HATFIELD — Anticipating that a draft notice conscripting him into the military would soon be arriving, Northampton native Thomas A. Tataro signed on for military service in 1969 after completing two years of community college.
It was a decision he made knowing his father had served in the infantry in World War II and that it would be better to get specific training, in his case as a mechanic for Army helicopters.
When he returned home that afternoon 56 years ago, the draft notice was sitting on a table.
“I joined just in time, I guess,” Tataro said. “I got to choose what I would do in the Army.”
Tataro reflected on his military service, which lasted until 1972 and included one year in Vietnam, as part of a presentation to students at Hatfield Elementary School Friday.
With students getting a four-day weekend as part of Veterans Day, his 30-minute talk and question-and-answer session was a way to give them an appreciation for veterans and a better sense of why the holiday is being celebrated, as well as what military veterans continue to do for the community.
Tataro, the commander of the American Legion Post 344, was sent to Fort Rucker in Alabama in 1969, where he gained skills in aircraft maintenance and airfield operations and the knowledge needed to become a crew chief for Army helicopters.
He also trained helicopter pilots on escape and evasion during that time, being sent to Vietnam as a helicopter chief a year later, a deployment delayed a year by a decision made by President Richard Nixon, and then spent eight months in Germany. Tataro’s service in the Vietnam War included being on a helicopter that was shot down, requiring him to use a compass to safely get out of the jungle.
“You learn a lot in the military, but the most important thing is self-reliance. You learn teamwork, and you make friends,” Tataro said.
At basic training, he met people who came from all across the country and from all backgrounds, with everyone being treated the same.
“You’re all comrades and you’re there to look after each other,” Tataro said..
As commander of the American Legion, civic work is done, such as putting on the Memorial Day and Veterans Day ceremonies and placing the flags at graves before Memorial Day. But with only three members doing the flag display work, Tataro said he may put out the call for town and school volunteers.
On Flag Day in June, he participates in a proper flag retirement ceremony for worn and torn flags at the Lions Club Pavilion.
Tataro said the American Legion building in Hatfield opened on Prospect Street in 1968, built by World War II veterans where an elementary school had previously stood.
The organization has 68 active members, down from 225 when he became the commander more than a decade ago, observing those who have passed and the diminished interest from more recent veterans.
“Those of us who came after (World War II and Korea) try to keep it going,” Tataro said. “It’s getting to the point where only a handful of us are active at the Legion.”
While uncertain if any of the students might be interested in military careers, which would be their choice rather than compulsory, Tataro said doctors, nurses and technicians can all be part of the military, getting the necessary training. There are many jobs in the military that aren’t combat related, he said.
“A lot of jobs don’t require fighting,” Tataro said.
He got a bachelor’s degree paid for through the GI Bill, bearing in mind that higher education can cause student debt. “To go to college right now costs a lot of money,” Tataro said.
Tataro encouraged the students to try to get to the Veterans Day ceremony if they are in town, a short walk to Memorial Town Hall, and that unlike Memorial Day and honoring the dead, this is a way to honor those who have returned from war and are still living.
“It’s important to say thank you to the veterans for their service to the country,” Tataro said.
Fifth graders in John Higuera and Edward “Ted” Prajzner’s classes were among those who heard from Tataro.
George Bennett, 11, said he has been to Veterans Day in the past with his family and appreciates Tataro’s service.
“We got to learn about what he did in the Army, and in the branches of the military,” George said.
Billy Englehardt, whose grandfather has brought the container to Flag Day so the flags can be disposed of properly, has met Tataro previously. He said Tataro was inspiring.
“I liked that he told about all the stuff he’s done,” Billy said.