Roger Towberman vividly remembers selling his 1976 Pontiac Catalina. The one he’d curl up in for a couple of hours of sleep each night as he panhandled and chased the dreams of a musician decades earlier. The one he’d traded to a gas station attendant for a hot dinner, shower tokens and a duffel bag to haul his belongings after it exhaled its last breaths and he had to hitchhike home.
Engrossed in the memory, the 55-year-old chief master sergeant of the United States Space Force nearly misses his exit off I-95 in New jersey as he tells the story. He’s recalling that low point from the plush seats of a decked-out Mercedes Sprinter van that can sometimes cost up to six figures, made for comfortable overlanding and camping, complete with amenities such as a bed for two, a bathroom and a fully equipped kitchen.
Towberman was in the final weeks of his military career, a period that culminated in his being the second-ever Space Force Guardian as he was tasked with crafting the rank-and-file culture, enlisted policy and public perception of the Space Force, the first service branch to be created since the birth of the Air Force in 1947.
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During his 33-year career, Towberman was stationed everywhere from Hawaii to the United Kingdom until he was selected to lead the newly created Space Force as its senior enlisted leader in 2019.
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