Veteran service organizations regularly form color guards and even perform military funeral honors daily throughout the year. The training the teams receive should come from established military manuals. This is a list of the manuals the organization may want to have on hand. All available as a free PDF download here: https://thedrillmaster.org/downloads/ Army Standards – most prevalent Marine Corps Standards …
The DrillMaster Book List
The books that I’ve been working on and publishing are to educate as many people as possible right now and in the future. Some of the information exists nowhere else than these books. Let’s educate and improve our performances in Ceremonial Drill, Regulation Drill, and Exhibition Drill.
The Difference Between “Fall Out” and “Dismissed”
I was sent an email asking the meaning of both terms. I enjoy questions like this because then I get to dig deep and turn the response into an article. Did you know there is a difference between both terms, and did you know that most people don’t understand the difference and use either or both wrongly? Let’s take a look at their definitions and use.
The Mission and Mistake of the DoDPAA
The Department of Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency does a meticulous job reflected in their mission statement: “Provide the fullest possible accounting for our missing personnel to their families and the nation.” An extraordinary mission. The Missions The Recovery Mission – Long before a team is selected to roam a foreign countryside and climb rocky terrain, government-to-government talks take place, locations …
Color Guards Overseas and the Foreign National Color
This information affects all bases overseas for all services. A Little History For decades the conventional wisdom has been that when we are overseas, we are told that when we are on US soil (the base, an American cemetery, etc.), the US is on the right and as soon as you step onto foreign soil (outside the gate), you have …
Guidance for the Outdoors POW/MIA Hat Table Ceremony
There is the idea that the POW/MIA hat table or Missing Man ceremony should be brought outside for any remembrance ceremony.
The Flagstaff and Guidon Staff Manuals DrillMaster Study
Both the flagstaff manual and the guidon staff manual are linked. In this study we will discover the similarities and where both manuals separate due to the flag attached to the staff. The guidon staff is the flagstaff and vice versa. The differences come in length and the type of flag attached. This is key to understanding the difference, the …
First Responders, the Pledge, Anthem, and Taps
It’s a grey area and I am writing this for clarification based on a message I received. What do first responders do when the Pledge of Allegiance or the Star-Spangled Banner are on the itinerary for a ceremony? Let’s go through this. The Situation The message: In lieu of the National Anthem, there was a collective recitation of the Pledge …
Half-Staff and the Special Occasion
There are certain circumstances where the flag, while being displayed officially for a period of mourning, is raised to full truck for a special occasion, and then lowered back to half-staff for the rest of the time of mourning. Let’s look at the history behind that.
The Casket Shipping Container
Airlines receive caskets all the time, travelers just don’t usually know it unless the remains are of a member of the military.