Veteran Spotlight: Air Force Staff Sgt. Kris Tebbetts

AVON, Mass. — Kris Tebbetts served his country in the Air Force as a staff sergeant from 1965 to 1968. 

 

He did his basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. 

 

"I was 17 years old. Basic, it was OK, I didn't mind it. I graduated from high school in June and was like 'what do I do now?'" he remembered. "I went to Florida on vacation then came home and saw the recruiter."

 

Tebbetts' first assignment was at Keesler AFB in Biloxi, Miss., where he learned Morse code. He was later selected for the Air Force Security Service (which has gone through several iterations and most recently reconfigured as Air Forces Cyber, 16th Air Force).

 

"They called them Ditty-Boppers" he said with a laugh, referencing the slang used to for the Morse code interceptors.

 

He would then be assigned to Goodfellow AFB in Texas, where he spent four months learning electronic communications. Staff Sgt. Tebbetts would then be assigned to Clark AFB in the Phillipines and continued to work in intercept communications. 

 

"Everything was classified, top secret ... we didn't exist" he recalled. "One of the great things that we did was to help build a local school in the community for the kids."

 

When asked about entertainment overseas he replied: "Saw the Everly Brothers perform for the troops ... they put on a good show."

 

Holidays? 

 

"You always miss home. We made them fun though," he said. I asked my sergeant if we could have a Christmas tree. He said yes and I went out and bought a 6-foot tree. He couldn't believe it — thought I was going to get one about a foot high. We had everyone over."

 

Tebbetts came home on leave after the Phillipines then was assigned back to Goodfellow again, then to Wakkanai Air Station in remote Hokkaido, Japan. 

 

"Loved it there. The people were really nice," he said. "I was at the most northern tip [of Hokkaido island]. We were there listening to communications from Russia. I bought a motorcycle and rode my bike all over." 

 

He did share a dark story, the memory of which still affects him to this day. 

 

"When I was at Clark AFB our buildings were very close to the road and we saw everything that came and went," he recalled. "I never forget the abundance of wounded soldiers that would come by in trucks and ambulances. Then you go into the hospitals and see all the amputees. It's something I always think about." 

 

When asked about the protestors, he offered this: "They were right. When I came out, I went to anti-Vietnam rallies. I don't think we should have been there." 

 

His thoughts on serving his country? "The whole thing was a positive experience for me. I was very proud to serve my country, though it was hard coming back when you had all the resentment aimed at you."

 

Tebbetts is now retired and living in New Hampshire.

 

Staff Sgt. Kris Tebbetts, thank you for your service to our great country and welcome home.