Missouri Guard unit marks history with traditional ‘smoker’ event

From left, Command Sgt. Maj. James Schulte, command sergeant major of the Missouri National Guard, 1st Sgt. Gary Barnes, and Capt. Kevin Burkman, prepare to hand out awards during an Army smoker event Saturday at the Soldiers Memorial and Military Museum in downtown St. Louis. Barnes and Burkman serve with B Company, 1st Battalion, 138th Infantry Regiment, which was celebrating its unit history. (Bill Phelan photo)

Bill Phelan
ngmo.pao@us.army.mil

ST. LOUIS, Mo. - A St. Louis infantry unit that traces its lineage to 1832 celebrated that history Saturday night at, appropriately enough, the Soldiers Memorial and Military Museum downtown.

Soldiers of B Company of the 1st Battalion, 138th Infantry Regiment toasted the unit's heritage with an old fashion Army "smoker," named for the tradition of smoking cigars after a formal banquet.

"There isn't so much smoking anymore," confessed Capt. Kevin R. Burkman, of Jefferson City, the company commander.

In addition to a formal meal, the event included a ceremony for several soldiers that were promoted to sergeant, while both soldiers and civilians were recognized for their service to the company.

Honorees attending the smoker included Command Sgt. Maj. James E. Schulte, command sergeant major of the Missouri National Guard, Lt. Col. Levon E. Cumpton, the battalion commander and family and loved ones of the soldiers.

While many Guard units host formal holiday season dinners that focus on the past year, Saturday's smoker was a celebration of the long history of the 138th Infantry Regiment, which began as an all volunteer militia called the St. Louis Grays.

Burkman believes every American Soldier should be familiar with the history of his or her unit.

"I want each of my soldiers to understand what the history of this unit represents," he said. "I want them to understand the sacrifices this unit made. I want them to think about every soldier that ever wore this uniform who put their life on the line. Twelve-hundred men from this regiment died during World War I and the soldiers of today need to know that."

"The history of this unit and its roots gives a soldier something to hold onto in tough times knowing that the unit faced tough times before and came through it," added 1st Sgt. Gary Barnes, of Lamar, who helped organize the smoker.

For Schulte, whose grandfather served in the 138th during the 1st World War, the event was especially personal.

"We need to teach unit history in order to build an esprit de corps and a lineage," Schulte said. "My grandfather and his fellow soldiers celebrated their lineage and kept it alive until there were none of them left."

In 1877 the St. Louis Grays officially became a unit of the Missouri National Guard. On Oct. 1, 1917, the unit became the 138th Infantry Regiment, part of the 35th Infantry Division. Today the battalion is headquartered in Kansas City, but maintains two companies at the National Guard Armory on South Kingshighway in the St. Louis Hills neighborhood.

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