FORT HOOD, Texas – One Army specialist experienced a wave of emotions today when his Ancestry DNA test revealed that he hails from a long line of POGs, sources confirmed today.

“I always felt like there was something driving me to serve my country in combat,” said Pfc. Darren Hotchkiss, a laundry and bath specialist in the 157th Quartermaster Company. “Well, not IN combat … but you know, close to the action … but not TOO close.”

Hotchkiss’ mother bought him the DNA test as a birthday present to help him find out who of the 32 men in her AIT platoon was his father. The test results immediately linked Hotchkiss to a number of family trees where he found that serving America’s warriors ran deep in his blood.

“Oh wow. My 6th great-grandfather was an animal husbandry sergeant during the Revolutionary war and his son was a cobbler first class during the War of 1812,” Hotchkiss said, his eyes welling up with tears while he clicked through the results. “And it looks like my dad was one of mom’s drill sergeants. He was a mess kit repair specialist in Saudi Arabia during the first Gulf War.”

Hotchkiss found that he had POG relatives in other wars, including an observation balloon operator/maintainer during the Civil War, a farrier during World War I, and a military policeman during the Korean War.

Not all of the news was positive. In an embarrassing turn, Hotchkiss found that his grandfather, the family black sheep, was an infantryman who participated in the D-Day invasion during World War II.

“Not everyone is cut out for the rear I guess. Look here though, it says my 3rd great grandmother was a ‘public woman,’ during the Civil War, whatever that means,” Hotchkiss beamed. “Even some of the women in my family enjoyed serving our nation’s finest.”

Experts say stories like Hotchkiss’ are becoming more prevalent as Americans seek to discover their family histories by purchasing DNA tests through private companies.

Hotchkiss told Duffel Blog that while some soldiers chide him for being a POG, only the most courageous could clean a shower unit after an NFL cheerleader USO show.

Ancestry DNA test reveals soldier comes from…

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