Alumni Address at the Reactivation of G-7
10 May 2010

Given by MAJ Jeffrey Woodall, USA (Ret.)



P/R Cording Ceremony

When Lt. John J. Pershing was ready to leave his post as the military commandant of the cadet corps at The University of
Nebraska in 1894 the head of the University wrote in a letter of Commendation to the General of the Army the following:
"Lt. Pershing will be missed for his alchemy of leadership, but most for his character. Character is the surest mark of a
leader of men, for it fashions judgment from strong emotion, patriotism from passionate belief, bravery from well grounded
ambition and it broadens the mind and ennobles the spirit and in great soldiers like Lt. Pershing, character is forged from
hard iron. He has empowered the Corps with the same character and they are the best Corps outside of West Point."
When some of his cadets learned he was leaving the University for Duty with the 10th U.S. Cavalry (Colored) they
approached the University and wanted to change the name of their exhibition drill team The Varsity Rifles to the Pershing
Rifles in honor of their commandant who had started it a few years before. The change was approved, and they then went
to Lt. Pershing and asked for a pair of his blue cavalry breeches as well as a pair of his white dress pants. When he
inquired as to their request he was told they intended to cut them up and make ribbons for their uniforms to remember they
had served under him. In typical Pershing style he gave them the newest pairs of pants he owned. This speaks volumes
about the impact Pershing had on his cadets and surely their lives long after they left the university.
Tonight you will have joined a long line of young men and women who have worn the cord and that blue and white ribbon.
For most that joined Pershing Rifles, through the years, they found it was very different from the military structure of the
ROTC program. This unique organization was run by its members as a functioning military unit where leaders were elected
and yet all served equally. Usually P/R units have at their core their exhibition drill team. It provided the glue that bound the
members into a brotherhood and forged bounds that proved to be lifelong. Here at K-State, the G-7 Headhunters with little
cadre supervision, developed our own drill routines, planned our own practice times and places and set up performances
across the State of Kansas to get ready for the Pershing Rifles National and Regimental drill meets. We not only performed
at half times of Wildcat basketball games but in a lot of high school gyms just to get ready. The amount of sacrifice and
dedication to the team with daily practices, some at 0500 hrs or at 1900 hrs whenever we could get an indoor space for a
few hours was always intense. Sometimes blood flowed for real caused by a bad throw or catch and the saw- toothed
bayonet always had a nasty way of reminding us to pay attention and do it right. We all bear physical scars from those days
proudly because we all worked hard for and earned the right to wear a black cord on our uniform that meant we had been a
team member of the Headhunters when they had won a championship.
We did not know it then but only realized it many years later that during that process we had forged a band of brothers
whose ideals and friendship would withstand the test of the passing years. The key ingredient in the bond that Pershing
Rifles created in us was the ideal of selfless service. We were part of something bigger then ourselves as mere individuals
and it allowed us to serve a greater collective good as part of something that taught us the importance of knowing the man
on your left and right were more important to you then yourself. Is that not the true essence of being a Military officer, always
putting your men first?
What did I carry away from my years as a P/R? It is really simple; I was a better Army Officer, man, husband and father
because of what I learned in this building 40 years ago. I had learned without realizing it that character never changes,
integrity is never worth compromising, sometimes listening is better than talking, bravery springs out of controlled fear and
never ever quit at anything. In order to be able do that consistently you have to trust those around you and know that they
trust you as well. The Greeks knew that one weak shield in the line and the line would be lost as would the battle.
In 1971 at the National Drill meet we had an 8 man blind overhead rifle toss and the stock on the thrown rifle was cracked
and as the last man in line caught it the stock at narrow part of the Springfield snapped. It was still fastened to the rifle by
the sling and my P/R Brother continued to spin that broken rifle so he would not let down the team and with every spin the
broken piece hit him in the head. He never wavered nor made a mistake the rest of the routine. That was an act of selfless
sacrifice and service to his team, his school and himself in the highest regard. The strangest thing about that story is after
getting hit in the head so many times he changed his major from history to psychology and ended up with a PHD and is
now a practicing Psychologist. I'm not saying the repeated blows to the head had an effect on him but somehow he
became studious and smart almost immediately and since I was his roommate I found his sudden desire to avoid
Aggieville and start studying quite annoying.
I also once had a first sergeant who was in a unit I commanded who had been awarded the Silver Star in Vietnam because
in the middle of a ambush of his company by a large force of enemy soldiers, he stood up and stepped in front of his
comrades who were pinned down in open grassland by a light machinegun. Without any cover he started taking careful
single aimed shots, I mean rifle range stuff here, standing calmly and deliberately as he fired at the enemy machinegun
bunker with lethal stuff flying all around him. He stayed upright until that machinegun stopped firing with its crew killed, then
lay back down on the ground and allowed the medic to treat his two wounds he had just gotten. I asked him much latter why
he had done such a thing and he simply said, "They were shooting at my men sir." Had he understood the ramifications of
his selfless act? Absolutely but he had been willing to possibly sacrifice himself to serve the men he was responsible for no
matter how much personal fear he felt and had to overcome. The post script to the story is he had gone to college for two
years prior to enlisting after his college money dried up and had been a P/R. Was I surprised when I found that out, no not
even a little bit.
Whether you enter Military service or choose the civilian world after graduation you will be better off having been in
Pershing Rifles. P/Rs will instill in you that character always matters, being honorable while maintaining high standards of
personal integrity is a must and most important, you are not as important as those around you so be selfless in your service
to them for in serving them you are growing into a better person. It will have taught you Patriotism is not a word but a way of
life where sacrifice is the linch pin that makes you a better citizen of our great Country and makes its principles worth
defending with your very life if necessary.
Lastly never quit what you start for it will prove hard the first time you stop with job undone but it gets easier and easier to
quit and soon you are quitting before you even start, Pershing Rifles will teach you no matter what your mission always
comes first, for he who is willing to take the greatest risk when others are fearful will always come out ahead. In a Pershing
Rifleman there can never be any room for "I can't do it or it can't be done"; only the knowledge that it will be done to the best
of their abilities. These are the traits that define a Pershing Rifles member. Pershing Rifles also instilled in me the belief
that no one truly is a loner and when you are doubting yourself or down on yourself or think you cannot go one more step
others around you will pick you up and support you and you would do the same for them in their times of need or doubt.
My G-7 brothers here tonight can tell you that when we came to K-State we were just a little over twenty years removed from
the end of WW II, most were born during the Korean War and we were in a country that was being torn apart by the Vietnam
War which at the time was the longest war in American History. In the anti-military culture that existed then on practically
every college campus Pershing Rifles became a home for us and we endured the insults and such from those who had not
a clue, kept our faith in each other and persevered to become strong men of character. Most of us became soldiers and
airmen at first but now we have doctors, engineers, educators, those that still are in governmental service and even a
General Officer amongst us former wet behind the ears 18 year olds who by accident forged a bond between each other
and matured into men of purpose with a drive to excel thanks in part to our association with Pershing Rifles and each other.
When you put that cord on your uniform this evening you are joining me and all of my brothers and all of those that have
gone on before us. You will be held to a higher standard as to your character, personal conduct, your service to others and
your sacrifice for the common good so you may better yourself, your school and your Country. You will live a better more
fulfilling life knowing that the ideals of General John J. Pershing that you accepted tonight as your own will be there to guide
you. We as Pershing Riflemen and women can only hope that the words spoken at General Pershing's Funeral which are,
"He was a patriotic good soldier with a keen sense of the future. Even with extreme personal loss he always put duty first
and always knew the honorable thing to do. Pershing was neither a fool or a fanatic but was a man of even knowledge of
himself. He believed passionately in his Country and his career showed the world the best side of Americanism."
If we hold to those ideals someday maybe we will be deemed worthy enough to have like words spoken over us. The world
now is not a simple or safe place and with the ongoing Global War on Terror some of you will be in harm's way within a few
months or years. Leadership is not an easy thing especially in wartime but Pershing Rifles will prepare you better for the
reality of what a leader has to be in order to be successful.
I know my fellow alumni brothers here tonight and all that are not, are proud of your accomplishments in re-establishing
Pershing Rifles G-7 here at Kansas State and we know that more Exhibition Drill and Ranger national championships and
along with finding lifelong friends await all of you and those that follow you into G-7 in future years. Congratulations and
welcome to a Wildcat band of brother and sisters few can claim membership in but will prove to be one of your better
decisions you have ever made while here at K-State. Congratulations on a job well done and welcome to the brotherhood.