Sgt. Mike Weathers clutched his awards and turned to the small formation of soldiers.
"I think of all of you as my kids, and I appreciate this," he said after their applause faded.
"We'll miss you Mike," a voice from the group shouted.
The sergeant retired Saturday after nearly three decades in the Tennessee Army National Guard. He was the last Vietnam veteran actively serving in the Chattanooga-based 1-181st Field Artillery Battalion.
Old photos show Mike Weathers in a sweat-stained green T-shirt, shoveling Vietnamese mud. In another the skinny 20-year-old holds an M60 machine gun, guarding a case of Schlitz beer.
After being drafted into the Army in 1970 and a tour in Vietnam Sgt. Weathers left the service three years later with few thoughts of returning. He spent a year in the reserves in 1975 but didn't want to go back to Vietnam.
But while working as a mechanic for the city of Chattanooga, a friend got to talking about the Guard, so he went down to the armory on Holtzclaw Avenue to see what it was all about.
"It was good money then, $63," laughed Master Sgt. Johnny Nichols. The master sergeant had been in the Guard a few years when he got his buddy, Sgt. Weathers to join.
Over the years, Sgt. Weathers became the "personality" of whichever unit he was assigned. First in B-Battery, known for their "Field Artilleryman's Handshake." And later in other units, soldiers said if you didn't know him personally, you knew of him.
Sgt. 1st Class Greg Tate tapped the 1-181st unit pin into the wooden plaque troops had bought for Sgt. Weathers.
While deployed to Camp Bucca, Iraq, from 2007 to 2008, he said Sgt. Weathers would always stop by and ask how he was doing. Just as he did when Sgt. 1st Class Tate joined the unit in 1982.
"He'd bring you a cup of coffee if he thought you needed it," he said.
He'd bring extra gear to training in case another soldier had forgotten something and always carried a lock-box for troops to store their wallets or wedding rings, said Spc. Dave Navas.
Sgt. Mike Weathers* Served in Vietnam with the 101st Airborne Division from 1971 to 1972.* Joined the 1-181st Field Artillery Battalion in 1981.* Served in Desert Storm in 1991.* Served in Operation Iraqi Freedom at Camp Bucca, Iraq from 2007-08.
"He was kind of the unit safety-deposit box," the specialist said.
Sgt. Weathers saw weapons systems change from hand-fed artillery pulled behind jeeps to wheeled, computerized missile-firing rocket systems.
In 2008, while in Iraq, Sgt. Weathers completed a goal four decades waiting. With the help of another sergeant he finished his high school education online, receiving his diploma in a combat zone.
"They took my boonie hat and with some 550-cord made a tassle," he said. "They wanted me to walk across a stage, but Camp Bucca wouldn't allow it."
He would stay longer but the Guard sees age 60 as retirement time. There are waivers and short-term extensions soldiers can apply for, but they're tough to get and brief.
After nearly three decades with the unit and service dating back to 1970, Sgt. Weathers said simply, "I'll miss the people."