Home: Table of Contents   This is a book of quotations by and about noncommissioned officers, and spans centuries of the Army’s experience in peace and war. It includes all members of the Total Army: the Active Army, the Reserve Components (Reserves and National Guard), the Army Family, the Civilian Corps, Veterans, and the Retired Corps, and has three purposes...:

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All of us have the enormous gift of life...a gift that is very fragile.... All of us in the short period of time that we are in the world...have the chance to grab the ring of opportunity as it comes around on the carousel of life and make a difference. And when that ring comes your way, you need to grab it and make a difference. -GEN John A. Wickham, address to SGMs, Collected Works, 1987, p. 146

As I prepare to retire from active duty after nearly 36 years of service, I want to address the following thoughts- and my gratitude- to you, the noncommissioned officers of America’s Army. Your dedicated professionalism has made America’s Army the best in the world. During the past 4 years, I have traveled to over 40 countries and, no matter where I have been, what has most distinguished America’s Army is the quality of our noncommissioned officers. Wherever I go, I am asked, "How can we develop an NCO Corps like yours?"... I am so very proud to have served with you. -GEN Gordon R. Sullivan, Collected Works, 1995, pp. 444-445

When you say someone’s a sergeant, the whole world knows what you’re talking about. A sergeant is tough. A sergeant is experienced. A sergeant doesn’t have to play up to anybody. He isn’t handicapped by wimpish personal ambition. -Michele McCormick, Polishing Up the Brass, 1988, p. 45

It is difficult to be a good noncommissioned officer. If it had been easy, they would have given it to the officer corps. -SMA William A. Connelly, in The Sergeants Major of the Army: On Leadership and the Profession of Arms, 1996, p. 21

There’s no business like NCO business. -MSG Gary L. Veazey, article title, Military Intelligence, Jul-Sep 1989, p. 25

Our challenge today is to look forward, to write our own history. -SMA William A. Connelly, "For NCO’s: Leadership, Hard Work and TRAINING." ARMY, Oct 1980, p. 22

NCOs do not merely study history; we have an opportunity to make it. -SGT Margaret E. Lynch, "A Duty to Prepare." NCO Journal, Summer 1992, p. 3

You were part of history. -SMA Richard A. Kidd, in "Soldiers Get Insight from Army’s Top NCO." Castle, 27 Jan 1994, p. 2

How can you know if you’ve made a difference? Sometimes- rarely- the results are instant. Usually it takes much longer. You may see the soldier again as a seasoned NCO, you may get a call or a letter or see a name in the Army Times. In most cases, you will never be sure how well you succeeded, but don’t let that stop you. -CSM John D. Woodyard, "Are You a Whetstone?" NCO Journal, Summer 1993, p. 18