Enlisted heritage banquet hosts charter chief

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Marissa Tucker
  • 4th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
SEYMOUR JOHNSON AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. --  Seymour Johnson Air Force Base paid homage to all stripe-bearing Airmen and celebrated the 50th Anniversary of the establishment of the chief master sergeant rank with an enlisted heritage banquet with a special guest of honor here Dec. 1.

Celebrating the enlisted core was only one theme for the night. Retired Chief Master Sgt. Luther Carroll, one of the first Airmen to achieve rank of chief master sergeant, shared his experiences and offered advice to those in the attendance.

Chief Carroll's road to chief was no easy feat. He began his career in Kennansville, N.C., in October 1947 with a program called the Barksdale Letter, which allowed any high school graduate with a 'B' average and good references to enlist in the newly formed Air Force and also to choose their own career field. Always a pursuer of knowledge, Chief Carroll opted for the longest school possible - airways communication systems maintenance.

"Where I came from, there were no guidance counselors," he said. "I decided to join the Air Force for the educational benefits and for the stability. The plan was to get out and go to college but those plans (didn't) work out."

While he planned to cruise through the school, he received a big wake-up call after failing some important tests and decided he needed to apply himself more. As a result, he spent several nights a week in study hall, leading Chief Carroll to focus his attention on professional education. Chief Carroll encourages today's Airmen to not only become efficient in their career, but to pursue a college degree.

"College is much more accessible these days than it used to be," he said. "The biggest thing I regret is that I focused solely on my career and not on getting my college degree. In these days where people have the attitude that they can get something for nothing, they are losing sight of their original goal. Anything worth having is going to take hard work."

Six years into his career, Chief Carroll made the decision to separate from the Air Force to complete his college education. Two months later, he was back at a recruiting office re-joining the enlisted ranks as a technical sergeant. His Mongomery G.I. Bill benefits were taking longer to process than he expected and he did not have a permanent place to live. Those reasons, however, were not his most important for coming back; he missed his family.

"I was so use to the camaraderie in the Air Force it felt like I had left my family," he said. "I came back with the drive to be the best at my job. Some people called me 'G.I. Joe' and I guess they were right."

Chief Carroll's dedication and work ethic did not go un-noticed and he advanced in rank quickly after his re-entry into the Air Force. As a master sergeant at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Ca., he used his expertise and technical skills to help launch the first missiles from the base.

In 1958, after deciding rank stagnation in the Air Force was hurting the enlisted corps, congress passed the Career Compensation Act, which allowed Air Force officials to create two new ranks, senior master sergeant and chief master sergeant. Chief Carroll was among the first 620 master sergeants to be promoted to chief, Dec. 1, 1959.

"When they told me I was going to be promoted to chief, I was a bit surprised, but I was honored I made the cut," he said. "I knew I had more responsibility than ever and I was going to make the Air Force proud."

That first group became known as the "Charter Chiefs." Only only 70 Charter Chiefs are alive today. As a groundbreaker who helped set a high standard for future chiefs, Chief Carroll remains humble and is grateful to the Airmen who came before him and those who remain are now the driving force of the enlisted corps. He is an inspiration and a living legend for Airmen here, including Chief Master Sgt. David Seia, 336th Aircraft Maintenance Unit superintendent and the 4th Fighter Wing's newest chief master sergeant whose promotion date fell on the 50th anniversary of the rank.

"Imagine being the first to be selected to a new rank," he said. "You would be on display 24-7. The character of these professionals set the standard for others to follow. Without question the privileges we chiefs enjoy today are a direct result of the actions of Chief Carroll and the other chiefs who earned it over the past 50 years. Having sewn on Dec. 1 and celebrating the occasion on such a significant evening with one of the first to do so is truly a blessing and something that I will cherish for the rest of my life."