First Army considers itself a family; that is no more evident than with the father son duo of Jeff and Jacob Weber. The father, Jeff joined the Army in 1987, his son Jacob joined in 2009.
Both Jeff and Jacob are staff sergeants. Jeff serves as G3-Operational Readiness noncommissioned officer. In this capacity, he ensures deploying Soldiers are on track for their training and take care of any travel needs, such as passports, plane tickets, etc. Jacob is the Non-commissioned officer in charge of the Secretary of the General Staff directorate, where he’s responsible for planning, maintaining personnel status, and maintaining receipts for his section.
For Jeff, college was not his first option after high school. He decided to join the Army after graduating in 1987. After eight years of service, in 1995, Jeff took a 15 year break to take care of his family. Jeff re-enlisted in 2009 thanks to Jacob encouraging him to re-enlist at the time of his own enlistment. Jacob enlisted in the Army while he was still a junior in high school.
A product of a military-like household, Jacob knew that he wanted to be in the military since he was 10 years old, “I was raised on discipline and integrity with very stern rules,” said Jacob. It was always clear that the Army would play a huge role for the Webers.
Jeff and Jacob were assigned to the same section in the 960th Quarter Master Company, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, from 2012 to 2017. Currently, Jeff and Jacob both work at First Army Headquarters, but in different sections. Jeff moved to First Army at Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, in 2018, and his son following him a year later. Being in the same organization has given them the opportunity to connect professionally and personally. “We can talk to each other about anything without pause or without the other one getting angry,” Jeff said. “We share many things in common and know each other’s way of thinking,”
Serving in the same organization together, Jeff and Jacob have learned a lot from each other, and about each other. “He is a damn good Soldier that makes me proud,” Jeff said. “I enjoy us being here together, even though he still got a way to go, I’m glad that he’s driving home.”
The Webers continuously show up for each other, whether its work related or not. They know what it’s like to be a Soldier and how much integrity and courage it takes to keep moving forward.
“You actually get out what you put in to your service,” Jeff said. “Be situationally aware. Anybody can change their unit for the better or for worse.”