arrowHome arrow News arrow USMA News arrow Family Tradition Shines at West Point Ring Melting Ceremony Thursday, 24 July 2008  
Main Menu
Home
News
Contact Us
Search
Photos
Message Board
Information
Database
Memorial Articles
WP-ORG Memorial Pages
Useful LInks
USMA Home Page
AOG
Handbook for Graduated Class Officers
West-Point.org
Army Sports Scores
ISABRD
West Point Women
Sign up for the Class Listserve
Administrator
Family Tradition Shines at West Point Ring Melting Ceremony PDF Print E-mail
Written by Administrator   
Saturday, 04 March 2006
The Long Gray Line Continues As Rhode Island Refinery Melts Rings Of 12 West Point Graduates To Be Used For Class of 2007 Rings

WARWICK, R.I., March 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Twelve West Point Class Rings will be donated on Monday, March 6 at the U.S. Military Academy's 6th annual Ring Melting Ceremony at Rhode Island refinery Pease & Curren. The rings will be melted into a gold bar, which will be used in the rings for West Point's Class of 2007. Each new ring will contain particles from the rings of the twelve West Point officers, creating a physical link between generations of graduates.

Family is an important theme at the event as more than 40 family members, graduates and cadets will gather for the ceremony. Some, like the Burhans family of Woodstock, NY, will travel en masse to donate the rings of their loved ones. Eight members of this family will join together to honor Lieutenant Colonel Edmund Burhans II, their husband, father and grandfather.

Others, like Colonel John DiGrazia, a thirty-year veteran of the Army, will travel across the country so his ring will continue down the long gray line. But for this 78-year-old Nevada resident, this journey is especially personal. His nephew, Cadet Sergeant Daniel Fisher is a member of the Class of 2007. Upon graduation, Cadet Fisher's own ring will contain a piece of his uncle's.

Debbie Drum English also has a family story to tell. Her father, Colonel James Hunter Drum, was one of many Drum family members to serve in the army.

"I didn't want my father's ring sitting around in a jewelry box, found every so often," said English. "By donating the ring, my father will always be a part of the corps of cadets. I know he would be proud of that."

...

The event will be held at Pease & Curren, a Warwick, RI precious metals refinery that has hosted the event for the past 5 years. The company's involvement originally began at the suggestion of the company's vice president of sales, Keith Edwards (USMA class of 1985).

"West Point has a long-standing history of tradition and excellence, values we try and emulate in our company," said Meredith Curren, a third generation owner and CEO of Pease & Curren. "So when Keith brought up the idea, we were thrilled to be able to help out."

"As a family-owned company in its 90th year of business, tradition has always been important to us," Curren added "We are honored to be able to help continue the legacy of West Point's Long Gray Line."

Story here
Last Updated ( Monday, 06 March 2006 )
 
< Prev
Newsflash
We're compiling a list of class "firsts". What memorable thing was our class the first (or last) to experience? Who was the first in our class to -get married, have a child attend USMA, join the Navy? If you have suggestions, send them to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
 
Army Headline News
  • Stephen Scherer To Be Interviewed On NRA News.Com Wednesday

    Army rifleman Stephen Scherer, a member of the 2008 U.S. Olympic Shooting Team (men's 10 meter air rifle) will be featured on NRA News.com Wednesday evening, July 23, when he joins host Cam Edwards for a phone interview. The 10-15 segment will be aired on Sirius Satellite Radio Channel 144 at 11:20 p.m. or by clicking onto NRA News.com.
  • Nora Jabbour Promoted To Assistant Women's Basketball Coach

    After a one-year stint as the Army women's basketball program's director of basketball operations, Nora Jabbour will spend the 2008-09 season in an assistant coach capacity following her promotion announcement on Wednesday afternoon.
  • Black Knight Blog Now Available

    Another avenue for Army fans to stay in tune with events happening at West Point will debut on Tuesday, July 22. The Office of Athletic Communications has developed the Black Knight Blog, which will be a running web log that offers fans an even more in-depth look into Army Athletics.
  • Army-USC Volleyball Match To Air Live On ESPNU

    When the Army volleyball team takes the court against national powerhouse Southern California this fall, fans around the nation will have the opportunity to watch the action. In conjunction with the Army Athletic Association's exclusive multimedia deal with ESPN Inc., the Black Knights will battle the Trojans on ESPNU on Friday, Sept. 19, at 5 p.m. in a match that caps the 2008 West Point Open at Gillis Field House.
  • Cross Country Releases 2008 Schedule

    The Army cross country teams have announced a challenging 2008 schedule that includes five meets from August through October in preparation for the Patriot League Championships on Nov. 1.
top of page
Advertisement

© 2008 USMA Class of 1985
Joomla! is Free Software released under the GNU/GPL License.