or not I wanted to deploy - he would sign off on the paperwork either way."

He added, "I told him that I've been with these soldiers for all of these years and I want to be there with them when they deploy because we were family. He signed my approval to deploy, and it became my privilege to continue to serve with such a great group of people."

Jeremy P. mick writes on behalf of the Silver Star Families of America.