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Terry C. Honaker was in the army, but he is now a
veteran. His Army rank was the SP4.
Prewar:
Terry Honaker war born in Marion, Ohio. He was one
of nine boys, and three girls. He had a stay at home mom, and a dad that
worked a lot. He attended Market Street School, Vernon Junior High, Central
Junior High, State Street Junior High, Harding High School, and Ohio State
University. He said he was a good student and he loved school. He also
enjoyed swimming.
Military:
He was drafted in 1960 in June; He went on to Fort Noxt for basic training in Kentucky for armed training, and was a
tank driver. Terry was 23 years old when he was drafted. When he arrived in Berlin the war and already
started. He said when he went into the war he was not afraid; he said it was
ok during the wartime, and he was excited because he got to travel a lot. He
had basic training before the military at Ohio State and it was ROTC. His experience
was fun, and he got some specific jobs that were driving tanks and shooting
50 caliber machine guns. He was close to everyone and everyone was everyone’s
friend. His military life during those times was exciting because they were
always doing something. The food there was great and there were good cooks.
The military was very strict on rules. He traveled in his free time. He had Summer
uniform, Winter uniform, and working uniform. The weather was really cold.
He traveled by trucks and tanks into the war zone. It
was the USA to Frankford, Germany. His
first impression in a foreign country was different he said. He was stationed
as a bone holder in Germany. He was 100 miles from the
front lines. He always saw the enemy and they were Russians; they had poor
equipment, and were poorly organized. The most interesting experience was
that the truck caught on fire. The best thing about the war was traveling to
different countries. He lived in the barracks or tents. He and his friends
never thought they would survive. The most impressive weapon he saw was the
90mm cannons and nuclear bombs. The most impressive place that he saw was Grafenburg, in the war zone. The civilians didn’t like service
people very much. He saw Miss. America in Cleveland in 1962 before he
left.
Postwar:
Terry received mail all the time. He said it was ok when
the tour was over. He received a medal of good conduct. The ship took him to
the US and then a train took him home.
After the war he got a job working in a grocery store. The best thing about the war were the cool weapons. He met his
spouse at, “Shooting The Loop.” He got married in October
3, 1965.
Teresa was his first child then, Lisa, then Robbie, and Betty was the last
child. He belongs to the Masons, and the Lion’s club. His favorite hobby is
collecting cars.
Germany
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