Seventy years ago today, January 12, 1954, Master Sergeant (Retired) Clyde Moore of Columbus, MS joined the Air Force. A mere two weeks after his 16th birthday, Mr. Moore visited a local recruiting station and, having been taken at his word about his age, Mr. Moore began what would become a highly decorated 24-year career in the military.
Mr. Moore attended Basic Training at Luke Air Force Base in Glendale, AZ. There, he relied on the help and strength of his grandmother who wrote and encouraged him daily. With a driving commitment to help his family back home, Mr. Moore completed training to become a postal worker who served at 11 different bases over a span of 11 years. His assignments included Texas, Arizona, Japan, Florida, New Jersey, Guam, France, and Italy. His training did not, however, include combat training and nothing could prepare him for the rigors he would experience in Vietnam.
From January 1, 1965, to March 28, 1973, approximately 2,594,000 US Servicemen and women served in country during the Vietnam War. Of those, 293,000 were US Airmen, yet only one of those, Master Sergeant (Retired) Clyde Moore, served three separate tours in theater.
His first tour of duty was the postal assignment at Pleiku Air Force Base, a post that was so hostile that Mr. Moore recalled the planes kept their engines running as they dropped the mail. The 16-year-old Airman was also required to stand guard duty ‘just like all of the lieutenant’s other men.’ He recalled being given a half-cocked weapon by his lieutenant and, having never handled a gun before, he nervously asked him how to reload it. The lieutenant replied, “Don’t worry. If you have to shoot it, someone else will be there to help you by the time you needed to reload.”
And so began his three tours of combat duty. Airman Moore soon became one of the most popular, well-known individuals on the installation as he was the mail handler. Letters from home, predating current day email and text messages, were the lifeline for morale in theater, and Airman Moore helped to ensure the timely distribution of thousands of cards and letters sent overseas to U.S. troops.
Following his tour at Pleiku in 1965, Mr. Moore was transferred to Carswell Air Force Base in Fort Worth, TX. He was only back stateside for a few months before receiving orders for Tan Son Nhut Air Force Base, Saigon. He was once again assigned to a postal unit and served there from July 1966-March 1967, followed by a third and final tour in Vietnam at Da Nang Air Force Base. His third tour began in April 1970 and concluded in March 1971. Mr. Moore then transferred to Lowry Air Force Base in Denver, CO where he changed his military occupational specialty (MOS) to Finance in 1971. Rising through the ranks, the now MSgt Moore ran the office that handled pay and finance matters for all the Air Force. He retired June 1, 1978, after completing 24 years, four months, and 19 days in service to our nation.
Mr. Moore settled into civilian life in Denver, CO and began selling real estate before he found a second career with Honda Corporation. Mr. Moore excelled at Honda as he had in the Air Force, earning Top 10 honors recognition four times at Honda nationwide. He was ranked #1 in the U.S. in 1986 and #1 in the Western Zone 1987, 1988, and 1989 at the peak of his sales career before he retired a final time and eventually returned home to Columbus, MS.
Mr. Moore stated the greatest thing he learned from the military was persistence. When asked what was his ‘why,’ Mr. Moore said, “Being in the military, you serve the purpose of helping the U.S., and I love the U.S.” He said, “I have two flags flying over my house. I have no regrets at all.”
Mr. Moore now resides in Columbus with his wife Christine. They have a blended family of six children and a host of grand as well as great grandchildren.
Article submitted and written by Gwendolyn Tavira, Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.), U.S. Army.
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