The enlisted men vs. the dependents

(Don Dale 1967 photo)

It snowed often enough in the Eifel for those of us who lived in the hospital barracks to find creative ways to have fun outdoors. This picture was taken from the top of the hospital barracks. In the distance, those pastel apartment buildings are for dependent families, meaning they were for enlisted men and officers who brought their families to Bitburg with them. (The main part of the base and the flight line were to the left, quite some distance beyond that berm.)

We woke up to the first good snowfall one weekend in the fall of 1967 and decided to build a snow fort. Teenagers from dependent housing began to gather in small knots in the distance. As the rather substantial snow fort began to take shape, they moved in closer. By the time we'd finished, the snowball battle was on.

The dependent teenagers were the victors. They attacked without cover, pelting those of us inside the sheltering fort mercilessly. Raw numbers triumphed: There were many more of them than there were of us.

They were an amiable lot, as we were. The battle ended with good cheer and handshakes amid the ruins.