'Old Guard' Gets New Rocker

Left is Dad wearing the rocker from his uniform from 1966.
Right is a member of the Drill Team showing off his rocker.

The Seaman pulled Dad aside and asked for his pocket knife. Dad obliged, opening his blade and handing it to the sailor. The soldier pulled off the top of his uniform and delicately cut the threads holding the “Ceremonial Guard” patch, known as a “rocker”, from the right shoulder. He handed it to Dad.

Cutting the rocker off his uniform to give to Dad.

I’ve been to many a Veteran’s Day celebration and I have never seen a soldier take a patch from his uniform and give it to a veteran. It’s just not done. Current soldiers meet old vets all the time. This was different. Membership into the US Navy Ceremonial Guard is elite. There are few members. They said as much, stating that they rarely meet an “Old Guard” as they called him. “It’s an honor for us,” said one seaman.

They took notice of Dad, immediately. He was wearing his black leather Navy jacket. To it, he has sewn many of the patches from his old Navy uniform. They noticed his rocker right off and wanted to talk with him. One solider asked Dad if he would sign his white glove. “I’ll hang it above my bed, right next to my picture of the President,” he exclaimed loudly.

I think it was a bigger deal for them to meet him than it was for him to meet them. The Commander lamented that he did not know that Dad would be there ahead of time. He would have liked for Dad to sit and talk with the sailors and tell them tales of days gone by.

The team was incredibly precise. It is, after all, their job to be and they did their job well. To see them in person is, well, indescribable. To have them in such awe over meeting one of their own is simply breathtaking. When it came time for groups photos, they insisted he join them.

The US Navy Ceremonial Guard Drill Team.

I am glad that I was there to share in the moment. If you’d like to see all the photos, you can check them out here. The photos in this post are low res. Go to my photo site to download photos suitable for printing.