I Never Had to Duck

Adventures in the Peacetime Marine Corps

In this engaging memoir, retired Pittsburgh public servant C.A. (Chuck) Peters tells the captivating story of his ardent, lifelong love of and "undistinguished" service in the United States Marine Corps. His affair started when he was a "Junior Marine" during World War Two in a little Ohio River town, continued through his commissioning as a second lieutenant in March of 1956 and discharge as a reserve captain in 1969. While attending Thiel College in Greenville, Pennsylvania, Peters endeavored to enlist in the Corps' Platoon Leaders Course only to be rejected for poor eyesight. A year later he tried again, and through a combination of chart memorization and lowered standards, he was accepted. After surviving the grueling twelve-week PLC selection process, Peters, in March 1956, reported to the Corps' six-month-long Basic School at Quantico, Virginia. Once there he muddled through and in October of 1956 joined the famed First Marine Division in California where he experienced peacetime active service with the Marines. He met his future wife and love of his life, Georgina Chamberlain, at Thiel College. They were wed in July of 1957, over the strenuous objections of both families, and remained happily married until her untimely death in December of 1999. I NEVER HAD TO DUCK reveals Peters' love of the Marine Corps through true stories of his adventures in the storied Corps. But he also weaves tales of friends and acquaintances who served as Marines who did have to duck.