I remember first going to fort sill. Reception seemed scary but it wasnt what i expected basic to be, not that it's bad or anything but i wasnt into it like i was into basic. I remember going to Fort Sill in the '79-80 school year. It seemed like a good experience, just like going to basic. Once in basic, though, there were a couple of things that I found disappointing. First was my roommate. Second was the food. I had to go back to the dining hall twice a day to eat. I hated it. In the '80-81 school year, I went to Fort Sill for the third time. This time, I met my future husband there. I remember having fun there. It seemed just like basic. I even took a basic test after getting checked in there. Ft. Sill, KS used to be a real fort too, during the Indian Wars. The fort is now a state park. All that's left is the officers quarters and the parade ground. I think it is on the same grounds as the school. I went to both basic and technical school there, back in the late 1970's. You can imagine I've stayed away ever since. Now the Fort Sill schools are in Wichita and the fort itself is off limits. The city fathers don't like the history or the idea of people running around in there with their old rifles. The first time I went to Ft. Sill, I was 11 years old. I went to go watch my best friend (who was a cadet) graduate and they were going to give him a rifle. I brought along a gun from my grandma (an AirSoft pistol). When I got to the parking lot, I looked for my friend's car but he was in class so I left my AirSoft pistol in the car. The car was stolen when I went back to the lot later that night. I felt pretty dumb when it happened. I lived on Fort Sill when I was in first grade and I distinctly remember the day the man from the military came in to talk to us about how we should not run on the sidewalk because of all the mines on Fort Sill. I was pretty young back then and didn't really know what mines were so it was really an eye opener for me that day. The next time I visited Fort Sill was a year later when my Grandparents lived there. It was just last year actually. We drove down to McAlester where my Great Grandparents lived and drove up to Fort Sill and stayed in the officers quarters. I have memories of Fort Sill being nice from that trip and then I would tell people "My Great Grandma lives in Fort Sill" and I would always get a weird reaction. Just to reiterate though, the fort is beautiful and I have really fond memories of it. I went to both basic and technical school there, back in the late 1970's. You can imagine I've stayed away ever since. I think this is the only time I can say "Amen!" to something you said - in other words, you're preaching to the choir! My father was a U.S. Air Force Veteran and one of his assignments was at Ft. Sill where he was trained in the field of Air Defense, and then later where he and a group of Air Force Aviators trained in fighter aircraft. I lived in New Braunfels, TX in the early/mid 70s (about a 3 hour drive from Fort Sill). I remember visiting relatives that lived there and going to "Fort Sill" every summer as a child in the late 60s. One of the things my father taught me about the school there was that it was so difficult to get into that most people didn't finish. For example, he took a test there when he was in the Air Force and scored as a genius; he was placed in the top 5% of test takers who qualified for the tests. He had to actually take another test that placed him in the top 1% (that made him qualify for the flying classes) - and then to pass a 2nd part of a test (to qualify as a copilot) that involved navigating a plane, flying an aircraft under instruction (I think - I can't remember details) I didn't go back to Fort Sill as an adult - my dad passed away in 2008 and I don't think any of us went back for his funeral. Logged ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Common sense is not a gift, but a curse. Because thenyou have to deal with all the people who don't have it. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ I was stationed at Fort Sill during my first enlistment and I loved it. I went to see my sister at basic training in Oklahoma City and on the way home we stopped and had dinner at the base. It was kind of depressing. It was so dry, so lifeless. Just some sand in the middle of nowhere, all surrounded by mountains with snow on them. It's a long way to go to be "away from it all." Even when stationed there I felt that way. It was still dry, but there were some nice parts of the base. The food was pretty bad - mostly hamburger patties and beef stew. And there were no lights outside of the rooms. You have to go up to the lights in the rooms to turn them on and off. When I came back my next time around it was in the Army for four years and I loved it. After basic, I went to Sill for the weekend. I think they didn't feed you enough there. I hated it. We went to the local mall and saw a movie. I've never been back. I was stationed at Fort Sill when I was a teenager and one of my best friends was stationed there also. We used to visit and I remember being horribly bored. The main attraction there was watching the local parade of soldiers and seeing the troops marching. I have some great memories of my time there. There were a lot of good people that came through that base over the years and were able to serve their country. I don't regret my service time there at all. However, I do remember walking across the parade field one day and tripping on a piece of steel that was sticking up. I broke my arm in five places. I was in the emergency room for 6 hours on crutches and had broken a bone in my left leg from my knee to my ankle. I guess when they say to "stick to the basics," they mean that you better learn a lot of them because the basics aren't very good, lol. It's a great place to visit, but just keep that in mind if you ever choose to go there. "When you are wounded and left on Afghanistan's plains, And the women come out to cut up what remains, Jest roll to your rifle and blow out your brains And go to your gawd like a soldier." Me and my husband used