I was dating a young lady in one of the sororities and was in the AGD house on the night of the lottery. I heard my draft number come over the radio as the girls had the radio on and it played into the intercom system. My number was 357. I was currently I-A in the draft but did not realize the significance of the new number for a few hours until I returned to the fraternity and listened as the other young men told me how lucky I was to receive this number with my birth date. I slept good that night but also felt sorrow in my heart for the men fighting in Vietnam to protect my freedoms and those of strangers in a distant country. I will forever have the greatest respect for those that sacrificed in that region of the world to protect and honor the United States of America so that we can live in peace.
I recall another evening at UK about six months later, in May, 1970–the day after the Kent State shootings–when the Air Force ROTC annex was set on fire and destroyed. At the time, many of us did not realize how terrible an act that was. We later understood how dangerous it was for individuals to risk the lives of others to make a statement.