Brunswick Jr. College

This is a longer story than others posting but I have a few things to say. About high school and Brunswick Jr. College.

I graduated Glynn Academy in 1968, not at the top of the class but not at the bottom.  I think I was about one third form the bottom.  Going through high school I really did not have any plans until I received a letter from the US Government. I was told I had to sign up for the selective service system.

The Selective Service System (SSS) was an independent agency of the United States government that maintains information on those potentially subject to military conscription. The SSS was and still is a U.S. federal agency that facilitates the mobilization of military forces by requiring the registration of males between the ages of 18 and 26 years. The names were distributed to the Services for recruiting purposes on a quarterly basis.[

The Military Selective Service Act of 1967 (Selective Service Act of 1948) (30 June 1967) expanded the ages of conscription to the ages of 18 to 35. It still granted student deferments, but ended them upon either the student's completion of a four-year degree or his 24th birthday, whichever came first.

I was a year older that all my classmates, due to repeating the third grade when I went to California for a year. I returned to St. Simons Elementary School, a little smarter resulting the higher education standard in California but now with all my friends in fifth grade and I was in fourth grade.

I was 18 when I started my senior year. I registered for the Selective Service upon notice about the time of my birthday. I was 18 when I started my senior year.  I did not receive my draft card until I graduated.

I was motivated to attend college and what better college than the Brunswick Jr. College.  Attending College seemed like high school with a lot of our teachers not professors and our fellow classmates.  I took the same classes as in high school, English, History, and Math. 

I had a passion for photographer and found out that the college had a dark room and upon questing found that I would work on the college year book and get paid to take photography.  The pay was not a lot, just enough to buy a couple of books but being the year book photographer was an honor.  I took most of the photographs for the 1969 and 1970-year book and all the Public Affairs Photos the college needed, such as when someone donated a large check, or someone important visited the college, I was asked to take the photos. Each academic year, the faculty selects students for inclusion in the nationally-recognized program, Who's Who Among Students in American Junior Colleges. For my work on the yearbook staff I was selected as a student Who's Who Among Students in American Junior Colleges 1970.

On December 1, 1969, the Selective Service System of the United States conducted a lottery to determine the order of call to military service in the Vietnam War for men born from 1944 to 1950.  My lottery number was 23 which meant if I was not in college and had a deferment, I would be drafted.

The Selective Service System assigned lottery numbers in December 1969 were used during calendar year 1970 both to call for induction and to call for physical examination, a preliminary call covering more men.

No one wanted to be drafted into service.  I did a little research and found that I could join the Navy Reserves, go to boot camp, then a “A” School and then back as a civilian having drills only two days a month.  There was also a requirement for two weeks service in the summer. This offer to join the reserves allowed me to pick my A school if I pasted the tests and boot camp.  The “A” School I wanted was the US Naval Photography School NAS Pensacola.  I had selected West Florida University to finish out my Junior and Senior year of College, but being from Ga. I would pay out of state intuition.  By going to US Naval Photography School NAS Pensacola (3 months), I would only have to wait 9 months before attending West Florida.  Being in the Reserves also kept me from being drafted.

I met my future wife, Gordy Carmichael, while attending BJC.  One day I was shooting photos for the year book at one of the Humanities of the Sea lectures put on by the Continue Education Department run by Capt. Carmichael. I was distracted by the motion of an energetic person seated half way down the row.  She was excited about something, moving her hands while talking to her friends.  I shot a photo looking down the row of people to focus on this one person.  Later that day I processed the film and from the black and white negative developed a photograph.   We both were at Glynn Academy and graduated in the Class of 1968 but out  paths not crossed until that day at BJC. 

Brunswick Junior College was very cliquish, which the same high school groups sticking together.  I was only in the band in high school, that was my clique but in college, there was no band, no clique to belong?  Many people were like me and we ended up all sitting together in a corner of the student union.  I remember that we had members of the Drama Club, Nursing Students, Secretary Sciences Majors, Veterans and anyone who enjoyed plying spades.  It was in our small group that the girl in the photo appeared.  She had long hair, wore cloths that she made, rode her horse to class, and danced in the rain.  She acted like a hippy and I was way too conservative to be interested. 

At BJC we did not really date but did group dates.  We would plan to go out and do something, like watch the turtles lay eggs on the beach on Jekyll.  Someone would bring a guitar someone else build a fire and sing songs around the campfire. I had a car, Gordy had a cooler and we would bring the drinks (no Alcohol). After a few of these group dates, we started to really date.

One chilly night on the beach at Massengale Park, I asked the question.  Well it was not a question, I said, “I have places to go and things to do, you can stay here or come with me.”  I got no reply at first and then a quite, yes.  On 21 February 1970 we were married in St. Williams Church that is no longer a catholic church by a priest that is no longer a catholic priest.  I have asked if that we are still married. 

Now we are having our fifth-class union and Gordy and I will have our 48^th anniversary. 

I graduated in the fall of 1970 BJC with an Associate Degree in Biology and with my desire to be an Ichthyologist (study of fish).

Douglas Seaman GA Class of 68 and BJC Class 1970