Wearing olive drab, tan, and desert camouflage uniforms of generations passed, one-by-one six of today’s 3rd Infantry Division soldiers marched onto the Fort Stewart parade grounds.
As Spc. Thomas Peaks marched across Cottrell Field Wednesday evening in the heavy, dark green uniform worn by soldiers during the Korean War, a loudspeaker boasted of the accomplishments of the division’s Dog-face Soldiers in that country as they faced some of the toughest combat in that campaign.
During the annual Twilight Tattoo ceremony the division honored those who wore the three-striped blue and white patch of the 3rd Infantry Division before them by sharing history and music with soldiers and their families.
Despite being uncomfortable in the old style boots, Peaks said he was honored to take part in the ceremony.
“It’s the history of one of the most recognized divisions in the Army,” Peaks said. “My recruiter was in the 3rd ID for a long time, and he always had great stories, so I always wanted to and now I’m honored to be a part of the 3rd Infantry Division.”
The ceremony came in the middle of the division’s Marne Week, a grouping of events including athletics and soldiering competitions meant to build espirit de corps among its troops. It will be capped Friday evening with a Marne Ball.
It’s the first time since 2008 the division has held Marne Week, said Maj. Gen. Robert Abrams, the division’s commanding general.
“That’s not a reflection that people didn’t want to have a Marne Week, we’ve just been too busy fighting wars,” Abrams said. “We had an opportunity to throttle back Marne Week, have some friendly competition and enjoy each other, build camaraderie and have special events like this.”
Abrams — who read the Oath of Enlistment to 20 current and 20 future soldiers during the ceremony — said it was especially important to remember the unit’s past as it heads toward a new mission in Afghanistan, where two of the division’s battalions are already deployed and many more will soon join.
“As we sit here tonight there is a Dog-face Soldier in every corner of Afghanistan defending what we hold most dear, our freedom,” he said. “… Soon many more Dog-face Soldiers will be in there to finish what America has asked us to do.”
Ultimately, the general said, the 3rd Infantry Division will do in Afghanistan what it’s done in the past — succeed because of its soldiers.
“The Dog-face Soldier is not fancy, just tough,” Abrams said. “Dog-face Soldiers are physically fit. We live set in our Army values every day. We are proven, battle tested warriors, as evidenced by our unit’s history. Dog-face Soldiers are everyday Americans giving up themselves to a great cause, achieving success often in the most extraordinary situations.”