Notes of Congratulations for Stich
From: Thomas Abraham
Rollie,
Great honor. I'm glad
for you and proud of you. Well done,
son. I'll join the others in sending something through Rick, but
I wanted to get to you one on one. Well
deserved.
Tom
We're lucky to have such
great guys like Rollie in our class. A
real class act, if you will, and certainly a great athlete.
Rollie, I was proud to be a teammate. Just
wish my knees had held out so i could have gotten more playing time
with you. I'm glad that missed block I had in
the Pitt game didn't cost you a Hall of Fame vote. With all that
you have done, we can say "Well Done", and
more miles to go!
Tom Abraham
From: Chuck Pfeifer
Well done....my little
samurai!! Very Best, Chuck Pfeifer
From: Fred Smith
Rollie, congrats, well done.
I will never forget the 63 and 64 Navy
games. Your introduction on the PA system was Rollie Steewich. I
always
suspected a nefarious Navy plot. But you (and we) got the last
laugh. I can't tell you how many times I tell the story of that
Army Navy
game. A memorable day thanks to you and the whole team.
Fred Smith
From: Cam McConnell
Rollie,
After all these years, I,
too, remember the introduction of “Rollie
Steewich.” I was also delighted to read in the tale of your election
that Roger
Staubach is a good friend of yours and wrote a letter of
recommendation. It is a testimonial to
the “fields of friendly strife,” and shows that determined play does
not make “enemies” of the opponents.
Congratulations! And
thanks for having dedicated yourself to
selflessness in assisting our classmates who have succumbed along the
way. May you have many more good years
to reflect on it all!
Sincerely,
Cam
From: Art Adam
Rollie,
I can’t add much to what has
already been said other than “pop your
chest up!” You make us proud!
Grip Hands,
Art
From: John Wattendorf
Who among us can ever forget
"Rollie's Revenge?" Thanks, Rollie,
for another reason why our firstie year was so special. But as
the years pass, I am more and more convinced
that the real heroes in our class are those who so unselfishly give of
their time and treasure to look after their
brothers from our class when they are in need. Thanks, Tad,
for reminding us that Rollie is much
more than a world-class athlete. Well done, Rollie. I am
proud to be your classmate.
John Wattendorf
From: Tad Ono
No doubt Rollie was the best
all around athlete in our class, but what
I perhaps admire the most about Rollie is how he has been such a good
friend to so many- Parcells, Lewis,
Hall, Kantor, Vogel and Zadel, to whom Rollie has given every measure
of true friendship, including arranging
and carrying out the details of their memorial services. I will
never forget Don telling me how Rollie
just moved in and took care of all his needs when he was afflicted with
brain tumor "just like a
brother". My heartiest congratulations, Rollie, you are a true
friend and leader.
tad
From: Terry Tutchings
This is wonderful.
Terry
From: Roger Frydrychowski
It's about time!
Congratulations to Rollie! Rollie's
personal accomplishments on and off the field certainly warrant the
honor. I sincerely hope that this honor is
also accepted by his stalwart '65 teammates as a measure of their own
superior effort and accomplishment. The efforts of Ross Wollen in
essentially putting together and
originally carrying the campaign and those classmates mentioned who
successfully brought this about are to be
recognized. It should have been a "no-brainer," in my view, but
the Class effort was outstanding. Well
done, all.
Respectfully,
Roger
From: Peter Lounsbury
Congratulations to
Rollie. Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy.
We cheer for you.
Best wishes,
Peter and Heidi Lounsbury
From: Buddy Bucha
Great recognition and
wonderful. Buddy
From: Thomas kelly
Richly deserved by a class
individual. Rollie is always there for
others and exudes the leadership qualities he has demonstrated time and
time again. Congratulations! TJ
From: Ray Woodruff
Rollie’s most outstanding
accomplishment, in my book, was failing WGR’s
in English by .1 more than I did 2nd semester of our Yearling
year. Oddly enough, the red line was
drawn under his name. God Bless Army Football!!
Ray Woodruff
From: Hal Jenkins
OUTSTANDING!!! Hal
From: Bill Triick
This is a well deserved
honor. Congratulations, Rollie.
Bill Triick
From: Ben Whitehouse
I must admit that I have been
mostly absent from our class activities
over the years, but I have very clear memories of Rollie and the Army
team putting the hurt to Roger and the
Navy team. Rollie, thanks for those wonderful memories and
congratulations on this well deserved
recognition.
Peace and all good, Ben
Ben Whitehouse
From: John Mogan
Fantastic! Congrats, Rollie.
John Mogan
From: Joe Defrancisco
Terrific news.
Congratulations Rollie.
Joe DeFrancisco
From: Bob Frank
Yes, it is overdue - but so
then was Rollie's (and the Army Team's)
victory over Navy!
From: Ray Schaltenbrand
Good job Rollie! You
have made us all proud. I am glad that
I was there as an eye witness to see you and
your (our) team on the field
so many times. Ray Schaltenbrand
From: Tom Kovach
Rollie,
Congratulations!
Well deserved although somewhat overdue
considering that in 1964 you arguably engineered the greatest Army Team
victory over any Navy team on any field of
friendly strife in the history of the Academy.
Strength & Drive!
Go Army!
Tom Kovach
From: Ed Armstrong
No one is prouder of Rollie
than I but it falls to me to remember the
double date he fixed me up with who almost got us thrown in jail when
she vehemently argued with a street
cop, who pulled us over for some reason, yelling that he had no right
to detain us because we were West
Point Cadets! Or the time he got tackled so hard his helmet came
off. He ran over, picked it up
and gazed into it for some time. Turns out he was trying to see if he
lost any hair. He also got lots of very
entertaining fan mail as I remember. Congratulations, Rollie, you make
us proud!
Ed Armstrong
From: Rick Kuzman
Congratulation Rollie, A well
earned and deserved honor.
Rick Kuzman
From: Leo Kennedy
Congrats, Rollie. This is
really well deserved. You have done so much
for so many! We salute you!
Leo
From: Bill Sherrell
Congratulations Rollie
"Whichway"( My dad's nickname for Rollie).
I only wish that our team's great lineman, Bill Zadel, was still here
to pass on his congratulations,too!
Bill Sherrell
From: Robert J. Axley
Rollie, living in Dallas the
last 39 years and having to endure
Staubach's legendary competitiveness, it has given me great pleasure to
remind him that we (you and your great
teammates) beat him in the year that really mattered for our class.
Congratulations on this well
deserved honor.
Bob Axley
From: Ralph Locurcio
Great news!!!
Rollie is certainly one of
our most outstanding grads… on and off the
field… a great representative of our motto and values… and certainly
deserving of this recognition and honor!
Congrats Rollie!!!
Strength & Drive…
Ralph
From: James Conley
Rollie, my two most memorable
moments as a Rabble Rouser were
Army’s Staubach’s BEATEN NAVY win and Penn
State. You ’fought the fight’
with a great bunch of football heroes:
CONGRATS, hail to the leader.
All the best,
Jim Conley
From: Dennis Brewer
Congratulations,
Rollie. Your speech in the Mess Hall before that
fateful Army-Navy game was stirring and predicted the game you ably
helped inspire and our Team played.
You richly deserve the Army Sports Hall of Fame honor. Delighted
to see you receive your just due.
Strength and Drive,
Dennis Brewer
From: Bruce Hulin
Never a more deserving
candidate. All your teammates should be proud.
Bruce Hulin
From: Art Mark
Rollie,
Congratulations & best
wishes from a fellow Company B-2 classmate.
You are a great sportsman with tremendous eye and hand coordination. I
know personally and up front as I remember
drawing you to play in a squash class and watched as you "aced'' 11
serves in a row.
Art Mark
From: Skip O'Donnell
Rollie,
This was a longtime coming
for a great quarterback. Who else in
the Army Sports Hall of Fame can say he beat a Heisman Trophy winner
his senior year?
Skip O'D
From: Pat Kenny
Good point Skip!
From: PRESTON HUGHES
Rollie,
Congratulations for this well deserved
honor. Still remember
w/much appreciation your taking the time to go with my
parents to the "Hipshoot Demonstration" I narrated at Ft Sill in the
late spring of 1968, shortly after you
joined T/CAD.
Preston Hughes
From: James McEliece
Rollie, let me add my thanks
for the honor you have brought to the
class, for all your contributions on and
off the field, and for your
warm friendship to Julie and me these many
years.
Jim
From: Bruce Clarke
Rollie:
I am glad that you finally
got your due recognition.
I have been trying to inform
the class about Nate Kantor's contribution
by trying to post the following on the class forum, but it hasn't been
distributed yet.
As a member of what Clair
called the "final push" team I want to convey
to the class the critical role played by Nate Kantor. Nate was
always there to facilitate contacts in
the business and social world to help paint the "whole" picture. He
could always be counted upon to help turn a
phrase. His leadership and stewardship were invaluable. I know
that Nate is now smiling and saying "well
done" from his location of peace.
I would also hope that should the class
encounter any of the gentlemen
who are quoted in the summary of Rollie's accomplishments that they
will thank them for helping make the
deserving happen.
Bruce
From: John Johnson
Stich, thanks so very
much. This is a wonderful honor for all of
us who were privileged to play Army FB with you and who treasure your
friendship. Your HOF selection as an
Army FB player speaks for itself. But, to those of who know you
well, it also speaks to your regard and all you
do in support of WP in general. Go Army!
John
From: Tom Dyer
Rollie,
Thanks so much for your call.
I'm honored to have been
asked to help in the preparation of the
package for your Nomination to the Hall of Fame.
It was most heartening for me
to talk to others about one of my life
long Heroes. It still is!!!
Congratulations, Rollie.
All that was written in the
submission is so true and meaningful. You
are what the Hall of Fame is all about.
I'm proud to know you, Sir.
Thanks for all you've done
for our Alma Mater.
Have a great Memorial Day.
God Bless Our Troops and you
Rollie.
All the best.
Tom
From: Bob Jones
Rollie,
Congrats, it finally
happened. There is no one more
deserving than you to be in the HOF. I'm proud to have been your
teammate, to be your classmate, but most of all to be
your friend. The "Stichweh Suite" will always be reserved for you
and your family any time you can make it
over here. Let me know the details of the induction when you know
them.
Bob
From: Ron Butterfield
Stich
Couldn't have happened to a more
deserving athlete and person.
You are, I am sure, incredibly proud of this honor. You were a
great leader on the field, as a cadet, as an
officer and continue to be a leader as a graduate.
It was my honor and pleasure to have
played football with you and to
have known you.
God Bless you.
Ron
From: Tom Fergusson
Congratulations, Rollie, on
your selection to the Army Sports Hall of
Fame! Absolutely fantastic! I learned of this
exciting news when I went on the Army Sports website
this morning to see what might be going on up at West Point even though
this time of year (soon after
graduation) is normally fairly quiet on the Army sports front.
The Army baseball team had a great season
and got into the NCAA playoffs but has already been knocked out, so I
wasn't expecting to find much in the way
of exciting news, but how wrong I was!
This is the best possible news, letting
Army sports fans and the world
know about an honor extremely well deserved by my plebe year roommate
and dear friend of many years, who
also happened to be the most outstanding all round athlete of the USMA
class of 1965 bar none and
one of our finest leaders on and off the field.
I'm sure you've been aware of this news
for several days at least, but
here's the direct link to yesterday's article on the Army Black Knights
home page in case you missed it:
http://www.goarmysports.com/genrel/061112aac.html I am thinking,
but I'm not sure, that you may be the first member of
our class to receive this very special honor. Perhaps Jerry
Merges and/or Bud Bucha were selected for
their All-American swimming exploits or one of our lacrosse All
Americans like Tom Sheckells could have been first,
but it doesn't matter. If you were not the first classmate to go
into the Army Sports Hall of Fame, you
should have been in my humble opinion! In any case,
June, Robin, and I are excited for you, Carole, your
daughters, and your grandchildren and also for all of our classmates,
especially your Army football teammates
because I know that you, as captain of the outstanding 1964 Army team
that finally beat Roger Staubach and Navy,
will insist this honor be shared with them!
The article that I read indicates that
the Army Sports Hall of Fame
class of 2012 will be inducted in September. That will be a great day
for Rollie Stichweh, the Stichweh
family, and every member of the class of Strength and Drive, those
still with us and those who have
departed! We are all so proud of you.
Tom
From: Jim Stephenson
Rollie,
Great news and well deserved!
Congratulations for this particular honor
and also for a lifetime career of remarkable achievement.
All the Best,
Jim
From: Jose Sanchez
Rollie,
My heartfelt congratulations
for a well deserved honor. Nancy joins me
in the congratulations. Don, Bill, Denny and Nate are looking down and
smiling
and celebrating your well deserved honor. I am honored to count you as
a
Classmate and friend.
Best regards,
Joe
From: Jim Hennen
Rollie,
I can't think of anyone who is more
deserving of this honor than
you. It was a distinct pleasure playing with you and even more
fun watching you play from the sidelines.
It is with pride that I send this to a teammate and a friend.
I regret many times living
abroad for 22 years simply because I lost
touch with all of my friends from West Point, primarily teammates like
you, Don, Billy, Denny, Ray and
John. Seeing everyone's interaction at our 30th reunion made me
realize how much I had missed.
In any event, congratulations
for a job(s) well done and an honor
richly deserved.
All the best,
Jim Hennen
From: Bob Frank
Let me add my congratulations
to those of your other Classmates and
those of your teammates. This is a long-overdue honor, which you
richly deserve. We have long ago
seen your athletic prowess, but few of us know the extent of your
service to the Academy over the 47 years since
our graduation. Furthermore, your loyalty and support of your
Classmates and their wives has been
exemplary, if barely noticed by the majority of Strength and
Drive. Your qualities of character and
contributions are admired by more than you may realize, and it was in
that light that Clair and Dan took such a strong
personal interest in "fixing" an injustice that has been allowed to
linger for far too long. While
you have always been a distinguished graduate, this selection publicly
recognizes that fact, just as Ric's
and Dan's selection as Distinguished Graduate did in that venue.
Congratulations and my
deepest appreciation for what you have done and
continue to do for the Class and the Academy.
From: Bob Bradley
Congrats, Couldn't happen to
a nicer guy. Shame Denny Lewis can't enjoy
it, too
From: Chuck Moseley
I am so proud of you! This is
a well deserved honor and long time
coming!
Last week I ran across an old
US Airways monthly in flight magazine
featuring the Army Navy game and a picture of you somersaulting into
the end
zone! Great memories!
Cathy and I are honored to
have you and Carol as friends. BTW,
tell Carol I have scheduled the second knee replacement in January,
removing the
bowness as well so I will be a little taller.
Blessings
Chuck (& Cathy)
From: Tony Pyrz
Huge congratulations,
Rollie. You absolutely deserve the Hall of
Fame. Enjoy the tributes you so thoroughly earned. It was
an honor to call you a teammate and a
classmate. Now if you'd just work on your golf game.
Well done,
Tony P.
From: DAVID LA ROCHELLE
Great news. Glad to see some
of the class of 65 getting recognized.
Dave
From: Bernie Ziegler
Rollie,
What a very nice and well deserved
tribute to a great friend, classmate
and soldier!
Bernie Ziegler
From: Orlin Mullen
Great news. This richly
deserved and long due honor could not go
to a nicer gentlemen, nor to a more outstanding classmate and carrying
the heart-felt support of classmates
now departed. Thank-you for circulating the news.
S&D. Orlin Mullen
From: Ron Walter
Rollie,
Congratulations!!!!
Once again, you have made us all
extremely proud to call you a
classmate, friend and comrade in arms. This is a very
well-deserved recognition and one that has clearly been
supported by the class as well as others who have known you and your
accomplishments throughout the years.
Like others in our class, I will always remember our victory over Navy
as the highlight of my Cadet career, and
I will always marvel at your unbelievable performance in leading our
team to victory that day.
And having been privileged to serve with you in the 173d on my first
tour in RVN, I will likewise remember our
mutual support of my old 1-503 Recon Platoon's combat assaults after we
both made captain and moved onto our
respective staffs.
My very best to you and yours on the
occasion of this very special
award.
Ron
From: Chuck Shaw
Congratulations Rollie on
your appointment to the Army Sports Hall of
Fame! John Seymour was nice enough to send along a note saying
you have been selected to this most honorable
group of men in West Point Athletics history. What a
well-deserved honor it is for you, and I am
sincerely happy for you, Carrol and your family. I’m proud to
know you and glad you have received this wonderful
recognition, not only for your excellent athletic ability and
performance, but for your outstanding career and
contributions to West Point in general. I loved reading the
letters of recommendation John included from
the distinguished company you keep!
Way to go Rollie!
Sincerely,
Chuck
From: John Seymour
Stich
Finally almost 1/2
CENTURY....yikes, we are getting aged! It was
certainly an effort that so many of us believed in, a reflection of an
era when Army could still compete on
the national stage, when sports was still a game, not a business. Great
memories to be shared with those
that remain but most importantly with family and friends who can
appreciate the man as much as his
accomplishments. Thank you for the advance notice...I do hope you can
arrange to come to CA in September.
As always my love to Carole
C'Mo
From: Dan Donaghy
Rollie
Congratulations on an
award well deserved. I
feel proud to be serving with you on the cadets' PMEE program. It
would be great to see that Navy game's first "instant
replay" once again. Best regards.
Dan Donaghy
From: Roger Griffin
Rollie -
Trisha and I just returned from a short
trip to Florida and I read
about the wonderful honor of being inducted to the HOF. Certainly
well deserved and not just on any
of your athletic accomplishments, but also for your life's worth of
contributions to WP, Classmates, Family and
Community.
Warmest Regards -
Roger
From: ED Knauf
Congrats. Couldn't be
more deserving. I am much better
these days and will try to make the Sept affair. Ed
From: Jim Harmon
Rollie - In quarterbacking
the team, you taught the rest of us how to
lead. Thanks.
It was also great fun watching you play.
Best.
Jim Harmon
From: Joe McChristian
Rollie,
Congratulations on receiving this
recognition for your outstanding
accomplishments! You are an inspiration to all who know you and now
your legacy on the fields of friendly strife
will continue to inspire those who follow. I am honored to know you and
consider myself a fortunate man to
be able to call you a friend.
With friendship, respect and
admiration,
Joe
From: Mike O'Grady
Rollie,
It is a great pleasure to
join all of our classmates in congratulating
you for this long overdue honor.
You are so deserving, not
only for your accomplishments as, we think,
the best all-around athlete in US college football of our time, but for
all
those distinguished further accomplishments in the ensuing 45 years of
military and civilian Service. That's Service with an intentional
capital S.
Michael and Barbara O'Grady
From: Bob Selkis
Rollie: Congratulations –
well deserved!!! Bob
From: Ray Pollard
Isn't this about 40 years
overdue? Congratulations to Rollie in any
event!
From: Chuck McCloskey
Rollie,
Great news about your selection to the
Army Sports Hall of Fame. You
have led a fabulous life filled with generous and caring service to
others. You set the standard as an
athlete and as a person. We are all proud of you. Well done!
Chuck
From: Jon Thompson
Rollie,
I am very proud to send my sincere
congratulations for this important and long overdue honor. I talk
to Bob Jones often and he has kept me up to date on the incredible
activities you have consistently been involved in with our class,
particularly helping others. Rollie,
I am proud to be your classmate. Dad Thompson (Jon)
From: Russell Campbell
Rollie, what great news on
your being inducted into the Army Hall of
Fame. You, Carole, and family should be very proud of this
recognition as are all your classmates!
You are a very special person and have done so much behind the scenes
on behalf of West Point, our classmates, and
families. And, I am personally grateful for having worked
with you and benefitted from your advice and counsel
in a number of situations. Congratulations
Rollie!! Thanks for all that
you have done and will no doubt continue to do on behalf of West
Point and our class. All the best, Russ.
From: Ken Yoshitani
Rollie,
Congratulations! You have been the most
deserving and at the same time
the most neglected. By the way, I disagree with the award to you as
Army "Sports" Hall of Fame. I
strongly believe the award should be Army Hall of Fame because you have
had an outstanding and exemplary life off
the field which contributed so much more to West Point, Army, and the
USA. We are all proud of you and
honored to have you as classmate.
Ken
From: Rick Bunn
Rollie,
I want to offer my sincerest
congratulations on the award and my
apology that I was not able to share it with the Class for you. I have
been on the road, driving my motor home from
Arizona to Washington State. The announcement came while I was
traveling, so, while I was aware of it, I
was unable to respond and share it with everyone. Fortunately, my
arrangements with Clair and Chuck paid
off and the Class was notified.
Many of our classmates have chosen to
respond by hitting “reply” or
“reply all” to the announcement. Unfortunately, that only sends their
message to Chuck and me. Because
of that, I will be forwarding all those messages on to you right away,
but wanted to explain first.
I couldn’t be happier about this news
and am looking at ways I may be
able to join you at the ceremony in September.
Your efforts, being celebrated with this
award, have been the source of
tremendous pride for all of us for all these years. You are a constant
inspiration and demonstrate so well
what we had in mind when we came up with “Strength and Drive”. Thank
you.
Best Regards,
Rick
From: James Helberg
Rollie,
Congratulations. Good
news and well deserved.
Jim Helberg
From: John Malpass
Rollie, as far as I’m
concerned you were the best! I always
appreciated that you considered the stalwarts that ran track and did
their thing to provide lung power will you guys
provided your bodies. My best congratulations to you, as no one
deserved it more!
I’m so happy for you!
That’s such a great accomplishment,
and so well deserved!
Regards,
John
P.S. You beat Texas and Navy in 1963 as
far as I’m concerned!
From: Mike Leibowitz
Rollie, In my book you've
been a "Hall of Famer" since we met at plebe
football practice.
Leibo
From: James Greene
Rollie,
I regret that I have never
known you as a close friend, but I have
always been proud to be your classmate.
You emulate and personify the
ideals and values of our alma mater and
our class.
Strength & Drive
Jim Greene
From: FREDRIC LAUGHLIN
Rollie:
I'll add to what has been a
burgeoning pile of congratulations from
classmates. A large number of them have already been expressed on the
list-server
and I've no doubt that dozens more will come through direct emails.
Particularly
pleasing to me are the comments that go past the obvious success you
had on the
field of friendly strife to emphasize your leadership in so many other
areas. I
hope you realize that these expressions of respect from classmates like
me stem
as much from knowing you as a person as from watching you on the
football
field.
I don't think I've seen the
class so unified in its response. Nor can I
think of a better reason for it. Congratulations, Rollie. You make us
all proud.
S&D,
Fred
From: Gene Manghi
I am joining the late ranks
of those heaping praise on Rollie.
Tad put it well, so all I can
do is repeat what he said. In addition to
athletic ability, Rollie has the character needed to care for others
which he has shown in many ways.
Both attributes require a lot of effort to improve what comes naturally.
Gene Manghi
From: Jim Berry
Rollie,
I’ll jump on JP’s coattails
on this one. I couldn’t be prouder
than to have had you as my classmate. Having you as the leader of
the football team gave you great credentials on
the field. Since graduation, you’ve done some marvelous work off
the football field. All of that fit
nicely into a package that was easy for the Sports Hall of Fame
committee to select you. Best of luck in the
future, Rollie.
Jim Berry, S&D ‘65
From: Dick Chaffer
Hello Rollie,
Add my congratulations to you
among the many.Like others, I would have
thought you were long ago a member of the Army Hall of Fame. Until
seeing that video a few years ago, I had forgotten - or never knew -
that you finished the last play of THE GAME by tackling Roger Staubach.
An all-around athlete, for sure. Also, THAT Army team that you led was
a definite contender among some of the nation's football powers. Wow.
In your never-ending support
of Tim Vogel, and in many other
situations, you have showed yourself to be a true leader and an
outstanding class spokesman. We were all thankful for your eulogies and
descriptions of fallen class members - just one that stands out in my
mind is your description of services for Don Parcells.
Thank you for your fine
service, and congratulations on an honor long
overdue and richly deserved.
Dick Chaffer
From: Tim Thames
Fantastic!!!!
Congratulations Rollie. Of course, when this
announcement was made I had another Goat moment. I had just
assumed for the last 40 or so years that you were
already in there. It never occurred to me that others would be
and you wouldn't have been there years ago. This
incredibly overdue. Congratulations again!
Tim Thames
From: Bob Axley
Rollie, living in Dallas the
last 39 years and having to endure
Staubach's legendary competitiveness, it has given me great pleasure to
remind him that we (you and your great
teammates) beat him in the year that really mattered for our class.
Congratulations on this well
deserved honor.
Bob Axley
From: Jerry Eichelberger
Congratulations Rollie.
Well deserved! Well done!
Jerry Eichelberger
From: Mack Gill
Rolllie makes us all proud to
be members of the Class of '65. A
well deserved honor to a great Amercan. Mack Gill
From: Frank Meier
Rick, tried to send to Rollie but
bounced back. Please forward.
Well deserved honor to an excellent
athlete, classmate, and person. A
real privilege to you and the Army Team.
Had the privilege to spot the
Army games and will never forget the
pandemonium in the press box when ref suddenly started the clock in
1963 and with crowd noise the team did
not realize. The man spotting for Navy refused to accept our bet on the
game saying, "lets base it on next
year's first 23 seconds". And as you know it was close to that when
Staubach was tackled in end zone.
Frank Meier
From: Jon King
Rollie,
Congratulations on being
elected to the Army Sports Hall of Fame!
Many thanks for being who you
are as not much can be said by me that has not already been said by so
many of our classmates.
Thanks
also for making all of us in the class of 1965 so incredibly proud of
all of your outstanding unparalleled accomplishments.
You
are one terrific Classmate, West Pointer, Soldier, Distinguished
Citizen, and Business Leader who we all Greatly Admire and Appreciate!
All the best,
Jon King
Strength and Drive
From: Jerry Merges
Rollie,
a well deserved honor
as you have seen by the many
emails, we are all proud of you and your accomplishments
Strength and Drive
Jerry
From: Ric Shinseki
Rollie
– I know that this
well-deserved, long overdue, and welcomed recognition has generated a
lot of excitement and congratulations from all of our Classmates and
your friends over many years. Patty and I could not be more proud
of you and to know someone who genuinely cares about his friends.
We should all be as good at this. You have made us all proud for
many years now, back to a time when we personally witnessed your
leadership both on and off the field. Congratulations for this
most deserved recognition. All of us join the men you suited up
with in cheering this selection. You make this Class very proud
to know and be associated with
you.
With warmest regards -- Ric Shinseki
From: Bob Wolff
Congratulations,
Rollie--you make us proud. On and off the field, you are a
tribute to sportsmanship, soldiership and citizenship.
On
another note, thank you to the many classmates who provided prayers and
good wishes on my heart surgery. I came home on Father's Day
after four hard days in the hospital. For all of you that have
gone through major surgery, I am sure you have experienced the
frustration during recovery. I thought the toughest thing I had
done was Ranger School--but I think surgery is a strong second.
Again, Phyllis and I thank you for your love and support during this
difficult time for us. Strength and Drive, Bob Wolff
From: Jim Tomaswick
Rollie
Finally you get the
recognition you deserve!
You have always been there
for West Point, the Class of 1965, your friends and family.
There are many anecdotes
about your commitment, leadership, and friendship.
Among the many, I recall one
Army-Navy weekend way back in 1989 when we were sitting around the
Class Suite after the big game. Our 25th reunion was coming up
the next year and no one had come forward to lead, plan, organize, and
execute it. Some questioned if we would even have a 25th reunion.
Then you and Bill Zadel
stepped up and took on full responsibility for the task. As we
all know, it was a fantastic reunion and I believe it brought the class
that much closer.
Way to GO!
Swick
From: Gene Manghi
This is to add my personal
congratulations [a little late because of my poor typing skills] and to
let you know I’ll be at the Stony Brook game to see the ceremony.
Gene
From: Tom Carll
Stich,
You made us all proud you were our classmate/teammate in the fall of
'64 and even more proud in the summer of 2012.
Stay Well,
Tom Carll
From: Jim Berry
Rollie,
I’ll jump on JP’s coattails on this one. I couldn’t be prouder
than to have had you as my classmate. Having you as the leader of
the football team gave you great credentials on the field. Since
graduation, you’ve done some marvelous work off the football
field. All of that fit nicely into a package that was easy for
the Sports Hall of Fame committee to select you. Best of luck in
the future, Rollie.
Jim Berry, S&D ‘65
From: Steve Ganshert
Congratulation on the your induction. I am proud to have
you as a classmate.
Steve Ganshert F-2
From: Dennie Sellers
Rollie-Just got home and read about your induction into Army Sports
Hall of Fame. Most deserved. In addition to all the achievements listed
in your career, I think it is also appropriate(as you did in your
email) to cite the level of competition Army faced in those days-Big
Ten( Michigan,Minnesota),Texas,Syracuse,Pitt,Penn State(who we beat 3
of 4 years) and the great players from those teams-Dave Robinson(Penn
State), John Mackey, Jim Nance, Floyd Little(Syracuse), Tommy Nobis,
Ernie Koy(Texas), Mike Curtis(Duke). All went on to become great NFL
players in addition to Staubach. Texas was always playing for No. 1 in
the country and many believed Pitt to be one of the best in the country
in 1963. I remember us laughing at Jim Nance during warmups our Plebe
year and how chubby he was for a back. Were you in the defensive
backfield when he broke through the line on that long touchdown run. I
still believe if your 70plus yard touchdown run before halftime had not
been called back Army would have beaten No. 1 Texas and the 1964 season
would have ended much different. While not possible, I think it would
be great if your award could be presented in the old Municipal
Stadium(Philadelphia) to recognize your efforts in 1963 and 1964 in
front of 102,000 fans with Don Parcells, Bill Zadel, Mike Berdy,Denny
Lewis,Tim Vogel and Nate Kantor in the stands and the award given to
you by Roger Staubach. Dennie Sellers
From: Tommy Thompson
Congratulations Rollie, you exemplify the best in all-around athletes.
Glad to have known you. Still think we got hosed at the end of the ‘63
Navy game.....Regards, Tommy Thompson
From: Ed Armstrong
No one is prouder of Rollie than I but it falls to me to remember the
double date he fixed me up with who almost got us thrown in jail when
she vehemently argued with a street cop, who pulled us over for some
reason, yelling that he had no right to detain us because we were West
Point Cadets! Or the time he got tackled so hard his helmet came
off. He ran over, picked it up and gazed into it for some time.
Turns out he was trying to see if he lost any hair. He also got lots of
very entertaining fan mail as I remember.
Congratulations, Rollie, you make us proud!
Ed Armstrong
Bill Triick
This is a well deserved honor. Congratulations, Rollie.
Bill Triick
From: Mack Gill
Rolllie makes us all proud to be members of the Class of '65. A
well
deserved honor to a great Amercan. Mack Gill
From: Gene Farmelo
Rollie--Couldn't happen to a nicer guy...gene
From: Jim Seaburn
Congratulations Rollie. It's long overdue and long deserved. You were the leader of a "band of brothers", who did us all proud.
Strength and Drive.
Jim Seaburn
From: Jim Mirando
Congratulations Rollie! I can't believe it took so many years to
recognize your unbelievable accomplishments on the football field. If
it takes this long I guess that shows how great you must be to be
inducted. I am very proud of you and of having the privilege of
knowing you. I guess I have a soft spot for a fellow Long Island
athlete. You are an asset to our Class of 1965 with all
that you have done over the years. You are a great friend to so
many. Jim Mirando
From: Andrew Berdy
Since my brother Mike is not with us to send his personal note of
congratulations, I would like to do so in his stead. I have known
Rollie since I was a kid when I and our parents spent so many wonderful
weekends together up at West Point reveling in the experience of Army
football. I only wish that Mike was still around to see this
event but I suspect 'Old Igor' and my folks are looking down from the
heavens with great big smiles on their faces. Rollie, congrats
from the Berdy clan! As ever, Andy