Sergeant Major (Ret.) Howard L. Massingill, Jr.
U.S. Army Special Forces Regiment.
SGM (Ret) Howard Massingill was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee and enlisted in the US Army on 8 October 1981 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Upon completion of Basic Combat Training and AIT, Howie began his career as a Fixed Station Technical Controller assigned to the 56th Signal Company, 509th Signal Battalion, Camp Darby, Italy, standing in the way of Soviet aggression during the height of the Cold War. After three years in Italy he moved to Fort Bragg, North Carolina to serve as a Communications Sergeant with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment.
In 1987, Howie chose to attend the Special Forces Communications Course, graduating in 1988 and joined the 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) serving as a SF Communications Sergeant, on Operational Detachment-Alpha (ODA) 071, A CO, 3/10th SFG(A) at Fort Devens, Massachusetts, deploying to Saudi Arabia for Operation DESERT STORM and Northern Iraq for Operation PROVIDE COMFORT. Howie later served with ODA 073 (MFF), traveling to Russia, performing MFF training with the Russians, and being awarded the Russian Military Free-Fall badge. He continued his career at the United States Army Special Forces Command (Airborne) Fort Bragg, North Carolina, with duty at B CO, 5/19th SFG(A) as an active duty Operations Sergeant from 1994 to 1997. After attending the Special Forces Operations and Intelligence Course in 1997, he returned to the 10th SFG(A) Fort Carson, CO, serving as Team Sergeant, and Operations Sergeant at the Company and Battalion levels. Howie also served as 1SG for the Group Support Company in January of 2001, holding that position for over two and a half years before being selected for Sergeant Major, being assigned as the Group Operations Sergeant Major. After graduation from the United States Army Sergeants Major Academy Howie returned to Fort Carson, Colorado and continued to serve as the 10th SFG(A) Group Operations Sergeant Major. Howie ultimately completed his career as the Company Sergeant Major for Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 10th SFG(A). During Howie’s career, he participated in Operations DESERT STORM, PROVIDE COMFORT I AND II, RESTORE HOPE, JOINT GUARD, JOINT GUARDIAN, SHARP GUARDIAN, and Operations IRAQI FREEDOM (OIF) I, III, and IV.
Howie’s Military education includes all Non-Commissioned Officers Educational Schools, to include Class 54 of the United States Army Sergeant’s Major Academy, the Basic Airborne and Freefall courses, Jumpmaster course, Mountain Warfare School, Special Forces 18E Qualification Course, Special Forces Ops and Intel Course. His civilian education includes Associate Degrees from Excelsior College and Trinidad State Junior College.
Howie is a Lifetime member of the Special Forces Association, and has served in numerous positions in Chapter 4-24, where he is currently serving as the Chapter President. After graduation from Trinidad State 2014, Howie opened M2TSG Guns and Gunsmithing in Pueblo, Colorado. His shop won the “Best of Pueblo” in their first year of business and received the Bronze Award for 3rd place in 2016.
Howie is also a Gunsmithing Instructor at Trinidad State, teaching Introduction to Gunsmithing for Veterans class during the Summer School classes there, and is the instructor responsible for training all Department of the Army Armorers and Logistical Assistance Representatives (LARS) in a Gunsmithing Certificate Program. Howie is also on the Advisory Council for the school.