You are in the army now. You are not behind the plow. You are in a hitch. You'll never get rich. You are in the army now!

Yes, it was our choice, it was our commitment. We could have chosen other profession but no, we decided to be professional soldiers. We persevered, hurdled arduous training, we prepared ourselves, body and soul. Professional soldiers to kill or be killed? No, not really. "Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And I (we) took the one less traveled by, And that has made the difference,( R. Frost)". We put ourselves on the line ready to defend and fight for what we love and believe in, our way of life, our freedom, our sovereignty and the integrity of our beloved country. On the job 24hrs a day, 7days a week and we asked not for anything more than our meager pay.

We were trained specifically to lead men to battle. It was an awesome responsibility. We knew it. We took it very seriously. Soldiers, professional or otherwise, do get killed, wounded or maimed. Our Class was no exception. We lost men in combat. Many,  wounded. Unfazed, we learned to accept. That's the reality of war. We live with it. The wound that never heals is in the mind.

From the mountains of Sierra Madre to the jungles of Sulu, over land or deep blue sea, we fulfilled our missions unflinchingly. We are no heroes. Our families, our loved ones, who suffered long nights after nights of anxious separations are. The sad part of our job was not the difficulty suffered in the field, on missions or on patrols, but that we could not share nor talk about it. Oftentimes we don't even like to talk about it.

Class58 distribution to Major Services:

13	16	1	11	12

With a sigh. . . . We retire. . .  "WELL DONE, FAITHFUL SERVANTS"