Pride in service

R. Martin Umbarger didn’t want to join the National Guard.

A recent college graduate during the Vietnam War era, he had his sights set on the Marines. He gave the National Guard a look only to please his father.

More than 40 years later, his pride in the accomplishments of the country’s military, and specifically its citizen soldiers, is overflowing.

Umbarger shared his story and his pride Saturday night as the keynote speaker during Museum of the Soldier’s annual meeting at Jay County Fairgrounds.

“We are the beacon of freedom for this world,” said Umbarger. “It’s because of the men and women who have worn the uniform of this great nation.”

After uttering those words, nearly 35 minutes into his presentation, he looked down an pulled several sheets of paper from the podium.

“I haven’t even started my speech yet,” he said, drawing a laugh from those in attendance. And he never referred to his notes again.

Instead, he continued to share the story of his own service and the accomplishments of the Indiana National Guard.

Umbarger joined the National Guard at the urging of his father, a World War II veteran, after graduating from the University of Evansville in 1969. The younger Umbarger had originally met with a Marine recruiter and then was told he was unlikely to be chosen for the National Guard because of the long list of young men who also wanted to join. But his education put him in prime position for officer candidate school, and by agreeing to go that route he launched a 46-year career.

Umbarger, who also co-owns the Umbarger and Sons animal feed company in Bargersville, was named the state’s Adjutant General by Gov. Joe Kernan in 2004. He was reappointed by Govs. Mitch Daniels and Mike Pence before retiring in 2015.

Among the many stories he shared about military successes overseas was one that detailed the impact of the Indiana National Guard on building a new military in Afghanistan. It had been a difficult process, with Afghani citizens frequently fleeing the training center in Kabul to go back to their homes. In response, Indiana’s soldiers committed to creating six regional training centers in an effort to allow the recruits to learn close to home.

“It turned extremely successful,” Umbarger said of Combined Joint Task Force Phoenix. “We began to recruit. We began to train. We began to raise from the ashes.”

Through that story and others like it, including about efforts to bring the former Soviet Bloc nations into NATO following the fall of the Iron Curtain, he presented the impact the American military has made around the world. It’s something he’s proud to have been a part of, and he’s thankful for all those who have helped him ever since walking into an Indiana National Guard Armory in Martinsville in 1969.

“There’s so many people along these 45 years that I’ve had that I owe so much to, that helped me along and enabled me to get the opportunities that I had,” he said. “I just can’t say enough about the privilege it has been to wear the uniform of this country.”