Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Today I received a very nice report from Harley Moore regarding what he is calling his “retirement victory lap” (been there, done that). Looks like a lot of fun (and wine) in South America. Harley writes:

Greetings from Mendoza, Argentina! We are here tasting "a bit" of wine after our Buenos Aires to Valparaiso, Chile via Cape Horn cruise (our retirement victory lap). Had to try "a few" vineyards in Chile rride over the Andes ight after the cruise, then an exciting bus (reminds me of scenes from “Romancing the Stone) to here and many more tastings. Back to Miami Beach this weekend, then a month-long, stop and visit friends and family, road trip to San Francisco to hang out with new granddaughter for the summer.

Here we see, first Harley and then Myrna Valdez sharing their favorite sentiments at Casarena:

Sorry for the delayed response. Very slow and expensive Internet on the ship and I am slow in catching up. Might have something to do with the fermented grape juice of late.

See you in May. Harley

Thank you Harley, good stuff. See you in May.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Frank Arnall sent me this very nice report and photo on the combined Founder’s Day activities of the Space Coast and Central Florida West Point Society chapters. Frank writes:

The Space Coast and Central Florida chapters celebrated Founders Day together in Orlando. The Dean, Brigadier General Timothy Trainor was the guest speaker and he welcomed the 9 future members of the class of 2019 in attendance. We had a number of current cadets present as it is spring break. Cadet Shirley Albritton of our affiliation class 2015 gave the toast to the Corps of Cadets. My wife, Susan and I were the only members of the class of 1965 present. Here is a picture of the Dean, Cadet Albritton, and Susan and me. We are really looking forward to seeing everyone at the 50th! S&D, Frank

Thanks Frank, great report and very nice picture.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Here’s a rather unusual note from my friend Fred Laughlin (it was he and John Mogan who talked me into taking this job). He was visiting friends in Nashville and came up with this nice picture of he and John Pickler visiting Dave Mastran at his company. While my messages are not normally used for indorsements, who could let this picture of three smiling Classmates slip by?

Fred writes:

As you and many of our Classmates know, David Mastran has made a major contribution to music education in the form of QuaverMusic.com, a creative approach to teaching young people to love music. Over the past seven years, Dave has built Quaver into the most comprehensive, innovative music education company in the US  — and quite probably the world. During frequent trips to Nashville, I have had the distinct privilege of watching Quaver develop to its vaunted position in the marketplace. This past week, Dave and I entertained none other than John Pickler, that old, but young looking Tennessean, who stopped by Quaver for lunch and a tour. As the attached photo will attest, my Beast Barracks squad-mate has not changed a bit. It was fun being together. 

Left to Right – John Pickler, Dave Mastran, and Fred Laughlin

All the best from Music City — and for those classmates with grandchildren or who themselves may be young at heart, check out QuaverMusic.com!

S&D,

Fredric Laughlin
flaughlinaz@mac.com
H: 623-670-7966
C: 301-520-8594

Thanks Fred, great picture.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

It is my sad duty to inform you of the passing of our dear brother John Concannon following a massive stroke a few days ago. Larry Bennett was very quick to step up and take on the responsibilities and duties of the POC (Point of Contact) becoming the representative of our Class to the family and the representative of the family to our Class.

In the next few days he will provide us with details of the arrangements being made for a funeral mass and interment at West Point.

Grip hands my friends.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Jerry Merges sent me this report from the Founder’s Day in the Villages in Florida:

We celebrated our 5th Founder’s Day with our own BG(ret) Ralph Locurcio as our honored speaker.

Photo Left: all of our speakers: Oldest Grad, Bill McPeek '56; youngest grad (our first female- Diane Battalagia '83), Jerry Merges, and Ralph Locurcio. One of the 4 is standing on a box or else the floor is uneven.

Next is a nice shot of Ralph with his lovely wife Ingrid.

Needless to say, Ralph had most of us rolling in the aisles with his power point presentation of days at Hudson High, Panama Beach, AOT, Buckner, and various and sundry hallway and shower events. I am sure the wives, especially those who were not our OAO's (one and only) at WP were very amused at our antics.

Ralph's career and his weaving in leadership principles as he continues to teach young construction engineers at Florida Institute of Technology is most impressive. We thoroughly enjoyed the details of the construction projects at our Alma Mater that were designed by his firm.

We had a great turnout from the class and these studly men are pictured for the enjoyment of the class.

Photo Right: Reading from left to right: Frank Arnall, Don Appler, Don Erbes, Duke Wheeler, Johnny Wells, Don Parrish, Ralph Locurcio, Dan Steinwald, Dennis Brewer, Jerry Merges, and Dave Gnau.

Thank you Jerry, great report. It looks like a good time was had by all.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

My good friend John Swensson sent me this fine report and some very nice pictures from the Founder’s Day Dinner in the Bay Area. John writes:

As a measure of his continuing service to our country Bud is attending four Founder's Days this year: Chicago last week with Bob Jones, San Francisco last night where he was the featured speaker, and attending New York City on the 27th with Deputy Secretary Sloan Gibson '75 of the VA and finishing up with the group in Huntsville, Alabama.

The Class of 1965 turned out in force for the occasion. Dave LaRochelle (Bud's former roommate and fellow 101st Airborne soldier) was there with his wife Peggy, Ralph and Kathy Adams were in full dress, and Duncan and Jeanne MacVicar joined Susan and me and our guests Bob and Liz Obana. Bob is CEO of the Veterans Health Research Institute of the San Francisco VA. Bob Anderson and his partner Patricia Bailey rounded out the 65 contingent.

Photo Left: Buddy with Jeanne and Duncan MacVicar sitting to his left.

Bud gave the talk on leadership that he gives to cadets and it was very powerful and inspiring and very timely. Bud was named a Distinguished Graduate of West Point for all of the meaningful work he does with Veterans, and he shared with us how to approach Veterans and how to assist them beyond thanking them their service. It was classic, superb Bucha, and we were just sorry that Cynthia was back in Connecticut. He noted that they now have 8.5 grandchildren. Bud will return to the Bay Area on 9 April for the Marine Memorial 50 Year Celebration of Viet Nam where he will be the featured speaker and the  documentary "The Last Days of Vietnam" will also be shown. All graduates are welcome to attend. Reservations at http://www.marineclub.com/index.php

So a wonderful evening with the West coast contingent of Strength & Drive. And we thank Bud for coming out to join us, and making this such a meaningful evening of Duty, Honor, Country.
John

John provided the following great pictures to help you get a feel for what the event was like.

Bob Anderson and Patricia Bailey. 

Outside (I’m guessing before the event began) we have Dave and Peggy LaRochelle, and Duncan and Jeanne MacVicar.

Photo Right: the obligatory group picture with (from left to right) Jeanne and Duncan MacVicar, Ralph and Kathy Adams, Dave LaRochelle, Susan and John Swensson, Buddy Bucha, and Bob Anderson and Patricia Bailey.

Let me close with a thank you to John for this great report and a very special shout out to Paul (Buddy) Bucha for his outstanding work for all of us in this amazing Class, and for his tireless efforts to improve the lives of our veterans all around the world.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Barry Zais found these additional pictures of the “Great Escape from Ft. Benning”. Actually, the first shot is of a group involved in AOT but the remaining 5 shots give more looks at the Escape.

Thanks Barry, great shots, great memories.

Photo 3 | Photo 4 | Photo 5 | Photo 6

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Denny Coll shared a few more pictures of Buddy Bucha and Bob Jones when they visited Chicago for the Founder’s Day Dinner and where also honored at the Blackhawk’s game the night before. Denny writes:

These are pix that Bob Jones' son Matt (USMA '99) took when Bob Jones and Buddy Bucha were honored at the Chicago Blackhawks game the night before Founders Day.

Photo Left: Matt and our good friend Jon Thompson with our two heros.

These are just great shots that needed to be shared. Photo 3 | Photo 4

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Doug Gibson has been doing a bang up job sitting in for Paul Schultz as the Coordinator of the Professional Military Ethic Education (PMEE) Program. He just sent me this terrific report on the last session of the program with our Affiliation Class.

USMA 1965 Report for Support Of the Professional Military Ethic Education (PMEE) Program 23 February 2015 Class: Gun Control

For the final class of AY 2014-2015, and the final class of our support for PMEE, the Class of ’65 support reached its highest level with two newcomers – Terry Ryan and Sonny Arkangel. We had a total of 16 classmates participate.

Left to Right: Terry Ryan, Doug Gibson, Jose Sanchez, Jack Jannarone, Gene Manghi, Dan Donaghy, Emery Chase, Bill Byrne, Lee Hewitt, Bob DeLaar, Bill Lehman, Jack Koletty, Russ Campbell. Missing from the picture: Sonny Arkangel, Buddy Bucha, Rollie Stichweh.

Thanks to everyone for their enthusiastic participation – and especially for braving the unpredictable Hudson Valley weather in February to attend and making this such a successful session!

Once again we gathered for breakfast – this time at the Hotel Thayer—and then proceeded to the Haig Room in the library where the Simon Center folks did their usual great job of orientation for the day’s session, Gun Control. Like many of the previous scenarios, this one seemed rather straight forward until you dug into it more deeply. All were able to add some good perspective based on almost 50 years of experience. Once the prep session was complete we were married up with Cadet Presenters for lunch. Some of us met the Cadet’s and Tac’s for lunch at Grant Hall while others joined their Cadets in Washington Hall. This gave the Cadet Presenters and our classmates time to get their joint actions coordinated prior to class time.

After the class, all of our classmates, as well as the participants from ’66 and ’67 met to review results. From all comments, this program has been very effective and very well received by all parties. I think this was a rather bittersweet moment for all of us from ’65 as we realized that this was our last formal AAR for this endeavor. At least from my perspective, I am not sure who has gotten more out of this program – the Cadets I was able to interact with or me.

I’m told that Paul Schultz (who continues his long, slow recovery) and Doug Gibson will be putting a together a final report on the entire four year PMEE Program which I will be able to share with you in the next few weeks.

Thank you gentlemen for your great work on our behalf with this important program.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

I just received this nice update from Tad Ono who hosted the Sherrells while they were visiting in Hawaii. Tad writes:

Following their jaunt to SoCal in January, Bill and Sue Sherrell are here in Hawaii for an extended time in the sun, beach, botanical gardens and golf. Bill and I got in some golf at Kaneohe Klipper course on Wednesday and yesterday they came over for my world famous Vongole pasta with scallops. We had a great time reminiscing about Ranger school, our time with the 2nd ID under Gen Barb Wire Bob Kingston and, of course, about our alma mater and Classmates.

Tad

Photo Right: Bill and Susan Sherrell obviously having a good time.

This is supposed to be Tad’s “world famous Vongole pasta with scallops” but I have my doubts about this whole visit because there are empty wine glasses next to the dishes and that would never happen on a table in Tad’s house.

Photo Left: Here we see Tad, Hiro, Bill and Susan

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

I got this terrific picture and brief comment from Ed Armstrong. I always thought the message on the T-shirt went without saying, but I guess sometimes you have to remind folks. Note all the Gray Hog type stuff on the mantle and wall behind Ed. Is that the edge of a tar bucket I see over his left shoulder? He writes:

For almost 50 years I have been keeping this pent up inside. In the words of the great Cat Stevens, "Gotta let it out / I've got to show the world, world's got to see me. Saw it-had to have it”.

Thanks Ed, great stuff.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

About a week ago I received a nice eulogy from Tad Ono to be put with many others for Jack Terry. In his eulogy Tad made reference to a side trip he and several others made to Panama City during out Firstie Trip. This caused me to ask him to explain what had happened as I don’t remember any opportunity to take side trips (other than the one most of us took to go into Juarez while visiting Ft. Bliss in El Paso, Texas – but those other stories for other times). Tad did a little digging and had Ralph Locurcio send me this great story with numerous pictures of what I’ll call the great escape from Ft. Benning. There is no way, with my failing memory that I could get close to getting the names right, so I’ll just let you pick out your friends by look. It looks like a great time for a pretty big gang of guys for which they seem to have paid later with sun burn problems. Now this is my kind of story! Ralph writes:

While on the Firstie Trip we had a long weekend while at Ft. Benning so a bunch of us decided we needed to go to Panama City to hit the beach. I'm guessing it was July 4th, but I don't remember any fireworks.

We scouted around for rides... tried to rent an airplane to save time... had no money... then a van... then finally we pooled our money and rented this truck and spent the rest of our money on beer...had to keep our priorities straight… took no clothes except bathing suits... big mistake... maybe a blanket for the beach.

Drove for like 6 hours... 2 guys driving wouldn't stop for pee breaks cuz they couldn't drink (good to see they were conscientious about drinking and driving)... didn't go well with all the beer...
So we peed off the back of the truck...cars coming the opposite way had to put on their wipers!

Got to Panama City... parked the truck on the beach... spent two days in the sun... slept on the beach... got roasted!!!!
Truck got stuck in the sand... got it out using beer cans under the wheels! Rest Stop Photo

Made it back on time...

but training on Monday was swing landing trainer for airborne school... very bad combo with sunburned backs...
The sergeants had a ball with us... swing... drop... PLF... and again... sawdust all down our burned backs!

But we couldn't say a word... just had to suck it up and deal with it!!!

Ralph

Thanks Tad and Ralph for sharing your great memories.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Here’s an interesting message for you. Bob Farris, Treasurer for the Class of ’63 has an offer for us. His Class commissioned 504 prints of GEN MacArthur’s “Duty, Honor, Country” farewell speech to the Corps on the occasion of his receiving the Sylvanus Thayer Award in 1962. The original painting (shown below) by Paul Steucke and marketed by Vladimir Arts is being made available one last time. Because, like so many of you, I was in the room (albeit a pretty big room) that day, I have one hanging on my wall as a reminder of one of my two brushes with history. The other brush being when JFK bumped into me as he made his way across the field at half time of an Army/Navy Game. Ah the memories.

Anyway, here is the message and offer from Bob Farris:

To the classes of 62, 63, 64, and 65,

The class of 63 commissioned 504 prints commemorating the historic speech (The DUTY, HONOR, COUNTRY speech) by GEN MacArthur when he was awarded the Sylvanus Thayer Award on 12 May 1962. Each of the 504 prints was signed by the artist and 5 original signatures of LTG Ellis (first captain at the time and who is depicted in the print), GEN Westmoreland (Superintendent at the time, also depicted in the print), GEN Powell, GEN Scwartzkopf and Bob Hope (honorary member of ‘63). There are only 16 of these signed/numbered prints remaining that are available for sale (14 have minor damage/flaws).

The class of 63 is attempting to close out this project by offering the remaining prints at a reduced price of $1500 unframed. The prints are currently held and marketed by Vladimir Arts Inc. Damaged prints will be discounted by Vladimir according to the damage. Vladimir Arts can be contacted on line at Vladimir@vladimirarts.com for details on pricing and shipping. If you have an interest in obtaining one of these prints please contact Vladimir Arts.

Bob Farris ‘63

Over the years I have enjoyed sharing this memory with family and friends even though I may have dozed off momentarily during this momentous occasion. It is a very well done depiction of the event which ties the present (in 1962) with the amazing history which binds us all.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Denny Coll, our long time Scribe, really knows how to put together a report. Here we see the results of his efforts with a report on the 87th Founder’s Day which was combined with the opportunity to highlight the 50 Year Affiliation of our Class with the soon to graduate Class of 2015. They were also able to bring in two of our heavy hitters (Buddy Bucha and Bob Jones who were also the honored guests of the Chicago Blackhawks the night before). It was obviously a gala event with tuxedos and beautiful women everywhere. Denny writes:

We (the local S&D guys and their ladies – Ken and Izumi Yoshitani, Tom and Anna Croak, Norm and Bridget Eckstein (ex '65), George and Jill Seaworth and yours truly with my wife Cathy) sponsored the 87th annual Founders Day by the West Point Society of Chicago at the historic Madinah Country Club last Saturday.

Photo Right: Jim Stephenson, Denny Coll, Buddy Bucha, and Ron Layer.

Here we see Bob Jones and Buddy Bucha in the receiving line welcoming Jim Stephenson (and behind Jim is Clair Gill). Next we see Denny Coll with Clair Gill and George Seaworth.

Our purpose was to highlight the 50 Year Affiliation activities between the Classes of 1965 and 2015. 

About 150 attended to include 5 local sets of parents from 2015 as well as the 1st Captain, Austin Welch (who is from Chicago), Regimental Commander and Class President Will Goodwin and Regimental Executive Officer and Class Scribe/Secretary Hope Landsem.

Here we see Cadets Will Goodwin, Hope Landsem, and Austin Welch with Bob Jones followed by a picture of John and Carol Roseberg and Tom and Anna Croak.

Ron Layer, this time with Don Shutters.

In addition to the local S&D guys, we had John and Carol Roseberg, Chuck Shaw, Jim Stephenson (Chuck Shaw's old roomie came down from Minneapolis), Ron Layer, and Don Shutters (another local ex-'65). Buddy Bucha was our Guest Speaker, Bob Jones our Special Guest (along with the three cadets) and Jon (Dad) Thompson was our Oldest Grad.

Here we see Buddy with the youngest grad, a good looking young man from Kenya (I’m afraid I didn’t get his name) then we have Buddy with a candidate to join the ranks.

Another former RVN POW, MG (Ret) John Borling (USFAF '63) was also a guest of one of the members.

And here we have a very special picture where Bob and Buddy are joined by MG (Ret) John Borling with his wife (John is another former RVN POW).

Finally, here is the obligatory group picture with (from left to right standing): Ken Yoshitani, Ron Layer, Buddy Bucha, Bob Jones, Jim Stephenson, John and Carol Roseberg, Chuck Shaw, John Thompson, Clair Gill, Denny Coll, Don Shutters (ex ’65), Tom Croak, and the Ecksteins (ex’65) and then the four ladies gathered around the sign are Cathy Coll, Izumi Yoshitani, Anna Croak, and Jill Seaworth (George Seaworth seems to be the one who got away).

Buddy Bucha and Bob Jones were the honored guests of the Chicago Blackhawks the night before.

It really turned out to be a very special evening for all of us.

Dennis R. Coll

What a great evening and a great report. The pictures were some of the best I have seen and the entire affair appears to have been spectacular. Attached if you are interested is the program for the evening. As I find myself saying much too often, I wish I could have been there.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Chuck Nichols has provided us with a terrific report on the recent (March 3rd) First Class Officers Dinner in the West Ballroom of Eisenhower Hall. With the Graduation of our Affiliation Class of 2015 coming up very soon, this was one of the last Affiliation events we will be able to enjoy. In spite of some pretty rough weather, we had a very good turnout as can be seen in the photos and lists below. Chuck writes:

The Distinguished Class of 1965 was honored to host the First Class Officers Dinner in the West Ballroom of Eisenhower Hall at West Point on Tuesday, 3 March 2015. This was one of the last affiliation events with the Class of 2015, "For Those We Lead," before graduation. Representing '65 were Pat Kenny, Chuck McCloskey, Russ Campbell, Bob Frank, Chuck Nichols, Bob Harter, Clair Gill and Joe DeFrancisco (missing from this picture). All managed to arrive at the Academy before the snow storm scheduled for that evening made an appearance.

The dinner was organized by Marie Lewis, Class Services of the AOG. It provided an opportunity for the two classes to get to know each other in the informal atmosphere of Benny Havens Hour that preceded dinner. This next photo shows Bob Harter and Pat Kenny imparting the wisdom of the ages to Hope Landsem, Class Secretary, and Kyle Warren, Class Vice President.

Clair Gill had the opportunity to share his wealth of experience as our Class President for the past 10 years with the 2015 Class President, William Goodwin.

'65 and '15 class leaders with similar roles were seated together at dinner so they could continue to discuss topics of mutual interest.

At the conclusion of dinner Clair gave a presentation on the things our class learned over the 50 years since graduation. The thrust of the presentation was to provide 2015 a view of how their roles will change after graduation and the information and tools available to ease the transition. Clair enhanced the presentation with anecdotes he gathered during his preparation. Click here to view Clair's Slide deck. The AOG fully supported this event with the presence of, among others, Todd Browne, Chief Operating Officer; Kristin Sorenson, VP Development; and Vince McDermott, Chief of Alumni Affairs on the Supe’s staff. A dual purpose of the meeting was to reinforce the value of AOG to the graduating Class. Clair helped do this by referencing examples of important AOG support to our Class in his presentation.

The final group shot shows, from left to right, (front row) Joe DeFrancisco, Chuck Nichols, Russ Campbell, Ashley Phillips, Hope Landsem, Bob Harter and Chuck McCloskey; (back row) Clair Gill, Kevin Carringer, Gene Fogh, Cort Thompson, Kyle Warren, Pat Kenny, William Goodwin and Bob Frank.

Thank you Chuck for a great report and very nice pictures.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Denny Coll, who has done and continues to do so much for our Class, has a tip to offer for those who are interested in viewing a tribute to two of the giants of our Class. He recently shared the plans for a special Class of 65 dinner in conjunction with the Founders Day activities in Chicago. He now points out that there will be a special tribute to Buddy Bucha and Bob Jones at a hockey game this Friday. Denny writes:

Buddy Bucha and Bob Jones will be honored at Center Ice for the opening ceremony this Friday March 6th at the Chicago Blackhawks/Edmonton hockey game scheduled for 7:30 PM CST.

They will be honored by the Blackhawks as part of our Founders Day weekend activities in Chicago.

I am told that the game can be seen on these premium channels in case anyone in S&D wants to watch: Game Center and Center Ice.

I’m not a big hockey fan so if you have any questions, you might want to send them directly to Denny at dc65scribe@comcast.net.

Thank you Denny for this and all you do.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

I don’t know of a closer relationship among our Classmates than the one I witnessed between Jack Terry and Tom Abraham these past few years. Tom has been at Jack’s side through thick and thin and has encouraged his lifelong friend through some very tough times. As the POC for Jack he served our Class and the Terry family very well and has submitted this outstanding report:

FINAL REPORT-FUNERAL OF JOHN KINGSLAND (JACK) TERRY February 2, 1943-February 19, 2015

The funeral service for Jack Terry was held on February 24, 2015, in Callicoon, New York. Viewing was from 2 PM to 5 PM, at Stewart-Murphy Funeral Home with prayers at 4:30 PM by the local Catholic priest, Father Charles O’Connor, Pastor of Holy Cross Parish. Following the service guests were invited to the home of Jack and Susan nearby in North Branch, New York. The service was attended by the family, Susan, his wife, stepsons Robert (Renee), Kyle, and Ryan and daughters Cynthia (Eric) and Karen (Doug), grandchildren Robbie, Samantha, and Serene and Jack’s sister Tena (Tim). West Point Classmates in attendance were Ric Shinseki, Bob Selkis, Gene Manghi, Russ Campbell, Joe Sanchez, Mark Sheridan and his wife Linda, Jim Tomaswick and his wife Carole, and Tom Abraham. Also in attendance were Andy, the faithful volunteer at Castle Point who cared for Jack every chance he got, and his wife Kathleen. The population of Callicoon is 600. The service was attended by about 200. Pictured here are: Tom Abraham, Ric Shinseki, Bob Selkis, Joe Sanchez, Gene Manghi, Russ Campbell, and Mark Sheridan.

The Hudson Valley Chapter of the Rolling Thunder was represented by five individuals and they made a presentation of their love and admiration of a friend, Jack Terry. Officers of the local VFW Allen Milk Post 7376 were there and also made declarations and presentations and played a recording of taps. The class flag was on display as were many photos and memorabilia from Jack’s extraordinary life.

The Classmates sang the Alma Mater and each in turn made comments and told stories about their dear friend, Jack. Here we see Ric Shinseki and Russ Campbell joined in the middle by Bob Selkis and here on their right by Joe Sanchez.

Classmates traveled from NY, NJ, VA, PA, Conn, and NH. Weather was a deterrent for others. Susan has received many emails from classmates and I also received many and shared them with Susan. The service was small but filled with love. The family very much appreciated the presence and remarks of the classmates. This was a very touching service where we said goodbye to another great West Pointer from the Class of ’65, Strength and Drive. “Well done”, Jack Terry, “Be Thou at Peace.”
And from back in the day, here is a great picture of Jack and Tom squaring off in the ring.

Interment of ashes will be determined later. Possibly at West Point and, at Jack’s wish, the Hudson River.
In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that a donation be made to the Class Fund in Jack’s name. Skip O’Donnell has taken care of this.
I’d like to thank Joe Sanchez and Bob Selkis who took pictures and gathered details for this report so that I could bid farewell to my Brother.
Jack was very blessed to have such a great family and so many friends and such great Classmates. I don’t think he ever met a person he couldn’t call friend.

Thank you Tom for an outstanding job as POC followed by an equally outstanding report.

I will close this report with a photo from our Howitzer and what we had to say about Jack back in the day.

Jack you will be missed by so many. Grip hands my friends as we say good bye to our dear friend Jack Terry. On behalf of the entire Class of 1965 I wish to express our condolences to the family and to Jack - Be thou at Peace – Well Done!

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

As always when I hear of one of our own taking off on a trip, I ask for pictures and stories to share. Skip and Marilyn O’Donnell came through big time with these shots and comments from their recent trip to Israel. What an opportunity especially to travel with a church group to make these places and images just that much more special. Skip writes:

Marilyn and I had a great 14 day trip to Israel two weeks ago with our church group.  We had great weather and saw a lot of Israel-Masada, Jerusalem and the Sea of Galilee. 

Photo Right: shows me at the Masada fortress with one of the Roman Army siege locations from 70 AD below.

Photo Left: shows Marilyn touching the star at the Church of Nativity in Bethlehem where Jesus was born.

The third picture shows us at the temple area.

The fourth picture shows me standing at the temple area near the Dome of the Rock.

The last picture shows me putting a note in the Wailing/Western wall in Old Jerusalem.

Skip O'D

So many places I would like to visit one day. Thank you Skip and Marilyn for sharing some of these very special moments.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Often great things come in small packages. Diamonds, dynamite, and Ron Walter come to mind. For quite some time now Ron has been writing what appears to be a very thought provoking and provocative book entitled, “Theory of Everything – Franciscan Faith and Reason”. While I’ve always known that he is far more the intellectual type than I, this still came as a very pleasant surprise. I could not be more proud of my buddy. Anyway, he has finished this task and his book is now published and hit the shelves this week. He has already acknowledged the assistance in reading the manuscript and ultimately providing endorsements (which appear on the back cover) by both Bob Doughty and John McCullough.

While I normally don’t share this type of announcement, the fact that two of our Classmates endorsed the book and I’m told that many (myself included) have expressed an interest in seeing the finished product, I decided to make an exception. The pictures below show the front and back cover (sorry the back cover is hard to read).

Should you be interested in reading more about the book or getting one for yourself, Ron has a website, www.ronaldwalter.com , which will provide all the information you will need.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

This morning I received this brief biography from our POC (Tom Abraham) who received it from Jack Terry’s widow, Susan. She put this together in preparation for coverage of Jack’s passing in three local newspapers.

John Kingsland Terry (Jack Terry)

Born:  February 2nd, 1943 in Buffalo, New York
Died:  February 19th, 2015 in St. Luke's Cornwall Hospital, Newburgh, NY

Son of the late Cynthia Kingsland Mitchell and John Mitchell
Stepson of the late Wesley Terry of Allentown, Pennsylvania

Jack is the father of:  Dr. Michelle Jhonette Terry Proctor, who is the daughter also of Thelma Joan Farrell Terry, his former wife.

He was married to Susan Carberry Terry in 1979
He was the stepfather of Robert J. Smith, who is married to Renee'.  They are the parents of Robbie and Samantha and live in Phillipsburg, NJ.
He was the stepfather of Kyle E. Smith of Callicoon, New York.
He was the stepfather of Ryan A. Smith of Wilkes Barre, PA.
He was the father of Cynthia Jacquelyn Terry Vargas, who is married to Eric Vargas.  They are the parents of Serene.  They live in Brooklyn, New York.
He was the father of Karen Kingsland Terry Urquhart, who is married to Doug Urquhart.  They live in Atlanta, Georgia.
Jack was the brother of Tena Rohrback of Allentown, PA.  She is married to Tim Rohrback.  He was the uncle of Wendy, David and Peter Rohrback.
Jack was the brother in law of Cathy and Robert Wolford of Allentown, PA, and the uncle of Dylan White, Jonathan White and Carly Wolford Minerovic.
He is also survived by several great nieces and nephews.
In addition to being predeceased by his parents, Jack was predeceased by an uncle, Dr. Albert Kingsland of New York City and a dear aunt, Diane Kingsland Stocker of Miami, Florida.  He was the great, great, great grandson of Ambrose Cornelius Kingsland, former mayor of New York City.

1961 Graduate of William Allen High School, Allentown, PA - president of his class and all sports participant.

1965 Graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York - football team and Golden Gloves Boxing champ.

Jack served in the Army as a West Point Cadet from 1961 - 1965.  He was stationed in Germany from 1965 - 1967.  He served with the First Air Cavalry in Vietnam from 1967 - March 1968.  He received the Purple Heart after losing his left leg in Vietnam in March of 1968 - retiring as a Captain.

1975 - received Master's Degree in Education from Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA.  After receiving his Master's degree, he was actively involved in coaching football at Liberty High School in Bethlehem, PA, and in Social Restoration Programs.  This led to a directorship of the Weaversville Intensive Tratment Unit in Weaversville, PA. He was then chosen to become the director from 1981 - 1983 of the Delaware Valley Job Corp Center in Callicoon, New York.  From 1983 - 1986, he was the director of the Woodstock Job Corp Center in Baltimore County, Maryland.  After returning to Sullivan County in 1986, he held positions in the departments of Probation and Employment and Training.  He later became the director of the Youth Advocacy Program (YAP) in Liberty, New York.

Despite the amputation of his left leg after a mine explosion in Vietnam, Jack drove a motorcycle, rode a bicycle, played racquetball, ran in several marathons, including the New York City Marathon in the 1970s.  He was a frequent participant in the 5k Monster Race held annually in August in Monticello, New York.  He never failed to complete that race.  Jack loved winter and became an avid skier after his amputation.  He romoved his prosthesis and used just one ski on the right leg and a pair of outriggers, which looked like a pair of crutches with small skis on them.  He competed in slalom races and could be seen regularly at Bellayre Mountain, Windham Mountain, Greek Peak and Hunter Mountain in New York.  His youngest daughter, Karen Kingsland Terry (now Urquhart) was his Sunday ski buddy.

Arrangements are:

Stewart - Murphy Funeral Home
Callicoon, New York
Tuesday, February 24th, 2015, 2 pm - 5 pm
There will be a gathering at the house after 5 pm -
277 Warner Road, North Branch, New York 12766

In lieu of flowers, contributions in Jack's name may be made to:
West Point Class of 1965
c/o West Point Association of Graduates
698 Mills Road
West Point, NY 10996-1607

Clearly a full and rich life. Thank you Susan for sharing this brief look into a life well lived. We all loved Jack and he will be missed.

Should you have any questions or wish to share a message of condolence with Susan, she can be reached by e-mail at jkt887@yahoo.com. Additionally, Tom Abraham can be reached at tsabraham@me.com or by phone at 724-433-6323.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Given that I have never seen such a close and supportive relationship as the one between Tom Abraham and Jack Terry, I was not surprised that Tom quickly stepped up to take on the responsibility of POC (Point of Contact) from our Class to the Terry family and from the Terry family to our Class. Tom has already had several conversations with Susan Terry and has provided here some information to share.

On Tuesday, February 24th from 2PM to 5PM there will be a viewing, a service, and some social time with the Terry family at the Stewart-Murphy Funeral Home at 84 School Street, Callicoon, New York 12723 (845-887-4900). This will be followed by a reception at Susan and Jack’s home at 277 Warner Road, North Branch, New York 12766. I’m told both addresses are easily found with a GPS system or on Google maps but I’m also told that these towns are so small that any farmer can give you excellent directions once you get to the general area.

The Terry family has decided that in lieu of flowers they would like any donations you might want to send to go to:

The Class of 1965
AOG (Association of Graduates) Class of ’65 Class Gift Fund
West Point Association of Graduates
698 Mills Road
West Point, New York 10996

Be sure to make a note on the check that indicates that it is for “USMA Class of ’65 Gift Fund”

Should you have any questions or wish to share a massage of condolence with Susan, she can be reached by e-mail at jkt887@yahoo.com. Additionally, Tom Abraham can be reached at tsabraham@me.com or by phone at 724-433-6323.

Grip hands my friends as we face another huge void in our Band of Brothers.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

It is once again my sad duty to inform you of the passing of one our dear brothers. This evening I received a message from Susan Terry that Jack had passed away at St. Luke’s Cornwall Hospital in New York. Susan and her family are attempting to make arrangements between predicted snowstorms in the area. I found her comments to be particularly poignant. She said, “No matter how ill your loved one may be, you are still never prepared when he passes.  I am so happy that I was with him during this peaceful event.”

More information will be shared just as soon as it is available.

Grip hands my friends, we have lost a real fighter and dear friend.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

I got a very nice report from Joe Barkley regarding his experience and memories during his very special Valentin’s Day. He wrote:

Here is a picture of Diane and me with Jim and Karen Ferguson. This was taken on Saturday, Feb. 14th, Valentine’s Day. Diane and I attended a special event; a joint concert with the West Point Glee Club and the Alumni Glee Club in Philadelphia at the “Old Christ’s Church.”

What made this so special was that the Alumni Glee Club included a number of our Classmates. Jim, Terry Ryan, and Chuck Nichols were there. We had only a few minutes to chat as the group was boarding a bus to go back the Washington for a performance at the Medal of Honor Society at Crystal City.

We began to catch up with Terry on 50 years and with Karen and Jim on the past 36 years since we had seen them in Heidelberg.

The performance was wonderful; just wonderful. It was a treat to see the Alumni Glee Club and the Cadet Glee Club. Were we really that young once?

At the risk of sounding a bit nostalgic and overly sentimental, the event caused a rush of memories. This week I had finished drafting the memorial article on our classmate, Tom White; who was one of my roommates. And then on Thursday came the notice that my roommate and our Classmate, Gil Gilchrist had died.

Please let me run on a bit more about memories. I do remember during “Reorgie Week” in 1961 a meeting of all of the plebes in the 2nd regiment in the old ESGS (Earth, Space, and Graphic Sciences) lecture hall atop Washington Hall with the then 2nd Regiment CO; COL Gleaser. It was to be a congratulations and motivational speech on making it through Beast and getting on with the year.

Col Gleaser was making a point about dealing with the system and imperfections in the system. In his remarks the CO said that when one stands next to a masterpiece painting one can see the brush strokes and imperfections (I know it sounds like an odd analogy), but when one backs away the painting becomes better and clearer. So it is with the experiences at West Point. The further one gets away from West Point the better the memories become the less one sees the hardships and imperfections. (Yes, he really said that).

I know all of us do not have completely fond memories of West Point, but there are some and that is why we are having the reunion. And that is why this joint concert with the Glee Clubs was so special.

Strength and Drive - Joe Barkley

I have to agree with Joe’s point that things look better (especially our West Point experience) over time. Actually for many years following graduation I used to use the line that, “West Point is a great place to be from and the farther from the better!”. However, in recent years and, of course, due largely to this job, I have grown to have a great deal of respect and connection to our Rockbound Highland Home. Sure, I’ve used many terms to describe it (Hudson High, The Rock, Hogwarts on the Hudson, …) but they have all become terms of endearment for me.

Thank you Joe for a great report and very nice picture.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of ’65,

As reported earlier, a second printing of the very popular Class of ’65 Cookbook was ordered and has been selling rapidly. The original production of 300 books is long gone and 244 orders have been received for the second production. Orders for this second production will be accepted until March 1, 2015. Ralph Asplund who, along with his wife Cheryl and Diane Kline (Doug Kline’s widow), were responsible for putting this book together, asked me to share the following notice:

My wife has one of these books in her kitchen and has nothing but good things to say about it. If you have any interest at all, now is the time to act.

Thank you to Ralph, Cheryl, and Diane for all the work that went into making this for our Class.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of ’65,

On Wednesday, February 11, 2015 both Chuck Nichols and I shared the sad news of the passing of our Classmate Gil Gilchrist. The family had already made arrangements for a funeral service to be held yesterday, the 12th, in Gil’s hometown of Sevierville, Tennessee. Obviously this left no time for me or the two gentlemen who stepped up very quickly to take on the responsibility of POC, to get the word out with any hope of providing folks with time to react and attend the service. However, these two gentlemen, John Pickler and John McCullough not only stepped up to be the joint POC’s but interrupted their own busy schedules to make the 200+ mile trip to Sevierville to represent our Class.

I could not be prouder to be associated with the two of them. I would expect no less from a member of our extraordinary Class but it is extremely gratifying to witness this dedication to our Classmate and our Class. On behalf of the all of us in the Brotherhood of Strength and Drive, I want to thank both of them very much for this measure of devotion.

Below is the report that I received from John Pickler following his return from this spur of the moment trip:

John McCullough and I attended the funeral service of our Classmate, COL(Ret) Malcolm S. ("Gil") Gilchrist, yesterday at 4:00 pm at First Baptist Church in Sevierville, TN.  We arrived from the Nashville area in time to join the family and friends during the visitation period prior to the funeral and were able to speak with each of the family members and many friends and let them know that we were Gil's USMA Classmates and were proud to represent West Point and the Class of 1965 at his funeral service.

Gil was in his mess dress uniform, with his service medals and Airborne wings and Ranger tab as he had requested. His widow Martha had placed a West Point crest on the inside top of the casket, and his Cavalry Hat was proudly displayed on the table beside his casket.

The service began with everyone singing "Battle Hymn of the Republic," then associate pastor Jerry Hyder delivered a eulogy stressing Gil's strong commitment to his country, his community, and his church. He added that "Gil was a man of strong faith who put his words into action."  He described how Gil had emotionally shared with him how the Lord spared Martha during the 9/11 terrorist attack on the section of the Pentagon where she worked as a civilian employee. The pastor further observed that Gil was a kind man with a quick wit, who loved his family and friends and made a positive impact on those around him -- pointing out the large contingent of Salvation Army personnel present to pay their respects to Gil, who had served on their local council.

After we sang "Onward Christian Soldiers," pastor Dan Spencer spoke of Gil as a good Soldier through and through -- whose spiritual faith was genuine and who loved his church and his Sunday School class. He quoted Gil as saying, in response to being asked how his military experience and his faith enabled him to deal with his years of suffering from COPD: "My military service has made me resilient; and my faith tells me there's a better world ahead."  Pastor Spencer added that Gil had two more awards coming to him:  the Crown of Life (James 1:12) and the Crown of Righteousness (2 Timothy 4:7-8).  After the final hymn, "How Great Thou Art," the pastor closed the service with the Cadet Prayer.

We followed Gil's flag-draped casket outside the church, where an honor guard of American Legion Post 104 from Sevierville fired a 21-gun salute, played Taps, and folded and presented the US Flag to Martha.  Then we returned to a church reception room and talked further with Martha.

Martha introduced us to LTC(Ret) Rob Grunewald, who had saved her life during the attack on the Pentagon by leading her from a dark, smoke-filled conference room on the edge of the damaged area to an inner Pentagon corridor and finally to the center courtyard.  Others in the same conference room went in the opposite direction -- and lost their lives in what Martha referred to as "the inferno."  The picture below, taken by John McCullough, shows Rob Grunewald, Martha Gilchrist, and John Pickler in the reception room of the church.

Martha was very grateful for our presence at the funeral service, and noted that there will be another service for Gil at the Fort Myer Old Post Chapel, followed by burial in Arlington National Cemetery, at a date yet to be determined.  She will let us know when Arlington gives her a date for the service and burial.  We will maintain contact with Martha and keep you informed.

Strength & Drive, '65!  John

John M. Pickler
1923 Pointe Barton Drive
Lebanon, TN  37087-9053
Home:  (615) 453-5499
Cell:     (615) 416-1835

Thank you gentlemen for a job exceptionally well done. Your efforts are greatly appreciated by us all.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

As you have already heard from Chuck Nichols, we have lost another dear friend and Classmate. Malcolm (Gil) Gilchrist passed away on Monday, February 9th, 2015 in Sevierville, Tennessee following a battle with lung cancer. He is survived by his wife Martha, son Malcolm, and daughter Ann Gray. Two of our Classmates were very quick to step up and jointly take on the responsibilities of POC (Point of Contact) for the family to the Class and for the Class to the family. John Pickler (jmpickler65@gmail.com) and John McCullough (johnmccullough@mac.com) will act as our POC.

The family has moved quickly and the memorial service will be held tomorrow. However, it has been determined that Gil will be interred at Arlington National Cemetery. The date has not yet been determined but I will share it as soon as I get it.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be sent to:
Sevier County Humane Society Building Fund
P.O. Box 978, Pigeon Forge
Tennessee 37868

A eulogy page has been set up so you can share your remembrance of Gil:
http://defender.west-point.org/service/eulogy/listing/1,,25583,00.html 

Grip hands my friends as we say good bye to our dear friend Gil.

Classmates, wives, and friends of ’65,

My good friend and pretty close neighbor now, Bill Sherrell, sent me some great pictures of his and his beautiful wife, Susan’s, recent driving trip to California. We see here several glimpses of the many stops they made along the way. Bill writes:

Susan and I have just returned from a two week drive to visit family and friends in California. The photos show our visit with Dave and Peg La Rochelle, who we visited at their beautiful home in Napa; our lunch with John Swensson ,Dave Kuhn and Mike Connor in the vicinity of Dana Point; a picture of me fleeing a Raptor; a picture of me  posing after pushing over a giant redwood tree in Northern California; and a picture of Susan and me and my youngest son and his wife riding the Santa Monica roller coaster. It was a great car trip and our first without the kids in over 45 years.
William Sherrell
wwsherrell@aol.com

Photo Right: These first to shots look like good friends enjoying some good times.

Thanks Bill, it looks like a great trip. I love it when we (any Classmates) get together to maintain the ties that bind us. We all have a large piece of shared history and it’s fun to celebrate that in many different ways.

Photo: More Good Times

Photo: Bill says he’s fleeing a Raptor but it looks to me much more like he’s about to bury his fist in its nose. Remember Alley Oop?

Photo: Now this looks like fun. Notice they put the kids in front. I’m wondering if there was some strategic planning involved with that.

Photo Left: Here he claims to have pushed over a giant redwood but I’m not buying it. I’m guessing he had at least two other guys helping him and it looks like one of them had a big saw. So, is it Alley Oop or Paul Bunyan?

Thanks for sharing this Bill. I hope it inspires others to share their activities so we can all enjoy hearing about good times.

Classmates, wives, and friends of ’65,

Jerry Merges has asked me to share this invitation to the annual Founders Day Celebration at The Villages:

It is a pleasure to invite you and yours to our annual Founders Day Celebration.

Please click on the link below for the invitation, details, and mailing instructions. Simply print out the invitation, fill in the blanks and you know the rest.

Additionally, if you would like an official WPSTV Name badge, kindly add $10 per badge to the total.

We are looking forward to a great day on March 15, 2015 at the Eisenhower Recreation Center, MacArthur Room, 12-2 PM.

Strength and Drive

West Point Society of The Villages Menu-Invitation -2015

Thanks Jerry, I wish I could join you.

Classmates, wives, and friends of ‘65

On Saturday, Bob Wolfe asked me to share this with you all. Unfortunately I have been dealing with a pretty ugly computer virus and it took until today for my son (a former Microsoft employee) to get me back on line. I’m still not back to 100% but at least I can get some work done.

Anyway, Bob is making available one of the few remaining opportunities to share some time with our Affiliation Class. This is the annual combined Dinner and Reception for The Society of American Military Engineers (SAME) and The Army Engineer Association (AEA). By the way, our Class President, Clair Gill, is also the President of The Army Engineer Association.

Here is the invitation Bob asked me to share:
AEA Individual and Supporting Firm Members are invited to attend the SAME/AEA dinner honoring the 2015 Class of USMA cadets to be branched into the Corps of Engineers.

The New York Post of SAME and AEA are seeking Industry support and participation in this annual event at the United States Military Academy, West Point.
BG Anthony C. Funkhouser, Commandant of the Engineer School, is invited as Guest of Honor.

View details here:
http://reg.abcsignup.com/reg/event_page.aspx?ek=0044-0014-468C7690EF304859B26EF61FBED89FA9

For additional assistance, contact AEA, Kirstina Colvin, 703-428-6953, finance@armyengineer.com

Thank you for your support of AEA and the U.S. Army Engineer Regiment.

Jack
Jack O'Neill
Colonel, US Army Corps of Engineers (Retired)
Executive Director, Army Engineer Association
703-428-6049
www.armyengineer.com

Thank you Bob – sorry for the delay.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Doug Gibson, who has been doing such a terrific job filling in for Paul Schultz with the PMEE program, sent me a quick note to point out that one of the last sessions of the PMEE for this year was pretty heavily impacted by the recent big storm. Only about half of the folks who had signed up from the classes of 65, 66, and 67 were able to make it because many of the highways in the area were closed. Even Doug was unable to attend. I’m told that there were a total of 21 of us old guys who made it (2 from 65, 11 from 66, and 8 from 67). The stalwarts from our Class were Emery Chase (on the left) and Jack Jannarone (on the right) shown here, obviously having a good time in spite of the foul weather. The next shot was just an opportunity to share that there was some  white stuff on the ground at our old Rockbound Highland Home. As if anything else would be needed to add to the gloom of the “Gloom Period”.

Thanks to Emery and Jack for carrying our banner (so to speak). I’m sure they represented us well in this most important program.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Yesterday I received this very nice message and great photos from Harry Haines regarding a visit with Larry and Kathy Leskovjan. They seemed to be having a great time at the Copacabana Restaurant and while their sign “C-2 FOREVER” says a lot about their past, I found the sign behind theirs to be very telling also. In case you can’t read it, it says “Hard Work Doesn’t Guarantee You Anything, But Without it, You Don’t Stand A Chance!” Pat Riley. (Neither Harry nor I know who Pat Riley is, but I think he nailed it with that comment) I imagine we have all discovered the truth in that over the years.

Harry writes:

Here are three photos of our visit with Larry and Kathy Leskovjan on 9 January, 2015.  Larry chose the Copacabana, a very nice Cuban restaurant in Jupiter Florida for our meeting place, exactly forty nine years and seven months since we stood our last formation at Michie Stadium and last saw each other.  Larry and I celebrated our fond memories of the 2 years we spent together in old Company C-2 and caught up on the intervening years of our lives!  Both our charming ladies got along splendidly, and we all left with the fixed opinion that life had indeed been very good to each of us.

Larry and Harry (L to R) reviving the fields of friendly strife while remembering the fine old days of C-2. Photo 3

Harry and Dolly Haines with Kathy and Larry Leskovjan

We all had a great time and what a wonderful way to start out our golden year of 2015!

Thank you Harry, how’s your shoulder feeling after that arm wrestling with Larry? By the way, I don’t see a ring on either of you – what gives?

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Wow, now here is a good friend helping out his old buddy.  I asked for a some pictures and stories to get us going again after a bit of a slow down for the Holidays and my good friend Harley Moore didn’t hesitate. He leaped into the breach (so to speak) and sent me a super set of pictures describing an obviously wonderful visit by Curt Adams and his lovely wife Ann to Harley and Myrna’s retirement home in Merida

New Year's greetings from our retirement home in Merida, Yucatan, Mexico (and yes, we have finally retired after threatening for several years).  This last week Curt Adams and wonderful wife, Ann (she and I were high school classmates and friends in Augusta, Georgia) visited us.  Here are a few pictures of that visit and our hanging out in Merida and surrounding Mayan areas.

Photo Right: Myrna, Harley, Ann, and Curt at the Hacienda Ochil

Photo 3: Curt, Ann, Myrna, & Harley with our 8 ft tall Katrina “doll” &15 ft living room ceilings

Photo 4 & Photo 5: Ann and Curt at the cenote and arch at the Hacienda Ochil    

Photo Left: Myrna, Harley, Ann, and Curt at the Kabah Mayan ruins (smaller and less grand than Chichen Itza or Uxmal)

I don’t know, Harley, this looks pretty grand to me and I’ve been to Chichen Itza. For those of you who, like me, have to go to a map to find out where Harley is hanging out these days, I thought I would save you some time. That’s him right at the end of that arrow. That puts him pretty close to the Las Vegas of Mexico, Cancun.

Thanks Harley, Curt and wives, great visit, great pictures and very nice to hear from you. Next time please include some more pictures of your home.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Bob Frank, our Class Historian, just brought to our attention an opportunity to purchase a beautiful “Challenge Coin” which not only provides a nice keepsake but also supports the Class Fund of our soon to graduate Affiliation Class of 2015. Bob writes:

I just became aware of this opportunity to have a memento of the Class of 2015.  The West Point Parent Club of New Jersey is offering a "Challenge Coin" with the USMA and 2015 crests on it.  It is a great keepsake, as well as a way to help the Class of 2015 build their Class Fund.  We, the Class of 1965, have supported the Class of 2015 in a number of ways during their cadet days, but purchase of these coins will have an impact after their graduation.  I bring it to the attention of the Class so that anyone interested can know how to obtain one of these commemorative items.

Bob Frank

Bob got his information from Cadet Will Goodwin, President of the Class of 2015, who shared the following message from the West Point Parents Club of New Jersey (WPPCNJ). Note that at the end of the message is a link with a form which you can print and send in should you choose to support this project. The order form also contains a picture of the coin.

Final Call for (WPPCNJ) 2015 Challenge Coin Class Fund Project

The WPPCNJ announces the final call for ordering the 2015 Challenge Coin.  We have a few hundred coins in current inventory and we will place one final re-stocking order to the vendor in late January.  All orders received by January 23, 2015 will be honored with the current stock coupled with our final re-stock order (3-4 week delivery period).  Any orders received after January 23rd will be on a first come first served basis until the stock is depleted.

The WPPCNJ each year since 2012 has undertaken a project to provide a donation to each Class Fund.  This project involves the production and sale of a Commemorative Challenge Coin.  This Challenge Coin is of remarkable quality and detail and has been a big hit with the families and special friends of the Cadets since we first initiated the project.  100% of the Profits are donated to each Class Fund and it is managed by parent volunteers.  In 2012, our first year, we were able to donate $3596 to the 2012 Class Fund, in 2013 we donated $13759, in 2014 the amount grew to $20303.  For 2015 we expect to be able to donate in excess of $25,000 to the 2015 Class Fund.

The order form may be obtained from the attached Word Document or on line at:

http://www.tinyurl.com/WPPCNJ2015CCmfg

Very Respectfully,

Joel Boroff
Co-Chair, 2015 WPPCNJ Challenge Coin Class Fund Project boroffj@gmail.com

Robert Mosera
Co-Chair, 2015 WPPCNJ Challenge Coin Class Fund Project rt1057@msn.com

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

As most of you are aware, Doug Gibson has stepped up to finish off the PMEE Program for Paul Schultz who is recovering from esophageal cancer surgery. Doug has been doing an outstanding job with the PMEE as Paul did before him, and has asked me to share this message concerning an opportunity to get involved next month with one of our last activities with our Affiliation Class while they are still cadets. Additionally, Doug was kind enough to share a brief update on Paul’s condition along with a request that we reach out to give Paul some support. Here is Doug’s message:

The last session of our PMEE will be on 23 February 2015. We have 14 classmates scheduled to participate in the January session and would love to add some to the Feb one.  I know it's not the best time weather wise, but just think of all the wonderful memories of February at West Point that could be brought back!!!  On a serious note, this is one of the finest interactions with the Cadets that I could think of having and you really get to see what a wonderful group of people are making up the Class of 2015.  If anyone is interested in participating or more details please contact me at gibsondg5@aol.com.

I spent some time with Paul Schultz this afternoon.  He is recuperating at home from esophageal cancer surgery.  He came home on 23 Dec and is still restricted to a liquid diet, but is looking great!!!  He says the doctors say the prognosis is good and he hopes to be back on that bike before any of us know it.  His wife, Sabine, is taking great care of him.  I know he would appreciate any notes from classmates. His contact information is:

SCHULTZ  Paul Fredrick, Jr.  
101 Carol St.
Danbury, CT 06810
paul@dmapsonline.com

Doug Gibson

Thank you Doug for stepping up and for the great work you are doing. And thank you Paul for all you have done and best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

I have received several questions regarding the construction photos I recently shared. Most came in the form of, If the Corps has not grown, why are they building new barracks? Ed Simpson was kind enough to do a little research and found this very interesting article:

http://www.nan.usace.army.mil/Media/NewsStories/StoryArticleView/tabid/5250/Article/488071/new-cadet-barracks-increases-space-decreases-cost.aspx

Kinda makes you wonder how we survived for 47 months with the slim pickens we had. Thanks Ed.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Jerry Dernar sent along this great set of pictures which give us a very nice idea of what this latest project is all about. Jerry writes:

I got these photos from the president of our local WP society.  They were new to me, but maybe everyone has already seen them.  In any case, I enjoyed seeing "old" south and "new" south barracks where I served my time in I1 and L1.  I also noted with interest the basketball courts painted on central area.  We used that for space for punishment tours and band box reviews certainly not for recreation.

Thanks Jerry, things seem to be getting a little tight but it’s nice to see what they are doing to the place.

Photo 3 | Photo 4

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

I’m pretty sure we now have “the rest of the story”. I received two accounts of the deed which appear to be consistent, both of which shed much more light on the activities of that night. Let me start by once again sharing the two pictures to help set the stage, so to speak.

I received the first account from Nic Merriam who wrote:

With regard to Minerva and her size Z-bra . . . 
Three points I'd like to bring to everyone's mind --

(1)  Yes, it does say Penn State.  And yes, the Army Team did win that one, a surprise to everyone but us, as I believe Penn State was no. 2 in the nation at the time (I welcome anyone to correct or expand on that).  What I do recall is that after that game, anyone who wore gray was King on that campus, that afternoon and night.

(2)  Back to underwear:  That was the year, a couple of weeks before Penn State, that "BEAT NAVY" panties were being sold to eager buyers in the sinks throughout the barracks.  (Although it was the same black on yellow color scheme, it totally eclipses bananas as a spirit-lifter.)

At this point I would like to interject a quote from the great book, “Every Army Man is With You” by Nicolaus Mills that was highlighted in an earlier message. In Part I of the book, entitled “The Generals”, Mills is telling of the relationship between Westmoreland and Coach Dietzel in which he writes: “Westmoreland’s expectations for Dietzel were dramatized early on at a birthday party the general and his wife hosted for him. As the Dietzel’s walked in, the general’s wife, Kitsy, greeted them warmly. Then, looking directly at Dietzel, she announced, ‘There’s one thing you’ll need to understand right from the beginning.’ After a moment’s pause, she turned around and flipped up her skirt to reveal a pair of black panties with “BEAT NAVY” printed on them in bright gold letters. Kitsy Westmoreland’s gesture caught the Dietzel’s by surprise, but her gesture was not wasted on a coach who had already done two stints at West Point and came with a bag of tricks of his own.” Now that’s my kind of gal!

(3)  Speaking of point (2) above: Maj Gen William C. Westmoreland already had the respect of the Corps of Cadets, but at a pep rally in Washington Hall, he won even greater admiration with his famous declaration, "Beat Navy panties aren't the best thing in the world -- but they're next to it!" 

Yours in reminiscences
     -- Nic 

Thanks Nic, good stuff. Next, we have some additional information from Hal Jenkins who apparently took part in the shenanigans. Hal writes:

It was indeed Penn State.

The "perpetrators" were Terry Tutchings, Chuck McCloskey, Dan Speilman and Hal Jenkins.  There may have been another but my brain cells have suffered with the passage of time.  At any rate the event took place after Taps before the Penn State game our 2nd Class year .  The library was not yet finished and we had to hang Dan from his ankles ( he was the smallest of us) to put the bra in Minerva's hand.  It was six plus feet below the edge. 

The two folks in the picture must have been there on a lark after the fact as it was dark as all get out around midnight when the deed was done and we were in our darkest attire without hats of any kind. Perhaps they were there to take it down after the game.

I am not sure how the powers that be found out who was involved but the following year at the meal before the Ring Hop the Supe mentioned this skullduggery among other accomplishments by our class and that the "perpetrators" were commanding and administrating (his word not mine) Company E2.  Chuck was the CO. Dan the XO.  Terry the 1st Sgt and I was the Admin Officer. 

Take good care,
Hal

Thanks Hal, more good stuff. So there you have what appears to be the total story. Ah, the fun we had back in the day.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

Yesterday I received this great message with a super picture (I kinda messed around with it to make it easier to see what was happening) from our very overworked IT guru, Chuck Nichols. Here’s Chuck’s message:

I have been working on digitizing old pictures and slides and I came across this one.  I think it was before the Army-Penn State game.  If my memory serves me right (and I don't believe in my memory these days) Terry Tutchings was the perpetrator of this greatest of great stunts.  He hung an over-sized bra off the hand of Minerva, the Goddess of Wisdom, on the front of the Cadet Library.  I can't make out the sign exactly to determine if it was Penn State but you can make out "I Dreamed I Saw Army Beat ... in my Madenform Bra."

Perhaps the perpetrator will fess up now that he can't get slugged for the "offense" and will clarify what game it was.

Happy New Year to all.

I checked and the statute of limitations has definitely expired for this type of offense. So, with any luck, the real perpetrator will step up with “the rest of the story”.

Isn’t interesting to look back at how little it took to entertain (or maybe I should say titillate) us back in the day. Now that I think of it, it doesn’t take much more, even today, for some of us. By the way, I noticed that even though the words of the old Maidenform Bra commercial suggest that the lady is dreaming “in” her bra that Minerva is clearly not “in” hers. I’m guessing that it was easier to put Minerva’s bra in her hand than it would have been to get her “in” it.

Will the real perpetrator please step up and make a clean breast of it (so to speak) and answer these most pressing questions for us? The fact that there are two of you on the roof suggests that we should have a great chance that one of you will break the silence and let us hear from you.

Classmates, Wives, and Friends of '65,

I received a very interesting story from Nic Merriam which brought back many memories for me as I’m sure it will for many of you. The story explains why New Year’s Eve is very special for him and his bride, Darcy. It took a little arm twisting but I was able to get a great shot of Darcy (you can see it below) which was apparently taken about three months after they met as described in the story. Please note that the dress described in the story is the same one shown in the picture sans the mustard spot which was no doubt cleaned much earlier. Here is Nic’s story:

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year.  Today, December 31, is certainly a happy day for me.  In my youth, I had always thought that it was just plain wrong to not be out joyously celebrating “ringing in the New Year.”  (Darcy has never felt that way.)  Fifty-three years ago, during the Christmas fall-out, I was anticipating nothing to do that night.  A day or so after Christmas, a number of us Company A-2 plebes got together to discuss solving that problem.  I don’t know who suggested it -- Jay Stewart is the only one I now remember as being in the group.  Someone suggested that we all go to get a blind date “through the Holland Tunnel.”  The one who drew the “least pro” would win a pot.  (Looking back, I realize it was quite outrageous, but what did I know then?   Darcy says it’s because we were all Male Chauvinist Pigs.)  So I made myself go over there to meet Mrs. Holland and sign up; as I recall, she asked me my height and my age, and nothing else.  A few days later, the CQ told me I had gotten a phone call from the Cadet Hostess – I was to show up at 10 AM on New Year’s Eve. 

At the appointed time I went to Mrs. Holland’s office in Grant Hall, wearing my short overcoat (because that’s what the uniform flag said) and spit-shined shoes.  When I went upstairs to her den, she was at her desk, and in a stuffed chair was the prettiest girl I had ever seen in my life.  As we met, she stood up, and up, and up – still a couple of inches shorter than me.

After that was a whirlwind  -- walking around the snow-covered grounds of West Point (Darcy remembers that it was freezing, her legs were bare, and she was wearing high-heeled shoes), having lunch at the First Class Club in the Ordinance Compound (someone got a spot of mustard on her blue dress), and eventually the hop in the gym (her feet hurt so much from walking around that day she had to take her shoes off), with that kiss at midnight (I thought, Wow!).  The following day we parted with a chaste handshake at the Thayer Hotel as she got her ride back to civilization.  This was my best blind date ever and her only one, and we’re still together.  I just wonder whether anyone else is celebrating a similar event? 
     -- Nic Merriam

Nic, Darcy, and I hope that this will inspire others to share stories of their meeting and/or dating while at the Rock. I’m sure there are many Flirtation Walk stories (some of which might even be PG Rated) which would be fun to share with the Class. Please remember to include a photo with your story, even a current shot would be great. It’s always best to put a face (or faces) with a story.

Thank you Nic, great story. We all wish you many more years of wedded bliss.