Infantry
Officer To Chaplain -For God and Country!
by U.S. Army Spc. Charlton Pope
June 14, 2018
When envisioning a Chaplain in the United States Army, more than
likely what comes to mind is a man who leads Sunday services and
Bible studies, and provides council for soldiers. What isn’t
pictured is a man who wears a Ranger Tab, a 2nd Ranger Battalion
deployment scroll, a Combat Infantryman Badge, and Combat Jump
Wings. However, that is exactly what is seen when looking at
Chaplain Captain John McDougall.
U.S. Army Chaplain Cpt. John McDougall, chaplain for 2nd Battalion,
503rd Infantry Regiment (Airborne), 173rd Airborne Brigade, observes
training during exercise Eagle Strike on October 23, 2017. The 173rd
Airborne Brigade is the U.S. Army’s Contingency Response Force in
Europe, providing rapidly deploying forces to the U.S. Army Europe,
Africa and Central Command Areas of Responsibility within 18 hours.
(U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Alexander C. Henninger)
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McDougall was born and raised just north of Seattle, Washington.
After graduating high school in 1996, he attended the United States
Military Academy (USMA) at West Point to study Mechanical
Engineering. While attending USMA, he played soccer and was in the
bag pipe band. McDougall graduated in 2000 and was commissioned as
an Infantry Officer.
McDougall‘s next stop was Fort Benning,
Ga., where he attended Airborne School in the summer of 2000. He
then completed the Infantry Officer Basic Course before continuing
on to Mortar Leader Course in January 2001. Then in March, McDougall
attended Ranger School. With the motivation of an oncoming
assignment to the 173rd Airborne Brigade, he went straight through
and completed all three phases on his first try. Upon his arrival to
Italy in June 2001, he was assigned to Charlie Company, 1st
Battalion (Airborne), 508th Infantry Regiment. He had some great
experiences, deploying with his platoon to Kosovo and Tunisia during
his first year. “Other than on the range, it was the first time my
soldiers and I had actually carried live bullets,” he said. “We did
border patrols on the Kosovo and Serbian border, watching for
weapons smugglers.”
As 2002 came to an end, the New Year
brought many changes for McDougall. “Sabers were rattling with the
talk of war coming,” he stated. During this time, he was granted
block leave. He headed back to Seattle to be wed to his (then)
fiancé. “The whole time I was back home, up until my wedding day, my
anxiety was very high. I was nervous I was going to get the call and
have to miss my own wedding,” he said. However, the wedding went
through without a hitch and he was even able to go on a short
honeymoon with his new bride.
On 26 March 2003, McDougall
took part in the only conventional combat jump during the Global War
on Terror. McDougall deployed as the Executive Officer of Charlie
Company. His company was responsible for the heavy equipment drops
on Bashur Airfield, Iraq. After completing the heavy equipment
drops, McDougall and the rest of Charlie Company jumped and
recovered the vehicles and equipment. McDougall recalls, “I was
jumper number 14. The guy in front of me said, ‘Great, just had to
be 13 on a combat jump.’ I told him I wasn’t superstitious, I trust
in God and not superstitions and we switched. Turned out to be a
really smooth jump for me.”
In November, after getting pinned
Captain, McDougall heard God’s call to the Chaplain’s seat.
McDougall was pulled aside by 1st Battalion Commander, Lieutenant
Colonel Timothy McGuire (now Major General), who had other plans. He
told McDougall that he had cancelled his Maneuver Captain’s Career
Course class date at Fort Benning because they needed him to stay.
“It was supposed to be our first Christmas together. I asked if I
could call my wife and tell her,” he said. He and his wife talked,
cried, and prayed together on the phone. “She said through her
tears, ‘Are you sure you’re not supposed to be a pastor?’ Then I
woke up the next morning and couldn’t get that question out of my
head. I looked myself in the mirror and told myself, ‘You’re
supposed to be a Soldier, not a pastor’.” Recollecting with a smile,
he said that was when God told him that a Chaplain is both a soldier
and a pastor. “I was floored. I hadn’t thought about that.” He still
struggled with the idea of moving away from the infantry. He fought
with God for 10 days before finally saying, “Okay, if this is what
You want, I’ll do it.” He then sent an email to his wife and she
told him that it was about time he recognized the gifts God gave
him.
McDougall returned from Iraq in February 2004 with a
plan to get out of the Army to attend Seminary School. At the same
time, the 173rd Airborne Brigade was already gearing up for another
deployment, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom VI, for the
beginning of 2005. McDougall said he was wanted to deploy with the
173rd Airborne one more time before getting out to study. However,
as the Brigade was prepping for deployment, his Battalion Commander
appointed him as the Rear Detachment Commander. He said, “Sir, I
don’t want to be the Rear D commander. I want to deploy. I want to
go to Afghanistan!” Lt. Col. McGuire again had other plans for him,
however. He told McDougall that there was no one he would rather
have watching over his family and the families of others than a
future Army Chaplain. It ended up being a great year for McDougall.
As Rear Detachment Commander, he learned a lot about caring for
families, taking care of memorial services for fallen soldiers, and
arranging for families to visit their injured soldiers in distant
hospitals.
Portland, Ore. was McDougall’s next destination.
He attended three years at Multnomah Biblical Seminary. After
finishing school, the Army wanted him to have more experience before
returning to active duty; he taught at the University of Portland as
an ROTC instructor for 40 freshman cadets. He viewed it as a great
opportunity to put to use all he had learned, both as an Infantryman
and as a pastor.
In 2010, McDougall returned to Active Duty.
He was stationed at Fort Bragg with the 82nd Airborne Division for
two years before getting an invitation to attend the Ranger
Assessment and Selection Program (RASP). Before he went to RASP, he
was informed that if he passed, he would be assigned to 2nd
Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment. He was motivated to pass. Passing
would mean moving back to Washington, near where he was from. “I
came home after work one day exhausted, and my wife, who missed home
desperately, mentioned she thought I was going for a run that day. I
told her I was too tired and I would just do it tomorrow. She told
me, no, you get out there and go for that run,” McDougall said with
a little laugh. “She was motivated to see me successful.”
McDougall passed RASP and served in 2nd Ranger Battalion for a total
of 38 months, deploying with them four times. He transferred to a
Civil Affairs battalion after, which was a welcomed change of pace.
He then attended the Chaplain Captain’s Career Course to help
progress his career. Upon completion, he received a phone call
saying that the 173rd had an opening and would love to see him back
in Italy as a Chaplain. McDougall called his wife to discuss the
offer. She told him that he better call back right now and accept
the offer. They packed up and were on their way back to Italy.
McDougall has also authored a book during his time in service
called "Jesus was an Airborne Ranger". He said that it started as a
side project for a Bible study. However, after expanding on ideas,
he thought to himself, “Why not just make this a book?” He started
the book on deployment in 2013. It was sent to an editor shortly
after he returned, who showed a lot of interest in it. The editor
sent him a list of changes and corrections that needed to be made as
he was getting ready to deploy again. McDougall said with a grin,
“It’s pretty neat that this book was written, edited, and then
published all while on deployments.” The book was published during
his deployment with 2nd Ranger Battalion in 2014. He stated he
doesn’t know how to really measure its success, but said that if it
reached just one person and they understood the message he was
trying to portray, that is success enough for him.
McDougall
was assigned as Chaplain of 2nd Battalion (Airborne), 503rd Infantry
Regiment, in January 2017. He moved to the Brigade Chaplain position
about one year later and holds the same position to this day. He
loves working with the Soldiers and is actively involved with both
training and physical events. He feels that being a former Infantry
Officer helps him better relate to the men whom he ministers to.
Moving forward, he hopes to continue to serve both his country and
God as a Chaplain.
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