Across the United States, organizations of many types—federal agencies, uniformed services, public safety departments, schools, and civic groups—seek meaningful ways to honor the United States flag during ceremonies and public events.
The “Wrong” Committal Shelter Set Up and the “Rule of the Foot”
The photo at the top of the page shows what is called a “Committal Shelter” or a “Committal Pavilion”. For a more modern, utilitarian structure, “Committal Terrace” is also sometimes used to describe a paved, roofed area specifically set aside for the service to take place away from the mud or grass of the grave site. Why these are used …
The “Good Idea Fairy”
The ‘Good Idea Fairy,’ the destroyer of motivation and crusher of souls, is back, and this time it’s haunting the drill field. As I detail in my previous work, ‘The Magic White Glove Effect,’ this phenomenon is all due to unrealistic expectations. Recently, I received a message detailing a ceremony rehearsal where a prepared junior NCO and his Color Guard …
AFMAO – Zero Margin for Error
This investigation is grounded in a review of five critical articles from prominent news sources—including Stars and Stripes, NBC News, Washington Post, the American Legion, and NPR—which collectively detail a pattern of failures that constitute a betrayal of trust by Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations (AFMAO). This historical record highlights instances of mishandled veteran human remains and failed accountability, unequivocally …
Mission Overreach and Organizational Erosion: A Call to Re-Establish Ceremonial Standards Under The Air Force Honor Guard
Finished 24 October 2025. I’ve spent years detailing the operational conflicts that are actively undermining the Base Honor Guard program online through my website and social media. This is more than just a turf war; it’s about the legal requirement to preserve a congressional mandate. To download this position paper in PDF, click here. Download the sample suggested DAFI rewrite …
The Joint Military/First Responder Funeral
I speak with law enforcement officers and firefighters around the country on all matters of drill and ceremonies. This crops up every so often and needs to be addressed.
FL Public Service Assoc. Cadet Honor Guard Competition
What a great day! Too bad other schools don’t join in on the learning! Atlantic Community High School LEO High School Pinellas High School San Volusia High School San Volusia High School (I pressed stop instead of pause, this is the rest) West FL High School
“Cultured” Honor
Pearls are expensive and fairly rare. That’s why cultured pearls came about. A pearl is made by an oyster that has sand creep into its shell. The sand is rough and uncomfortable, so the oyster mixes the sand with secretions that create a smooth ball that can be tolerated. When people discovered the process, sand was then purposefully inserted into as many oysters as possible to force them to create pearls. “Forced pearls” just doesn’t sound all that great so, “cultured” was the name given them.
In a similar way, “honor” is constantly forced.
The Colors Presentation That Never Happened
Mrs. DrillMaster and I were stationed at Spangdahlem Air Base from 2009-2011. Her last base before retiring while I was already retired for three years. I joined the Base Honor Guard as an AP3 member and became the trainer for a while. During my tenure there, we fielded one of many color guards, this one for a change of command ceremony in a hangar on the flightline.
Recommended Equipment for a Color Guard
I received such a great question that it spurred me into creating a new tag #DrillMasterRecommends, and writing this article.