by | Nov 27, 2009 | Stories
I was waiting to go to a rehearsal with the then up-and-coming Manhattan Transfer vocal group. I wasn’t even quite sure what lottery meant other than random. I was 18 years old. When September 26th, the day before my birthday, was drawn and it was 034, my...
by | Nov 24, 2009 | Stories
I remember lottery night very distinctly, during my first year in college. None of my immediate family had served in the armed forces, mainly because we were farmers and gained exemptions during the world wars. I had friends on campus from my home town and we all...
by | Nov 24, 2009 | Stories
On 1 December 1969, I was assigned draft lottery number 147, which pretty much guaranteed that I would be called up around the time of my twenty-third birthday in early April 1970. When I got my preinduction physical notice to appear in Los Angeles, I requested...
by | Nov 24, 2009 | Stories
I was a junior in 1969 and attending NCSU. Along with two other buddies we were listening to the lottery picks on a small radio. One of our buddy’s birthday was picked at number 18 and when it was called out he slapped the radio across the...
by | Nov 21, 2009 | Stories
When November 3rd was pulled out in the lottery drawing, my life changed immediately. My birthday corresponded to number 348 in the draft which meant there was little chance I would be going to Vietnam.I was married and teaching school at the...
by | Nov 20, 2009 | Stories
I was a sophomore at NC State in Dec. ’69. Don’t recall the way I learned my number, 189, but thought I still had a low to moderate chance of being drafted. I was not, and that allowed me to move on with marriage, finishing college,...
