7 minute read
The Trip Of A Lifetime Kenneth Riege
The Trip of a Lifetime
The “Trip of a Lifetime” has a very broad meaning. Maybe that would be a trip to Hawaii or Europe, but for Retha and I, that trip happened on March 23rd - 25th 2022 as we had the greatest honor By Kenneth Reige USAF Veteran of being with Hershey for the groundbreaking ceremonies for the National Medal of Honor Museum in Arlington, Texas. What a blessing to be with Hershey and 16 MOH Recipients, a past president and former first lady, the owner of the Dallas Cowboys and many other dignitaries. It’s worth noting that on March 23rd our trip started out a bit rough, with traffic delays and missing our original flight. However, when we arrived at our hotel and visited with Hershey everything was all better. Hershey sure has a way of doing that.
This trip had been in the works for some time now and members of the MOH Museum have been to Gallup many times to visit with Hershey and to do some filming and collecting artifacts for his exhibit.
I wanted to share some of the many photos that Retha had taken and to let them tell the story of this trip. We have talked many hours about this trip and know that we will be back to Arlington, Texas and to the MOH Museum.
This is where we stayed at. The beautiful Gaylord Resort in Grapevine, TX. Life is good my friends.
Selfie of Retha and I at the Gaylord while being photo bombed by a Texas Longhorn. You know the saying in Texas, “Hook em’ Horns.”
Was so nice meeting MOH Recipient Sgt. Major Matt Williams. He is a fine young man and with warriors like Sgt. Major Williams still serving, our country is in great hands.
Our dear friend Hershey being assisted by fellow MOH Recipient Florent Groberg. This ceremony was very touching. These past few months the MOH Museum Staff had been collecting dirt samples from all 50 states. (I will need to confirm this, but I believe when members of the MOH Museum Staff were here visiting with Hershey, they took some dirt from his back yard for New Mexico.) Then they mixed all the dirt together and placed some in each of the canisters for the recipients to add to the Texas soil where the museum will be built. After this ceremony, MOH Recipient Bob Patterson (Vietnam) presented me with his canister for the hotel museum.
Hershey with some of his fellow MOH Recipients. From L to R: Mike Thorton (Vietnam), Donald “Doc” Ballard (Vietnam) Hershey Miyamura (Korea), Bob Ingram (Vietnam). In the background from L to R: Kyle Carpenter (Afghanistan), Brit Sablinski (Afghanistan) and Sal Guinta (Afghanistan) Everyone was so excited to see Hershey. He knew that he needed to be there for this event and for his fellow MOH Recipients.
The view from the grounds of what will be the National Medal of Honor Museum. Great site for this Dallas Cowboys fan. The Dallas Cowboys Organization is the largest sponsor and donator for the MOH Museum. This is one very patriotic organization and supporter of our veterans.
Hanging out with MOH Recipient Donald “Doc” Ballard. I have known Doc for 6 years and always love visiting with him and hearing his “larger than life” stories.
It was great to get to meet Mr. Jerry Jones the owner of the Dallas Cowboys.
He was getting my advice on who should be the starting quarterback for this upcoming season. Not really, but we were, as the saying goes “chewing the fat” and sharing Dallas Cowboys stories. I was telling him how Retha wouldn’t marry me unless I was a Cowboys fan. Mr. Jones said, “Well now I know who the brains of the operation is.” I said, “Yes sir, and the good looks too.” He smiled and said, “Good answer.”
Retha and I hanging out with Mr. Jones.
American Airlines unveiled their latest airliner, called “Flagship Valor.” This beautiful aircraft is now a part of their regular inventory and can be seen at airports across the country
Entertainment for the night was provided by Country Music Star Mr. Clint Black.
This event was full of surprises and honors. One was meeting our 43rd President of the United States Mr. George W. Bush. Retha and I just happened to be standing at the right place at the right time when a secret service agent announced that President Bush had arrived. When The President entered the room, I (being a veteran and gung-ho all the way) snapped to attention and rendered a proper military salute. When President Bush saw that he headed straight for me, and I was the first to get to shake his hand.
He was so delightful and easy to talk to. As we chatted it reminded me of just a couple of friends catching up on old times. After we finished, I simply asked him if I could get a selfie and he said, “why sure.” I took this picture and shook his hand again and he thanked me for being there.
Here I am visiting with the former first lady Mrs. Laura Bush. I had a picture that I wanted to share with her, and she was so excited to see that photo. We talked a bit about the picture, and she wanted to show her husband, but he had already been grabbed by other photo
seekers.
This is the photo I was sharing with our former first lady. This was in 2018 while my son (Eric Paul Riege) art was on display at the Site Santa Fe Gallery. Mrs. Bush was in town visiting friends and hitting the art galleries. When she had seen the picture she said, “Let me see that” and I handed her my phone. She was so excited that I shared that picture with her. She remembered being there and was so amazed with Eric’s art.
I would have to say that President and Mrs. Bush are two of the humblest people you will ever meet. He has a really good sense of humor and just reminds you of a regular guy who just so happened to also be our 43rd President of the United States. Mrs. Bush is such a lovely lady with class and dignity, and you could tell they were both very honored and humbled to be there.
One of the last events was the turning of the soil for the National Medal of Honor Museum. Again, it is hard to describe how honored Retha and I are to have been there with Hershey and to help kick off what will be “hallowed grounds” for all to visit. I guess the “Trip of a Lifetime, part 2” will be when the museum opens in 2024 and hopefully Retha and I will be there with Hershey to celebrate this historic event.
