Photo By Brian Godette | Staff Sgt. Raul Martinez, 2nd platoon squad leader with the 277th Engineer Company,...... read more read more
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CAMP BULLIS, Texas - There isn't some simple recipe when it comes to good leadership, or retention in the military ranks. To find the answer to why “A Soldier” is good, one only has to look at their immediate influences.
In the case of the 277th Engineer Company, an Army Reserve unit based in San Antonio, Texas, that influence is the same for many Soldiers on their lines. The 277th has one of the highest retention rates of any Reserve unit in the area and one Soldier, who has been with the unit for over 19 years, is attributed with some of that success.
Staff Sgt. Raul David Martinez, 2nd platoon squad leader with the 277th is 51-years-old, and has been in the military for over 25 years, serving the last 19 with the 277th.
“I guess I’m an old patriot, I’m old school,” said Martinez. “I’ve been through four uniform changes, seven contracts and gone through MEPS four times.”
The 277th have been highlighted as part of Operation Full Court Press, an Army Reserve initiative to engage leaders and retain Soldiers, because of their retention rate. Martinez is a spotlight among such a highlight.
“I’ve been asked several times when will I retire, and my response is, when I die,” Martinez said with a grin. “It’s not about money, because I stopped getting bonuses years ago. It’s about coming to battle assembly and trying to see if I could teach someone something.”
“I’ve had a lot of people ask me, why this unit? And I tell them that in this unit there was always someone willing to help the Soldiers, and they took the time to help me.”
The atmosphere during the 277th’s monthly Battle Assembly was more like friends reuniting after a break.
Every Soldier seemed to be interacting with at least one other Soldier, but usually in a squad size element. Martinez seemed to be the favorite patriarch in the group, holding his coffee cup and sharing his wisdom with some of the other Soldiers.
“He’s (Martinez) a cornerstone to what the 277th was, and is today,” said 277th Engineer Company Commander, Capt. Vince Frausto.
Martinez, who comes off as an easy to talk to guy even outside the military, was influenced as a young Soldier himself.
“I had a Sgt. 1st Class who took it upon himself one day to help me with a promotion packet, and explain the process,” said Martinez. “He wasn't even with our unit at the time.”
“He made a comment ‘you’re A Soldier, not my Soldier, but your always A Soldier, so I’m willing to help you’, and I’ve always remembered that saying,” said Martinez.
That encounter was different for the young Soldier, Martinez. It inspired him to set the example and pay the deed forward.
“I said, you know what, I’m going to do the same thing he did.” said Martinez. “If I saw a Soldier in the hallway and he had a question, I would stop and say if you need an answer let me show you how to find it.”
The mentorship of junior leaders became second nature to Martinez, doing only what he felt was the right thing to do.
That desire to do the right thing spread to other Soldiers in the unit.
“Staff Sgt. Martinez helped me put my packet together for my E-5, and he does that a lot with other prospective NCOs, which is great,” said Sgt. Reuben Aleman, squad leader, 277th Engineer Company.
“He actually spent time with me, helped me get the packet together, so now I try to do that with other Soldiers trying to make their E-5,” said Aleman.
The time that Soldiers like Aleman and Martinez put in, not only contributes to the positive growth of other future leaders, but creates an atmosphere of professional friendship.
Communication is another key factor that both junior and senior leaders in the 277th say works extremely well within their ranks. According to Aleman the 277th is more of a family, many of the Soldiers having been in the unit for over 10 years, so even outside of Battle Assembly, the lines of communication are open.
“We have a cohesion between platoons,” said Martinez. “It’s not 1st platoon vs. 2nd platoon vs. 3rd platoon, it’s the company.”
“If an NCO from 1st platoon asks a 2nd platoon Soldier for help they understand to go ahead and do it if they aren't tied up with something and there are no arguments between the Soldiers about that,” Martinez added. “That makes things work here.”
It works so well in fact, that Martinez has experienced several re-enlistments of young Soldiers who he has personally affected.
“I don’t count them, I just help them,” said Martinez. “I would never say hey, I’ve helped 15 people this month, how many have you helped?”
“If I could just give them five minutes, ask them what do they need, what can we do for you, let me help you get logged in, it’s five minutes and that five minutes can translate to 10 years of a Soldiers career,” said Martinez.
Factors such as communication, cohesiveness, and engagement ranked high with the answers many of the Soldiers say they stay in the unit, but what it always came back to was leadership.
“We have great leadership here, and if it wasn't for them leading the way, being a good example to everyone in the unit, I probably wouldn’t have re-enlisted,” Aleman said.
“Seeing that we do have good NCOs like Staff Sgt. Martinez, that really pushed me,” Aleman said.
The 277th Engineer Company is doing well. Soldiers are learning and progressing, and for Martinez, a husband, father, and former five-time NBA championship San Antonio Spurs season ticket holder, that is all that matters.
| Date Taken: | 03.22.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 04.02.2015 11:04 |
| Story ID: | 158930 |
| Location: | CAMP BULLIS, TX, US |
| Hometown: | SAN ANTONIO, TX, US |
| Web Views: | 182 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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