Marvin Costello

Marvin Costello: My Aunt Mary (Woodmansey) Costello married Marvin Costello who had a ranch out of Stevensville, Montana. Marvin had gone Montana State College and gotten an Air Force commission. He did his initial tour in Alaska. The story that I remember him telling was an Air Force senior NCO was a Medal of Honor winner. He was also a raging alcohol. The NCO would get on a bull dozer drunk, and do bad things, but his misdeeds would be hushed up because he had the MOH. Marvin’s heart was not being on active duty, so he came home after his initial three years was up. He did stay in the reserves. He would drill for points, having a four hour drill every Wednesday night at the local bar. He was the commander of that local unit. They had an Air Force Reserve slot mailbox where they could put reserve related material. He got paid for his two weeks of annual training in the summer, but he didn’t get paid for his Wednesday night four hour block at the bar. But my aunt liked to say that he could go for a beer on Wednesday night and he would get enough reserve points to get a “good year” for retirement purposes. He got his twenty good years, and he retired as a Major. I just remember in the basement of the farm house, he still had an Air Force issue back pack, compass, “Mickey Mouse” cold weather boots and the shell of a military park complete with fur fringe on the hood.