The Meritorious Hottenstein

The Meritorious Hottenstein

Lance Corporal Hottenstein, USMC, was a big, tall German kid. I knew him in Okinawa as a Marine in another platoon. His height made him stand out. Now I was his platoon leader and he is a Lance Corporal Squad Leader, a position normally held for Sergeants which were in very short supply. 

Charlie Company was heading out to the desert that was the Marine Corps base at Twentynine Palms to “play Marine” for a week. 3rd Platoon was given the job of “aggressor” and told to move out and set up a defensive line and take on the attacking rest of Charlie Company. Always wanting to get away from the rest of the Company, I moved us out quickly, got to our position and dug in.

Lance Corporal Hottenstein was motivated that day. He saw to it his Marines were dug in properly with available camouflage, cover, and concealment used properly and efficiently, distributed ammo (blanks) and awaited the “attack”. 

As the “attack” commenced, Lance Corporal. Hottenstein would yell, whoop, and generally antagonize, berate, and challenge the oncoming attacking Marines to come get him. He also led his Marines, directing their fire (blanks), and staged a noble defense of his position. As assigned “aggressors”, none of us “survived” the attack. 

We went on about our training schedule that day which meant we kept marching into the desert many miles from the main base.

After a day of attacking and defending, squad, platoon, and company level tactics, eating c-rations, calling in fictional mortar and artillery strikes, conducting night patrols and ambushes, and practicing land navigation, the company commander, suddenly called all platoon leaders together for a meeting with him at the company CP.

He had just gotten a call over the radio that the battalion commander had several meritorious promotions to corporal to hand out and demanded the names of the people to promote immediately. My protest to obtain a small delay while I briefly consulted with my platoon sergeant was cut off by being told he would give the promotion for my platoon to another platoon. “Give me a name and give it to me now!” was his demand.

With Lance Corporal Hottenstein still fresh on my mind, I blurted out his name. And the next day, the battalion commander, LtCol. Meehan arrived at our position way out in the desert to personally promote these Lance Corporals to Corporal. We held a company formation for this, and just like that, Lance Corporal Hottenstein became Corporal Hottenstein.

Promotion to the rank of corporal is a very big deal to a Marine.  It is a step up in leadership position although most already held those higher positions and responsibilities without the pay and benefit of the stripes. They learned quickly.

This also meant they could sew on the distinctive red blood stripe to the trousers of their dress blues. They did not need any stripes to be a leader. They already were.

Promotion to corporal can come two ways. One is meritoriously as described above. The other way is by way of a promotion board, test, and interview by senior non-commissioned officers of the battalion, typically headed by the battalion sergeant major.

I do not know why we had not held such a board since well before the 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division left by ship from Okinawa to San Diego and then by truck up to Twentynine Palms.

Corporal Hottenstein was certainly deserving of promotion. I do not want to take away from that. However, I failed as a leader of Marines by recommending that meritorious promotion to the rank of corporal. Here’s why.

Later that evening, well into the night after the nightly patrols were all back in and we administratively bedded down for the night, a voice would occasionally cry out in the desert, someplace close by: “I want a meritorious Hottenstein!”

I shared a shelter half with my radioman, Private First Class Blanco. I asked him what was all that about and what the hell is a “meritorious Hottenstein”.

He told me that the person shouting “I want a meritorious Hottenstein” was Lance Corporal Peter Medina and I knew immediately where I had failed.

Lance Corporal Medina was a solid Marine. I knew him from Okinawa as well. He was intelligent and scored well on the physical fitness test. He was technically and tactically proficient. He was a senior Lance Corporal that led and looked after his Marines very well. He was just quiet and unassuming, the kind that did not draw undue attention to himself relying on his performance to do his talking.

Given that others had also previously passed him meritoriously, this was the final straw for him. He was beyond upset. He was pissed off!

This was not going to go away. So, after a few more ‘I want a meritorious Hottensteins’, I crawled out of the shelter half, found Lance Corporal Medina, and said, “Let’s take walk.”

It is not recommended for a 2nd lieutenant of Marines to walk off into the desert with a pissed off Marine to give him opportunity to say and do whatever he is thinking, however that is what I did.

OK. Lance Corporal Medina. What’s on your mind? Let me have it. Let’s get it out of your system.

Without going into any detail, I rank the five-minute ass-chewing by Lance Corporal Medina in the top five greatest ass-chewings I have ever received. That was some candid, direct, and wicked feedback delivered without a single word of profanity or raised voice. Highly unusual for a Marine and further speaks well of Lance Corporal Medina.

Once he got it out of his system, I asked him what he wanted to do. Request mast with the company CO or battalion CO? How about the company first sergeant or the battalion sergeant major? All he wanted was to have a fair shot at being promoted to corporal and higher.

I said let’s go to work and while I had lost his trust, I asked him to trust me, and I would get him in front of the next battalion promotion board of which I would press for sooner rather than later.

I lobbied hard for this with the company commander, battalion executive officer, and the battalion commander. I asked the battalion sergeant major about the board, and he said it was time and that he was on it. It was not too long before a board was announced and when it would be.

While this was going on, I worked with Lance Corporal Medina on preparing for that board. While I had no idea what he would be asked, I assured him that by studying and knowing certain things so well he would not even have to think about them, that he would pass. I even went so far as to stick my neck out and guaranteed his promotion if he did these things.

I don’t think he believed it however he did believe in my belief that he could do it.

Board and test day came, and he was the overall number one selection for promotion to Corporal.

After that promotion, and before Corporal Medina was moved to another platoon. I continued to work with him. When a sergeants promotion board came up, I put him in for it. When he showed up, he was asked, “Weren’t you just here last month?” He replied affirmatively and was sent back to Charlie Company which we both knew might happen.

However, the next board was a month later, and he was not to be denied again. He was promoted to sergeant with the senior staff NCOs including the sergeant major wondering where the hell Medina had been all this time.

The best part about Peter Medina’s promotions is that they came while he was serving as a leader in an infantry platoon as a tactical leader; squad leader, platoon guide, platoon sergeant and not as a battalion staff enlisted man working outside of his primary MOS in an odd position where it is easy to pack the ass of some impressionable officer, including commanding officers.

Sergeant Medina and I both ended up on the battalion staff. Me as the S-1 Adjutant and him over in the S-4 office. I helped him with his college admission application. He left the USMC sometime after I shipped out for Marine Barracks Guam. I have no idea where he is today.

Corporal Hottenstein was also promoted to Sergeant later. He deserved it. I have no idea where he is today.

I learned many leadership lessons the hard way in the USMC, this one was particularly poignant if not just outright painful. I allowed a condition and circumstance of a crappy company commander to make an emotional decision. Thank God it was not a life-or-death type of decision.

I learned how to tell if somebody needs encouragement. The way to tell if a person needs encouragement is that they are breathing. Yes, Marines do breathe, and they need encouragement.

I learned it is not the flashy personality that make the best leaders. Those are the ones that you can see and hear, and they can be excellent leaders, however, most often, they tend to be all sizzle and no steak.

The quietly unassuming yet constantly disciplined and dedicated professional make the best leaders of Marines and leaders of people in the civilian world as well.

These leaders are out there. They are in all branches of military service. They are in your bank and business right now. They are right under your nose...you need them…and you need them now.

Lead them. Grow them. Develop them. Mentor them. Coach them. Pay them well. Spend most of your time and energy helping to make them successful. They are loyal and they expect loyalty in return.

Most importantly, let them lead and do their jobs.

Otherwise, they will leave you and your company, and you will never know why.

SFMF.

Published May 4, 2023 All Rights Reserved © 2023