{"id":913,"date":"2023-12-21T04:17:43","date_gmt":"2023-12-21T04:17:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/?p=913"},"modified":"2023-12-21T04:17:45","modified_gmt":"2023-12-21T04:17:45","slug":"more-than-metal-the-story-behind-the-challenge-coin-that-went-viral","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/?p=913","title":{"rendered":"More than Metal: The Story Behind the Challenge Coin that Went Viral"},"content":{"rendered":"
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FORT EISENHOWER, Ga. \u2014 The military has countless traditions, but few are as unique as the military challenge coin. And as one Signaleer recently pointed out, it\u2019s not the coins that hold value as much as it is the memory associated with them.<\/p>\n

A former first sergeant with 13 years of service, 2nd Lt. Michael Moser has given and accumulated more than his fair share of military coins \u2014 all of which are special to him. But none have garnered anywhere near the attention as the one he created for the Signal Basic Officer Leader Course, or SBOLC, he graduated from earlier in the fall.<\/p>\n

While attending SBOLC (Class 006-23), Moser, of the Cyber Protection Brigade, created a challenge coin unique to his SBOLC class. Moser said he originally created two designs using photo editing software, then presented the ideas to his class who then voted on which one they liked best. The basis for inspiration came from a coin Moser had seen long ago that was created by the 3rd Infantry Division G6. Although similar in that both are modeled after a common access card, they are also vastly different.<\/p>\n

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Initially, Moser ordered just enough of the coins for everyone in his class, but after sharing a photo of it on his social media account, the coin went viral across numerous platforms and he was soon inundated with requests for the coin from all over the world.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy phone, throughout the [field training exercise] I was in, continued to go off,\u201d Moser said in disbelief. \u201cEverybody loves it \u2026 it\u2019s one for the ages,\u201d Moser said.<\/p>\n

So he placed an order for an additional 300 coins to have on hand for Signaleers who wanted one. Signal Corps Regimental Command Sgt. Maj. Linwood Barrett was one of them.<\/p>\n

Barrett said he was \u201cpleasantly surprised\u201d by the coin, adding that he received multiple texts and phone calls asking if he had seen it.<\/p>\n

\u201cSeeing how [Moser] was in school here at Fort Eisenhower, I had to check it out,\u201d Barrett said. \u201cThe CAC spin was amazing and well-received by all. The saying \u2018No Comms No Bombs\u2019 was the icing on the cake.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

To date, close to 1,400 of the coins Moser created have gone out spanning 32 states and eight other countries. And requests for more continue to come in.<\/p>\n

Moser wasn\u2019t sure what to make of all the craze at first, but after hearing that some people thought it was merely a publicity stunt, more came forward describing it as a \u201cgood morale boost\u201d for the Army \u2014 the kind that Moser said brought people together.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn no way did I ever think that a challenge coin would\u2019ve reached this magnitude,\u201d Moser said. \u201cI\u2019ve had people who have been retired out of the Army 15, 20 years hit me up saying, \u2018Hey, I want that coin.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Behind every coin is a story<\/strong><\/p>\n

Moser estimates he has more than 100 coins on display that were given to him, reiterating that each comes with its own story. As for what the SBOLC coin means to him, \u201cDue to the viral response, it stands up there\u201d in terms of being one of his favorites, he said.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had some coins from people that I\u2019ve mentored, and some of those coins that were given to me for mentoring someone have meant a little bit more, because it means I\u2019ve changed their life in some aspect \u2026 and I think that\u2019s ultimately what I want to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just as Barrett remembers the details surrounding the first military coin he received (27 years ago, upon completion of Air Assault School, Fort Campbell, Kentucky), it\u2019s likely each of the second lieutenants from Moser\u2019s class will look back on the specially designed coin and be able to tell stories associated with it \u2013 something that is key to keeping military traditions sacred and alive.<\/p>\n

\u201cTraditions are vital, and they help us stay connected to the Army\u2019s history and heritage,\u201d Barrett said. \u201cChallenge coins are not just a piece of metal; they are a small token and a quick reminder of how great an organization it is \u2026 often engraved with the unit motto, a slight glance and seeing words such as \u2018Pride Is Forever\u2019 or \u2018This We\u2019ll Defend\u2019 is just what\u2019s needed to charge the hill.\u201d<\/p>\n

By Laura Levering<\/em><\/p>\n

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FORT EISENHOWER, Ga. \u2014 The military has countless traditions, but few are as unique as the military challenge coin. And as one Signaleer recently pointed out, it\u2019s not the coins that hold value as much as it is the memory associated with them. A former first sergeant with 13 years of service, 2nd Lt. Michael […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":914,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-913","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-army"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/913","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=913"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/913\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":915,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/913\/revisions\/915"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/914"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=913"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=913"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=913"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}