LEONARD H. (LEN) SMITH Lt Colonel, USAF (Retired)

USAF OCS Class 57C, OC LT, 4th Squadron Honor Council

I was born at a very early age, and haven’t died, as of this penning. In between, a few things have happened. I lived the first few years in Brooklyn, New York, but moved to Freeport, Long Island, when a policeman yelled at my mother for letting the baby dig up the park (with a teaspoon). I proceeded through the usual grades (K-12) to graduate from Freeport High School in 1949. I made the National Honor Society and was a three-letter man (no, not those three) in track, bowling, and band. I attended Cortland State Teachers College (now called SUNY Cortland) for two years prior to joining the Air Force.

I enlisted in the Air Force in 1951 at a junction in my life when I decided that I had to make a change in the way things were going. After basic training at Samson Air Force Base, and weather observer and weather forecaster schools at Chanute, I was assigned in turn to Landsburg, Germany; Hahn Air Base, Germany; Salzburg, Austria; and Rhein Main AB, Germany (all during 1953-1956) -- and finally to Dobbins AFB, Georgia.

While at Salzburg, time for reenlistment was coming up. My commander said he wouldn't allow me to re-enlist - said he didn't want me to end up a pot-bellied old Master Sergeant, stomping around the world. I had been toying with the idea of OCS, so I told him when I got back to the states I would drop OCS papers on the new CO's desk. He agreed to that and I re-enlisted.

I’m still a bit hazy about what happened between March and September of 1957. After OCS, the next assignment was Syracuse, NY in the Air Defense System in the weather career field. The Syracuse tour was to provide weather support in, first, the manual and then the Sage Air Defense Systems.

1960-62 AFIT, Texas A&M, to get a BS in meteorology (no snickering, please). This qualified me to do what I had been doing for all those years. The years 1962-63 were spent at Osan AB, Korea, and for 1963-67, I was at Las Vegas, Nevada.

I spent 1967-70 at Wiesbaden AB, Germany at Second Weather Wing as a weather staff officer and as a permanent augmentee to the USAFE ORI Team. I then transferred to Andrews AFB, as Chief of Plans and then Assistant DO – then as Executive Officer to the Weather Wing Commander, 1970-1975. A stint as Commander of USAFETAC (then the Air Force Climatological Center), and then 1975-77 at Langley AFB.

I retired from the Air Force in 1978, to Indianapolis, Indiana. I have not been gainfully employed since then, but I have worked as finish line judge at a lot of track meets as well as timer and scorer for numerous auto racing events. I’m still completely retired and enjoying open cockpit auto racing, symphony and chamber music, as well as concerts and plays.