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    Serving on two fronts

    A family affair

    Photo By Christopher Freeman | Pvt. Lucien Patten, UH-60 Black Hawk maintainer assigned to 3rd General Support...... read more read more

    FORT BRAGG, NC, UNITED STATES

    07.04.2015

    Story by Staff Sgt. Christopher Freeman 

    82nd Combat Aviation Brigade

    FORT BRAGG, N.C. – When a video of the two performing a song they had just come up with earlier that day was uploaded to Facebook, Goff and Patten had no idea they would become Internet sensations almost overnight. Their success comes while both serve on active duty, currently assigned to the 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division.

    Pfc. Christopher Goff and Pvt. Lucien Patten, UH-60 Black Hawk maintainers assigned to Delta Company, 3rd General Aviation Support Battalion, 82nd CAB, 82nd Abn. Div. performed at this year’s Fort Bragg Fourth of July celebration.

    The two got their start during Advanced Individual Training at Fort Eustis, Virginia.

    “On the weekends, we would get out our guitars,” said Goff. “Patten and I crossed paths and found out that not only do we both play guitar, but we have the same kind. That naturally formed a bond between the two of us.”

    Both members have played music for most of their lives.

    “I started playing drums when I was 13 and picked up guitar about seven years ago,” said Goff, 28, originally from Knoxville, Tennessee. “ I started playing country about four years in and liked the style and meaning behind it.”

    For Patten, being a musician was a family affair.

    “I’ve been noodling around on a guitar since I was around six years old,” said Patten, originally from Kennebunk, Maine. “My dad was a musician so there was a lot of influence.”

    When the two were playing in AIT, they had no idea where the video would take them.

    “We wrote that song the morning that it was recorded,” said Goff. “In the video, there is a little piece of paper that has the lyrics on it because we had just come up with it. Within two weeks, the video had been shared over 270,000 times, which amazed us.”

    “When we made the video, we had no idea we would be getting stationed together,” said Patten. “We now live a block away from each other and are even in the same squad.”

    Trying to be musicians while serving in the military is no easy task, but the Paratroopers have the support of their unit.

    “They really support us trying to give back to veterans and those currently serving,” said Goff. “We want the veterans to know that we care about them and we still think of them. You have family even once you get out.”

    Finding time to practice with their busy schedule requires some careful planning.

    “Sometime during lunch, we bring our guitars in and play,” said Goff. “If we are real busy and can’t play, we will run ideas past each other, whether humming guitar sounds in the bay or working on lyrics.”

    Even though the two have played events all over the United States, their next show keeps them right here at home, playing in front of friends and family.

    “We are playing at the Fourth of July celebration on Fort Bragg,” said Goff. “It’s an honor to be here and perform.”

    Even with their success, they still continue to serve in various ways.

    “We turn wrenches every day we are at work,” said Patten. “We do a lot of preventative maintenance and general maintenance to keep the aircraft in a safe state to fly.”

    “One of the big things we focus on is making sure there is no corrosion,” said Goff. “Corrosion could cause major malfunctions within the aircraft, endangering the lives of those inside.”

    Their backgrounds are different, but their love of the job is the same.

    “When you think of aircraft as a civilian, you see it as daunting,” said Patten. “At the end of the day, it’s nuts and bolts. It’s really cool to say ‘wow, I can fix that or I worked on that.”

    “When you see [an aircraft] in the hangar, you don’t even realize that the maintenance you do helps get our pilots home safely,” said Goff.

    The musicians and paratroopers performed at the Fourth of July celebration on Fort Bragg, bringing their spirit and motivation with them.

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 07.04.2015
    Date Posted: 07.06.2015 11:45
    Story ID: 169145
    Location: FORT BRAGG, NC, US
    Hometown: KENNEBUNK, ME, US
    Hometown: KNOXVILLE, TN, US

    Web Views: 149
    Downloads: 0

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