Last Updated: 4/10/99
 Palmer and Ceda McGrew, '58 (See photo above) We were married in the Old Cadet Chapel. We really preferred it to the Cadet Chapel because of size. We actually filled it. It's a beautiful chapel and its setting, in the cemetery, was tranquil and historic. I don't know where people parked, come to think of it. What special memories does the day bring? A few of our guests didn't read their invitations very well and went to the Cadet Chapel instead. They saw lots of weddings, as they told us, but we weren't in any of them. My best man, from USNA, brought the wrong uniform. He then had his father bring the right one but his parents didn't show up. I figured out they were probably at the wrong chapel so we hustled up there and found them watching someone else get married. Dragged them and the uniform down to the level of the plain and only started about 5 minutes late. Why there? Believe it or not, it was George Lawton's suggestion. We scoffed, but went to look at it and loved it immediately. The real reason was size. We thought it would be better to have a major fraction of the sanctuary full and of people we actually knew. How did we deal with family needs? Ceda lived 17 miles away. No problemo.
I graduated in 1949. I had a friend at the time whose wife, a lady named Connie Levine, worked for FDR Jr.'s law offices which were located in the Music Corporation of America's (MCA) building on Madison Avenue. MCA is now better known for its subsidiary Universal Studios. Connie and a beautiful lady named Arline Schessler, who worked at MCA got acquainted over tuna sandwiches during lunch at Taft's drugstore. Connie tried to arrange a blind date between myself and Arline during my graduation furlough. Our schedules never meshed so I went off to basic pilot school at Waco. Among my classmates learning to fly at Waco was Russ Smith. Russ went off to single engine school after basic and I went off to multi-engine training. In August of 1950 we both completed pilot training. Russ then kindly invited me to usher for his wedding on August 12, 1950. In the interim Connie, not being one to give up easily, arranged a blind date for myself and Arline on the evening of August 12 in New York City. Russ' fiancee, Jean, was at the time a student nurse and her bridesmaids were mostly student nurses. As cadets we were not allowed in the upper floors of the Thayer Hotel and here we were - suddenly - a group of freshly minted USAF pilots turned loose in the Thayer with a group of student nurses. It was an acid test of the "gentlemen" portion of our year old commissions. At best, it meant that no one of us had enough sleep on the eve of Russ and Jean's nuptials. (I seem to recall one of the student nurses/bridesmaids who genuflected and was unable to rise. To this day I don't know if it was the length of the Mass or the preceding night's festivities or a combination of both). Russ and Jean were married in the Catholic Chapel the next day and as you might guess are happily married to this day. As soon as I could break away I jumped into my relatively new 1948 Dodge and drove to Forest Hills to meet my blind date, Arline. In summary, I had 10 days of furlough before reporting to my squadron at Barksdale AFB and we went out nine of those nights. She had been seeing a VP (co-worker) at MCA steadily and surreptitiously because dating between VPs and employees was verboten at MCA. The one night we didn't see each other was the night she told her VP friend where she had been those other evenings. In any case, I left to drive to Shreveport and Barksdale AFB on or about August 22nd. Without any specific plans except to see each other again, Arline flew to Shreveport on September 17th. (The fact that we had no plans is proof of the naiveté of youth and that young love is especially blind). We were married on October 3, 1950 and stayed thus until she passed away on August 22, 1982. We were in the same city about three weeks before we were married and stayed married for almost 33 years. So much for long courtships and/or the human traits of stubbornness and optimism. The following are two photos from that era: myself during my time in the army after having been awarded an Army appointment and Arline holding our son, Douglas, now married and an attorney. Arnold Winter, '49
Didn't get married after graduation but did buy my mother an A-pin. She gave it to my wife when we got married. She had had it made into a ring. Wife wears it all the time. Haven't seen one like it. Got married when I was a Captain. First army post for my wife was Ft Polk. Everything got better after that. Wilkrson '62
The following is from BOTH husband and wife...
Bob and Angie Magruder '64
(Q) If you were not married at WP, and were engaged while your spouse was there,
why did you not get married there?
Angie might think it seems like we have been married only nine months,
since time flies when you are having fun. We were married on July
20th, 1968 at Fort Bliss, TX at the end of the FA Advanced Course.
Spent our honeymoon at Acapulco, Mexico and Mexico City enroute to 2
years at Monterey, CA where I was a student at the Naval Postgraduate
School and she was a school teacher.
(Q) So, what is it like to be married to the Army?
Angie was really a model Army wife. As an Army brat she did not bring
any heavy baggage about the lifestyle and was a leader in helping Army
families at every unit we were assigned.
(Q) What adjustments does a Spouse make to live with a West Pointer specifically?
Angie was like having two Sergeant Majors, one for the unit and one
for the families. I can remember many meetings between Angie and the
Command Sergeant Major to work out coordination and support issues.
Their biggest joint effort each year was the Battalion Christmas
Party. Santa would have a gift for every child of every soldier and
it would be appropriate for the age and sex of the child. Before
Santa arrived the kids all talked with Santa on the military radios
and there was always entertainment and a great meal for all.
Angie's unit efforts and community support were always recognized and
she has more awards than I do in that department. We are still in
close contact with some of the 2Lts from our first units and have
enjoyed their successes as much as our own.
(Q) What were the most number of re-locations you made in a short period of time?
(Q)Did you get an A-pin?
(Q) Did you get a miniature as an engagement ring?
(Q)How did you handle the deployments?
(Q)Occasional separation ... good or bad for a marriage?
We were married in the Catholic Chapel
Jeff: What was it like being married there? It was
fantastic. The chapel gives an old country feel to getting married.
Family and friends are very close to the bride and groom, the staff is
fantastic to deal with, and what beats getting married at West Point.
Jeff: Father Drummond, who performed the ceremony, was very close
to Tina and I. He made the ceremony enjoyable. Special memories: The
chapel was very warm, and for two nervous people at the altar, it was
nearly unbearable. To keep my bride from fainting, I had to distract her
with jokes. As a result, we missed several cues, and Father Drummond had a
difficult time keeping a straight face and keeping the ceremony on track.
Jeff: Why there? My wife is from the Yorktown area, and we
both attended service at the USMA Catholic Chapel. It was by far the best
place of worship in the area.
Jeff: As to how we dealt with family needs, families had reservations at hotels in the local area that were made about 1 year before graduation and we were married 2 days after graduation.
Tina: Being married to the Army is difficult
most of the time; my husband has had two tours in Korea, leaving me with a
15 month old baby for a year. We have moved every two years or so: 1990,
1991, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998.
Tina: What adjustments does a spouse make to live with a West Pointer
specifically? With a West Pointer, several. He was so
used to having a place for everything, and everything in its place, and I
am a clutter-bug. I think he has been the one to adapt more than myself.
The problems we have are mostly due to the Army, not due to West Point...in
fact we are trying desperately to get stationed back there.
Tina: I did not get an A-Pin, but did get a miniature on Ring Weekend.
Tina: We really haven't had
"deployments," we have only had the two tours in Korea as a separation.
Occasional separation is good, as long as they are not too long. Reminds us of what we have
together.
Tina and Jeff Meek '90
My husband was 1946 USMA and died Oct. 31, 1995. He was an air force jet
pilot and retired in 1978 from Torrejon AFB, Madrid, Spain as the 16th Air
Force
Vice Wing Commander, a Major General with 32 years service.
We were married June 5, 1946, the day after graduation at the Most Holy
Trinity Catholic Chapel, West Point, NY. I am from Highland Falls, New York
and chose the Chapel for our wedding. It is a beautiful chapel and it was a
lovely day. I remember the day as being rather hectic but everything ran
quite smoothly.
I did get an A-pin and then a lovely miniature with matching stone to his
graduation ring. On our 40th wedding anniversary, he replaced the miniature
with a diamond miniature which I still wear.
We moved 25 times in 32 years when Bill retired in 1978. The separations
were not easy, but I felt that I had married into the military and this was
part of the marriage and his job, so I accepted the separations and I really
think they strengthened our marriage. After all, I was not the only one who
had to go through these separations and had many friends who were in the same
boat. Our attitude was very different from these days. We married and made
a home for our husbands and family. Most of my friends were wives and
mothers at home with our children. I will not say it was easy and at times
frustrating. We had just returned from Okinawa in 1950, after my husband had
two years there and I, one year. On the way back to the states on a ship
that took 21 days to take us back to San Francisco, we stopped in Hawaii and
found out the Korean War had started. Bill was back three months and given
48 hours notice to go back overseas--to the Korean War. He also flew in the
Viet Nam War.
Bill had 12 years overseas and I had 9. It was a very interesting life and
wouldn't change a thing. It wasn't always easy, like I was seven months
pregnant with our second child when he left for Okinawa. That was tough and
even tougher for him. We both had very strong faith and that helped us get
through a loss of a son too.
Phyllis V. Yancey widow of Major General Wm. B. Yancey, Jr.,USAF, Class USMA1946
I married Mike Repetski ('87) at the Catholic Chapel at West Point on
December 10, 1989. Yes, a Sunday wedding since Army-Navy was the day before.
He threatened not to marry me since Army lost......
It was a gorgeous wedding at a beautiful chapel. We picked West Point for
our wedding because it was 1/2 way between both families and Mike's
brother, our best man, was a Firstie then.
A little history, Mike and I met as pen pals while he was deployed to Sinai,
Egypt on the Multiforce & Observers Peacekeeping Mission. We met when he
returned in Spring of 1989. Six weeks after meeting, he proposed via the
telephone in the middle of a field problem. We got married six months after
that.
As far as family needs - our parents did not meet each other until the night
before the wedding - about an hour before the rehearsal. We rented a block
of rooms at the West Point Motel (Thayer was booked)
Special Memories - Everyone claims it was the best wedding they had been to.
Our reception was at the Officer's Club which the OWC had decorated for the
holidays. It was absolutely beautiful!
Mike and I did not know each other while he was a student at West Point. I
did not get an A-pin. Mike's good friend, Jean Aschliman, advised him not
to get a miniature as an engagment ring but as a gift when our first son was
born. We have three girls! I guess I'm out of luck!
Deployments - we have handled Desert Shield/Storm - I delivered our first
daughter, Mary Katherine, while he was on the border of Iraq/Saudi. She was
two months old when he returned. Most recently, we have survived a 10-month
In Country Training (ICT) while Mike was in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Mike is an
Arabic Foreign Area Officer. There have also been 2 or 3 month-long
deployments to the NTC (National Training Center) at Ft. Irwin. Of course, a
few TDYs too! How do we handle it? Frequent letter writing, e-mail is
WONDERFUL and of course, the telephone. We should have bought stock in
Sprint and AT&T!
Most importantly for the girls, is to be consistent with rules and discipline
while Daddy's gone.
Occasional separation is good for a marriage - constant and continuous
deployments are bad for a marriage.
Being married to the Army is a challenge. Moving frequently and being
separated from family is hard. Most challenging is moving the children from
school to school. I gave up thoughts of a "career" when we got married. I'm
a stay at home mom who volunteers a lot. Volunteering is a great way to get
to know a new post/location.
Most re-locations - We've been lucky - 18 months at Ft. Campbell, 12 months
at Ft. Benning, 4 years at Ft. Hood (3 different houses), 3 years at
Monterey, California (he was deployed to Saudi for 10 months of this!)
We're getting ready to relocate to Tampa, Florida in June.
As far as adjustments a spouse makes for a West Pointer specifically - I feel
they're more principled than most people. Duty, Honor, Country! I don't
feel there are any more adjustments than a "regular" Army wife would have to
make.
If you are interested in a picture from our wedding, let me know. I will get
a photo scanned this week.
Hope this has helped!
Melissa Walker Repetski
1)Were you married at WP, and if not why not?
2)What is it like to be married to the Army
3)What were the most number of re-locations you made in a short period of time?
4)Adjustments made to live with a West Pointer
5)Did you get an A-pin?
6)Did you get a miniature?
7)How did you handle the deployments?
8)Separations, good or bad for a marriage?
In summation, after all these years, children, tours, problems, thrills,
seeing the world, and hardships. It has been a great life and I would do it
all over again with the same cadet!!!!!!!
Terry Ritchie, spouse Class of
'51
No didn't get married in a
WP chapel... but did get an A-Pin. Had it on during Plebe Parent weekend and
had a lot of old timers looking and asking questions, including the Gen
himself. Got a miniature for our seventh anniversary.... wasn't easy being
married to the Army~! Husband in the field when the kids were
sick...sometimes I tease him and tell him he planned it that way...but he
missed out on a lot of fun stuff too. One year we moved three times in 15
months...I should say I moved and passed inspection three times in 15 months.
Married to a West Pointer...
Nadia Coughran '75
My name is Julie Roederer. My husband is Rodney Roederer, Class of 1987.
Rod and I went to school together from 8th grade through high school.
Rodney joined JROTC as a freshman in high school, saw a film on West Point
that first year, and was instantly sold. That was his life's goal! Not
many kids, especially now it seems, have even a remote idea of what they'd
like to do with their lives when they're merely 14 years old. But, as I
said, Rod knew he wanted to be accepted at USMA, and be a career officer
from the moment he saw that movie! He worked very hard to maintain his
grades. He was very focused! And obviously, it all paid off!
Well, the contrast between the two of us is pretty stark. I've often told
folks that Rod is a whisper and I am a scream. He is everything that most
West Pointers generally seem to be. He's competitive, yet self-sacrificing.
He's disciplined, intelligent, and confident. One of the things I
appreciate about him especially is that he is always a gentleman! He is,
what many would call, a math geek! :) He is very well-rounded, though.
Then, you have me. Numbers are my nemesis! I'd much rather be painting,
or writing, or creating something, or acting (when I'm not being a Mom, but
I'm always being a Mom!!). I'm completely high-strung and emotional! So
I'm always fascinated with that sort of cool confidence that West Pointers
have. I don't think I've ever been "cool" a day in my life, and you also
have to understand that I'm a top contender for Miss Insecurity! :) To me,
that kind of confidence they have is a fantasy! Anyway, from what exposure
I've had to West Pointers, they always have this sort of self-effacing way,
too. They want you to think that they are just another average Joe (or
Jane), but watch out if they have to defend something they've done, said,
or believe! They are, in a word, undaunted!
Rod and I went off to college as I said in the fall of 1983. I went to the
University of Louisville (originally). That fall, U of L and Army had a
football game. I had no idea we were playing a military academy until I
got to the game and saw the wall of cadets on the other side of the
stadium. I was walking through the end zone and heard someone call my
name. I turned to see Rod standing there in his white over gray uniform!
Boy, had they changed him! He invited me to go to the USMA side and sit for
the game! Well, Miss Brain Dead got cold feet and NEVER went over there!!!
Can you even believe that? I was a very late bloomer. I was 18 years
old, never been on a date, never even been kissed!! So, while yes, sitting
with the Cadets would have been a living fantasy for most girls my age, it
scared the liver out me, and I never went over there! I have regretted it
ever since. Rod went back to USMA and wrote me a letter to ask me to go
out with him when he came home to Louisville for Christmas break! Again, I
was just thrilled that this guy who was really something to me,
valedictorian of my class, a West Pointer, which to me was very wordly,
would give me the time of day! But, alas, once again, I balked! Like I
said, I'd never even been kissed, and at this point, I know I'm 18 years
old, and very behind in the game, and I just KNEW if he took me out he'd
try to kiss me and I'd just drool all over his face, and he'd leave
skidmarks trying to get away from me!!:) So, I never wrote him back. But
I always wondered about him. I kept the letter. I wondered if there was a
way to track him down, but never acted on it. Well, a funny thing happened
ten years later (1993). Our high school class had its ten-year reunion.
He couldn't come home for the reunion because he was in command at the
time, but he sent all of his "stats" which were published in the program.
It took me about two or three weeks, but I finally got my courage up and I
called him! I hadn't seen him or talked to him in ten years! We talked for
two hours and the rest, as they say, is history!
Have you ever watched "Charlie Brown's Christmas?" Well, we had Charlie
Brown's wedding!! Something you have to know here is that, while I'm not
proud of it by any means, ours is a second marriage for both of us. We got
married while Rod was in grad school. We were living in Denver, which has
a high cost of living. Funds were low. It was very much a do-it-yourself
wedding. I even made our wedding cake! My mother had bought my dress and
shipped it to me, and it didn't fit very well. There were seven people
(including the bride, groom and minister) present. It was very cozy, but
nothing grand! We don't even have a wedding picture!! :( So, obviously,
getting married at West Point was and is only something that I dream about!!
In 1997, we attended the ten-year reunion of his class. I was excited to
finally go to this place that I had visited only in my mind through
pictures and stories and Howitzers. As I said, I'm horribly emotional, and
upon entering the gate, my eyes filled with tears, and I felt like I was in
the midst of some sort of time travel. I could easily recognize different
points from movies like "The Long Gray Line." To know the magnitude of this
place, of the history, and the tradition, well, it was just very
overwhleming for me. But my husband had a big surprise for me! The very
first place he took me was Flirtation Walk! There's a fork in the path to
the left, and there's a little clearing with a bench a class donated. He
took me there, and as I looked out over the water, he told me he had a
surprise for me. And there he gave me my miniature!! It was one of the
most wonderful moments of my life!
I know that the feelings I have about USMA, and the pride I have in being
married to a West Pointer are probably par for the course! But it is such
an honor to me! The challenge in being a West Point spouse for me is
two-fold. First of all, there is only one way to to anything when you're
married to a West Pointer, and that way is the West Point way, the right
way, whole-heartedly, and completely and correctly! That's a HUGE challenge
for someone as free-spirited as I am, but I have made great strides, I must
say. Secondly, it's a big, bitter pill to swallow when you're a West Point
spouse, and you have to be gracious when the Academy, the Cadets or the
graduates come under fire. It drives me totally up the wall when someone
who got their commission, or who's spouse received a commission by another
means starts to mouth off about USMA,...that there's not a difference
between the two (between ROTC and four years at USMA)!!
I wish I could be one of those people who says that they don't have regrets
in life, but I do! I regret that I didn't go to the USMA side at the
football game in 1983. I regret that I didn't get to share in Rod's life
as a cadet! I regret that I wasn't in his life when he was in the Gulf
War. I know many would say I'm crazy to actually regret not having the
misery of having a husband in combat, but I will always feel that I missed
out on a very important time in his life. There are just many life
experiences that we've not been blessed to share, and that, to me, is quite
sad.
In closing, I hope I haven't taken too much of your time. Thank you for
allowing me to share my thoughts with you!
Sincerely,
Hi, my name is Robin Evans and I am married to Thomas Robert Evans, class of
1987, (I-4, go I-Beam!). I think this is a great subject to be putting into
the memories book, and I am happy to put my two cents worth in.
I am originally from Rockland County, New York, not far from West Point so I
was up there a lot in my older teenage years. I found it a great place to
go, to do what else, but meet good looking intelligent men! My parents were
happy (I think) for me to frequent West Point on a Saturday night for they
always knew that I would be home at the same time thanks to Taps. And they
felt it was a secure, safe place for a young woman to be, as did I. Tom has
always called me an Ikette, and I guess I wear it as a badge of honor! I was
there a lot! Anyway to start answering your questions, Tom and I were set up
by mutual friends in his Cow year, and we will be celebrating ten years of
marriage this April 15th.
We were married at West Point in the Catholic Chapel. Tom is Catholic and
was a member of the church there and a member of its choir, and since I
didn't have a church home, and this being close to my home it was not a
difficult decision to make to get married there. Even if I did have a
hometown church, I think I would have chosen to get married at the Point
anyway, I was kind of "in love" with the idea myself because it was different
and special. I can't say that the church was as awe-inspiring as it might
have been to get married in the Cadet Chapel, but that just seemed too big of
a place for us. The experience of having a military wedding was interesting
though, lots of restrictions as far as time goes. "You will not be late for
your wedding, you will be fined if you are," was a statement we heard over
and over. Special memories of the day, in the church specifically was having
the saber ceremony. It had to be performed inside the church, since it was
raining cats and dogs. I don't think any of our guests had ever seen
anything like it, so it was a special memory to them as well. I had a
special bell choir playing at our service, and I remember the director was so
excited that they would be performing at a ceremony at West Point. Some of
Tom's Plebes that he had when he was a Firstie agreed to be ushers for us, so
the one family need we dealt with there was my mother wanting to be walked
down the aisle by tallest usher we had. :) I will work on getting a photo
scanned to you.
I really enjoyed living the Army life, my previous work experience had been
travel, so I was interested in seeing the world. When the saber bearer
tapped me on the behind and said "Welcome to the Army Mrs. Evans," I took
that seriously. I even spoke as if I were in the service, often saying to
people even now......"we were in the military," they always come back with,
"oh and you were in to Robin." I figure I may as well have been. Tom served
about six years when he decided he wanted to get out. In those six years we
lived in Colorado Springs for about 2 1/2 years, then onto the Advanced
Course in Aberdeen, Maryland for 6 months, then it was overseas to
Kaiserslautern, Germany for the remainder of the time. It was a tough
decision for Tom to get out, I loved the life of living with a bunch of
people who were all in the same boat as you were. But I didn't feel that I
had the right to make Tom stay in the service just to advance my social life!
Military people are some of the best people that we have ever known, and we
keep in touch with many of them still. Fortunately, Tom did not go on very
many long deployments, he was not involved in Desert Storm/Shield, though
there were a few anxious nights that I begged for the phone not to ring in
the middle of the night. When he did go away, it seemed that something
always happened to bring him back whether it was a car accident that his wife
was in, or a death in his family. So I was fortunate to not have to be in a
situation where I was worried about him for months at a time because I
couldn't talk to him or see him. Actually being in the civilian world now,
Tom is a Consultant with Andersen Consulting and he has been up in Maine
every week for the last two months and will continue to be up there through
the end of the summer. He has his own apartment and everything, but comes
home on weekends to see his girls (myself, and his two daughters), and people
frequently ask me how am I handling being alone, and I tell them it is an
adjustment but that it could be worse, he could still be in the military
deployed to some foreign land and I wouldn't be seeing him at all. So we
take the good with the bad. I do think that absence makes the heart grow
fonder, so an occasional separation is a good thing.
Living with a West Pointer in the beginning does take a few adjustments. You
have to get use to their "engineer" way of thinking. I'm still trying to
figure it out! You have to be prepared for your laundry to be folded in a
specific way, and for your clothes to all be facing one direction in the
closet. You have to endure the horrible smells of shoe polish while your
husband gets his boots spit-shined to West Point perfection! I could go on
and on, but Tom would have my head if I did!
No, I did not get an A-pin. I think at one time probably while he was still
in school I might have hoped to get a miniature, but we ended up getting
engaged two years after he had graduated, and I wanted the diamond!
To this day, I am still so proud of Tom being a graduate. West Point has a
lot of charm and prestige to it, and it was a real honor for me to experience
some of it. Tom always said I knew more cadets than he did! When I think
back to my teenage years, my mind instantly goes to West Point. We still go
back whenever we can, and we love to attend the Army-Navy game and our annual
Founder's Day Dinners. In fact, we are waiting for Pennsylvania to approve a
license plate that will acknowledge that we are West Point Alumni. And WE
are!
If I can answer anymore questions for you, or be of help in another way,
please let me know.
Sincerely,
I married classmate Timothy White on June 18, 1988, a year after our
graduation. We were stationed at Fort Hood at the time and were married
at the 76th Street Chapel on Fort Hood.
We opted for a traditional ceremony instead of a military wedding. We
had a sense of wanting to separate from the military lifestyle, at least
for a moment since it was such an integral part of both our lives.
Being married to a fellow officer had it's unique challenges. Not only
did I have the anxiety of seeing my husband leave for 30 days, I often
had to leave him for 30 days. This was very difficult. I think we
received a foreshadowing of this unusual situation when the week before
our wedding, Tim's unit passed through a Refuel on the Move site set up
by my platoon on an FTX. It was seeing each other in battle dress that
we realized what our lives would be like.
One of the things about being an officer, for me, is that I never felt
like an Army wife. I always felt out of place at wives' groups because
I was really one of their husband's peers, not one of the girls. I
found it difficult to find my place in the Army community. I wanted to
be supportive of my husband's career, but invariably, whenever I signed
up to bring cookies to the battalion bakesale, I would have an EDRE
(Emergency Deployment Readiness Exercise) or Staff Duty :-)
As for our marriage, I think that our shared frustrations, challenges,
and successes strengthened our relationship. We developed a bond not
only as husband and wife, but as fellow officers.
Paula E. White
MARRIED @wp - IF NOT, WHY NOT?
We were not married at West Point because we met in October of 55. It was
quite romantic: I was an American Airlines flight attendant, based in
Nashville. Peter was a Company Commander with the 11th Airborne based at
Fort Campbell. We met just two weeks after I completed flight school. By
December we knew we wanted to marry however; because we were not married
prior to Novemeber 1st, I would not be able to accompany him to Germany
when the 11th gyroscoped. It was decided that I would work at my "dream"
job for at least a year. By May of 56, quarters in Augsburg were becoming
available - we talked about having the wedding at West Point but things
didn't work out and I flew to Germany to be married.
WHAT'S IT LIKE BEING MARRIED TO THE ARMY? MOST # OF RELOCATIONS?
We had an exciting 17 years in the Army - living in Germany twice and in
12 different states. Our oldest two (of three) children were born in
Germany, and held dual citizenship until they were 21 years of age. The
most number of relocations (from 1964 to 1973) were fourteen in nine
years. The children adjusted extremely well - writing on their college
applications that they had found out early that life was not going to
adjust for them, they were going to do the adjusting. All three graduated
from high school and college with honors and are well established in
careers, are married and two have children. They all are the joy of our
lives!
Our home was wherever we were. By the time we'd been in our new home for
a week, you would not be able to tell that we had just moved. In 1973 we
found our dream home in a small ocean side village - all three of the
children were in high school. This turned out to be the very best thing
that we could have done for them at that time in their lives. Peter then
had a second successful career as a college professor. It has been a
wonderful life - and we thank God daily for our good fortune.
SPOUSE ADJUSTMENTS?
Being an Army spouse was not a big sacrifice for me. Wherever Peter went,
he was the head of his unit. I did all the things good Army wives do;
volunteer on post, entertain, take care of the wives(and children) in our
unit (s) and of course, keep our home and lives running smoothly so that
Peter was free to give 100% to his Army duties. My feeling was that he
had been in the Army nearly five years before he married me; if I didn't
feel that the Army life was for me, the time to mention this was prior to
our marriage. Of course, things are far different today. My job was more
clearly defined and my responsibility was to do the best job I could
within the parameters of Army life. When I see how hard my daughters
juggle full time, demanding jobs along with husbands, children and homes I
feel like I truly had a far better life. When we were settled in our
permanent home, I was able to go to work and have had a wonderful career -
truly the best of both worlds.
A-PIN? MINIATURE?
I did get an A pin - love it and wear it even more often now that Peter
had it mounted on a gold disk with a gorgeous chain. Peter had already
bought my ring but one evening we were at a classmate's home and I saw her
miniature - I had to have my own! My miniature is my treasure - I have
loved it from the very first moment I saw it! I've worn it for nearly 43
years and wouldn't exchange it ever for the biggest, newest diamond. It
causes comment any time we meet someone new; people are intriqued with
the tradition....and it reenforces our motto, "Duty, Honor and Country".
DEPLOYMENTS?
As an Army wife - you do what you have to do. It wasn't always easy but
we tried to make it as much fun as possible. Before the move, we sent for
info about our new area. The first thing we did after arrival was to
scout out the nearest public library and obtain current library cards. We
were never stationed anywhere really awful (perception that the glass is
half full rather than half empty helped!). Nearly everywhere we went,
there were classmates or other army friends we'd been stationed with
previously. We never felt like strangers. In turn, we were always on
hand to welcome newcomers. It was a never-ending circle and th Army became
truly family, particularly overseas. Even as a new bride I felt most
welcome with many new friends eager to lend a hand wherever necessary. I
hope that it is still this way in the Army.
In the 17 years we were married in the Army (Peter served for 22 years) he
was gone more than four years out of the last nine. In Germany, the
troops were gone for weeks at a time. Even when they were 'home', there
were field exercises for days at a time along with very long days
extending from early morning to late evening with at least a half day on
Saturdays. The Army did not send the troops to Europe for vacation! From
the reports we hear today, the separations are even longer and tougher.
In retrospect, we had it relatively easy. Nearly all the officers' wives
had full time live-in help (easier and simpler than looking for a sitter).
The wives took advantage of their freedom and saw quite a bit of Europe
even without husbands.
My cousin once told me that Peter and I got along so well because we did
not have to live together 24/7 but we've found since he retired that this
was not true. We've always had a marvelous time but now with the children
grown, married and with children of their own, it is the very best time of
all. Of course, the grandchilldren are marvelous!
We wish all the new officers and their spouses the very best of joy and
luck with their marriages and careers - it is a challenging, exciting,
world out there!
Beat Navy!!
Marie Foss spouse of '51 grad.
Questions and
comments are invited via E-mail. |
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