Page 20 - Senior Link Magazine Fall 2017- Online Magazine

Brigadier General
Darrell J. Guthrie
uring the
Depression,
DDarrell’s father,
Vester James Guthrie,
grew up in a family of 13
in Carbon Hill, Alabama.
Because there were so many
mouths to feed, he, like his
brother, Lester, left home
early to work in the Work
Progress Administration
(WPA). Instead of earning
a high school education,
Vec—as he was known to
family and friends—left
home and worked with
the WPA and later joined
his older brother finding
opportunity to serve their
country in the U.S. military. Vec
joined the U.S. Army Air Corps
at the age of 17 and flew as the
navigator in the belly of an A-20
in missions over Italy for two
years.
In the late 40s, after a few years
of odd jobs upon his return from
Vester “Vec” James Guthrie,
Army Air Coprs
20 Lubbock Senior Link
The Legacy Continues
by Shari Guthrie
his service overseas, Vec rejoined
the Army Air Corps not only for
the work but for his dedication
to service, structure and the
brotherhood found in the Army.
Darrell was born in 1962 when
his father turned 40 and grew
up watching his father work
tirelessly as a telephone company
lineman, build their homes with
each move, and in his “off” time,
make furniture. In addition to
his awareness of his father’s hard
work and success at building a
good life, he was impacted by
the stories told by his father and
his uncle about their time in the
military and the friends they had
made.
Out of high school, Darrell
initially planned to attend
college financed by a football
scholarship—his early claim
to fame was tackling a future
Heisman Trophy winner during
Alabama High School State
Playoffs causing him, Bo
Jackson, to fumble. When the
football scholarship didn’t pan
out, the young man worked
power line construction and
park maintenance jobs to
pay for his first three years
of college at the University
of Alabama at Birmingham
(UAB). After his third year,
Darrell received a letter asking
if he wanted to attend ROTC
Basic Training at Fort Knox,
Kentucky. He thrived at the
boot camp in its structure,
physical challenge and the
camaraderie found with the
other Cadets. Upon returning
to UAB and being offered an
ROTC scholarship to complete
his BS in Business Economics,
the prospective soldier seized the
opportunity.
Darrell, having completed his
undergraduate degree at UAB
as a Distinguished Military
Graduate in the spring of 1985,
reported to Ft. Sill, Oklahoma,
for the Field Artillery Officer
Basic Course. Since then, now 32
years, he has had the honor and
privilege of serving his country
and its soldiers throughout
the United States, Germany,
Bosnia-Herzegovina, Iraq, and
Afghanistan. One of his strongest
motivations throughout his
years of service and now serving
as a General Officer has been
to ensure the well-being of the
soldiers and personnel in his
command. Darrell truly lives by