60-Year Old Vietnam Vet Killed in Iraq

Maj. Steven Hutchison, 60, of Scottsdale, Arizona, died May 10, in Basrah of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle in Al Farr, Iraq. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 34th Armor Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan.

We salute Major Hutchinson as a true American hero, not because he was killed in combat nor because he wore a military uniform. Steven Hutchinson is a patriot. After 9/11 he wanted to re-enlist in the military to further serve his country. He had previously served in Vietnam. But Hutchinson’s wife protested, and he did not re-enlist. According to his brother, Richard, Hutchinson’s wife died and a little part of Steven died, too.

At age 59 he re-enlisted in 2007. He had to pull some strings to do that.

By federal law (10 U.S.C., 505), the minimum age for enlistment in the United States Military is 17 (with parental consent) and the maximum age is 35 (Note: Congress changed this to age 42 in 2006). However, DOD policy allows the individual services to specify the maximum age of enlistment based upon their own unique requirements. However, someone with prior service like Major Hutchinson, can get an age waiver.

About older recuits, Col. Donald Bartholomew, U.S. Army Recruiting Command Assistant Chief of Staff, G5, said, "Experience has shown that older recruits who can meet the physical demands of Army service generally make excellent soldiers. They are mature, motivated, loyal and patriotic, and bring with them a wealth of skills and experience to our Army." (continued below)

Major Steven Hutchinson is a hero for all Americans. Though most citizens now oppose the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and want them brought to an end, Steven Hutchinson is a man we can admire. Patriotism burned within him after the World Trade Center was destroyed but he followed the wishes of his wife. He was, and is, a man’s man.

It is sad, however, that America reached the point where a 59-year old could re-enlist in the military. When I first learned of Major Hutchinson, the 1967 Buffalo Springfield song For What It’s Worth immediately leapt into my mind.

There’s something happening here
What it is ain’t exactly clear

They can sing it far better than I can write it.

We salute, again, Major Hutchinson for what he has done for his country. We plead, again, with our nation’s leaders to bring these wars to an end. As of Thursday, May 14, 2009, at least 4,295 members of the U.S. military had died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. Others pay tribute to Major Hutchinson as well.

War On Terror News: RIP Major Hutchison – Maj. Steven Hutchison, 60, of Scottsdale, Ariz., died May 10, in Basrah of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle in Al Farr, Iraq. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 34th Armor Regiment, …

HolyCoast.com: 60-Year Old Hero – An Associated Press database of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan shows that Maj. Steven Hutchison, of Scottsdale, Ariz., is the oldest member of any service branch killed since the wars broke out. His brother said Hutchison …

Thank You Major Hutchison « Infidels Paradise – This man, Major Steven Hutchison had already sacrificed for his country in the Vietnam war yet was compelled to join the Army again after 9/11. At the age of 59 years old he still felt he had not sacrificed or given enough for this …