Photo By Lance Cpl. Blake Gonter | U.S. Army Sgt. Jeffrey Woosnam, an instructor at the Small Unit Ranger Tactics course,...... read more read more
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SCHOFIELD BARRACKS, Hawaii -- U.S. Army Sgt. Jeffery Woosnam knows what it feels like to be at the bottom. For him, that’s exactly where his journey began.
Now a Cadre for the Small Unit Ranger Tactics course, Woosnam reflected on his path from a “fuzzy,” a nickname for privates with no rank in the Army, in basic training to earning his Ranger Tab and eventually returning to teach the next generation of Rangers.
“When I first got here, I realized the Army wasn’t exactly what I thought it would be,” Woosnam said. “Not everyone had the same motivation. But I’ve always thrived at the bottom because it gives me room to work my way up.”
His mindset pushed him to seek out every opportunity he could find. After several attempts to secure a slot, he attended Jungle School. The experience ignited what he calls an “addiction” to training.
“Once you get one school, you want more,” he said. “It’s like tattoos. It's hard to stop after the first one.”
In quick succession, Woosnam completed Jungle School, Air Assault School, and earned his Expert Infantry Badge, but Ranger School was always the ultimate goal.
“For 11 Bravos [Infantry men], Ranger School is that big one in the back of everyone’s mind,” he added. “People don’t always talk about it because it’s tough and there’s fear of failure. I definitely felt that fear.”
When he finally attended, Woosnam excelled through the Darby phase, where he trained and mastered small-unit tactics. Next came the Mountain phase, which tested him physically in rugged alpine terrain. But his final challenge was the Florida phase, where his leadership and mental ability were pushed to the limit while he was immersed in the swampy environment.
After being assigned an unexpected platoon leader role, he said he was unprepared.
“I got complacent and recycled,” Woosnam said. “It was one of the hardest things, watching my squad graduate while I stayed behind. But that recycle taught me more than I could have learned otherwise. I hit the books, I focused, and I came back stronger.”
Resilience carried him not only through Ranger School but into future opportunities like the Basic Military Mountaineering Course. He later served as a team leader and squad leader back with his unit before joining SURT as a Cadre.
Woosnam knew what he was and being back in the SURT training environment feels like home.
“I know how SURT runs. The leadership here isn’t toxic, and the structure helps us all grow,” he said. “I’m refreshing my Ranger brain every day.”
At the base of it all, Woosnam stresses one lesson above all: success is about more than your own tab.
“You go in thinking about yourself, but you come out thinking about your buddies,” he said. “That’s the only way to make it through, caring about everybody else.”
His dedication is straightforward but firm.
“Never quit,” he said. “You only get one Ranger School, and you’ll always remember it. Your best and worst decisions will happen there. Keep your humility, live the Ranger Creed, and don’t lose yourself. That’s how you’ll look back with pride.”
| Date Taken: | 09.18.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 09.26.2025 22:17 |
| Story ID: | 549371 |
| Location: | LIGHTNING ACADEMY, HAWAII, US |
| Hometown: | PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, US |
| Web Views: | 36 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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