Fourteen Days in the Brig

By S. R. Morris

Fourteen Days in the Brig is the true story of two teen-age boys who trusted the government and were disappointed, but they trusted God more and they learned that He never disappoints. 

            “And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them (Isaiah 42:16 KJV).

The 1960s were an interesting and sometimes controversial era in the United States. By 1964, the Army was drafting eligible young men shortly after turning 18. Rocky Gale and his cousin, Joe Johnston, were among the many young Americans who wondered if their next piece of mail would be an invitation by Uncle Sam to a war in Vietnam.

“My cousin Joe and I anticipated being drafted and, knowing that most young men of our age were being sent to Vietnam, we decided to join,” states Rocky Gale, now a pastor with the South Salem, Oregon Seventh-day Adventist Church.

“We talked to the recruiters and they promised that if we joined, we could pick where we wanted to go. With that guarantee in mind, we joined the Army so we could ‘see the world,’ namely Germany, not Vietnam.”

The recruiters also assured the young men that the Army would honor their religious convictions and they would have the Sabbath off. Being adolescents, and honest themselves, they took the recruiters at their words, fully confident that they could serve their country and their God without abandoning their principles.

Listed as “conscientious objectors,” Rocky and Joe were sent to Fort Dix, New Jersey for nine weeks of basic training. From there, they were sent to Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas for medical training. Upon completion of their courses, they were given a leave and told to report to New York where they would board a transport ship to Germany.

“Joe and I were in this giant building, from where we could see the gangplank that led up to a troop transport named Geiger. The ship would take us from Brooklyn and deliver us to Bremerhaven, Germany,” remembers Gale. “We listened as they called out names for two basic lines. One line was for people going to Germany; the other line was for those going to Vietnam.”

Miles away from home, and uncertain of the events that would lie ahead, Rocky and Joe waited for hours with their duffel bags, listening for their names to be announced. Finally, they heard their names called, but they were being summoned to go to Vietnam!

The cousins looked at each other with disbelief. They were guaranteed by their recruiter that they would go to Germany and their orders said they were destined for Germany. What would happen if they were sent to Vietnam and they didn’t report as the orders directed? Had someone in the Army made a mistake, or had they been naïve enough to believe that their deployment to Germany was guaranteed?

They prayed, asking God to guide them in their dilemma, and found an officer in charge. They showed him their orders and he told them to wait. At the end of the day, when the lines were empty, their names were called again; this time for Germany.

Overjoyed at the outcome, and relieved that the misunderstanding had been corrected, the pair grabbed their gear and headed toward the ship. As they walked up the boat’s ramp, they were stopped and told that there was no room for them. They produced their orders again and showed the officer. He loudly announced that the ship was completely full and there was “absolutely no room” left on the ship.

“My cousin and I had prayed, asking the Lord to take care of the problem,” Pastor Gale recalls. “That’s when a nearby corporal interrupted and said, ‘I believe there is room for two down in the brig.’ The officer waved us on, but we knew that God has answered the fervent prayer of two anxious boys.”

Rocky and Joe seized their duffel bags again and walked up the ramp. They were led down into the bottom of the ship. Although their accommodations weren’t what they expected, they had a new appreciation for Jonah’s experience in the belly of the great fish.

“Actually, we were spared from all the work that was being done by everyone topside: scrubbing decks, cleaning and painting,” explains Gale. “For fourteen days, we slept, prayed, read the Bible, and even had our meals delivered.”

When the ship arrived at Bremerhaven, a different officer asked them who they were. Rocky and Joe explained who they were and showed him their orders. His immediate reaction was to demand an explanation of where they had been and why he hadn’t seen them before.

“Sir, we’ve been in the brig for the whole trip and, believe me, being in jail was a pleasure,” Gale reminisces. “Looking back, I can attest that when you travel with God, He leads you through interesting events and in interesting ways.”

Copyright 2009 by S. R. Morris