Bethesda Veterans: Jerry Heltibrand

Happy Veterans Day! We are thankful for the men and women in our Bethesda communities who are always happy to share their stories of their time in the military. One of our Bethesda Veterans, Jerry from Bethesda Terrace, told us all about how he spent time in over 5 states during his service. He also practiced karate into his late seventies and is a second degree black belt!

When did you serve and in what branch of the military?

The Air Force. I served 8 years and went in in February of ’62. I was 24.

Did you enlist on your own or were you drafted?

To keep from getting drafted, we had to enlist. We went to all the services and talked to the recruiters and decided that the Air Force was the best because we could get in and become officers relatively fast without having to go through ROTC. We went to officer training school, OTS, and I think it was 2 months.

Where did you spend most of your time?

I started out in Amarillo at Amarillo Air Force base in Texas. Then I went to Montgomery, Alabama and became a recruiting officer trying to recruit students from the University of Alabama, University of Georgia, and Florida.

How long were you a recruiting officer?

That was probably not much more than a year because I wanted to be a pilot. I was able to go to pilot training in Phoenix, Arizona. I didn’t make it through, so from there I went to McChord Air Force base in Washington. I had a son born in Texas, a daughter born in Alabama, a son born in the state of Washington and a son born in St. Louis. All my children were born in different states.

Are there any memories that stand out to you?

When I was recruiting, I met a college senior at the University of Alabama. He was in ROTC and they taught him how to fly. He says, “Do you want to go flying with me?” So, we went flying over the countryside of northern Alabama and he says, “Watch this.” Down below in a pasture were cows. He pushes in the fuel line and that made the plane slow down – you couldn’t hear it. And we come in behind the cows and when we got [close], he would pull it out and the engine would start with a bang. It was really loud and those cows, they just went in every direction!

What does it mean to you to be a Veteran?

It means that I did serve the country and I was willing to do most everything they wanted me to do. But it was enjoyable, I had a good time when I was in the service.

Is there anything you wish everyone understood about Veterans?

I wish they would not be so critical. There were different times in this country where if you were a military member, you were despised because you wore a uniform. And other times you were appreciated. I think the kids today have no concept of what it’s like to be regimented, I mean really regimented. If you don’t do what you’re told in the service, you’re in big trouble!

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