Grafenwöhr Training Area, Grafenwöhr/Vilseck

16 Responses to “Grafenwöhr Training Area, Grafenwöhr/Vilseck”

1. Louatha Banks Cheese says:

   August 29, 2010 at 6:58 pm

   I spent 5th to 8th grades at Vilseck Elementary in 1955 to 1958. It was a wonderous, adventurous place. The school had only two rooms, 1 to 3 in one and 4 to 8 in the other. High schoolers had to board in Nurnemberg. I returned in 2005 with a prepermissioned trip. Mirrors were run under the car and they almost made us unload everything. I could travel on post only with an armed escort. I had a terrible time getting oriented because so much had been built. Imagine…a high school.

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2. SFC Christopher A Farinella says:

   August 23, 2010 at 8:22 am

   It is very sad to visit Graf now without seeing the thousands of Soldiers during their bi annual rotations. The draw down in Germany is no more obvious than in Graf. Although there is a brand new PX complext it is just not the same.

   Giessen 96-02
   Vicenza, Italy 04-07, 09-present

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3. Dean Ward says:

   August 14, 2010 at 3:37 pm

   in the 80s i worked at the medical clinic in the early 80s anyone around at that time

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   • Donnie Nathaniel says:

     August 15, 2010 at 12:31 pm

     from 1981 to 1985. Each year we trained there. We being the 3rd and 70th Armor from Boeblingen as part of the 1st Id forward. I loved the Tank ranges but the ones on the Brit base at Bergen was better.

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   • Frank Biedermann says:

     August 22, 2010 at 1:08 pm

     @ Dean Ward: do u remember the ambulancedriver Norbert Biedermann? He became Chief driver later …

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     • Jacque says:

       August 26, 2010 at 4:09 pm

       I worked night shift in the ER/Medical Clinic. During the day the Clinic was sick call, at night we were ER. I was cross Trained on X-Ray and Lab. I worked primarily with Edward Bartholomew on Night Shift.

       I was there from ’79 to ’81 (Just prior to the clinic I was stationed in Monteith Barracks, Furth Germany, I transfered because my Husband was stationed in Graf as a Helicopter Medic).

       I lived in the town of Graf, between a bakery and a flowershop. When my Husband wanted a divorce I moved back into the barracks, my roommate was Susan an Xray tech.

       There were two ambulance drivers back then, one owned an Inn and fished eels from his bathroom window, and one was an older bald guy…sorry their names escape me at the moment….

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       • Frank Biedermann says:

         August 27, 2010 at 12:59 pm

         maybe the one with the inn was Walter Rimkus … the old guy i don´t know …
         robby (my brother, everybody just called him robby) was 26 in ´81…
         but we´re talking about the same MedClinic, the one near the Water Tower?
         I just know it as Dispancery (i hope, i write it in the right way).
         I remember one nurse, who´s roommate (Airforce?) got a baby in the german ambulance on the way to nürnberg …
         i was junior-medic that time in the red cross (16 years old).
         maybe u remember, in the nighttime always the red cross made the transports from graf to nürnberg …

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         • Jacque says:

           August 28, 2010 at 1:10 pm

           Walter!! That was it! Walter owned the Inn!
           Robby may have worked mainly day shift, as the name is ring a bell, but I am not putting a face to the name. The MedClinic was near the Water Tower, with a Helipad out front.

           I understand it has all been torn down and replaced with a big “sick call” building with no ER facility’s any more and only open during day hours.
           Back then we were ER in the evenings and at night after sick call closed for the day. If someone was bad enough to need ER during the day they just got transported to Nuremberg ER.

           We had 4 ER rooms and a 6 bed ward, an X-ray and lab. On the other side of the building was the sick call area, with rooms for each of the 3 Doctors that were on staff. Since they were also on call at night for the ER they would tell us, “Unless the patient is dieing, fix em, fill out the paperwork and leave it on my desk to sign as though I were there in the morning. Because we have to deal with the Sick Call during the day.”

           Friday and Saturday nights, it was not unusual for me to be suturing beer bar fight wounds up, dealing with suicide attempts, broken bones, burns and various other “drunk related stupidity” as well as Autobahn accidents (Red Cross would bring us those).
           My first patient on night shift, was a young man who fell asleep in the field and a tank ran him over.

           We seldom used the Red Cross Transport at night, because either it was enough of an emergency that they had to be Helli-lifted out by the air med unit, or they could wait til morning to be transported by our own ambulance drivers.

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           • Frank Biedermann says:

             August 29, 2010 at 5:01 am

             yep, robby was mostly on day-shift (i asked him) …

             ohh yes, the friday and saturday night fights *ggg*
             it was alway´s funny to watch it, when they startet a fight, and the boy´s from 536th MP came to clear it up …

             do u remember the german-american volksfest?
             i alway´s was there with the german medic´s, working together with your medic´s … was a great time …

             with the transports by german RC your right, they called us only in the nighttime, when there was no chopper free, or the weather was to bad to fligh …

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             • Jacque says:

               August 29, 2010 at 5:06 pm

               LOL! Quite a few of the wounds on weekends were caused by the MP’s! (nightsticks)

               I worked 1 German-American Volksfest, and I had a GREAT time!

               Did/Does Robbie have blond hair that was always a tiny bit on the long side and a bit fly away? If so, then yes I do remember him!
               BTW my email is greensthings at gmail dot com if you would like to correspond further without filling up this board!
4. William Dins says:

   August 3, 2010 at 12:47 pm

   was stationed there for 6months TDY,under Bde75, with the 17th Engrs, 2AD from Ft.Hood, up on main post, in 1977, I remember the Park Cafe & the Metropol,

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5. SFC Cortes says:

   July 23, 2010 at 8:24 am

   Was in Graf from ’87 – ’92 and it was the best duty station ever. Park Cafe & Metropol.

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6. George Cabral says:

   July 22, 2010 at 2:50 pm

   You all would not believe what Graf looks like now. They just celebrated 100 years as a training area.

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7. s/sgt joseph c. garrison says:

   July 21, 2010 at 8:47 pm

   I spent a lot of time at grafenwohr from 1948 through 1952. I was with the heavy tank company attached to the 16th Infantry regiment in Furth. I remember a lot of “spam” (we received it by the truck load), a lot of exercise, a lot of dust and a lot of training. I loved every minute of it. I’ll be 80 years old in November but the memories of those experiences are clear in my mind and I treasure them and always will.

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8. Frank Biedermann says:

   July 12, 2010 at 12:38 pm

   I grew up in Graf … and it was not so bad to life there … later i was there for training with the german army, and we had a lot of fun … maybe because i knew a lot of people there working on post …

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9. JOHN HARGIS says:

   July 11, 2010 at 8:52 pm

   Was Not very good 1950

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