Richard Silvestri:
CLASS OF 1971
West Catholic High SchoolClass of 1971
Grand rapids, MI
Central Texas CollegeClass of 1991
Killeen, TX
Grand Rapids Junior CollegeClass of 1973
Grand rapids, MI
Richard's Story
College
Funny to take 21 years to finally get an Associate degree...LOL Here's the trip to get there. I went to Grand Rapids Junior College from 71 to 72, but as I mentioned I wasn't sure what I really wanted so I ended up in the Army. The Army provided many opportunites to go to school and I did take advantage of a few of them. I took classes at Fayetteville State University and also Fayetteville Technical Institute (Community College now). With my career and kids and other interests I really didn't get serious about a degree till I was over in West Berlin Germany in 1987. The Army looks at education very seriously when you are being considered for promotion and I was looking at Master Sergeant (E-8) in my future and I needed to have my degree to better my chances. The Army was really great about classes being almost free there. I enrolled with Central Texas College and they told me what I had to get done for a degree and I got to it. I eventually finished in 1991. I was promoted to Msg E-8 in 92. I wish I had gotten things done earlier, but something always seemed to be in the way. I was working with a guy who had 2 Masters so what excuse can I possibly have that would be comparable to that? You have to set priorities and stick to them.
Workplace
If you caught my military bio you can see I was gainfully employed right up till 1992 when I retired after 20 years. I started full time as a Deputy Sheriff right after that. I had already been a reserve deputy for 6 yrs so I had an idea what I was going to do once I got out. I had been part of the Patrol Division for those 6 years and stayed for 2 more. I went to Court House Security for the next 5 yrs. I had been an active competition pistol shooter for a number of years and ultimately made the Governor's Twenty in 1998 and was 2nd in the State at the Glock shoot that same year. What this led to was being asked to be the Range Master for the department and moving to the Training Section. I did that for the next two years and I have to say I really enjoyed it. In late 2000 the Sheriff and I got into a disagreement about something and I decided it was time to start another career....LOL! There are two rules you always need to remember when you work for a County Sheriff. Rule #1 is - The Sheriff Is Always Right! And Rule #2 is to always refer all other questions back to Rule #1. Things happen for a reason and you learn to live with it. I looked for work for a few months and finally was asked if I would like to manage a local bar. Thi...Expand for more
s was a bit of a shock since I never had thought of doing such a thing and I knew nothing about bartending. They didn't have to twist my arm since I had nothing else to do at the time. I tended bar and was the manager for a club for the next seven years up until Sep 07. So what am I doing now? With my firearms backgroud I teach the class you have to have to get a Concealed Carry permit in NC, I do a bit of DJing when the opportunity arises and I deliver flowers for a friend who recently opened a flower shop. So I'm staying busy.
Military
Back in 1972 I was going to school at GRJC, but really wasn't sure what I wanted to do. Vietnam was still going on and there were many vets in my classes. I was working part time at a local bowling alley and ended up getting fired for telling the owner what I thought he needed to do with himself...LOL! We were all so young once and not a care in the world. It's refreshing to get back to that idea sometimes. I ended up joining the Army because I didn't see school going anywhere and I was constantly at odds with my mom. The fact they lowered the drinking and voting age to 18 in Mich that year didn't help matters one bit. I enlisted for the 82nd Airborne Division which meant I was going to Jump school and Ft Bragg NC. I arrived at Ft Bragg in late November 1972 after Basic Training at Ft Knox Ky and Jump School at Ft Benning Ga. Luck would have it I had not gone to any advanced training for a specific job and was supposed to be OJT'd in Combat Arms which really meant I was going to be an Infantry soldier. As I processed in they asked if I would like to work at the Finance office and I said yes. So my place was set and it was a wild ride thereafter. I stayed in the 82nd from 1972 to 1981. Went to JSOC (Joint Special Operations Command - Ft Bragg) from 1981 to 1985. Back to the 82nd 1985 to 1987. Found a choice assignement with the 410th Special Forces in West Berlin from 1987 to 1990. We were there when the Wall opened. Will never forget that. I finally went to SOTF-FSU (Security Operations Training Facility - Finance Support Unit) back at Bragg from 1990 till I retired in 1992. Odd thing is once I went on Jump status in 1972 I never went off till I retired. That has got to be a rare thing for a finance guy being able to maintain a jump slot for their entire career. So all in all I managed to spend half my career in the "Green" side of the army and the other half in the "Dark" or special ops community. I have to say the "Dark" side was a lot more fun.
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