Douglas High grad receives National Guard commission

Douglas High School graduate Glen Rigdon has no regrets in life, especially when it comes to serving his country.

After receiving his diploma in 1990, Rigdon enlisted in the U.S. Navy and sailed the seas for a decade.

Now, at the age of 37, Rigdon felt something was still missing from his life, and he embarked on a trail two years ago to rectify that dilemma.

He recently completed the Nevada Army National Guard's Officer Candidate School and was commissioned a second lieutenant along with three other cadets. His next step will be to complete his military branch training at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. Rigdon is assigned to the 72nd Military Police Co., in Las Vegas.

The oldest child of seven, Chris Webb of Fallon, said the family is proud of her younger brother.

"I think it's outstanding," said Webb, Banner Churchill Community Hospital's emergency department director. "He got out of the Navy after 10 years and always regretted not going back as an officer, but now he is completing a goal."

The thought of her brother being deployed to either Iraq or Afghanistan is a concern, but the family is philosophical about any future deployments in a war zone.

Rigdon is in law enforcement, patrolling the Silver State's highways.

When he's not serving with the guard, he's a Nevada Highway Patrol trooper, "which is also a dangerous job," she quickly pointed out.

Either way, Webb said her brother loves his two jobs, both of which require him to be on the front lines.

Rigdon's 10 years in the Navy gave the Nevada native an inside view on worldwide events. He served with VF-154 (F-14 Tomcats) on board the aircraft carrier USS Independence, was attached to the aircraft intermediate maintenance department in Atsugi, Japan, and with the Pacific Missile Range Facility at Barking Sands at Kauai, Hawaii. He also participated in Desert Storm, Southern Watch.

Rigdon separated from the Navy and taught English in Japan, where he met his wife. He eventually returned to Nevada, took the test to become a trooper, attended the NHP academy and was then assigned to Indian Springs. He now resides in North Las Vegas.

Rigdon never stopped dreaming of becoming an officer, and he enlisted in the Nevada Army National Guard's Officer Candidate School where he had to compete with younger soldiers.

"The hardest was the transition from Navy to Army," Rigdon said. "It was also pretty physically demanding for my age. And staying awake during class with what little sleep we had was tough."

Rigdon said the easiest part about school was teamwork, because everyone wanted to be in the program and achieve the same goals.

"In OCS, I once again felt the camaraderie I've only ever experienced in the military," he added

Rigdon attended the accelerated program beginning with one weekend each month at Stead before completing the course in South Dakota.

The real challenges occurred at Fort Meade, S.D., a centralized National Army Guard site near Sturgis for officer candidate training.

While at Fort Meade, the cadets also visited the site of Little Big Horn on a staff ride to learn about the principles of war.

"The most important thing we learned from the staff ride was to listen to your intelligence," Rigdon said. "Gen. (George) Custer would have fared better if he had listened to his Indian scouts. I had always envisioned the battle differently. Walking the battlefield really put things in perspective."

Webb said the family always knew her brother would enlist in the military after high school, but they didn't realize he still wanted to serve in his late 30s.

"In high school, he and his buddies went camping, hunting and rappelling. They would leave Friday night and come back home Sunday," Webb remembers.

Since Carson Valley is close to Markleville, Webb said the locale was perfect for the teenagers' own "military" training.

Succeeding at officer candidate school didn't surprise Webb, either.

"Glen came from a family of seven. He liked everything neat and organized. Those were survival techniques," she laughed.

Howard Rigdon, a retired Nevada Parole and Probation lieutenant, said his son was a good sailor, a good person and now a good trooper. He knows Glen will be an outstanding Army officer.

Linda Rigdon said it is exciting that her son became an officer.

"I am proud of him," she said. "He wants to defend our country. Someone has to stand up and do it."