One Adventure After Another
U.S. Army Specialist
As a child, Amy Wall, now Tanguma, was never in one place long enough to fully establish roots. Her father, who made the ranks up to being Chief William Wall, was in the U.S. Navy. Her mother, Patricia Wall, was a nurse in the U.S. Marines, and later joined the U.S. Navy Reserves.
“We moved every year to different states,” Tanguma said. “While we were in one state, my dad, for example, would be in Egypt. He would send us photos and treasures from his adventures.”
It was the life she knew.
“Growing up, it was all about studying. I was always quiet,” she said. “Once I got to high school, I started thinking of joining the military. I was always around military. My mom and dad always had friends over and they were in the military. I loved the structure and I wanted to be a part of it.”
During her high school senior year, Wall took an afterschool program where she learned how to read maps, learned the phonetics of the alphabet ranks, and started physical training through the Delayed Entry Program (DEP) to prepare for her future, physically and mentally.
Though she joined DEP, it still shocked her mother when she joined the U.S. Army the summer of 1994 — fresh out of high school.
“Mom was shocked and a little upset. She didn’t think I would see it through,” Tanguma said. “She even tried to call the recruiter to tell him I wasn’t ready for this. Dad was very supportive and on
Cloud 9.”
Her mother eventually came around, Tanguma said, and she had the full support of both parents.
“It was hard to leave the nest, but I was ready,” Tanguma said. “I thought, Mom was in the Marines, Dad was in the Navy, ok – let’s do Army. Mom and Dad were my inspiration for joining. I thought, what better way to serve than going into a branch not represented (by family). I was excited, motivated and proud.”
And off she went to Fort Jackson in South Carolina — one of the last Basic Training sites with only female recruits.
“We had male and female drill sergeants,” Tanguma said. “It was hard and challenging but so much fun. It was something different. What better way to have an adventure?”
And once again, Wall’s life was a new adventure.
After basic training, she headed for Fort Gordon in Georgia for Advanced Individual Training, with a specialty in 31 Romeo – as a Multichannel Transmission Systems Operator Maintainer.
“They determined it was a good fit for me after testing. I worked in radios and communications while continuing with physical training,” Tanguma said. “It took some getting used to. It was completely different. It was hard, as women, to be that strong and keep persevering.”
Fort Gordon became her permanent party — the unit she was assigned to following graduation. Fondest Memories
One of her fondest memories was her initial graduation from Basic Training.
“It was so hard and challenging and I knew I had to keep going and motivate those around me,” Tanguma said. “So to be there, standing tall and looking good, it was a wonderful proud moment. My parents, my little brother, who was 5 years old, and my twin sisters — babies — were all there. They watched me graduate and both (parents) were so proud. That was just the beginning of the adventure.”
She also remembers her father walking in to visit her once — wearing his white uniform, complete with a lot of gold military insignia detail — medals, pins, badges and ribbons.
“Suddenly everyone in the room was standing at attention and saluting,” Tanguma said. “It was kind of funny but wonderful.”
Another wonderful memory about her father, who died in February of this year, was the time he was out at sea on the U.S.S. Iowa. Being in radio and communication, she had to contact the ship and said she will always remember her father answering. It is now a special memory she treasures — talking to her father professionally while both served in the military.
Schooling and life
It was completely different going from elementary school, to college, to having a real job.
“I had some great, great people there. Drill Sgt. Smith inspired me. He called me his ‘High Speed Female Private.’ He definitely motivated me,” Tanguma said. “He was all in, a hard-core, airborne soldier who made it interesting and got me into airborne school.”
It was crazy for three weeks, she said, and the one jump she made was enough.
“It was one of the hardest things I have ever done. It was fun and I had peace of mind knowing I packaged my own parachute,” Tanguma said. “I figured I had no kids, nothing to lose and everything to gain. I was looking for adventure.”
But the program required passing certain requirements and she did not make it.
Two and a half years later, Wall married, and shortly after, received orders for Germany. Her husband, who was also in the U.S. Army, stayed in the States, and they saw each other whenever they could.
“This was in 1995 and a lot of my co-workers were going to Korea,” she said. “Six months to a year later, I was pregnant and I got assigned to the NATO unit, operating on a joint endeavor with the NATO unit in the command center. This was during Sarajevo. It was a time of conflict. It had its scary moments. We (military) were going back and forth and it was not friendly.”
Because the hospital was so far away, she was offered the option for an Honorable Discharge.
Wall gave up an upcoming E5 promotion and went for the Honorable Discharge. Had she stayed, her husband, who was now out of the Army and in Germany with her, and her child, would have been sent to the States without her. She wanted to be with her child and keep the family together.
“My time in Germany was wonderful. It was a fantastic country,” Tanguma said. “The people there work hard and party harder.”
Her time in the Service had plenty of team building, she said.
“You make friendships,” Tanguma said. “Some of them were not as strong (physically and mentally) and needed to be motivated. If there was a weak link, it makes all of us weak.”
She also made some lasting friendships, Tanguma said.
“It was a wonderful opportunity to be a woman and to do something meaningful,” Tanguma said.
Following a divorce and after working at Porterville College several years, she met her second husband — Veteran Joe Tanguma. The two married in 2011.
“He’s a wonderful man and it’s nice to have that bond — both of us were in the military,” Tanguma said. “It’s a little hard to transition back to regular life and it was nice to have him understand.”
Tanguma, who is now the Volunteer Coordinator and HR clerk at Sierra View Medical Center, said life has continued with adventures but she will always have the fond memories of her time with the U.S. Army.
“I absolutely would do it all over again,” Tanguma said. “It’s wonderful and it’s empowering. Giving back and serving your country gives a whole new meaning to life.”