16 February 1999
Mr, George G. Jacunski,
5650 A-1A South, #103
St. Augustine, Florida 32084

Dear Mr. Jacunski,

l am writing to you on behalf of the New Hampshire West Point Parents Club to tell you about a full military honors graveside service to be conducted on Saturday morning, 12 June 1999, in St. Mary’s Cemetery in Claremont, N.H. in honor of Captain James Mozden, USMA class of 1964. The ceremony will be conducted by the New Hampshire National Guard

May we request that you, as the Scribe for the USMA Class of 1964, advise Jim’s classmates of this ceremony and extend an invitation to all of them who can, to be present for Jim’s honors.

Before she died, Capt. Mozden's mother Cecelia Mozden asked if the N.H. West Point Parents Club could arrange for military honors for her son Jim who died in 1973. Because of the New Hampshire blizzard of 1973, the military honor guard was unable to get to the cemetery in Claremont to render Capt. Mozden the military honors he so richly deserved. Mrs. Mozden, in tears, told us that it has continued to be very painful to her that her son, who so loved serving his country, was denied his full military honors because of bad weather.

The Club agreed to take steps to ensure that Capt. Mozden retroactively received those full military honors denied him by the blizzard. The New Hampshire West Point Parents Club represents the families of all of New Hampshire's 504 past and present West Point graduates.

Capt. James Mozden grew up in Claremont. With his family, he attended Mass and was an altar boy at St. Joseph’s Church. Jim graduated third in his class from Stevens High School in 1960 and was Vice-President of his class for all four high school years. Jim Mozden’s brother Stan and his sisters Kathleen and Patricia asked if the ceremony could take place the same week-end as Jim’s high school’s Alumni Week-end when many of Capt. Mozden’s former Stevens High School classmates will be present to attend the military honors at St. Mary's Cemetery. The Stevens High School Alumni Association has said that they would be honored for the ceremony to take place during Alumni Week-end and that they are dedicating the parade that day in honor of Capt Mozden.

Jim wanted very much to go to West Point and was appointed to West Point, by then-Congressman Perkins Bass (who later became N.H. Governor Bass). It was then a matter of very great pride to the Town of Claremont to have Jim as a cadet et West Point. At Cecilia Mozden’s request, former Governor Bass is being invited to the honors ceremony for Captain Mozden.

Invitations are also going out to our N.H. Governor, our two U.S. Senators (Sen. Bob Smith is also a Vietnam veteran), our two N.H. Congressmen, and to Claremont’s State Senator and State Representatives. invitations will also go out to all West Point graduates living in New Hampshire, plus N.H.’s cadets home on summer leave.

Invitations will also go out to the local AARP chapter which Cecilia Mozden was so active in, the American Legion which tried to assist when the 1973 blizzard prevented the scheduled honor guard from reaching St. Mary’s Cemetery, the VFW, the Boy Scouts Kiwanis, Jaycees, Knights of Columbus, Lions Club, school officials, and of course, the Claremont town officials.

After graduation from West Point in 1964, Captain Mozden completed both Airborne and Ranger schools before serving two tours in Vietnam with the 173rd Airborne Brigade and the 1“ Cavalry Division. He was decorated twice for heroism for his actions under fire, with one of those decorations for heroism for when Capt. Mozden, exposing himself to heavy enemy fire, dragged wounded soldiers back to safety. (See attached citations) While in Vietnam, Capt. Mozden, like so many other soldiers, was exposed to Agent Orange. Towards the end of his second tour in Vietnam, he began to feel weaker and weaker. Upon his return home after completing his second tour, like so many others exposed to Agent Orange, he was diagnosed with cancer. An operation followed, but was unsuccessful with the cancer coming back. Captain Mozden died on 25 January 1973 in the Naval Hospital in Chelsea, Mass, with his body then bought home to New Hampshire to be buried in St. Mary’s Cemetery in Claremont.

A military honor guard from Fort Devens, Massachusetts, was to perform final full military honors: the salute, taps, the rifle volley, the folding of the flag and presentation to his family. To the grief of his family, especially his mother, Cecelia Mozden, a major blizzard, the blizzard of the winter of 1973, denied Capt. Mozden his military honors. That blizzard which paralyzed the state in the winter of 1973 prevented the military honor guard from reaching the Claremont cemetery and providing Capt. Mozden the military honors which this New Hampshire hero had earned during his two tours in Vietnam. The honor guard was only able to get as far as Manchester, N.H.

While working on “The N.H. Register of West Point Graduates”, I’ve had phone conversations on several occasions with Mrs. Mozden. Each time, she would in tears, tell me of how much West Point meant to her son, how proud he had been to have graduated from the Point, how, so loving his country and serving her in the military, how much receiving military honors would have meant to him. She told me of her grief, pain and anguish over the fact that her son had been denied military honors at his burial because of that blizzard, and how afterwards, the powers-that-be had forgotten about the military honors due her son. He never received them. Mrs. Mozden was crying so hard. She asked if we could do something to get her son the honors due him, I told her that I would bring Capt. Mozden’s situation to the attention of the NHWPPC, which I did, with the Club agreeing to make sure Capt. Mozden finally receives the military honors he was denied. lt is our honor and our privilege to do this for a New Hampshire military hero and his mother.

While our usual communications were by telephone, Cecilia Mozden once wrote me a letter about Captain Mozden, which I have enclosed a copy of.

Mr. Jacunski, would you please assist us by notifying the members of the Class of 1964 about these delayed honors for Captain Mozden on Saturday morning, 12 June 1999 1965 and would you extend to them our invitation to attend.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

19 Crown Hill
Atkinson, N.H. 03811

Mrs. Carol Grant (Paul, USMA 1999) N.H. West Point Parents Club
(603) 362-4848
 

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