Checkpoints September 2008

reasons to give and growing 111

With each graduating class the reasons for graduates, parents and friends of the Academy to make private contributions continue to grow. Currently, more than 43,000 graduates and cadets are impacted by private gifts to the Air Force Academy Fund of the Association of Graduates. By making your gift this year, you provide the funding necessary to ensure AOG-sponsored programs and services remain available for today's cadets and the graduate community.

For more information about making a donation, contact the AOGs Office of Annual Giving at (719) 472-0300 or Regina.Clark@aogusafa.org. To learn more about the importance of private funding and to make your gift online, visit www.usafa.org.

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Association of Graduates

UNITED STATES AIR FORCE ACADEMY

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EXECUTIVE OFFICE

President/CEO: William 'T' Thompson '73

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Jim Wheeler, "64, Board Chair

Pat Rosenow, '76, Vice Chair

Bill Stealey, '70, Treasurer Michael Banks, '92

Bill Boisture '67

Kevin Carmichael, '77 Steve Dotson, '63

Mike Flynn, '95

Allison Hickey, '80

Bob Munson, '73

Terry Storm, '61 George Van Wagenen,

Checkpoints (ISSN 0274-7391) USPS 898-080 is published quarterly in March, June, September and December by the Association of Graduates, U.S. Air Force Academy. (Phone: 719-472-0300, DSN: 3332067. FAX: 719-333-4194, E-mail: editor@aogusafa. org.) A portion of your dues pays for your magazine subscription. Additional copies may he purchased for $2.50 each, plus $4,60 for shipping. Periodicals postage paid at the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo., and additional mailingoffices. POST MASTER: Send change

The Association ofGraduates ofthe United States Air Force Academy has announced the selection ofWilliam L. Thompson, ’73, as the organizations president and chiefexecutive officer.

Known as “T” to classmates and friends, he brings years ofexperience to the AOG as an award-winning entrepreneur, airline pilot, community and government leader, tax attorney, and public speaker.

While working as a Delta Air Lines pilot, he owned several successful small businesses, and served on boards of directors of a number ofdiverse organizations, ranging from national charities to local banks. Thompson also served for 17 years as Commissioner ofthe Massachusetts Aeronautics Commission—under three different governors from both political parties.

Service to organizations such as the American Cancer Society, Bank of America, Boeing, Boy Scouts ofAmerica, and 100 Black Men ofAtlanta, Inc. further enhances his impressive resume.

In looking at what our fellow service academy’s alumni associations have accomplished,Thompson set his sights high. “There is no reason why we can’t organize our grads and friends ofthe AOG and the Academy to surpass those excellent organizations in what they do for their members and their institutions. That’s my goal going in.”

As a cadet, Thompson was a receiver on the 1971 Falcon team that went

AOG ANNOUNCES

to the Sugar Bowl, and as a firstie he served on Wing Staff.

Thompson starts on August 15th. He succeeds Gary Howe, ’69 who has been serving as CEO since the retirement ofJim Shaw, ’67, who left the position in March after over 15 years of service to the organization. B

Prodding the President

“Since I can’t find a better place to vent, I’ll send my little “memo” to the AOG in the hope it strikes a resonant chord with other grads who were disappointed in the behavior of the Class of 2008 at last Wednesday’s graduation.

“I was very disappointed with the lack ofprofessionalism displayed by our Air Force’s newly-commissionedAcademy grads at their graduation ceremony on May 28.1 was equally dismayed at the lack ofaction on the part ofAcademy staff to control the gross excess of celebratory behavior and embarrassing demonstration ofdisrespect for our Commander-in-Chiefduring this nationally broadcast event. As a grad, I understand the exuberant feeling ofaccomplishment that follows a rigorous four years ofmilitary, academic and athletic challenges at our institution. Unfortunately, this exuberance was inappropriately and injudiciously exhibited during this commencement by: Chest and fist-bumping, cell phone-calling, autograph-seeking, hugging, kissing and prodding the President ofthe UnitedStates to wave at family and friends; excessive, over-the-top post-diploma-receiving hugs, dances, flips, etc. for which a number ofex-cadets fell over in a distinctly unprofessional heap ofparade uniforms; a steadyprocession of new lieutenants heading to the bathroom, looking for and waving at friends and family and posing for pictures along the way; and loudly and visibly chatting it up with theirformer classmates upon returning to their seats after receiving their diplomas—duringthe presentation ofdiplomas to the classmates who followed them. The class of2008 deserves kudos for making it through four long, hard years; they do not—nor does the Academy staff—deserve any accolades for not showing families, friends, alumni or the rest ofthe nation the difference between an academy graduate and a civilian college graduate. For that, I am sorelygrieved.”

John Aiken, Class of1982

Some Real HalfTime Action

As I sat and read the article 50 Years Later in the June 2008 Checkpoints, I couldn’t help but smile and chuckle as I read the name Charles Meier, Class of’59! I immediately had a flashback to Doolie Chemistry. I have long lost my knowledge of Chemistry, but I will never forget Major Charles Meier.

The class was called to attention and in walked Major Charles Meier in his impeccable uniform; Alpha Blouse blazing with ribbons and the shiniest wings I’d ever seen. The class was not told to take seats. Instead, as we stood at attention, Major Meier made his way around the class room inspecting uniforms. He told us we looked terrible in his unique command voice! He told us: “There

S,

is no such thing as class shoes and formation shoes. All shoes are the same when wearing my uniform and that’s spit shined!” We were to be in our “best uniform at all times.” For the rest ofthe semester he would inspect our appearance whether in the Chem Lab in the middle of an experiment, or in the classroom. Oh yeah, he always “gigged” someone!

I remember Major Meier’s “war stories,” especially the one when he was flying his C-119 gunship one night. He told us the North Vietnamese did “Tokyo Rose” type transmissions. Major Meier used his ADF and had the channel tuned in. He told us he was flying around yelling at the radio transmission “you keep talking you S.O.B, I’m homing in on you with my ADF!” They “squeezed off a few rounds” andthe transmission went silent.” He continued: “I don’t know if we killed him or scared the s out of him but he went offthe air!”

Another story he shared was his desire to go to home football games. As the falconers were releasing their bird for the half time show, he wanted to release a pigeon to see “some real half time action.” I was in stitches for many such stories for the semester.

Most of all, I remember the chats he would have with us about USAFA, about what it meant to be a graduate, especially a member of the first class. They set the standard. They were the first and he was going to pass on that passion, that desire, that heritage to each student that made it to his classroom. We should also keep the traditions alive and pass them on as we became members of the Long Blue Line.

So thank you Colonel Meier. You made an impression on at least one of your students. I can’t say you taught me Chemistry. I can say you taught me some life lessons I’ll never forget.

Mike Spain, Class of1978

Undercover

In presenting their recruitment to their friends and families, universities and their alumni associations frequently publish figures describing the demographics of the classes in attendance. Included are the numbers of femaleand minority students. The figures suggest that we all count how many of each color and sex is included in any group ofstudents to ascertain whether the proper ratios exist. Universities further advertise their purportedly successful integration efforts by posing photos to include just the right mix of students, all the while knowing that the photos often bear no relation to statistical reality. Individuals familiar with the

school recognize the fraud when they see it, but few cry foul and no one is held accountable for the deception.

The Academy andthe AOG are not exceptional when it comes these practices. A recent email from the Academy with statistics for the Class of 2008 coincided with publication of the June 2008 Checkpoints issue. The tiresome demographic statistics came at a perfect time for use as a metric for determining just how inaccurate is the AOG’s representation of the 2008 graduating class as presented on the Checkpoints cover. Based upon the Academy’s statistics, the front page of the AOG magazine seriously misrepresents the face of the graduating class of 2008.

Looking at the photos of the graduates, one could justifiably conclude that females made up 52% of the class. That conclusion would be wrong. The actual figure for women constituting members of the Class of 2008 is 19%. Further, based upon the cover photos, one could logically conclude that the class of 2008 was 30% minority. Alas, that conclusion would also be inaccurate. The minority figure was 20% So much for assuming the photo was intended as a true reflection of a cross-section of the Class of 2008 andthe changes from the first graduating class.

When presenting itselfandthe Academy to the public, I would hope that AOG would consider using some sort of “core value” such as “integrity first.” Integrity includes accuracy in reporting and making presentations and representations, no matter how subtle, of facts about the Academy.

Jonathan Davis, TAMU Class of 1980

RememberingWalter Netsch

Pioneering architect Walter Netsch Jr., the designer ofthe Air Force Academychapel, died June 15 at the age of88 in his Chicago home.

In fact Netsch lead the design team that developed the Skidmore proposal that won the competition for design ofthe Academy. Ffe then led the team that completed the design and became the Skidmore on-site supervisor for the construction itself. When the Congress rejected the initial design for the Chapel, Netsch took a one-year sabbatical and developed the design ofthe Chapel we have.

I know it’s being picky, but to describe Netsch simply as designer of the chapel so understates his role in the Academy we all know, I thought it important to correct the record.

All best wishes,

Brad Hosmer, Class of1959

Need help finding a job ' Looking to advance your career

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September 10

ClassSenateExecutive CommitteeMeeting

Sept.17-20Classof73,78,'98

Oct.1-4Classof'63,'68

Nov.5-8Classof'83

Nov.12-15Classof'88

Visitwww.usafa.org "Class

September 19 SabreSociety CoffeeatCarltonHouse forClassof73,78,'98

October31 AOGDonorEventatUnionLeague Club,NYC

Visitwww.usafa.org "EventRegistration" Reunions"

September 13 AOGPre-Game MixerAirForce/University ofHouston University ofHouston AlumniCenter

October11

November 23&24

Commandant'sChallenge AIRFORCEFOOTBALL SCHEDULE

Jtah

Aug.30South

Sept.6 atWyoming*

Sept.13atHouston

Sept.20Utah*

Oct.4 Navy

Oct.11 atSanDiegoState'

Oct.18 atUNLV*

Oct.23 NewMexico*

Nov.1 atArmy

Nov.8 CSU*

Nov.15 BYU*

Nov.22 atTCU*

Greyindicates homegames *MWCgame

AOGtailgate AirForce/SanDiegoStateUniversity

Qualcomm Stadium

November 1 AOGtailgateatAirForce/Army Game Eisenhower Hall-West Point

November 21 AOGFanFestatReataRestaurant, Ft.Worth

November 22 AOGtailgateatAirForce/Texas ChristianUniversity

TCUAlumniCenter

December 4-5 AOGBoardMeeting Visit

"EventRegistration"

THERE’S BEEN A LOT OF ACTIVITY in the AOG

Boardroom in recent months here are some quick updates in some areas that will be ofgeneral interest:

NEW CEO

By unanimous vote on 9 August 2008, the Board enthusiasticallyapproved the hiring ofWilliam ‘T’ Thompson, ’73 to become the AOG President and CEO. His exceptional credentials and extensive entrepreneurial and nonprofit experience are on page 4 ofthis issue of Checkpoints. The Board and the AOG staff are all elated that he has joined our management team.

As we announce this change, it is also appropriate to take just a minute to offer thanks on behalfofthe Board and membership to Gary Howe, ’69, who has served as the CEO since last January. Gary’s long tenure at the AOG uniquelyqualified him to serve as CEO while the CEO Search Committee worked with professional consultants to identify and hire the new CEO. Gary brought positive leadership and a tireless work ethic to his duties that set a strong example for the Staffand benefited the Board ofDirectors greatly. He will now reassume his duties as Senior Vice President and will continue to oversee many facets ofAOG daily operations.

And, not to be overlooked, the hard work and dedication of several individuals involved with the CEO Search process needs to be recognized. Steve Dotson, ’63, served as Chair of both the CEO Search

Committee andthe CEO Negotiations Committee. His able and focused efforts to keep the process organized and moving forward was fundamental to the success realized. Directors Terry Storm, ’61, and George Van Wagenen, ’67, served on the Search Committee along with AOG members Bob Munson, ’73, and Lou Michels, ’77. Director Steve Finch, ’65, participated along with Steve, Terry, and George on the Negotiations Committee.

The work ofboth Committees was augmented by the professional services Heidrick and Struggles, Inc. provided pro bono to the AOG by RandyJayne, ’66, and Bob Edmonds, ’79. They both gave oftheir time and expertise in the spirit ofhelping the AOG and the Academy, and their astute insights facilitated the search and hiring adventure greatly.

BOARD APPOINTMENTS

Another significant step forward occurred at the August Board Meeting when the Board filled the positions of elected directors James Sanchez, ’90, and Fred Gregory, ’64, who resigned for personal reasons. In accordance with the bylaws, Bob Munson, ’73, and Mike Banks, ’92, were elected to fill these positions until the next election. Mike has served as Board Secretary since July 2007 and his involvement in all aspects ofBoard business have prepared him well to be a Director. Bob served on the CEO Search Committee and is Secretary ofthe Class Advisory Senate. Drawing on this background, Bob will be able to offer new and informed perspectives to help the Board establish policies to guide the AOG going forward. We are fortunate to have interested and dedicated graduates like Mike and Bob who are willing to give oftheir time and talents when called upon to serve the AOG.

2009 BOARD ELECTIONS

A schedule has been set; the Nominating Committee has received Board Guidanceand the NC has a new Chairman - George Van Wagenen, ’67, and a new Vice Chair ‘Wild Bill’ Stealey, ’70. Wth these procedural changes taken care of, the focus will now become identifying volunteers to stand for election next April. As the AOG bylaws specify (Article IX and Article XII), there are two avenues for interested members to be placed on the ballot. This time around, the NC will be working with the candidates to help them get their views and campaign platforms in front ofthe members. We plan to make generous use ofmedia; and, in case you missed the earlier announcement, be advised that the voting in 2009 will be done electronically.

I have great respect for all AOG members who haveserved on the AOG Board, and I can assure you that they did not volunteer to be Directors for the pay or the short hours—there is no pay and the hours are very long. Couple those factors with the requirement to attend four meetings a year at the Academy, to participate in telephone conferences for Committee and Board meetings, to deal with an endless stream ofe-mails, and to interact with members in person and electronically on all aspects ofthe AOG. Most people will decide that theyjust don’t have the time. But, if that description does not dampen your enthusiasm to serve, you need to review the bylaws and start planning your campaign. The operative reality is that the AOG is a membership association and every member has both a responsibility andthe opportunity to participate in the governance of the corporation as specified in

the Bylaws adopted by the membership in 2006. Your skills could make a difference, and you can be sure that there is always room for good ideas and energetic members in the AOG Boardroom.

AOG FUNDRAISING

Wth apologies to MarkTwain, “The rumor ofthedeath offundraising at the Association ofGraduates is greadyexaggerated.” In fact, the truth is quite the opposite. AOG Bylaws specify that a core purpose of the AOG is “... to raise private funds to support and developAcademy, cadet, and graduate programs that would not otherwise be funded.” Clearly, it would not be possible to fulfill that core purpose without raisingprivate funds and your AOG is aggressivelycontinuing the successful fundraising programs that have served the Academy well for many years. Recendy, a new Major Gift Officer was hired and, in response to member requests, new ideas are being integrated into existing programs to encourage younger graduates to become active in supporting the AOG and our school. The AOG will continue to work cooperatively with all ofthe nonprofit entities that support the Academy, and we look to the future with great optimism.

A FINAL THOUGHT

On my return trip to San Antonio after the August Board Meeting at the Academy, I found myselfwith some down time in the Denver airport while waiting for a delayed departure. While looking for a place to plug in my laptop, I noticed a USO sign and impulsively opted to drop in to see if there was room for one more traveler. It was no great surprise to see the collection ofyoung men and women wearing uniforms from all ofthe services gathered around the TV watching the Olympics, but I had underestimated what I would find and the emotional impact I would experience.

My first impression was that the government must have lowered the age for recruits—they all looked to be high school age at best. Then, I noticed most were armed with cell phones and a small device that had thin wires connected to their ears. I nearlylaughed out loud at my own initial observations, but upon closer inspection I soon noticed that almost without exception each ofthem had an air ofconfidence that belied their youth. It was great to see them enjoying the Olympic competition, and I was impressed by their enthusiastic cheers for the American athletes while they bantered back and forth and offered serious coaching comments for the competitors.

It was uplifting to see them enjoying each other’s company, joking, exchanging war stories and travel tips, and above all demonstrating pride in being Americans and serving as members of the U.S. military. There was no opportunity at the USO to buy a round for the house to show my appreciation for their service, but I felt the need to move around the room to visit with the ‘kids.’

I quickly learned that many ofthem were on their way to assignments in harm’s way. There was little to be said but “Good Luck God’s Speed,” but I felt great pride that we—all USAFA graduates—have been joined by a new generation ofpatriots that will carry on the proud traditions of the U.S. military in performing their service to our country.

It would be a long shot to even think I’ll ever cross paths with any ofthe young folks who were in the USO at DIA that day, but I’ll not forget them or our random meeting. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers. 9

“I

IN 1985, A BRIGHT-EYED, ENTHUSIASTIC SERVICE ACADEMY ( OREGON, GOT HIS FIRST TASTE OF AIR FORCE FOOTBALL

RECRUITED AS A QUARTERBACK BY THEN COACH FISHER OPTION OFFENSE, TROY CALHOUN LEARNED QUICKLY WHA1 f Tf: •' SUCCESSFUL AND COMPETITIVE TEAM. HE LETTERED HIS FRESI ON TO FINISH WITH A NATIONALLY RANKED 12-1 SEASON THAT CUL TEXAS IN THE BLUEBONNET BOWL.

factly stated. Due to his own experienc he does have great understanding and appreciation for the demands and obli-

coaching style to be more adaptive and flexible, yet still focused and effective.

Calhoun will be the first to admit he h high expectations, but he does put it all into perspective.

“First and foremost, what your obligation is here as a staff member or coach in this case is to make sure these guys are extraordinarily well prepared

Photos by Lewis Carlyle

to graduate from the Air Force Academy ana to ser?e on active duty,” he 1 1 11 «v 1 explained, adding, You want to try and optimize tni experience for every kid who’s involved. 1 think certainly you’re I I IT i. r n A aware that there will be a rew all-Americans, not an enormous number, and yet, r i i justfrom a character standpoint, you want to make them reel like they really grew and..Saithlt IMBSs;:fh«Bygo;ii^MP t t i | 11 •!«!•• be able to handle more responsibility in CA\ ruture endeavors, and you never know where that may be.”

That doesn’t mean he doesn’t expect to win. But in a division that seems to get more competitive each year, the Falcons face some very unique challenges when it comes to preparation, practice and depth. While other schools in the Mountain West Conference have seemingly unlimited time to game 4 plan, practice and work out, the military, academic and operational commitments each Academy athlete must complete means time for football is much more limited.

“You have to be very meticulous, very thorough in your practice preparation J because once school begins basically you* have about 95 minutes to practice and jo that means you have to move at a rapier pace from a tempo standpoint,” said | Calhoun. “It means that everythine vdu

do has to be organized in a manner that you get a chance to cover everything so that you know you’re well prepared once you get to Saturdays.” Fie added, “The other part of it [which is] as challenging of an endeavor as I think you’re probably ever going to have in coaching is being at a service academy and competing in one of college football’s seven major conferences playing a schedule where year-in and year-out you’re going to have to face six bowl teams.”

This challenge means Calhoun has to rely upon the team leaders to keep his prayers focused. Calhoun defines an ideal leader by adding, “I think you have to have some playing experience; I think

legitimately you have to have shown that, ‘ok, I’ve done it.’ The other part is you have to be a phenomenal example. That’s in the weight room, that’s in film study; it’s in the kind ofvigor that you bring to practice each day and you’ve got to be a guy that produces.

“We’ve got a bunch of them that I think will emerge as tremendous leaders, which they should, especially being here at the Air Force Academy.” Coach Calhoun referenced players like tight end C1C Travis Dekker, defensive end C1C Ryan Kemp and nose guard ClC Jared Marvin. They will definitely have their work cut out for them, as Dekker, Ryan and Marvin are three ofonly eight starters returning from

last years team. This years recruiting crop and core ofyounger players has potential, but lacks playing time.

“For this year, the single biggest challenge I think is trying to equip these guys from an experience standpoint and try to replace the game-day experience that they don’t have and that means you have to do a superb job in training and development, and that’s on the practice field doing everything you possibly can to simulate what a game day is like,” Calhoun stated.

The Falcons have a lot stacked against them, but there is a reason why they continue to be competitive each year. Calhoun said it’s evident year in and year out.

that has been lacking in recent years is fan support. According to the USAFA Athletic ticket office, average attendance last season was 38,068; a slight gain from the previous year, but nowhere near where Calhoun hopes. Falcon Stadium capacity is 52,480.

“First ofall, we need an immense amount ofsupport from the graduate community and I think sometimes were shy about asking. I’ve always thought there’s nobody that is more proud ofwhere they went to school than graduates of the Air Force Academy,” he beamed, adding, “I think specifically, it means buying season tickets, it means purchasing bowl tickets whenever we have those opportunities and then certainly coming out to Falcon

“This is the ultimate team institution, and the thing you try to breed here is individual drive, but collectively it’s always going to be about unity and team spirit,” he said, adding this unity, as well as the academic reputation, is what drives many recruits to want to come here.

“One, you have an extraordinary opportunity—that’s the education part of it, the chance to graduate from the Air Force Academy. And the other part of it, too, is that you make some phenomenal friendships. Those are the bonds that probably separate this place from any other institution in the country.”

You can betthe football team will come together as a collective unit, but one thing

Stadium because as a team and an institution we certainly feed offofthat spirit.”

Calhoun stated it’s that spirit that drives him to work hard every day.

“You feel a ton ofpride being a part of this school, especially as a graduate ofthe Air Force Academy. I mean, this is the best school. This is theworld’s greatest leadership institution and when you talk about academics, when you talk about relationships, when you talk about toughness, when you talk about heart, when you talk about spirit, that’s the United States Air Force Academy and absolutely I allow that to propel me every single day that I work at the Academy.” H

THE TIES THAT BIND

A LOOK AT THE UNITED STATES AIR FORCE ACADEMY'S RELATIONSHIP WITH SINGAPORE

BY JULIE IMADA

In a partnership that spans cultures and nearly two decades, the United States Air Force Academy and the Republic of Singapore have taken steps to expand and solidify their academic and research relationship.

In the spring of2008, USAFA Dean ofthe Faculty Brigadier General Dana H. Born, ’80, and several members ofthe faculty traveled to Singapore’s NanyangTechnological University (NTU) to attend the official signing of an international Cooperative Research and DevelopmentAgreement (CRADA) between USAFA and NTU.

The CRADA will offer cadets and faculty at the Academy new research and cultural opportunities, while studentsand faculty from Singapore will benefit from faculty and student research exchange opportunities. The agreement also offers the chance to pursue shared research publications and grants.

“This collaboration not only benefits both of our institutions’ faculty and student bodies, but is an important step in furthering the goodwill between our two countries,” Gen. Born said ofthe CRADA and her visit to Nanyang.

This effort will help to develop the researchers and students who will lead Singapore’s future scientific endeavors, while also contributing to the international experience ofthe next generation ofAir Force officers.

This is just one example ofhow the Academy’s learning-focused curriculum and cadet research efforts continue to enhance and support the mission ofUSAFA and the

Air Force. It also affirms our commitment to fostering institutional and inter-governmental relationships between the United States and its foreign allies.

The leadership of the Republic of Singapore Air Force directly reflects the strong ties between USAFA and Singapore. USAFA Singaporean graduates have gone on to high-level positions among the RSAF command, ranging from unmanned aerial operations to squadron and pilot officers.

RSAF Col. Chee Meng Ng, Class of 1990, spent his upper-class years at USAFA in Cadet Squadron 34 and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering. He also obtained a Masters in International Relations from the Fletcher School ofLaw and Diplomacy. He is an operational pilot ofthe F-3S and F-16D, and has served in several command positions. Today Col. Ng is Director of the RSAF Joint Operations Department.

While at USAFA, Class of 1994 graduate Lt. Col. Kok Pin Pang was a member ofCS-1 and majored in Aeronautical Engineering. After graduation, Lt. Col. Pang became one of the RSAF’s pioneer Apache Attack Helicopter pilots and served as a flight commander for both the RSAF AS-550 Fennec Helicopter and Apache squadrons. He is currently the head of the RSAF HQTraining and Doctrine Command Air-Land Integration Branch.

Maj. Phillip Khoo, Class of2002, is a qualified helicopter pilot on the AS-332 Super Puma andthe AH-64D Apache. He is currently serving as a staffofficer in the RSAF Air Operations Department. Class

of2006 graduate Capt Shawn Ingkiriwang is an A-4 Super Skyhawk pilot trainee in Cazaux, France.

“Our past interaction with Singapore has helped us develop Air Force leaders for both nations,” said Gen. Born. “Thanks to this CRADA, we can now look forward to an even stronger relationship. Air Force officers have always needed scientific and engineering knowledge, but the current generation ofcadets must have greater intercultural competence and involvement. This is one of the concrete steps we are taking to achieve these outcomes.” S

Brig. Gen. Dana Born (second from right) observes the robotics lab in Singapore.

Cadets experience real-world deployment

Nineteen cadets from the senior class ofthe Air Force in Colorado Springs, Colo., are visiting the 379th :ditionaryWing here during the month ofJune to an active-dutydeployment as part ofthe Academy’s ir Force program, which allows students to visit :he world each summer, cessing back in the states—including computer-based training, immunizations, and firing weapons—to getting their hands dirty in maintenance back shops and shadowingpilots, these cadets and their cadre are getting the full experience.

“You can’t teach this in a classroom,” said Maj. David Higginbotham, the officer in charge ofthe Academy program. “This is an expeditionaryAir Force. When you raised your right hand, you didnt commit to going to your base or preference for 20 years. You are signing up to be worldwide deployable.”

“The people who made this visit possible are in the squadrons,” said Capt. Justin Hsia, the wingplans and programs executive officer and the coordinator ofthis year’s cadet visit.

“Our goal was to expose them to as many different functions as possible, and it’s been a phenomenal opportunity for them to learn. Because, no matter how many exercises you participate

by Senior Airman Carolyn Viss 3y9th Ain Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs

in, a look at a deployed environment will teach you more than you could ever learn stateside.”

Spending about two weeks in the maintenance units and another two with operational flyingsquadrons, with a few branching out to medical, communications, security forces, contracting and space/missiles, the cadets are learning the teamwork it takes to keep the Air Force mission going.

“As far as developing an appreciation for what people do in the (area ofresponsibility) is concerned, this is the single most important experience we could have,” said Cadet Liam Conley, the cadet-in-charge. “We’ve got cadets out there mai shalling aircraft, scheduling sorties, performing maintenance refuelingjets and even fixing the refrigerators that store bloc at the transshipment center here. We’ve had a chance to do something that’s a solid contribution to the war effort.”

Their deployment experience, including their interaction: with sister-service and coalition missions, is “unprecedented by any other AFA program, Cadet Conley said. “It hits hon

THE TIES THAT BIND

A LOOK AT THE UNITED STATES AIR FORCE ACADEMY'S RELATIONSHIP WITH SINGAPORE

BY JULIE IMADA

In a partnership that spans cultures and nearly two decades, the United States Air Force Academy and the Republic of Singapore have taken steps to expand and solidify their academic and research relationship.

In the spring of2008, USAFA Dean ofthe Faculty Brigadier General Dana H. Born, ’80, and several members ofthe faculty traveled to Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU) to attend the official signing of an international Cooperative Research and DevelopmentAgreement (CRADA) between USAFA and NTU.

The CRADA will offer cadets and faculty at the Academy new research and cultural opportunities, while students and faculty from Singapore will benefit from faculty and student research exchange opportunities. The agreement also offers the chance to pursue shared research publications and grants.

“This collaboration not only benefits both of our institutions’ faculty and student bodies, but is an important step in furthering the goodwill between our two countries,” Gen. Born said ofthe CRADA and her visit to Nanyang.

This effort will help to develop the researchers and students who will lead Singapore’s future scientific endeavors, while also contributing to the international experience ofthe next generation ofAir Force officers.

This is just one example ofhow the Academy’s learning-focused curriculum and cadet research efforts continue to enhance and support the mission ofUSAFA and the

Air Force. It also affirms our commitment to fostering institutional and inter-governmental relationships between the United States and its foreign allies.

The leadership of the Republic of Singapore Air Force directly reflects the strong ties between USAFA and Singapore. USAFA Singaporean graduates have gone on to high-level positions among the RSAF command, ranging from unmanned aerial operations to squadron and pilot officers.

RSAF Col. Chee Meng Ng, Class of 1990, spent his upper-class years at USAFA in Cadet Squadron 34 and graduated with a Bachelor ofScience in Electrical Engineering. He also obtained a Masters in International Relations from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. He is an operational pilot of the F-5S and F-16D, and has served in several command positions. Today Col. Ng is Director of the RSAF Joint Operations Department.

While at USAFA, Class of 1994 graduate Lt. Col. Kok Pin Pang was a member of CS-1 and majored in Aeronautical Engineering. After graduation, Lt. Col. Pang became one ofthe RSAF’s pioneer Apache Attack Helicopter pilots and served as a flight commander for both the RSAF AS-550 Fennec Helicopter and Apache squadrons. He is currently the head ofthe RSAF HQTraining and Doctrine Command Air-Land Integration Branch.

Maj. Phillip Khoo, Class of2002, is a qualified helicopter pilot on the AS-332 Super Puma andthe AH-64D Apache. He is currently serving as a staff officer in the RSAF Air Operations Department. Class

of2006 graduate Capt Shawn Ingkiriwang is an A-4 Super Skyhawk pilot trainee in Cazaux, France.

“Our past interaction with Singapore has helped us develop Air Force leaders for both nations,” said Gen. Born. “Thanks to this CRADA, we can now look forward to an even stronger relationship. Air Force officers have always needed scientific and engineering knowledge, but the current generation ofcadets must have greater intercultural competence and involvement. This is one of the concrete steps we are taking to achieve these outcomes.” S3

flpIN

Brig. Gen. Dana Born (second from right) observes the robotics lab in Singapore.

to go out there and see the (Combined Air and Space Operations Center), Aussies, tornados, the embassy and state department. It puts a new spin on our idea of a ‘coalition’ experience.

“Sitting down and talking with sister services and coalition partners really shows how we all have a unique and valuable role in the mission,” Cadet Conley said.

“It’s very refreshing and energizing,” Cadet Caroline Tetrick said. “At the Academy, you’re a little sheltered from the war. Being in an academic environment day to day makes you feel a little disconnected from the active-duty lifestyle; but out here, something as simple as changing a brake on an aircraft has real mission impact. This isn’t a training mission. They’re out there dropping real bombs on real targets.”

It also gives cadets the opportunity to work alongside airmen they will lead and work for in the future, said Master Sgt. William Hutto, the enlisted leader ofthe group. Nineteen more cadets are scheduled to visit the wing in July.

“I’ve never been in an operational squadron, and other than knowing that theyfly, I don’t really know what they do,” said Caroline Tetrick, a visiting cadet who has a pilot slot waiting for her when she graduates from the Academy with a degree in behavioral science and leadership this spring. “Seeing the ops tempo here is really good because I get to see what I’ll really be doing (when I commission).” sm

The famous ace influ the front.

possessed by Robin O the cockpit, from the

need Generations of

Few American airmen have had the ds. His person

ind of dazzling talent and charisma loomed equally larqe whether frorr ctern or in face-to-face

Olds was big, tough, smart, and swaggering, not to mention brave and highly skilled. Even Hollywood would have had a hard time portraying the genuine article on the big screen. He was a truly dynamic force, one who had a positive impact on the Air Force for more than 60 years.

“His influence upon who we are as an Air Force today can hardly be overstated,” Gen. T. Michael Moseley, Chief of Staff, remarked on the death of the retired brigadier general last June. Olds was “a staunch advocate for better fighters, better pilot training,” and the innovative tactics that the Air Force still uses today, Moseley said.

Olds’ effect on USAF varied both in content and in timing. His career can easily be divided into two eras. In general terms, the first era, which ran from West Point to his retirement, was a period in which his effect was chiefly localized. He was achieving notable combat successes, influencing his peers and subordinates, and often antagonizing his superiors.

In the second, postretirement era his effect spread, and Olds became almost universally embraced, even by those who previously hadtaken exception to his views.

Olds had great stories to tell, and he polished them over the years, weaving them into his presentations with the wit and the timing of a professional actor. He didn’t mind exaggerating the humorous aspects in some ofhis stories, but he never exaggerated what he accomplished.

ON THE FIELD

His many devoted fans have further embroidered Olds’ stories, with the result that some have become inconsistent over time. One thing is constant: This man was a warrior who led from the front, who cared for his troops, and who never hesitated to say exactly what he thought.

Born on July 14, 1922 in Honolulu, Olds was the son of Robert Olds, a fighter pilot in World War I and later an aide to Billy Mitchell. Eloise, Olds’ mother, died when he was four, and he was brought up by his father, who gave him his first flight at the age ofeight, in an open-cockpit biplane. In his later years, Robin Olds would speak with admiration ofthe great leaders—Ira C. Eaker, Carl A. Spaatz, and others—who met often at his home, as his father eventually rose to the rank ofmajor general.

Robin began to gain prominence while a cadet at West Point, where he played tackle on both offense and defense and was named an All American. (Olds was so proficient on the football field that he was inducted into the College Football Hall ofFame in 1985.)

In later years, Olds told ofbeing deliberately struck by an opponent’s forearm in a game against archrival Navy. The blow knocked out two upper front teethand sidelined him for a few plays as his bleeding mouth was packed with cotton. Back in the game, he smashed into the man who had hit him, knocking his opponent flat on his back. Olds stood over him, grinning, pointing to his bleeding mouth and then down to the fallen foe.

He graduated from West Point in 1943—the year ofhis father’s early death— and months later graduated from pilot training, with his wings being pinned on by Gen. Henry H. “Hap” Arnold himself.

Young Lieutenant Olds was well- trained, with more than 650 hours in aircraft, including the Lockheed P-38 Lightning, when he entered World War II combat. He flew with the abandon of a man who knows he is invulnerable and for whom the enemy is only a target.

Olds began his sensational rise as a fighter pilot in Europe, where he flew 107 missions, scored 12 aerial victories, and destroyed another 11 -and-one-halfenemy aircraft on

the ground. His knowledge ofair combat grew with his victories and so did his willingness to speak out about his beliefs—no matter how contrary they were to current doctrine. It was a trait that would work more often against him than for him.

FROM P-5IS TO P-80S

At the peak ofthe air war against Germany, Olds saw how heavy bombers’ precision attacks were being converted into area bombing bywind, weather, and enemy opposition. He put forth the idea that 70 P-5 Is armed with 500-pound bombs could do more damage to a target requiring precise accuracy than a formation of 1,000 B-17s.

As an idea, it was 20 years ahead of its time—and it ran directly contrary to USAAF philosophy. It was the first of many of Olds’ ideas whose time had not yet come, a condition that would frustrate him over the years, and helped induce in him flamboyant behavior that worked against both his acceptance and his advancement.

The refusal to accept his idea about precision bombing was puzzling to him because he was awarded many decorations. Most satisfying of all, he was given command ofhis squadron as a 22-year-old major. In later life, he sometimes remarked on the strange “disconnect” between the increase of his responsibility on one hand, andthe rejection of his ideas on the other.

After the war, Olds was placed in the very first Lockheed P-80 jet aircraft squadron. This was a desirable assignment, as well as a dangerous one, for the loss rate in the early jet aircraft was high. He also flew with the Aerial Aerobatic Demonstration Team, the forerunner of the Thunderbirds, the first American jet aircraft aerobatic team. Lor good measure, he also placed second in the jet aircraft division of the 1946 Thompson Trophy Race.

He added to his highvisibility level by marrying movie star Ella Raines. He and Raines separated in 1975, but remained married until her death in 1988.

Also of note was his assignment to an exchange program with the Royal Air Force where he flew the Gloster Meteor jet fighter and then served in the prestigiousposition ofcommander ofNo. 1 Squadron, RAF.

However, when the Korean War came, Olds was unable, despite considerable effort, to get back into combat. In private conversations, he would attribute this directly to one ofhis superiors who told him in essence, “If I cannot get there to fight, you are certainly not going to get there.”

After Korea, Olds became deeply discontented with the direction he saw being taken by tactical airpower: Tactical Air Command became increasingly focused on the nuclear mission.

Olds continued to distinguish himselfby brilliant flying and the ability to rufflehis superiors feathers. At a time whenTAC was oriented to the deliveryofnuclear weapons, Olds, through a series ofpapers, continuallycalled for intensive training in air-to-air combat, close air support, and development ofnew tactics. He also sought betterpilot training, better fighters, and surgicalprecision in bombing.

SOMETHING MISSING

Olds became dissatisfiedwith his career, despiteassignments that most fighterpilots wouldhave coveted. These included the command ofa wing in Europe, the 81stTactical FighterWing at RAF Bentwaters, England, where Col. Daniel “Chappie”JamesJr. was his deputycommander for operations.

The two men would team up again later, becomingfamous as “Blackman and Robin”

in the Vietnam War. In between these assign ments, Olds worked at the Pentagon and graduated from the National War College. His promotions came in goodorder, yet despite his satisfaction in leadingfirst-class flyingunits—anddespite the admiration in which he was held byhis officers and enlistee men—there was somethingmissing. Olds wanted the acknowledgement that he was a thinker as well as a doer.

Unfortunately, his ideas on a return to traininggeared to fighting a conventiona air war were rebuffed.

His desire to remain in an active flying job was more important to him than his imminentpromotion to brigadiergeneral.. commander ofthe 81st, flyingMcDonnell 101 Voodoo fighter-bombers, Olds formec aerial demonstration team and performed unauthorized low-level aerobatic display. His boss reprimanded him, and as punishment, ripped up Olds’ promotio papers. His next assignment was to Sha AFB, S.C., where it seemed his career f reached a dead end.

In fact the opposite was true: He hat crafted a situation where he could retu combat and achieve his greatest fame.

For the first time since his combat h Europe, time and events were on Olds side. The United States was becoming increasingly involved in the Vietnam and, in 1966, Olds was assigned to th

Olds in 1944, flying with the 479th Fighter Group in Europe duringWorld War II.

4453rd Combat Crew Training Wing at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona. His old friend Chappie James was there, as was then-Maj. William L. Kirk.

There followed the decisive event that would foster Olds’ ascent from simply being a hero to a few and a troublemaker to many. On Sept. 30, 1966, he became commander of the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing, based at Ubon AB, Thailand.

The wing needed Olds as badly as he needed the wing. He introduced himself to his largely dispirited and tired pilots in his usual fashion, with a challenge: Olds was going to fly as a new guy until he learned his job—and then he was going to lead the wing into combat from the front.

There was suspicion that this World War II retread was just talking a good game, but Olds soon proved himself to be a master of the F-4 and an inspiring leader.

The stories ofhis methods are legion. He shook up the base’s support staff, putting it on the same 24-hour clock as his combat crews. He continually visited the support groups, finding out what their problems were in an effort to get them solved. And he was not above tipping a bottle of beer with his airmen as they discussed how to improve operations.

He led his wing as he had promised, from the front, with flair and aggressiveness. Olds ultimately flew 152 missions in Southeast Asia, 105 ofthem over North Vietnam. He encouraged camaraderie at the bar, grew an unauthorized mustache, and demonstrated at the age of44 that he was the physical, mental, and flying equal—or superior—of any man in his unit.

Olds had always had good effect on the morale ofthe units he led. He was gregarious, was always concerned about the welfare ofhis people, and like many ofhis contemporaries he drank too much for his own good.

His prescient view ofthe types oftraining required for air combat was far in advance of most ofhis superiors. It was ignored for many years because it was contrary to contemporary doctrine—and, in truth, partly because ofhis flamboyant nature.

Unfortunately, prior to the Vietnam War, he was never able to impose his ideas with the same elegance that he used in leading the 8th TFW.

First and foremost, Olds wanted to kill MiGs, but the North Vietnamese were

canny. Few in number, they husbanded their resources, striking against Republic F-105 formations when they could do so safely. The North Vietnamese were content, if necessary, with a preservationist strategy ofjust making the Thunderchiefs drop their bombs before they reached the target area.

It was deeply satisfying for Olds to see over Vietnam that allthe ideas that he had advocated—better airplanes, more training in air-to-air combat, bombing, and close air support—had been correct all along. For Robin Olds, it was vindication.

Impatient with the reluctant enemy, Olds conceived a plan that became the single most important air-to-air engagement of the war, and which started him into the second era ofhis career—the period in which he had immense effect on virtually everyone in the Air Force.

Calling on the skill and guile ofthe leading members ofhis wing, Olds created Operation Bolo. The plan was elegantly simple: Modern F-4s would imitate the call signs, routes, and flight profiles ofmore-vulnerable F-105s in a bid to coax North Vietnamese fighters into a trap. The tactics worked and induced the North Vietnamese Air Force to believe that a Phantom formation was indeed a formation ofThunderchiefs.

In the ensuing battle, seven MiG-21 s were shot down, the biggest score ofthe war.

Olds shot down the first ofhis four MiGs in this battle, raising his total number ofvictories to 13 on the way to a career total of 16.

A PROMOTION LONG OVERDUE

After his stint in the war, his Air Force career was distinguished by the popularity he enjoyed as a strict but caring commandant of cadets at the Air Force Academy. He finally became a brigadiergeneral in 1968 (a promotion long overdue in the minds ofmany), but subsequendy was assigned to positions that did not lend themselves to more promotions.

Yet promotions were the furthest thing from Olds’ mind. Asked by Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John D. Ryan in 1972 to investigate why the Air Force kill ratio had plummeted late in the Vietnam War, Olds came back with a blistering report that impugned USAF’s contemporary training. He offered to accept a reduction in rank to colonel so that he could go back and personally inculcate the necessary fighting

techniques, but this proposal was refused. Olds elected to retire in 1973.

By this time, Olds’ influence was already growing. He continued to put forth his ideas, addressing countless groups around the country, often beginning his talks with four words that truly characterized him.

Olds would stand before the group— sometimes military people, sometimes a Rotary Club, it didn’t matter. He would square his shoulders, wait for a few tensionfilled seconds, then shout, “I AM A WARRIOR.” No one ever doubted him.

Though he never seemed to seek it out, his popularity continually increased.

Olds continued to write influential papers on his ideas about aerial warfare. It is the mark ofthe man that when technology at last reached a point where his ideas on training and tactics no longer applied, he welcomed the change.

Olds realized that the advent ofstealth, precision guided weapons, and sophisticated command and control forever changed the dynamics ofair combat, and he said so.

He also labored over an autobiography that was not completed by the time ofhis death, but that would be massively welcorned by his legion of fans.

After a long fight, Robin Olds succumbed to congestive heart failure on June 14, 2007, surrounded by his family and friends. He was interred at the United States Air Force Academy Cemetery with full honorsand a unique missing man formation. Four Phantoms roared over, and instead ofthe customary pull up by the lead’s wingman, in this instance, the lead himselfpulled up. It was an appropriate salute to the one, the only, Robin Olds, a leader all his life.

WalterJ. Boyne former director ofthe NationalAir and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., is a retiredAir Force colonel, author, and member ofthe NationalAviation Hall ofFame. He has written more than 600 articles about aviation topics and50 books, the most recent ofwhich is Soaring to Glory. His most recent articleforAir Force Magazine, “A Study in Stripes, appeared in the March issue.

HE AOG BOARD OF DIRECTORS CONTINUED THEIR LONG TERM SUPPORT FORTHE GRADUATE DEPENDENT SCHOLARSHIP FORTHE ACADEMIC YEAR OF 2008-2009, ALLOCATING $20,000 FOR SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS. CHILDREN OF GRADUATE MEMBERS ARE ELIGIBLE TO APPLY FORAND RF.rF.TVF. BETWEEN $500 AND $2000.

19 GRADUATE DEPENDENT ARSHTPS AWARFIFTY

CjvtOv/IjZIIVJOII J ilWiiiVL/J-/Iy

By Steve Knight

One hundred and ten applications were received by a volunteer committee for review and rank. The committee, consisting of Lt. Col. (Ret.) Steven A. Simon, ’77, Mrs Lisa M. Mazur, ’85, and Mr. Michael G. Lipinski, ’93, spent hours reflecting over the application packages. Scores were consolidated and those applicants with highest total points were awarded scholarships.

After careful consideration, 19 young men and women were selected to receive a scholarship. The winners are listed in alphabetical order along with the amount of their scholarship award. Four are previous award winners. The number of times they have previously received a scholarship is indicated by the number of asterisks following their name.

The AOG congratulates all GDS applicants and winners on their records of academic achievement, community involvement and exemplary service.

SHANNON K. ANTHONY ($1000)

Ms. Anthony graduated third of 361 in her class at Liberty High School in Colorado Springs, Colo. She is a Girl Scout, President of the Environmental Club, Secretary for the National Honor Society and Science National Honor Society and also serves as treasurer for Science NHS. Shannon will attend Colorado State University, in Fort Collins, Colo., majoring in Chemical Engineering.

KIMBER N. BOUGAN ($1000)

Miss Bougan graduated in the top 4 percent of a very competitive class of 323 from Rutherford High School, in Panama City, Fla. Kimber was a member of the High School’s International Baccalaureate program. Kimber plans to pursue a pre-medicine degree in Biology, with a minor in Psychology at the University of Florida. Her ambitions include attending a University such as Johns Hopkins or Yale Medical School.

LINDSAY E. CHATFIELD ($1,000)

Miss Chatfield graduated from Mount de Sales Academy, Macon, Ga., with a 4.0 GPA, where she completed five A.P. courses and four Honor courses. Miss Chatfield will be attending Vanderbilt University this fall in the College ofArts and Science.

SEAN M. COLLINS ($1,000)

Mr. Collins completed the fall semester as a freshman at the University ofMichigan with a 3.96 GPA. He is officially dual enrolled as a piano performance major and as an undeclared cellular/molecular biology major, pursuing both a B. Mus and B.S. degrees. For biology, he will develop an advanced theoretical and applied understanding ofcontemporary study in cellular/molecular biology.

ERIN M. DALE ($1,000)

Miss Dale completed the fall semester at the University ofVirginia with a 3.489 GPA. She was the number one graduate ofthe Class of 2007 from Forest Park High School, Woodbridge, Va. She plans to declare a double major in Biology and Engineering Science, along with a minor in Biomedical Engineering.

ELIZABETH W. HERLONG ($1,000)

Miss Herlong attended Collerville High School, in Collerville, Tenn. She ranked 11 th in a graduating class of474. Her GPA was a straight 4.0 throughout High School. She completed 8 Honor Courses and 5 A.P. Courses. Betsy will be attendingWesleyan College, pursuing a double major in English literature and French with aspirations ofsomeday becoming an author.

SHELBY L. HIXON ($1,000)

Miss Hixon graduated from Etowah High School in Woodstock, Ga. She will attend the University ofAlabama, where she has received the Presidential Scholarship and has been admitted to the

Top to faottomrGary Howe ’69, Elizabeth W. Herlong, David Herlong, 75, Elizabeth Herlong; Gary Howe, Shannon Anthony, James F. Anthony, 78; Maj. Gen. Scott Hammond, 75, Lindsay Chatfield, Lt. Col, Kimberly Chatfield, ’83,; Thomas Solomon, ’69, Nicholas Myers, Lynda Myers, ’87

University Honors Program. Shelby plans to major in pre-med, for her ultimate goal is to be a plastic surgeon.

MR. PETER J. JONES II ($1,000)

Mr. Jones graduated from United World College of Costa Rica. This is a two year International Baccalaureate program designed for high school juniors and seniors. He will attend the University of Oklahoma this fall.

ALEXANDER T. KNOBLOCK ($1,000)

Mr. Knoblock stands first in his graduating class at Worthington Kilbourne High School, in Columbus, OH. Alex is a scholar athlete and an Ohio Capital Conference scholarathlete. He has traveled to eleven countries and plans to pursue a degree in linguistics, and hopes to one dayjoin the ranks of the Peace Corps. Additionally he plans to pursue professional degrees and hopefully become a specialist in a diplomatic field.

ANNE F. KORNAHRENS ($1,000)

Miss Kornahrens is a freshman at Boston College. She graduated in the top 2 percent ofher class ofnearly 800 students from Wayzata High School, in Plymouth, Minn. At Boston College, Anne interviewed and was selected for a place in their Presidential Scholars Program. She is now considering medical school and possibly medical research. In her spare timeAnne enjoys swimming and diving and spends many hours volunteering in her new community.

NICHOLAS J. MYERS ($1,000)

Mr. Myers graduated from Madison High School in San Antonio, TX, ranking 3rd in a graduating class of 680. He is passionate about both space and chemistry and he dreams ofsomeday working for NASA as a chemist and perhaps becoming a mission specialist. To achieve his goals he will attend the Massachusetts Institute ofTechnology.

SETH M. RAMEY ($1,000)

Mr. Ramey stands first in a graduating class of 306 at Denton High School, Denton, TX. Seth has been accepted to Southern Methodist University and plans to major in Business and Broadcasting. Sports are his passion and his “dream” would be a position in sports management, and eventually working for a professional sports team such as the Dallas Cowboys.

CREIGH A. RICHERT ($1,500 Buschman Award)

Mr. Richert completed all four years ofhigh school with a 4.0 GPA and was the number one graduate at Freedom High School, South Riding, Va. Creigh has been accepted to the University of Oklahoma and plans to major in Engineering.

JANE A. RIVAS ($1,000)

Miss Rivas graduated as the top student in a graduating class of 908, from Lyons Township High School, in Western Springs, Ill. She will attend the University of Illinois and pursue a degree in Art History, and a minor in Chemistry from their College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

EMILY R. SANTEE ($1,000) *

Miss Santee completed her sophomore year at the University of Washington with a cumulative 3.59 GPA in chemical engineering. She graduated fourth in her class of 321 students from Liberty High School in Colorado Springs, Colorado. This summer, Emily was hired by Floyd/Snider engineering firm as an undergraduate intern where she received nothing but glowing praise for her combination ofskills andher ability for clear and concise communication.

CHRISTOPHER B. SIMPSON ($1,000)

Mr. Simpson completed his sophomore year at Georgia Tech with a 3.91 GPA. He continues to play in the marching, pep and concert bands. He is also a member ofthe Georgia Tech Fencing Team and an active member ofthe American Society ofMechanical Engineers and Kappa Kappa Psi (National Honorary Band Service Fraternity). He is pursuing a degree in Mechanical Engineering and is considering a career in ship-building and naval architecture after college.

MIRANDA R. TSUKAMOTO ($1,500)

Miss Tsukamoto is a junior at the University of Florida with a 3.98 GPA. She graduated fourth in a class of 738 students from Olympia High School in Orlando, Fla. Miranda is in the University of Florida Honors Program, a founding member and former Treasurer ofThe National Society of Leadership and Success and a Phi Kappa Phi Honors Society member. She plans to attend medical school at the University of Florida and wants to specialize in the field of Dermatology.

AUBREYWADMAN-GOETSCH ($1,000)

Miss Wadman-Goetsch is in the top 3 percent of her class of 431 students at Wichita High School East in Wichita, Kan. Aubrey qualified as a National Merit semi-finalist and is in both the National Merit Society and French National Honor Society. She may major in Biochemistry but she also has interest in Chemical Engineering, Marine Biology and Psychology.

KAYLEY A. WOLF ($1000)

Miss Wolfattended Wyoming High School, in Wyoming, OH. Kayley ranked in the top 5 percent ofher graduating class. She is in the National Honor Society, the Spanish Honor Society and was one of two nominated in music performance for Overture Awards, a city wide arts competition. She will attend Brandeis University where she will double major. One half of that degree will be in violin performance; she is undecided on the other half. Areas such as International Studies, International Business and Biomedical Engineering are her other interests. 9

To read more about the GDS recipients, please visit: www.usafa.org

BOARD Gl: [BiaECBTOSBS

A. Bart Holaday '65 Chairman

Terrance M. Drabant '65 Vice Chairman

William E. Wecker '63 Treasurer

William W. Maywhort '68 Secretary

John M. Fox '63

Timothy J. Fyda’79

Max F. James '64

Paul G. Kaminski ’64

Jack N. Kucera 78

Paul S. Madera 78

Richard D. McConn '66

Gilbert D. Mook '67

Harry J. Pearce '64

Terrence L. Petrzelka 70

Charles E. Phillips, Jr. '81

Gen (ret.) Michael E. Ryan '65

Richard T Schlosberg III '65

William H. Simpson '63

F. Keith Withycombe '66

Hon. Michael W. Wynne '66 (USMA)

Gen (ret.) Ronald W. Yates '60

The USAFA Endowment is a charitable foundation providing financial support to the Air Force Academy. The organization was formed in July 2007 and was granted tax-exempt status as an IRS-designated 501 (c)(3) public charity in March 2008. In its first year of operation, the organization has raised over $ 10 million in support of the Air Force Academy and the ongoing mission ofthe Endowment.

The founders ofthe USAFA Endowment chose to establish a new type of foundation to enhance the graduate community’s ability to raise, distribute and steward funds in support ofthe mission of the Air Force Academy. In doing so, the founders have chosen to memorialize several unique “founding principles” into the organizational bylaws to further encourage financial participation for the benefit ofthe Academy. They are:

No Fees

Stewardship in Perpetuity

Full Transparency

Positive and Supportive Approach

These principles create an organization in which donors can feel completely confident that their investments will support the purposes for which they were given. Equally important, donors are assured that their gifts will be carefully and consistently stewarded, as the bylaws require, without fear of future financial or organizational changes. Ultimately, the unique structure of the USAFA Endowment offers donors the confidence they require to give generously to their Academy and its needs.

Visit our website at

If you have any questions, please contact our office in Colorado Springs and speak with Mark Hille ’97, Vice President of Major Gifts, at (719) 268-6037.

USAFA Endowment, Inc.

November 20-21, 2008

San Antonio, TX

What is SACC?

The SACC is the Service Academy Career Conference supported by the Associations of Graduates from the U.S. Air Force Academy and the U.S. Military Academy, and Alumni Associations from the U.S. Naval Academy, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, and U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. Previous conferences have been attended by hundreds of companies and thousands of alumni. Go to www.sacc-jobfair.com for a list of companies attending, the complete schedule and the online registration form.

Where

will the SACC be held?

The next SACC will be held at The Westin Riverwalk, 420 W. Market St., San Antonio, TX. Call (210) 224-6500 for reservations and ask for the SACC rate.

SACC Schedule of Events

Thursday, November 20

Interview Prep Seminar 6:30 p.m.

Friday, November 21

Saturday, November 22

Interviews only if directly scheduled between company recruiters and candidates; Companies will contact you directly regarding any on-site interviews during the SACC.

Registration

The SACC Candidate registration fee is $35. To register, submit a one-page resume (for recruiter's book) and pay online at www.sacc-jobfair.com. This limited resume is designed to give the recruiters an indication of your capabilities. It is NOT the resume you should bring to hand out to the recruiters at the conference. Registration deadline for inclusion in the recruiter's book is November 7, 2008.

Next Scheduled SACC

Savannah Ga., February 26-27, 2009

For more information, contact Wayne Taylor at (719) 472-0300 or go online at www.sacc-jobfair.com.

PIGGYBACK HERO

omorrow they will lay the remains ofGlenn Rojohn to rest in the Peace Lutheran Cemetery in the little town ofGreenock, Pa., just southeast of Pittsburgh. Fie was 81, and had been in the air conditioning and plumbing business in nearby McKeesport. Ifyou had seen him on the street he would probably have looked to you like so many other graying, bespectacled old World War II veterans whose names appear so often now on obituary pages.

But like so many of them, though he seldom talkedabout it, he could have told you one hell of a story. He won the Air Medal, the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Purple Heart all in one fell swoop in the skies over Germany on December 31, 1944. Fell swoop indeed.

Capt. Glenn Rojohn, ofthe 8th Air Force’s 100th Bomb Group, was flying his B-17G Flying Fortress bomber on a raid over Hamburg. His formation had braved heavy flak to drop their bombs, then turned 180 degrees to head out over the North Sea. They had finally turned northwest, headed back to England, when they were jumped by German fighters at 22,000 feet. The Messerschmitt Me-109s pressed their attack so closely that Capt. Rojohn could see the faces ofthe German pilots. He and other pilots fought to remain in formation so they could use each other’s guns to defend the group. Rojohn saw a B-17 ahead ofhim burst into flames and slide sickeningly toward the earth. He gunned his ship forward to fill in the gap. He felt a huge impact. The big bomber shuddered, felt suddenly very heavy and began losing altitude. Rojohn grasped almost immediately that he had collided with another plane.

By Ralph Kenney Bennett

A B-17 below him, piloted by Lt. William G. McNab, had slammedthe top of its fuselage into the bottom of Rojohn’s. The top turret gun of McNab’s plane was now locked in the belly of Rojohn’s plane and the ball turret in the belly of Rojohn’s had smashed through the top of McNab’s. The two bombers were almost perfectly aligned-the tail of the lower plane was slightly to the left of Rojohn’s tailpiece. They were stuck together, as a crewman later recalled, ‘like mating dragon flies.’ Three of the engines on the bottom plane were still running, as were all four of Rojohn’s. The fourth engine on the lower bomber was on fire andthe flames were spreading to the rest of the aircraft. The two were losing altitude quickly. Rojohn tried several times to gun his engines and break free of the other plane.

The two were inextricably locked together.

Fearing a fire, Rojohn cut his engines

and rang the bailout bell. For his crew to have any chance ofparachuting, he had to keep the plane under control somehow. The ball turret, hanging below the belly ofthe B-17, was considered by many to be a death trap—the worst station on the bomber. In this case, both ball turrets figured in a swift and terrible drama oflife and death. Staff Sgt. Edward L. Woodall Jr., in the ball turret ofthe lower bomber had felt the impact of the collision above him and saw shards of metal drop past him. Worse, he realized both electrical and hydraulic power was gone. Remembering escape drills, he grabbed the handcrank, released the clutch and cranked the turret and its guns until they were straight down, then turned and climbed out the back ofthe turret up into the fuselage. Once inside the plane s belly Woodall saw a chilling sight, the ball turret ofthe other bomber protruding through the top ofthe fuselage. In that turret, hopelessly trapped,

was StaffSgt. Joseph Russo. Several crew members ofRojohns plane tried frantically to crank Russo s turret around so he could escape, but, jammed into the fuselage of the lower plane, it would not budge. Perhaps unaware that his voice was going out over the intercom ofhis plane, Sgt. Russo began reciting his Hail Marys.

Up in the cockpit, Capt. Rojohn and his co-pilot 2nd Lt. William G. Leek Jr., had propped their feet against the instrument panel so they could pull back on their controls with all their strength, trying to prevent their plane from going into a spinning dive that would prevent the crew from jumping out. Capt. Rojohn motioned left and the two managed to wheel the huge, collisionborn hybrid of a plane back toward the German coast. Leek felt like he was intruding on Sgt. Russo as his prayers crackled over the radio, so he pulled offhis flying helmet with its earphones. t>

Rojohn, immediately grasping that the crew could not exit from the bottom ofhis plane, ordered his top turret gunner and his radio operator, Tech Sgts. OrvilleElkin and Edward G. Neuhaus to make their way to the back ofthe fuselage and out the waist door on the left behind the wing. Then he got his navigator, 2nd Lt. Robert Washington, and his bombardier, Sgt. James Shirley to follow them. As Rojohn and Leek somehow held the plane steady, these four men, as well as waist gunner, Sgt. Roy Little, and tail gunner, StaffSgt. Francis Chase, were able to bail out.

Now the plane locked below them was aflame. Fire poured over Rojohn’s left wing. He could feel the heat from the plane below and hear the sound of 50 cal. machinegun ammunition ‘cooking off’ in the flames. Capt. Rojohn ordered Lt. Leek to bail out. Leek knew that without him helping tokeep the controls back, the plane would drop in a flaming spiral andthe centrifugal force would prevent Rojohn from bailing. He refused the order.

Meanwhile, German soldiers and civilians on the ground that afternoonlooked up in wonder

Some ofthem thought they were seeing a new Allied secret weapon—a strange eight-engined double bomber. But anti-aircraft gunners on the North Sea coastal island ofWangerooge had seen the collision. A German battery captain wrote in his logbook at 12:47 p.m.: ‘Two fortresses collided in a formation in the NE. The planes flew hooked together and flew 20 milessouth. The two planes were unable to fight anymore. The crash could be awaited so I stopped the firing at these two planes.’

Suspended in his parachute in the cold December sky, Bob Washington watched with deadly fascination as the mated bombers, trailing black smoke, fell to earth about three miles away, their downward trip ending in an uglyboiling blossom offire.

In the cockpit, Rojohn and Leek held grimly to the controls, trying to ride a falling rock. Leek tersely recalled, ‘The ground came up faster and faster. Praying was allowed. We gave it one last effort and slammed into the ground.’ The McNab plane on the bottom exploded, vaulting the other B-17 upward and forward. It slammed back to the ground, sliding along until its left wing slammed through a wooden building and the smoldering mess came to a stop. Rojohn andLeek were still seated in their cockpit. The nose ofthe plane was relatively intact, but everything from the B-l7’s massive wings back was destroyed. They looked at each other incredulously.

Neither was badly injured.

Movies have nothing on reality. Still perhaps in shock, Leek crawled out through a huge hole behind the cockpit, felt for the familiar pack

in his uniform pocket and pulled out a cigarette. He placed it in his mouth and was about to light it. Then he noticed a young German soldier pointing a rifle at him. The soldier looked scared and annoyed. He grabbed the cigarette out of Leak’s mouth and pointed down to the gasoline pouring out over the wing from a ruptured fuel tank.

Two of the six men who parachuted from Rojohn’s plane did not survive the jump. But the other four and, amazingly, four men from the other bomber, including ball turret gunner Woodall, survived.

All were taken prisoners.

Several of them were interrogated at length by the Germans until they were satisfied thatwhat had crashed was not a new American secret weapon.

Rojohn, typically, didn’t talk much about his Distinguished Flying Cross. Of Leek, he said, “in all fairness to my co-pilot, he’s the reason I’m alive today.” Like so many veterans, Rojohn got unsentimentally back to life after the war, marrying and raising a son and daughter. For many years, though, he tried to link back up with Leek, going through government records to try to track him down. It took him 40 years, but in 1986, he found the number of Leeks’ mother, in Washington State. Yes, her son Bill was visiting from California. Would Rojohn like to speak with him?

Some things are better left unsaid.

One can imagine thatfirst conversation between the two men who had shared that wild ride in the cockpit of a B-17. A year later, the two were re-united at a reunion ofthe 100th Bomb Group in Long Beach, Calif. Bill Leek died the following year. Glenn Rojohn was the last survivor ofthe remarkable piggyback flight. He was like thousands upon thousands of men, soda jerks and lumberjacks, teachers and dentists, students and lawyers, service station attendants and store clerks, and farm boys, who in the prime oftheir lives went to war.

Let us be thankful for such men.

Originally published in TCSDaily

The

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Please ask ifyour employer has a matching gift program today!

BILLBOARD TOP 40ARTISTPERFORMS FOR CLASS OF 2008

ARTICLE AND PHOTOS BY

LEWIS CARLYLE

The great Chinese philosopher Confucius once wrote, “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” This truth could not be more evident than in the life and lyric ofrising singer-songwriter Bettina, who is one ofthe latest editions to this country’s long line ofpop culture icons. t>

X_-Al\. VJ XXX XI/XV ofAir Force Academy graduate Charles Bush ’63, Bettina has been performing since the tender age of 3, when she began singing to her father’s Motown records in the family living room. Since then, she has served as the voice talent for some of the most memorable cartoon characters in history, including the beloved Rainbow Bright. These days she divides her time between a busy touring schedule to benefit March of Dimes, winning the American Idol Underground competition, and sending her hit single “She Is” to number 4 on the Billboard Top 40. And did we mention she performed for over 1000 cadets at this year’s graduation?

“Being able to sing songs that youVe written to a live audience with a killer band is just phenomenal; there’s no feeling like it.”

This concert was an especially proud moment for the pop star, given her father’s association with the Air Force. “My dad raised me with a work ethic which has served me incredibly well,” recalls Bettina. “He got the basis of this from the Academy. It’s very obvious in the way my dad conducts himself. Bringing morality into your business and making sure that your values are in the right place is a direct reflection ofhis education; I feel that he has instilled a lot of that in me, and I hope to live up to the level of honor that he does. I’m really, really proud to have the chance to visit the place where he was shaped as a man and to be able to perform there. It’s such an exciting project!”

Bettina was equally excited about reflecting on her first impressions of the Air Force Academy during her visit in April 2008. “I was so in awe of the magnitude ofit,” she recalls, “just the way it looks, the stature of it architecturally made such an impact on me; I was able to understand how the Academy turns out such

great people. There’s something about the way it felt, you just can’t help but take it seriously. You’d better walk straight and tall when you’re here.”

Ifwalking straight and tall means receiving an ovation from over 1000 screaming cadets, then Bettina certainly lived up to the challenge during her concert. Performing for the graduation festival on the terrazzo as the sun dropped over the Front Range, the singer won the hearts of the senior class with a fusion of country, rock and soul. In an industry where pop stars are spoon fed their latest hits by teams of professional writers, Bettina is a rare breed, penning the majority of her own music. “I grew up in kind of a bipolar musical atmosphere,” says the songwriter. “My mom always listened to a lot of Dolly Parton and the Judds, and some really cool country, while my dad was hard core Motown. He loved Diana Ross and the Supremes. And what was great about that for me was that some of the best songwriting ever to come out of the United States was from these old bluegrass and Motown writers. Growing up hearing those things really influenced me as a songwriter.”

For many of us, the career is an essential part oflife. Between writing songs, performing live, recording her latest album, and providing voice talent for commercials (you may recognize her from the McDonald’s theme, “I’m Lovin it”), it’s hard to focus on a single career element, which for this multi-tasker, is a welcome challenge. All the same, one has to ask: is there a favorite? “Good gosh!” laughs Bettina, “that’s so hard! My favorite is always what I’m doing in the moment! I am a very live within the moment kind ofperson. And right now— focusing on the new music that I’ve written, and being on tour and interacting with these audiences—that, for me is what it’s all about. Being able to sing songs that you’ve written to a live audience with a killer band is just phenomenal; there’s no feeling like it. There’s nothing like waking up every day and knowing that I get to do this for a living. It’s such a privilege and such an honor knowing that people want to hear my music. You just can’t say thank you enough!” t>

Before saying farewell to the Academy, Bettina was kind enough to leave some words ofwisdom with this year’s graduating class. “Trust your instincts,” she implored adamantly. “And trust your moral compass. Just believe in yourself.”

Wise advice that is sure to inspire new horizons. We feel confident that this rising star would agree with the immortal words of Confucius when he wrote, “Where-so-ever you go, go with all your heart.”

Good luck Bettina. And good luck class of 2008. We ll be watching.

4"

“Northwestern

Four USAFA graduates win USA Hockey-Adult Over 50 National Championship

Four USAFA Graduates have continued their winning ways long after playing varsity ice hockey at the Academy Five members of the 2008 National Champions for USA Hockey’s Adult Over-50 Non-Checking competition held in Brandon FL April 24-27 were USAFA alumni. All five are previous Air Force officers. Taking home the championship were JeffMcChesney (1979) with brother Scott McChesney (UMass), Joel Zejdlik (1982), Bob Sajevic (1980) and Joel’s brother, Todd Zejdlik (1975). The five players represented one fourth of the national championship team, known as Heartland, winning the fifth game in three days over last year’s champions. There were 24 teams in the tournament. This was the first year that any of the Academy players had skated in the tournament. (Courtesy ofJeffMcChesney, ’79)

Air Force liaison officer honoree is Carmel Man

Maj. Leo L. Cunningham of Carmel, NY, a five-year Air Force admissions liaison officer, was named the Outstanding Deputy Liaison Officer Director of the Nation at the Air Force Academy’s annual Liaison Officer Directors’ Awards Banquet held recently.

As one of more than 1,600 liaison officers worldwide and deputy director of Southern New York, Cunningham orchestrated a successful Air Force Academy “New York Blitz” recruitment initiative duringThanksgiving 2006. The event included a performance by the Air Force Academy Band of the Rockies at Carnegie Hall and the Cadet Chorale at Hofstra University.

Cunningham is also actively involved in local activities, from appointee events to college fairs to grassroots recruiting events. (PoughkeepsieJournal)

Gen. Susan Desjardins, ’80, completes three successful years as Commandant of Cadets

Today the USAF announced the upcoming assignment of our Commandant ofCadets, Brigadier General Susan Desjardins. General Desjardins is approaching 3 years as our 23rd Commandant, a leadership position she has fulfilled so very well! Brig. Gen. (sel.) Sam Cox will be our next in the long line ofoutstanding Commandants of Cadets. —Lt. Gen. Regni, 73 Gen. Desjardins will be the deputy Director, Strategic Plans, Requirements and Programs, Headquarters Air mobility Command, at Scott Air Force Base.

Air Force players make name for themselves at the 2008 North America 4

Out ofthe 100 best rugbyplayers from across the USA and Canada who have assembled in Glendale, Colo., this week for the popular

cross-border North America 4 Tournament, three Air Force Academy alums have made a name for themselves playing for the USA Hawks.

Capt. Travis Meidinger (’00), Capt. Josh Dean (’04) and 1 st Lt. Brian Lemay (’05) have all been playing for the U.S. side in matches held throughout Oregon, British Columbia and Colorado throughout July, and will play the consolation finals on Saturday, August 2 at Glendale’s new rugby stadium, Infinity Park.

All forward players for the rugbysquad, the 31-year-old Meidinger, who is originally from Trinidad, Colo., is currently stationed at Buckley Air Force Base. Growing up in Juneau, Alaska, Josh Dean, at 26, is now at Enid AFB, Okla., and 25-year-old Brian Lemay grew up in White Bear Lake, Minn., but is now at Hanscom AFB in Mass.

Also working for the USA Hawks is manager Ken Holliday, who is a retired Lt. Colonel and also an ’88 graduate of the Academy. (SaraJohn. USA Rugby)

Academy awarded $285,000 for wave energy research

The next source of alternative energy could come from ocean waves, and Air Force Academy professors have been granted funding to dive into this research. The National Science Foundation has awarded the Academy’s Aeronautics Department $285,619 to support a cyclodial propeller wave energy converter research project to harness the ocean’s power.

The Aeronautics Department will partner with Oregon State University to use their wave tunnel for some ofthe experimental side of this research project. This project investigates the use of cycloidal propellers for energy extraction from unsteady flow fields created by both deep and shallow water waves.

“Wave power has the potential to provide a large portion of the world’s electric energy needs, if it can be tapped in an efficient way,” said Dr. Stefan Siegel, who will oversee this research project.

Cadets will also catch this wave, performing the basic research as part of the Aeronautics 471 class during their senior year.

This project, which is funded through 2011, is part of a broader Air Force effort to address energy related issues and to support renewable alternative energies research.

Brigadier General Peter Moody passes away

Brigadier General Peter R. Moody (Dept, of English 1958-1967) passed away at the Cape Fear Valley Medical Center in Fayetteville, NC. He was 91 and is survived by his wife Mary. Graveside services with full military honors will be held at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, VA at a later date.

During his tenure, Gen. Moody also served as the Academy’s first Vice Dean of the Faculty and chaired several ground-breaking committees. {Courtesy ofthe Deans Offce) S

Annual gifts to the Air Force

Academy Fund at the Sabre Sociel level provide support to programs and cadet clubs that promote civic development like thefFalcon Club. This cadet club works closely in the ■Jr local community withjjig Brothers/ Big Sisters of America!

The Secret Life of Dumbsquat

by Don Hall, 76

I m a i 1 m. M

MBS mm.

lie s as our hero and his roommates search for the 7he three dooliei>C / 4-^1 mat adventure had taken them Lab.

Waldo heard some moaning in the wind tunnel. A blast of cold air chilled the cadets. Undaunted, thedoolies cautiously peered inside. Deep inside the tunnel appeared an apparition, dressed in tattered and grease-smeared coveralls. The features of his face were hidden by shadows.

“Who goes there?” challenged the mysterious man.

“It is I, Dumbsquat Waldo F 762693K.”

“What squadron are you with?

“CS-37.”

“Ah, you smacks are Smilers then,” acknowledged the ghostly figure.

Warren grinned—ah, smiled.

Regs venturedforward. “Who are you, sir?”

“I’m The Regular Crew Chief. And don’t call me ‘sir’—I worked for a living.”

Waldo stood in shock. “No one has ever seen the regular crew chief. We didn’t think you existed, kind oflike Nino Baldachi or early Recognition.”

The shadowy sergeant chuckled. “I’m as real as you are, Dumbsquat. If you want to locate the ‘large photograph’, you need to journey to Jack’s Valley. Ask for Jack.”

An icy wind roared down the tunnel and rolled the freshmen like tumbleweeds out ofthe Lab. The cadets picked themselves up and checked their gig lines. After giving each other a tuck, Waldo, Regs, and Warren double-timed down the ramp to the Parade Field. Passing the Upper Lower Lot, they didn’t stop until reaching the LowerLower Lot. There they met a firstie preparing to leave on weekend pass he had earned byposting a current events bulletin board.

“You smacks need a ride somewhere?”

“Yes, sir,” replied Waldo.

“You don’t have to call me sir in the Lower Lower Lot. We’re all Falcons here.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Where to?

“Jack’s Valley,” chorused the doolies.

“Well, I always swore I’d never go back there, but ifyou can all get into my Porshe 914, I’ll drop you off at the Assault Course.

The firstie’s car spent most ofthe ride to the North Gate in first gear. Second gear was achieved when Waldo moved his nose. Turning

left onto the crude dirt road to the Valley, the cadets struggled to see past the illumination ofthe car’s headlights. The night- clad trees lined the road like sentries guarding an ominous secret. Sliding to a stop, the car ended up just short ofthree bayonet dummies.

“Relatives ofyours?” chortled the senior.

Ignoring the project officer, the three freshmen piled out of the vehicle and low crawled under some barbed wire. The sound of hushed voices grew louder as Waldo squirmed into a nearby bush. Three men crouched next to a small campfire. The flickering light danced across the faces, revealing secret identities. Waldo recognized each man to be a member of the infamous Fighter Mafia.

“Okay, Jack, what do we do now that we’ve nabbed the Big Picture?”

The man named Jack flashed an evil grin.

“I’ll make MPC an offer it can’t refuse. Either UAV assignments go contract or the cadets never see the Big Picture again!” Jack patted the issue leather briefcase handcuffed to his left wrist.

To Waldo’s horror, appearing from nowhere, the senior stumbled into the covert operation. He was immediately captured by the rogue officers. They tied the firstie up and prepared to interrogate him.

“Threaten him with a helicopter assignment, Jack!” hissed one of the henchmen.

The bound cadet flinched, but remained silent.

“No,” said Jack, “he’s been through SERE. Only one thing will break him Nav School!”

“Anything but that!” sobbed the senior.

“Then spill the beans, mister!”

“I brought three doolies to the Valley ...”

“Why are they here?”

“I didn’t ask. Please let me go. I’ve got to pick up my date at Lo Hi.”

“I think we’re doing him a favor, Boss!”

Maniacal laughs echoed in the darkness, driving a shiver up Waldo’s spine. He knew it was time for extreme action in order to save the day. Backing away from the hideous scene, Waldo sprinted to a nearby latrine. Inside he uttered the magic words threepoint breakfall and magically transformed into Colonel Waldo F. Dumbsquat, a man who could fly Soviet aircraft with his mind. Sprinting back to the fire, the incredibly fit officer distracted the gangsters with a blood-curdling cry of Lead, you’re on

firel As two of the men looked down at their trousers, the colonel applied boxing, judo, and unarmed combat skills to subdue them.

“Hold it right there, Dumbsquat! Any more PE moves and I burn it!”

Jack held the glossy 8x10 photo threateningly over the flames. “What’s it going to be?”

Colonel Dumbsquat shocked everyone at the scene. “Go ahead, Jack. Burn it.”

A scary smile crossed Jack’s face. He slowly lowered the treasure into the fire. The colonel watched the photo curl up into a black ash, but made no move to save it.

“You’re headed to Leavenworth, Jack,” stated Colonel Dumbsquat.

“Sorry to disappoint, Colonel. The Big Picture is gone and so am I! Until the next time we cross sabers ...”

At that moment a C-130 flew over and skyhooked Jack out of the story. His allies had already disappeared into the night. The colonel leaped behind a log and morphed back into C/4C Waldo F. Dumbsquat. The puny freshman joined his classmates and the firstie by the fire.

“It’s gone, Waldo,” Regs said sadly as he poked the embers with a stick.

Waldo smiled.

“That was a digitally enhanced copy Jack stole and burned. The Academy never has hadthe Big Picture!”

The senior nodded.

“Well, where is it?” asked a confused Warren Heels.

“It’s safe in a vault under Mount Rushmore—next to the Real Air Force!” 89

Your Association of Graduates is always looking for ways to improve service while saving time and money. The AOG is sending electronic receipts for all credit card donations. Sending these receipts electronically will save the AOG a great deal of time and money!

m

What has MOAA done for

me lately? “Last month, MOAA led a campaign to pass the historic new Gl Bill for the 21 st century that pays for college, helps with room and board, and allows transfer to spouses and children. Yesterday, they saved me 20% on a Dell® laptop.”

Department of History Sets “History of USAFA” as Military Symposium Theme

BY MAJOR GRANT WELLER

The Department ofHistory (DFH) has selected the history ofthe Air Force Academy as thetheme for the 22nd Military History Symposium (MHS), scheduled for September 28-30, 2009. The MHS series, dating back to the 1960s, is one ofthe longest running and most prestigious gatherings ofmilitary historians in the world.

The MHSs bring together top military historians, current and past USAFA faculty members, and, most importantly, current cadets, to consider a theme in military history. Past symposia have covered topics such as the Vietnam War, Russian and Soviet military history, and the history of flight. The most recent MHS, held in 2006, studied the history of military spacepower. Thebook resulting from that symposium, entitled Harnessing the Heavens: National Defense through Space, has garnered wide praise, including the endorsement of General Kevin P. Chilton, USAF, Commander, USSTRATCOM, USAFA 76.

This MHS will be the first scholarly historical study of the Academy’s first halfcentury. The purpose of the symposium will be to bring critical historical analysis to bear on the institution of the Academy. In this sense, “critical” means not “negative” but rather “thoughtful.” Historians use the term critical history to describe history that considers its topic without excessive nostalgia or bitterness—profes

sionally ratherthan emotionally. Critical history meets the highest standards of historical scholarship, and is therefore the most useful both to historians and to leaders and decision makers who “think in time,” considering the role of history in shaping the environment in which they operate. The results of the 22nd MHS will be available to grads, USAFA leaders, and the general public through the published proceedings, expected in 2010.

One of the highlights of any MHS is the Harmon Memorial Lecture (HML). This lecture series, named in honor of the Academy’s first superintendent and recognizing his lifelong love of military history, has drawn some of the biggest names in military history over its fifty year run. The list of past lecturers is a virtual “who’s who” of military historians, including: T. Harry Williams, the noted Civil War historian; Martin Blumenson, the biographer of General George S. Patton; R. J. Overy of King’s College, London; Peter Paret, a leading expert on Carl von Clausewitz; Michael Howard, retired from both Oxford and Yale; Theodore Ropp, author ofthe classic War in the Modern World; and, most recently, Lieutenant Colonel Mark Clodfelter, USAF, (Ret.), Ph.D., USAFA 77. For the 22nd MHS, USAFA will welcome back Colonel Philip S. Meilinger, USAF (Ret.), Ph.D., a former DFH faculty member and USAFA 70. Meilinger, a noted airpower scholar with many books and articles to his credit,

will speak on General Hubert R. Harmon himself, drawing from the biography of Harmon Meilinger is currently penning.

DFH has issued a worldwide call for papers, inviting scholars, students, and professionals to contribute their analysis of some aspect of USAFA history, ranging from the role of faculty and military staff to gender integration, athletics, leadership and cadet life. Accepted submissions will be organized into panels of three papers on a common theme. The panels will be presented during the 22nd MHS on the Academy grounds. The response thus far has been gratifying, but there is still room for more papers and panelists. Guidelines for submission can be obtained from Program Committee Chair Major J.D. Went, USAFA ’97, by e-mailing him at james. went@usafa.edu or calling 719-333-3230.

DFH hopes to involve Association of Graduate members throughout the symposium. Some grads have already submitted paper proposals, and more are expected. Those not interested in formally presenting papers will be welcome to attend the three-day event. Contact Symposium Director Major Grant Weller at grant.weller@usafa.edu or 719-3333230 for information about attending. Further, AOG members will be a vital resource for those historians who are researching their papers. Those who might be willing to be interviewed about their experiences at USAFA should also contact Major Weller. H

Cadets learn mission through Operation Air Force

By Staff Sgt. Eric Burks 62nd Airlift Wing Public Affairs

ighteen U.S. Air Force Academy cadets visited McChord Air Force Base June 13 to experience operations and day-to-day experiences in the Air Force.

The cadets visited McChord AFB during the first phase of Operation Air Force, a career-broadening program, and then flew on board a C-17 Globemaster III to Hickam AFB, Hawaii.

Somewhere over the Pacific Ocean during the flight, Cadet 3rd Class Carly Olsowski stood in the cockpit and looked out across the vast expanse of blue. With a vision to fly jets for the Air Force after graduation, she spoke with Lt. Col. Douglas Patterson and Maj. Rob Luzader, C-17 pilots from the 313th Airlift Squadron.

“My dream aircraft was the A-10 (Thunderbolt II), but since I have been at McChord, I have begun to think that flying heavies is the sort of lifestyle that I would like to have,” Cadet Olsowski said.

If one day in the future she finds herself behind the controls of a McChord AFB C-17, she would be following in the footsteps of Colonel Patterson, who graduated from the Academy in 1989. Laughter filled the cockpit when Cadet Olsowski noted that she was born the same year.

The mission served several purposes, said Capt. Ian Ostermiller, the 10th Airlift Squadron facilitator who accompanied the cadets.

“It’s a great location, so in a sense it’s an advertisement for the mobility mission,” he said. “You see a lot of the world, and Hawaii is a good way to get somebody’s attention.”

However, it’s more than just a day at the beach, the captain said. “Local training sorties can’t capture the complexity involved in leaving home station and going overseas.”

“An off-station trainer that crosses the ocean is a great way to get cadets close to the mission in a controlled environment,” Captain Ostermiller said. “They get to see all aspects, from working with the aerial port troops to interacting with the aircrew. Hopefully they come away from the experience with a smile on their face, but also with a better understanding of all the moving pieces involved in getting from A to B, especially when B is across the ocean.”

Cadet 3rd Class Daniel Venable said the off-station C-17 trainer showed him the real diversity and complexity ofAir Force missions.

“Operation Air Force has really opened my eyes to many new career fields,” he said. “It has given me a really good perspective on how things work outside ofcadet life at the Academy. Si

Top: Cadet 3rd Class Carly Olsowski talks with Lt. Col. Douglas Patterson during a flight on board a C-17 Globemaster III from Hickam Air Force Base. Bottom: Cadets fly on board a C-17 Globemaster III as part of Operation Air Force, a career-broadening program. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Eric Burks)

npi J. nese

A History ofthe Phillips Georgia Legion Infantry Battalion

by Richard M. Coffman and Kurt D. Graham.

Reviewed by

Frederick V. Malmstrom,

’64

Visiting Scholar for Honor

To Honor These Men is a rare insight into not only the strategic actions but also the personal portraits of the men in a heretofore undocumented Georgia Confederate fighting unit. Most Civil War histories are written from the Union perspective. Not this one.

Richard M. (“Buck”) Coffman is no stranger to us. As the lone anthropologist on the USAFA faculty in the 1970s, he later retired from the Air Force and then turned his attention to teaching and writing history. Kurt D. Graham is a retired IBM executive. Coffman is a Civil War reenactor, and Graham is a lifelongfanatico, they write with primary source authority. Coffmans great-great-grandfather MajorJohn Fielding Milhollin was an officer in the Phillips Georgia Legion Calvary. 1

1 Note: Both of our great-grandfathers may have crossed paths briefly; my great-grandfather Pvt. Benjamin Cleenewerck, First Michigan Engineers & Mechanics, was part of Sherman’s army which destroyed Major Milhollin’s home and impoverished his wife and six children.

RICHARD M. COFFMAN & KURT D.GRAHAM

The very word “Legion” implies something both ancient and Roman. During wartime 18th Century Europe and the 19th Century United States, it wasn’t uncommon for well-heeled citizens with political clout to raise and fund their own volunteer armies and then offer their services to the sovereign. In fact, many Redcoat units which fought against the American War of Independence were both privately funded and politically motivated entities. Today, such sponsorship would be as if H. Ross Perot were to fund and raise an army regiment and then name it “La Legion Perot.”

So, in early 1861, a politically inclined businessman and lawyer, one William M. Phillips, formed the Phillips Georgia Legion, composed of both an infantry and a cavalry battalion. He had also attempted to include the Macon Light Artillery Battalion into his legion, but his efforts were denied. Formed shortly after secession, The Phillips Georgia Legion fought in nearly every major engagement on the Eastern Front, beginning with Second Manassas (Bull Run), the slaughters of Fredericksburg, and continuing through to Gettysburg, the dreadful Wilderness Campaign, and their surrender at Appomattox.

I was surprised to find prior to reading this book how little had been written about the Phillips Georgia Legion. Despite its composition ofthe usual politicos, the legion fought competently, bravely, and continuously for nearly four years. It distinguished itselfwith valor, somehow surviving numerous hardships, diseases and deprivations. Although Coffman and Graham did not state it directly in their book, I noted how pitifully depleted and desperate the Phillips Georgia Legion Infantry was at Appomattox. At the surrender, only 93 men remained ofthe entire once-proud battalion.

Coffman and Graham have done their homework nicely, obviously expending considerable effort in visiting battlefields and libraries, footnoting and reconstructing chronologically the battlesand movements of the Phillips Georgia Legion Infantry Battalion. They have supplied the reader with plenty of maps and descriptions to complement their narrative.

What makes this a superb history is not just its ease of reading, but the interspersion of the many contemporary diary entries andletters from the front-line Confederate soldiers who detailed their duties complete with daily descriptions of the mussceeters [mosquitoes], rain, lack of shoes and clothing, and the filth. And, of course, there is their ever-present soldiers humor.

This book has plenty ofphotos and biosketches of the officers and men. Although it was not uncommon for most officers, both North and South, to have their portraits taken, individual photos of enlisted men are much more rare. Somehow, Coffman and Graham have included many

of these previously unpublished rare photos of enlisted men. The second half of their book is devoted to the unit rosters, including the hundreds of names and the official records of each of the men, including some sketches of their post-war lives. And it’s all nicely documented with paper trails for anyone who is into genealogy.

To make their history even better, Coffman and Graham also interviewed many soldiers’ descendants, and their stories are also recounted. The authors’ narrative flows in a style worthy ofShelby Foote and Bruce Catton—only this time the history comes from theSouth.

For instance, their chapter on the hellish wasteat Fredericksburg digs deeply into the four days of continuous bloody action by the Phillips Georgia Legion Infantry from the beginning to the truce. The legion had again emerged as a major player in another Confederate victory.

Decades beyond the war’s end, one Mary Mitton wrote to Coffman herrecollections of her great-grandmother’s direct observations of the Appomattox surrender:

“... As the news of the surrender spread, she asked to see the soldiers of the C.S.A.. This was a V2 mile walk down a dirt lane to the dirt road. She recalled many things about them dirty, ragged, bloodied, unshaven, drooping shoulders. The description of the soldiers crying was foremost in her mind when she was in her nineties. This story stayed in my mind too, being born in 1939, because at the age I was when she was telling me this, it hadn’toccurred to me that grown men cried.”

One other note: Although the Phillips Georgia Legion consisted of both an infantry and a cavalry battalion, this book is limited to only the history of the infantry. Richard Coffman is currently preparing a companion volume on the history of the Phillips Georgia Legion Cavalry Battalion.

This book is written especially from the Confederate viewpoint. You won’t find another history book like this one. I predict it will be in print for a long, long time. S

Coffman, Richard M. and Kurt D. Graham (2007). To Honor These Men. A History ofthe Phillips Georgia Legion Battalion. Macon, GA: The Mercer University Press. ISBN13: 978-0-88146-06005. 495 Pages. $31.20.

This Basic Cadet course on the fi

mane uiympic team Air Force Academy graduate Capt. Seth Kelsey, a 2003 graduate, and former Denver resident Becca Ward will compete for the U.S. fencing team seeking gold at the Beijing Olympics next month.

Kelsey, a national title-winner and fourtime All-American, will compete in the mens epee competition. Ward, a current resident ofPordand, Ore., will be on the womens saber team. The U.S. team is determined by international rankings. (DenverPost)

■c

U.S. Air Force World Class Athlete Program Capt. Kevin Eastler, ’99, led military athletes competing in the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Track & Field by earning his second Olympic berth in the 20-kilometer race walk.

Easder, 30, ofBuckley Air Force Base, Colo., will be Team USAs only competitor in the mens 20K race walk in Beijing. He was the lone U.S. competitor to meet the Olympic qualifying standard before toeing the start line in Eugene, where a relatively slow pace prevented others from making the team.

Eastler won the early-morning race in 1 hour, 27 minutes, 8 seconds. (FMWRC PublicAffairs EUGENE, Ore.)

A Thunderbird pilot is heading to Washington, D.C., to spend one year as a White House Fellow.

Maj. Nicole Malachowski is among 14 people selected for the 2008-09 internships.

The White House Fellows Program, started in 1964 by President LyndonJohnson, offers experience working at the highest levels ofthe federal government. Fellows

participate in an education program of roundtable discussions with leaders from the private and public sectors and trips to examine government policy in action.

Past Fellows include Air Force Assistant Vice Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Frank Klotz, former Secretary of State Colin Powell, former CNN president Tom Johnson and former NATO commander Gen. Wesley Clark.

Before joining the Thunderbirds in 2003, Malachowski flew the F-15E Strike Eagles, including combat time in Operation Deliberate Forge over Bosnia and Operation Iraqi Freedom. In South Korea, the 1996 Air Force Academy graduate served as an air liaison officer with the Army’s 2nd Infantry Division.

Malachowski flew as Thunderbird No. 3 with the demonstration squadron in 2006 and 2007. (StaffReport: Air Force Times)

©rations oon

NEXT Proteins, the makers ofnumber one selling DESIGNERWHEY protein products, today announced the hiring offood industry veteran Tom Oliver, ’69, as Chief Operating Officer. With an extensive track record in food based consumer packaged goods, Oliver will oversee all aspects ofthe company’s internal and external operations, brand philosophies and product launches. “We are thrilled to announce the addition of Tom Oliver to our executive management team,” said DavidJenkins, ChiefExecutive Officer and founder ofNEXT Proteins.

“Tom brings a wealth ofcutting edge food product experience to NEXT Proteins. He has a stellar record in leading and growing companies which, coupled with this global experience, makes him the ideal leader to

expand our number one selling DESIGNER WHEY business.”

I am delighted to utilize my aptitude in operations, leadership, brand building and business growth at NEXT Proteins,” commented Tom Oliver, ChiefOperating Officer for NEXT Proteins. “I look forward to working with our internal teams, distribution partners, retail affiliates and manufacturing suppliers to build on the current success ofDESIGNER WHEY products in the competitive nutritional supplement category.” (Courtesy ofDon Williams, Williams Group Public Relations)

National Board of Directors, Boy

Nathan Owen Rosenberg, ’74, was elected to the National Executive Board ofthe Boy Scouts ofAmerica at its recent national meeting in San Diego. Over 500 delegates, representing Boy Scout councils from around the United States and overseas, elected the 70-person board, with Rosenberg among the four newly elected directors. The National Executive Board, a volunteer board ofdirectors made up oftop business leaders in the United States, leads the National Council ofthe Boy Scouts ofAmerica. Rosenberg, who was involved in Scouting in his youth, has served on the board ofdirectors for the Orange County Council, Boy Scouts of America since 1993 and currently holds the position ofVice Chair ofMarketing. Additionally, Rosenberg serves on the Boys Scouts’ Western Region Executive Board and was a member ofthe National Advisory Council prior to being elected to the National Executive Board. Nathan Rosenberg is a founding partner ofInsigniam Performance, a global management consulting firm. (Courtesy Insigniam Performance) Rl

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PHOTOS BY LEWIS CARLYLE

FROM among the 9,000 applications, 1,642 were offered appointments; there were 1,369 acceptances; at press time 1,357 had in-processed.

Grade Point Average: 3.85

Average Combined SAT math and verbal: 1,290 Average ACT: 28-29

There are 47 prior enlisted members arriving between regular Air Force and Reservists. Seventeen percent were either high school class president or vice president. Sixty-two percent were in the academic honor society. Ninety-five percent were athletic award winners. Thirty percent were in band/orchestra. Twenty-eight percent were Boy/Girl Scouts. Nine percent were Civil Air Patrol.

Thirteen percent were JROTC. Two hundred ninety-five are women, 21 percent ofthe overall class. Two hundred eighty-seven are minorities, 20 percent ofthe overall class. Sixteen international cadets represent Belize, Brunei, Ecuador, El Salvador, Honduras, Korea, Lithuania, Madagascar, Peru, Poland, Senegal, Serbia, Singapore, Slovenia, Taiwan and Tunisia. The appointees’ introduction to cadet life started Thursdaywith a full day ofin-processing which included medical processing, haircuts, clothing and equipment issue, and squadron and dormitory room assignments. It also marked the start of38 days ofBasic Cadet Training designed to prepare the basic cadet trainees for entry into the Cadet Wing.

Stats courtesy oftheAcademySpirit.

Missile to be retired after 37 years of Academy service

By Master Sgt. Dean J. Miller, Public Affairs

ual responsibilities to represent those in the Long Blue Line—past and present, and a mission to inspire future officers ofcharacter are obligations ofcadets and graduates alike; but they are also attributes ofweapon systems on display at USAFA. For one such display, retirement day arrives August 20, 2008.

Placed in front of Clune Arena since its dedication ceremony Dec. 9, 1971, the Minuteman III ICBM display has inspired thousands of cadets over the years, many ofwhom perform strategic missile operations in Americas missile fields today—each officer ready to execute a MMIII strategic launch ifordered by national command authorities.

USAFA’s MMIII, still in the nation’s official missile inventory and subject to Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START-I) monitoring, is being retired from permanent USAFA display. Based on a possibility of collapse related to internal corrosion combined with high winds common to the area, the veteran cold warrior is being retired as a safety precaution.

Lt. Gen. John Regni announced, “It is also a weapon system entrusted to 115 Academy Graduates deployed on strategic alert in our nation’s missile fields right now. However, with cadets, faculty and visitors working, walking and parking near our missile display, day and night, I can’t risk anyone’s safety when there is the slightest risk ofcollapse. Under advisement ofexperts from the National Museum of the Air Force and our Academy Memorial Board members, I’ve ordered the display retired.”

Detailed inspections ofstatic display missiles at various locations by the National Museum ofthe U.S. Air Force at Wright Patterson AFB revealed numerous examples of internal corrosion. This was especially true on the Minuteman family ofmissiles where internal corrosion was concealed by the original special coatings and over-layers ofpaint.

“In the instance of the Academy display, it appears that once again significant concealed internal corrosion was discovered during inspections. Despite the best of conservation efforts, missiles were never intended to remain exposed to the elements for decades and therefore it is a prudent decision at the Academy to retire the missile from display,” said Terry Aitken, Senior Curator, National Museum of the United States Air Force, Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio.

Once final preparations are made in late August, Academy experts and contractors will dissemble the Minuteman III. The bulk ofthe missile frame and shell will be disposed of as scrap metal through the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Office. As disassembly proceeds, two hazardous materials known to be on the display will be removed.

“Contractors will properly dispose of a fungicide-impregnated cork coating on the missile and a specialist from the National Museum of the United States Air Force will remove a 7.5 foot magnesium-thorium alloy component,” said Paul Martin, USAFA Museum Specialist. “Both materials require professional handling different from the routine disposal ofscrap metal.”

Top: Missil dedication in 1971.

Bottom: C1C Rightmyerspeaks at dedication.

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The most meaningful friendships are forged through sweat, tears, laughte andshared accomplishments. because your Academy friendships are too precious to lose.

at tne National war college,spoke to more than 500 I members of the Class of 2010 about the value of the Academy m experience. The following is a

Matching mountains and fulfilling missions:

One grad's assessment of USAFA's true value Part II of II

By Mark Clodfelter, ’77

For some of my classmates, maintaining the status quo at the Academy equated to maintaining a successful institution, and some contended that factors disrupting stability had an adverse impact on USAFA’s ability to accomplish its mission. For some of those grads, the admission of women was one such disruptive event, and 7 percent of my classmates recommended removing women from the cadet wing. Conversely, another 3 percent ofmy classmates thought that women cadets should have been part ofthe wing but that they should have

been integrated into it better—women cadets in the Class of 1980 were originally kept segregated on the top floors ofVandenberg Hall and placed in only the first twenty squadrons. 1 My classmates further disagreed on the amount ofcadet leadership opportunities made available to them: 4 percent would have added more, and another 4 percent would have provided less. Another 4 percent would have placed more “down time” in the Academy’s schedule.

Yet making USAFA different—or keeping it the same—provided no assurance that the Class of’77 would ultimately lead the Air Force as general officers. The USAFA experience often included the unex-

pected, and the same was true followinggraduation. When asked if they were surprised by any oftheir classmates makinggeneral, almost halfofthose completing the survey said yes, but several also couched their response: “Not that they couldn’t,” one wrote, while another added, “Almost all grads have the potential.” Others stated that they were more surprised by certain officers who did not become generals. One grad remarked, “Most general officers were predictable, but 10-2 percent were in the category of ‘I never thought they would make it that far!”’ An unnamed classmate who had in fact made general put himselfin that latter camp, stating that he was surprised to be wearing stars and felt that he was “a computer glitch in the system.”

Despite an inability to divinefuture generals, most ofmy classmates believed that the Academyexperience prepared themwell to serve as officers. Three out offour rated their Academy background superior to that provided by ROTC or OTS. In addition, 88 percent rated the quality ofmilitary training received at USAFA as either “superb” (45 percent) or “adequate” (43 percent) in terms ofits preparation for active duty. One grad who cross-commissioned into the Army stated: “Although an Army Officer, I felt I was better prepared than my West Point peers. Officers there do many things that cadets handle at USAFA.” Another grad observed, “I learned how to prioritize, accomplish many things in a short time, and how to succeed The best lesson I learned was to trust the mid-level and senior NCOs as essential to success as an officer.” Another added: “Although I may not have appreciated most ofit at the time, in my old age I see the importance of most ofwhat we went through. Perhaps it should have even been much harder.”

While providing a grudging acknowledgment that some degree of pain was a necessary part ofthe Academyexperience, few ofmy classmates expressed a desire for more ofit. For most, USAFA produced a love/hate relationship that sometimes emphasized both emotions simultaneously. More than 90 percent ofmy classmates stated that they had returned to the Academy more than once since graduation, and 52 percent had returned more than five times. “The longer I live, the more proud I am ofhavinggraduated from there,” one classmate revealed, while another confided, “The longer it’s been since graduation the more I seem to be drawn back.” Yet 52 percent also stated that they do not wish to have visited USAFA any more than they have. “I get an uneasy feeling in my gut whenever I see USAFA,” confessed one grad. “Then I calm down and can relax.” Another added, “I still feel vaguely uncomfortable walking across the terrazzo.” Yet another remarked: “I go to AFA football games when they are nearby and I’ll go to the 30th reunion, but that’s enough.” A few classmates rationalized their reluctance to return as the result of a perceived failure to live up to the high standards that they deemed a hallmark ofthe institution and its graduates. One commented, “I would hate to have to explain all ofthe ridiculous things I’ve done with my time while others were in NASA or commanding officers.” Another offered this assessment: “Took a girlfriend there after 15 years away; felt very strange. Did not feel like I belonged there anymore since my civilian life was nothing special...”

For many, if not most, ofmy classmates, the notion that we were “special” by virtue ofUSAFA’s unique training experiences and distinctive education resonated. We all knew the Academy’s exhortation to “Bring me men to match my mountains,” a reference to the first line ofthe Samuel Walter Foss poem, “The ComingAmerican,”2 and 30

years after completing the four-year ordeal the beliefthat we received a special boost on the path to success endured. Eighty-eight percent ofmy classmates described USAFA’s overall impact as “definitely positive,” while another 8 percent rated it as “slightly positive.” Only 3 percent rated the impact ofthe USAFA experience as “a wash,” and only one person out ofthe 121 completing the survey said that the Academy’s overall impact was negative. One graduate offered a pithy summary ofUSAFA’svalue with this comment: “Surviving it gives me a great sense ofachievement and a lot ofconfidence confronting future challenges—but it sucked 24/7.” Such sentiments appeared in responses to the question—“Ifyou could live that part ofyour life over again, would you attend the Academy?”—and, indeed, those answers may offer the strongest testimony yet to USAFA’s lasting impact. More than four out offive ofmy classmates—81 percent—said that they would repeat the Academy experience, even with the benefit of20-20 hindsight. Only 6 percent said that they would not, and the remaining 13 percent were uncertain. Many ofthose who would do it all over again, however, acknowledged the love-hate relationship that for them defined the institution. Here’s just one example, but it conveys its central point in unvarnished fashion:

The worst day ofmy life was my first day at USAFA. The worst month ofmy life was my first month at USAFA. The worst year ofmy life was my first year at USAFA. The worst 4 years ofmy life were my 4 years at USAFA. But it got me where I wanted to go. I’m not sure how anyone could shlep through 4 years at the Academy without their final goal in view.

For all of us who “made it” to throw our hats in the air, the Academy experience will likely resonate until our dying days. Given the intensity ofthat experience in many cases, it could hardly be otherwise. Almost one in five ofmy classmates reported dreaming that they are back at USAFA as a cadet as often as once or twice a month; more than 50 percent reported dreaming that they are back at the Academy at least once or twice a year. Several classmates said that the dreams occurred when they were stressed out or overworked, and many ofthe dreams depicted stressful times at the Academy. Apparendy, the psyche still remembers that USAFA wasn’t a piece ofcake.

What, then, does this collection ofdata show? Well, for one thing it shows what a profound impact the Academy experience had on each of our lives. It also shows that, despite the angst, the vast bulk of us view that experience in a positive light—so much so that most of us would repeat the experience ifwe were somehow given the opportunity to do so. It does not say that we all had a fun time here, and that we all loved this place—far from it. Yet it does say that we thought USAFA was essential to the way that we subsequently turned out— and that we’re pretty happy with those results.

I would contend that what you have in the survey are data points that sum up the value ofthe Academy experience for a typicalclass ofgraduates. Though I’ve been heard to say that ’77 was the greatest Academy class ever, in actuality I’m fairly certain that we were “fast, neat, average, friendly, good, good.”3 Still, I would also contend that an “average” Academy class is a pretty remarkable group ofpeople, given the high degree ofselectivity and the competitive nature of Academy appointments. I would maintain that each class contains individuals who not only make exceptional contributions to the Air Force, but also to the nation as a whole. And I say that not just based on the survey data, but also based on the “data” that I happen to know

best—the 19 guys who graduated with me as a part ofthe Firstie Class in iiger len.

So, then, let me say “Huzzah!” right from the start. We said it all the time, but I was never quite sure what it meant, and I still have grave doubts that it was the yell given by British commandoes in World War II when they went into combat (and ifthat was the case, how did it end up as the greeting for a cadet squadron at the American Air Force Academy?). The 19 guys I graduated with were typical guys graduating from a typical squadron at USAFA in 1977. In fact, we even had one of our AOCs describe my classmates in TigerTen as “mediocre at best” when asked on the eve ofJune Week to compare us to the other two groups ofFirsties he had seen up close and personal during his tour at the Academy. But now, 30 years later, I maintain that the classmates I knew so well in Tiger Ten were anything but “mediocre,” and I wanted to highlight for you some ofmy memories ofthem, and what just a few ofthem have done in the past three decades since graduation.

Here’s a picture of our Tiger Tens Firsties on the eve ofgraduation. Bright, eager, and ready to go—well, certainlyready to get away from this place! Yet no sooner had we escaped USAFA than tragedy struck—Steve Morris became the second member of our class to die “on the job”; he was killed in a T-38 accident at UPT. For those of us who needed reminding that our profession was very different than most others, that was an instant clue. When I heard ofSteves death, I remembered thinking back to a gregarious cadet who never failed to help out a classmate needing assistance, a kind-hearted soul who enjoyedplayingpranks when he got the chance. And I wonder what he might have accomplished had he made it to our 30th reunion.

As for the other ’77 grads from TigerTen, I haven’t had to wonder. Four ofthem became generals, and are all now wearing two stars—a pretty impressive achievement for one squadron’s senior class. One of those is Kurt Cichowski, who will soon become Vice Commander of Air Force Special Operations Command at Hurlburt Field, Florida. In his previous assignment, he was Deputy ChiefofStafffor Strategy as a part ofthe Multi-National Task Force in Baghdad; earlier, he had been wing commander ofthe 49th FighterWing and its stealth fighters at Holloman. Yet I remember him best as the most bow-legged member ofthe Class of 1977, and it was always a mystery to me as to how he could run as fast as he did, much less march in a straight line!

Another Tiger Ten general is Steve Miller—which some might have said was predictable, given that he also served as Cadet Wing Commander his Firstie year. Yet Steve was far more “hyper” when he was a cadet about whether he would be able to meet his girlfriend (and future wife) Teresa on a weekend pass than he was about overseeing drill and ceremonies. Six years after graduation he got the chance to display true grace under pressure when a maintenance problem triggered an in-flight emergency in his F-15. He managed to get the crippled aircraft on the ground without incident—a nifty bit of flying that won him the Aviator’s Valor Award that year. He went on to command the famous 94th “Hat in the Ring” Squadron that had produced Eddie Rickenbacker in World War I, and he would later command Langley’s 1 st FighterWing. He currently serves as Commandant ofthe Air War College.

The final two members ofTigerTen to make general from ’77 were perhaps the yin and yang of our squadron, academicallyspeaking: “Dutch” Remkes and Curt Bedke. Dutch sat on the last row on graduation day, while Curt was a Distinguished Graduate who had only a

single “B” for his course work at the Academy—the rest ofhis grades were all “As.” It was by the grace ofGod that I had Curt as a roommate for most ofmy remaining three years at USAFA, for only he had the ability to explain math and science courses in terms that I could understand—and pass. Dutch, like me, was a historymajor (yeah!); Curt was a double major in Astro and Math. When we all got our new cars at theend of our “two degree” year, Dutch proudly drove up in a red Ford pickup, which he delighted in cleaning by driving up to a car wash and “hosing out” the inside ofthe cab. Curt, meanwhile, got a Toyota Celica that he carefully waxed every few months. Yet despite the seeming differences in temperament displayed at the Academy, both took from their experiences here and excelled as officers. Dutch flew F-4s, F-15s, and F-l6s, and served for two years in the late 1980s in the demandingjob ofaide to General Robert Russ, the Commander ofTactical Air Command. As the Commander ofthe 39th Wing at Incirlik, Turkey, Dutch directed air strikes against Iraq in Operation Desert Fox in December 1998; he later took command of the 3rd Wing at Elmendorffrom 2002-2004; and he now serves as the Director ofStrategy and Policy Assessments for US European Command in Stuttgart, Germany. Curt, meanwhile, became a B-52 pilot after graduating with a master’s in astronautics from Stanford, and then served as a test pilot at Edwards Air Force Base at the time that Dutch was shepherding General Russ at TAG. After commanding the 31 st Test and Evaluation Squadron, Curt returned to B-52s as Commander ofthe 5th Operations Group at Minot, and later commanded the 2nd Bomb Wing at Barksdale, during which time he also served as US Central Command’s senior military representative to Pakistan. He’s just finished an assignment as the Commander ofthe Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards and moved to Wright-Patterson AFB to command the Air Force’s Research Laboratory. By virtue ofhisthree Edwards assignments, he’s amassed 4300 flying hours in 74 different types ofaircraft.

You now know about several of my Tiger Ten classmates who went on to do great things in an Air Force uniform, but I’m sure some of you might be thinking, “Wow, that’s great, but I don’t know if I’m going to make it to graduation, much less make the Air Force a career.” I can assure you that many—if not most—of us had that same thought when we sat in Arnold Hall as cadets, so I wanted to give you a final snippet about a member ofTiger Ten who indeed left the service after initial commitment for flight training had ended. That guy is Bob McNeal, whom I’ll always remember wandering around the squadron after taps dressed in a bed sheet that resembled a Roman toga—and this attire came beforeJohn Belushi popularized it in the movie Animal House. Bob got KC-135s to Griffiss Air Force Base, New York, after graduating from UPT—an assignment that he really wanted because it was close to Syracuse University. While a pilot at Griffiss he enrolled at Syracuse and, during his off-duty time, completed a master’s degree in electrical engineering. After a stint teaching Physics at USAFA, he left the Air Force and began a civilian career path that proved both personally rewarding and financially lucrative. He worked at an aerospace firm in Los Angeles, got his MBA from the Wharton School, founded several successful companies, worked in high-level jobs for the Census Bureau and Time Warner, and now is Vice Chairman of Interoute, a large company that provides telecommunication services across Europe. He

resides in London and typically works 14-hour days despite having “made it” financially. Thirty years later, though, I still remember him wandering around the squadron looking like Julius Caesar

Well, that’s a quick-and-dirtysnapshot of one group ofcadets who “survived” this place—and I think “survival” is the word we would’ve used 30 years ago. I wish I had time to talk about each ofmy Tiger Ten classmates, who are all very successful in a multitude ofprofessions, but I know that you have to get back to the dorm to study that Mech—or to watch Smallville\ So let me add just a few briefconcluding remarks about what I think that my survey data andTiger Ten examples reveal about the true value ofthis institution.

Is there a correlation between what we endured at USAFA and what we accomplished later in life? Those dots are probably hard to connect directly, and yet I think that a connection is present. To me, the survey data and Tiger Ten success stories show that the true value ofUSAFA is both enduring and intangible, no matter how hard those in positions ofauthoritymight want to rely on numbers to justify the cost of an Academy education. Our mission statement focused on developing career leaders for the Air Force—a worthygoal, to be sure. Yet such emphasis did not adequatelyacknowledge that simply creating leaders who are intellectually nimble, with high standards ofintegrity, and committed to serving the nation is in itself a noble goal—and one that the Academy should pride itselfin achieving. The mission statement for the Class of2010—“to educate, train, and inspire men and women to become officers ofcharacter, motivated to lead the United States Air Force in service to our nation”4 —comes closer to meeting that mark. The mission statement for the class of2040 is likely to be closer still.

I maintain that the Academy experience not only made us better leaders than we otherwise would have been, it also made us betterpeople regardless of the professions that we ultimately chose. USAFA enhanced our values, our standards, and our overall way of thinking—not just about our nation and its Air Force, but about how we should interact with our fellow human beings. USAFA further gave us a profound understanding that most meaningful achievements require hard work, and a solid foundation for meeting the unknown challenges of the future; as a result of our Academy experience, most of us don’t rattle too easily when faced with stress. The story of the Class of 1977 is the combination ofhundreds of individual success stories, and the Academy played a significant role in many of those accomplishments. My guess is that would also have been true for the Class of 1959, and that it will be true as well for the Class of 2010—and that it will continue to be the case as long as this Academy exists. The great, enduring value of USAFA cannot be quantified, and yet the value is there—just as certainly as the steel, aluminum, and granite blend together to form the lasting structures of the Cadet Area. The key elements that make up the ethos of USAFA are not physical—and those are the elements that will forever make the graduates of this institution a worthy match for its mountains. S

1. See Allison Gawlinski, “‘Bring Me Men and Women’: The Integration ofWomen into the United States Air Force Academy,” AirPowerHistory (Summer 2007): 32-45, for a detailed analysis ofhow the women in the Academy’s Class of 1980 were incorporated into the cadet wing.

2. “Academy Seeks New Slogan,” Air Force Press Release, 19 August 2003, accessed at http://findarticles.eom/p/articles/mi_prfr/is_200308/ai_19534504.

3. The “standard” answers to critiquing a meal in Mitchell Hall on the Cadet Wing Form 0-96.

4. Mission statement taken from official Web page ofthe US Air Force Academy, accessed at http://www.usafa.af.mil/index.cfm?catname=Academy%20Info.

By Darrel Whitcomb, ’69

flight logbook. Every pilot has one. It comes with the profession. Ifyou are an aviator, you know the drill—each flight is logged on a separate'line, detailing its length, origin, destination, etc. And as the years stretch into a career, most flights are logged and forgotten—lost in the totality of ones experiences.

I would also wager that most pilots keep another logbook. It may physically exist or just reside in the mind ofthe aviator. But this one is more personal, capturing subtle but important details which define those particular flights which represent notable experiences—keepers we call them—and are remembered well beyond their time. They hold the fine print ofwhat it really means to be a pilot.

I have one particular mission like that which lingers with me to this day.

After graduating from USAFA in 1969,1 reported to Laredo AFB, Texas, for pilot training. This was Ioilowed by combat tours in Southeast Asia, and then duty as a T-38 instructor pilot at Moody AFB, Georgia. With the force reductions in the mid-1970s, I left active duty to chase an airline career, one of thousands who followed that path. Sa

Previous page: A border guard posts we would have flown over. Right: The bridge androad below it.

But I opted to continue my military flying with the Air Force Reserve and, by the 1980s, was flying A-10s, the anti-tank fighter-bombers, at Richards-Gebaur Air Reserve Base just south of Kansas City, Missouri. I loved it. We had fine, well-maintained aircraft, and a fully manned and superbly led unit. Additionally, we had a real mission. It was the height of the Cold War, and we were assigned to wartime duty to our forces under NATO command in Europe. To demonstrate and refine our capabilities, each summer we deployed to Air Force bases in Germany. There for periods up to a month, we mixed in with the active duty units and showed that we were ready to do our assigned mission.

But one summer was different. In July of 1987, we deployed for a month to Sembach Airbase, about forty miles southwest ofFrankfurt. Instead ofreinforcing an active unit though, we replaced it so that it could return to its home station in England and take a well-deserved break from the rigors offront line duty. This meant that instead of focusing all of our energy on training, we would also have to assume responsibility for the alert missions which were assigned to that unit. Specifically, we had to be ready to launch aircraft on fairly short notice to attack certain pre-selected targets in East Germany ifthe Warsaw Pact forces initiated an invasion ofWestern Europe.

This was a big deal, and required lots of preparation and training for us pilots. To insure that we were ready, our commanders would hold cerification boards before which those of us assigned to fly would have to brief the mission in every detail. It was an intense and thorough process.

I still remember my assigned mission very clearly. I was directed to lead a flight offour A-10s to strike a bridge/overpass in the Thuringer Wald, a range ofmountains, some up to 3000 feet, approximately 100 miles northeast ofFrankfurt in what was then East Germany. The bridge was on a train line which was expected to be used by invading units ofthe Russian 8th Guards Army. It was a brick and concrete structure which passed over a key road through a narrow valley. By destroying the structure, we could cut that track and also block the road below. With one mission, we could cut or block two lines ofcommunication. It was a worthy target, and we expected that the enemy units in the area would defend it well.

All four of us pilots assigned to the mission would appear before the certification board. The briefing would be long and detailed. To share the load, I assigned specific duties to each member. For the actual presentation, I would briefthe route offlight and attack tactics. Myplan was simple: we would avoid as much ofthe enemy threats enroute as possible. Over the target, we would attack out of a wheel so that each could strike the target from a different direction. This increased the effectiveness of our weapons and created the most problems for the enemy units expected to be defending the target.

My number two man briefed all of the specific command and control measures that we would have to follow to work our way

through the various allied units from several different nations both enroute to and returning from the target. This was significant because NATO was an alliance of many nations, and each army did things a little differently.

My number three man briefed the specifics of the threats that we could expect from the enemy units we would encounter. There were so many.

Lastly, my number four man briefed the details ofthe weapons we would be dropping on the target. Each aircraft was scheduled to carry six Mark-82 5001b bombs with special delay fuses on them which would make them especially effective against the bridge.

On presentation day, my flight and I appeared before the certification board. It was chaired by our squadron commander and included two officers from NATO headquarters. One ofthem was an intelligence officer. The other was a more senior officer, a representative to oversee our process and certify us for the mission. We were given two hours to give the briefing. Each of us stood and detailed our part of the plan. Questions flowed as the members ofthe board probed our collective depth ofknowledge. It was an exhaustive experience.

Finally, our squadron commander said that he was satisfied with our preparations and stated that he felt that we deserved certification. All eyes turned to the senior NATO officer. Fie smiled. But before speaking he turned to his intelligence officer and asked for his comments. That officer weighed his words carefully. He concurred with the squadron commander. Then he added a chilling remark, noting dryly that he felt we would destroy the target, but chances were good that two of our A-10s would be shot down. We four pilots eyed each other uncomfortably. It made us all realize the possible cost ofwhat we were preparing to do, for we all knew that there would be no chance of rescue that deep in enemy territory. Our fate would have been capture or death.

The senior NATO officer broke the chilling silence by announcing that we were certified for the mission. We shuffled out of the briefing room and congratulated one another for the good work. Then we returned to the normal activities of our fighter squadron

and resumed our training flights. The four of us met once more to review the mission before our time in Germany was up. Preparing to return to our base in Missouri, we relinquished all of our assigned missions back to the active duty unit we had replaced and headed home. We had done well and had proved that we were ready and able to do our part if we had ever been called upon to do so.

But that call never came. A few years later, the Soviet Union collapsed. With it went the Warsaw Pact and the threat that Western Europe would ever be invaded as was feared during the 1980s. Germany reunified. Some deep thinkers said that it was the resolve of NATO to defend itselfwhich actually prevented what would have been World War III. That is way beyond my level of thinking, and I filed away the memories of that mission.

In 1992,1 happened to be in Frankfurt, Germany on an airline trip. Because of a schedulingchange, I had a free day and was up early for a morning stroll through Mainz. I passed a bookstore, and noticed that it had a map section. I went in and picked up a map ofGermany and began to visualize flying over the beautiful terrain ofthat country. By this time, all ofthe maps had been modified to remove the old border between Western and Eastern Germany. But I knew the terrain too well, and my eyes easily wandered across the map to my target in the Thuringer Wald. I immediatelyrecognized the train line and conjoining highway and followed them to their junction at the bridge. It was a chilling moment as I recalled our mission.

I put a finger on the bridge and then found my old base at Sembach. Then, as if time had stood still, I retraced our path as we would have flown it. The memories came rushing back, and I knew instinctively what I had to do—I had to “fly” that mission.

I bought the map and returned to my hotel. Given the amount offree time I had available, it would be impossible for me to rent an airplane and actually fly the route. Instead, I rented a car. Within the hour, I was on my way. Before leaving though, I marked my route offlight on the map, even using the old circles, triangles and squares that we used to lay out a military mission. In doing so, I resolved to drive it as closely as I would have flown it.

It was just a short drive back to my old base at Sembach. The base had been deactivated. But I parked on an overlooking hill and let the memories sweep over me. I had deployed to Sembach four times and knew it well. I stared at the hardened aircraft shelters. They were large domed structures, constructed ofthick concrete. We parked our aircraft inside. There, they were protected against attack and could only be destroyed by a direct hit with a very powerful bomb.

Tucked away down in the middle ofthe base in a nondescript building was our old operations center where we planned our missions and had, in fact, given our certification briefing. It had been our squadron home while we were there. It was all so quiet now, and reminded me of some ofthe old World War II airbases I had visited once in England.

I left the base and drove northeast, passing south ofFrankfurt and the smaller town ofFulda. I stopped along what had been the border between East and West Germany and walked along the remnants of the old Wall. While there, I watched a German Government team removing the land mines placed along it. I also climbed into one of the guard towers maintained by the East Germans. It was absolutely chilling to think about what that tower represented.

Then I continued my drive. Strangely, I could feel myself tensing up. Physically, there was certainly no reason to do so because everybody that I encountered was very friendly and helpful. But the memories were too strong. To me, this was still enemy territory. And as I drove, I could not help but wonder what we would have seen from 500 feet or fewer above the ground and traveling at 300 knots. Part ofthe flight would have taken us across a wide gentle valley. Driving through it, I looked up at the ridges on each side and pondered how the enemy would have set up his anti aircraft guns and missile sites. The valley was so open that even sitting in my car, I shuddered at how nakedly vulnerable we would have been there.

Then the terrain began to steadily rise and I realized that I was climbing into the hills where our target was located. My finger followed along on the map. Approaching a ridge, I remembered that this would have been the point at which I would have split my flight for the attack on the bridge. My mind raced back through the mental procedures that we had been taught to follow as we

began this maneuver. Our training had just been that thorough.

Then I rounded a turn, and there was the bridge, old and tired, but still being used. I could feel my body tense as I approached it.

I stopped my car about 200 yards short and got out. As I stood there, several vehicles passed. One was a hay wagon being pulled by two stout horses. The farmer waved and shouted a greeting in German. I returned in English. He gave me a surprised look and continued on, oblivious to who I was or why I was there.

I walked up a path to the bridge. Reaching it, I stood there motionless for several minutes before I heard a train approaching. The ground rumbled slightly as it passed.

It was all so peaceful. I laid out my map and oriented it to north. There was higher terrain to the east, but the ridge fell off to the north. Looking up, I imagined how we would have circled above. In my mind, I could envision how we would have attacked from different directions. Mentally, I could trace how we pilots would have maneuvered our aircraft and the bombs would have fallen. Like scenes from the movie The Bridges at Toko Ri, I could see them impact on the bridge and then the bridge falling onto the road below.

I remembered that when we were planning the mission, we had hoped that, fortuitously, there would be a train on the tracks as we attacked. It would certainly have added to the success of our effort.

I realized what that would have meant in human terms. But war is war, and in times of desperate combat, such peaceful thoughts are a luxury. Now when I looked up and saw the circling A-1 Os, there were men in them, men with names and faces and families and so much to live for. And then I recalled the dry words of the intelligence officer at the certification briefing.

As I scanned the area, I could see the enemy antiaircraft guns and missile sites on the high ground. I could see the gun crews firing their long angry bursts ofdeadly rounds. I could hear the “wooosh” ofthe missiles as they streaked skyward with their deadly warheads as they sought out our—my maneuvering aircraft.

My mind raced with the scenes. I could hear the warning calls that we would have made to one another. They would have been desperate calls. I could feel the shudder that the aircraft would

have made as those enemy shells and missiles foundtheir targets. The A-10 was a sturdy, well built aircraft and could take lots of damage—up to a point.

In the crisp blue sky, my eyes saw the parachutes blossom as the stricken pilots ejected from their aircraft. I could hear the emergency beepers screaming on the radio as they drifted to the ground.

I now understood what I had been trying to avoid. In terms ofthe war, this bridge was a minor matter. But to us, the men assigned to destroy it, that mission could have been the final event of our life.

I was literally standing on the every spot where, ifthese events had played out, I or three other men under my commandcould have died.

I was stunned at what my mind had finally made me acknowledge. Then I looked at that bridge with a much more discerning eye. Was that bridge worth any of our lives? Returning home two days later, the mission to the bridge was still on my mind. Would it have been worth it? It was a beguiling question, and it demanded an answer.

I resisted for about a week. But the memories would not fade. So one evening I went down to the basement, and pulled my box ofold military stuff. I opened up the unit history that we had published for that time period and looked at the four of us in my flight.

Then I opened my flight log book. Flipping through it, I found my flight entries for the summer of 1987. Noted in some detail were the missions I flew on that deployment. I rememberedthe gunnery flights to the ranges at Graffenwohr, Hohenfels, and Wildflecken, and the navigational flights through Bavaria.

But, of course, missing was the mission to the bridge.

I stared at that dry recitation of my flights. Then I looked again at the faces of us assigned that mission to the bridge. I discerned a grim determination in each—or at least I did in my imagination. Then I juxtaposed the pictures with my flight log and, in doing so, figured out what the bridge represented. No, that bridge would not have been worth any of our lives. But the resolve that it represented—that I saw there in our young faces—was the value of it all. For, in being prepared to fly that mission, we prevented it from ever having to happen. And that resolve, magnified so many times by the valiant efforts of so many throughout the great NATO alliance, prevented the horrible conflagration which would have been World War III. Those deep thinkers were right and, in a very personal way, we were the personification of that resolve.

So the mission to the bridge is not there in my flight logbook. No take off, no flight time, no landing, nothing. It never happened—it never existed.

Yet every pilot has two logbooks. And like most, my second logbook doesn’t really exist except in my mind. But amongst all ofthe flights that I experienced in my 35 years offlying, the mission to the bridge is at the top ofmy list. It is the “keeper” I remember the most. K

TOURNAMENT, AND I WONDER IF

world to host this tournament or any of the many outreach events we hold at our amazing fields and facilities—I doubt ifyou could find one. I’m also about two weeks away from completing four years in this position and still having fun. I don’t think I’ve ever used our department motto in any of my previous summaries, so I used it to title this short recap. It’s a great motto, probably not as good as “’66, Blood That Sticks!” but it’s pretty good and concisely reflects what we do.

Competitive year 2007-08 has been a remarkable year for the Academy. I know that all USAFA alumni and friends and

supporters of USAFA know these stats, but let me recap just to put them all together and for me to personally relive the moments as we close in on the next chapter ofAir Force athletics.

The football team returned to a bowl game for the first time in five years, earning a trip to the Armed Forces Bowl. The team finished 9-4 overall and posted a school-record 6-2 mark in the Mountain West Conference to finish second. Coach Troy Calhoun was named MWC coach of the year, regional coach of the year and was a finalist for national coach of the year honors. Individually, Chad Hall was named the Mountain West Conference’s offensive player of the year and earned

third-team All-American honors. Three of our players, Chad Hall, Drew Fowler, and John Rabold, received serious looks from NFL teams even though the Air Force policy requires at least two years of active duty time before they could apply for release. They would then also owe six years of reserve time. The highlight of the season, other than the amazing victories over Utah in Salt Lake City, TCU in Falcon Stadium, and Notre Dame in South Bend, was of course the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth. Matched

against a powerful Miami of Ohio team ranked #2 in the nation. Air Force led that game 2-1 with about 7 minutes to go, gave up a power play goal after a controversial six-men-on-the-ice penalty, then lost in overtime. They’ve proven for two years in a row that they can play with any team in the nation, losing by single goals in the NCAA round of 16 to #1 Minnesota in 2007 and #2 Miami in 2008.

Both basketball teams were successful, the men’s team winning 16 games after losing six players from last year to graduation, includ-

against a powerful Cal team that had been ranked as high as #2 in the nation before injuries plagued them, Air Force gave them all they could handle and would have won had it not been for the devastating injury to our four-year starting quarterback, Shaun Carney.

Many people have asked about Shaun, and I can tell you that the surgery, performed by another great football player, Lt. Col. JT Tokish, was successful, and Shaun’s goal ofwalking across the stage to accept his diploma from President Bush was achieved. Shaun will be with us for a year as a Graduate Assistant, so we’ll get him back to playing shape.

Our Hockey Team won its second straight Atlantic Hockey Association Tournament, sweeping Bentley in the quarterfinals, beating RIT in the semis, and then defeating Mercyhurst in a thrilling 5-4 double overtime victory.

That led to their second consecutive NCAA tournament berth in a match up

ing four starters. The team kept the string of winning seasons alive at five (after 25 straight prior losing seasons) and finished fifth in the conference, an amazing accomplishment. The women’s team continued to improve, setting an Academy Division I record with 10 wins and matched their highest standing in the conference.

The wrestling team qualified four wrestlers for the NCAA championships and headcoach Joel Sharratt was named Western Wrestling Conference coach of the year after a second place finish in the NCAA West Regionals.

Track coach Ralph Lindeman was named MWC coach of the year after leading the Air Force men’s team to a top three finish. Air Force senior David Lissy, the 2008 Mountain West Conference indoor shot put champion, was honored by the National Strength and Conditioning Association with its All-American Strength and Conditioning Athlete of the Year award.

C3C Nick Frawley became the 21st

outdoor NCAA All-American in Air Force track and field program history, as he tied for second in the pole vault at the NCAA Championships.

Two former track and field athletes, Capt. Paul Gensic and Lt Dana Pounds, who are currently in the World Class Athlete Program, excelled in the U. S. OlympicTrials, finishing sixth and second respectively.

In gymnastics, 2 Lt. Greg Stine was named the most outstanding senior and coach Kip Simons was named coach ofthe year in the USA Gymnastics Collegiate championships.

On the women’s side, the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation named C2C Abbey Rogers co-gymnast ofthe year and coach Doug Day regional coach ofthe year.

The baseball team won 18 games in 2008, including impressive early victories over 19th ranked Mississippi State and Ohio State and late conference series wins over BYU and UNLV. C3C Nathan Carter, Air Force second baseman/outfielder, was named to the PinglBaseball 2008 AllFreshmen Team. Carter was a third team selection at second base. He was also recognized by the NCAA as the nation’s leader in triples per game, and the Falcon squad was #1 in that category thanks to Nathan.

The Air Force lacrosse team is one of five teams set to join the ECAC Lacrosse League beginning in the 2009-10 season, as announced by ECAC Commissioner Rudy Keeling. Along with the Falcons, Bellarmine, Denver, Ohio State and Quinnipiac will join existing members Fairfield, Hobart and Loyola.

So much for the recap, but lest we forget our number one mission at the Air Force Academy, producing leaders of character for the nation, I need to share with you an incident that truly epitomizes that highest priority. Recently, C2C Peter French was announced as the Mountain West Conference Hal Rothman Sportsmanship Award recipient for 2007-08. He will now go forward for further consideration as the Mountain West Conference’s candidate for NCAA Sportsman of the Year.

A native ofAustin, Texas, Peter has competed as a member ofthe Falcons’ fencing team for two years. He routinely portrays the ideals ofsportsmanship and competitive respect, and hischaracter was never more evident than during a match at the 2008 Junior Men’s Epee World Cup in Basel, Switzerland. During a bout to determine the top eight individuals and eventual selection to the World Team, Peter struck the floor in a failed attempt for his opponent’s foot. The scoring director did not observe the floor touch, and awarded a point to Peter, who immediately acknowledged the mistake and asked the director to remove a point from his score—a gesture unheard ofin international competition. Peter’s opponent, the champion from France, thanked him for his sportsmanship andthe bout continued. Several touches passed, and Peter’s opponent accidentally hit the floor. He, too, acknowledged his mistake with a mutual understanding he was returning the earlier favor. Peter emerged from the bout victorious and

later finished third in the competition, leading to his selection to the world team. When I first heard ofthis, I was reminded ofBobby Jones’ famous act ofsportsmanship when he called a two stroke penalty on himself, a penalty no one else saw, in the 1925 US Open andlost by a shot. This act ofsportsmanship at the World Cup in Basel, Switzerland, ranks right up there with the highest acts of sportsmanship ever.

Our cadet athletes continue to excel in all facets ofAcademy life, and we had 41 Academic All-Conference selections in the

their mission elements in the early years, AD was being used by some other organization, so the D wasn’t available. When we asked about it more recently, the D was available again, so now we re AD. Anyway, there’s lots going on in AD.

We hired a replacement for Senior Associate Athletic Director Mike Saks, who’s now with the Orange Bowl Committee. We were lucky to hire Jim Trego into that position. Some ofyou might remember Jim from his Air Force days here in the department back in the mid-90’s. Jim left the Air Force,

Mountain West Conference. Six Air Force athletes were named to the 2008 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® University Division At-Large All-District VII Teams. The Spring 08 Wing Cumulative Physical Education Average and Physical Fitness Test scores established new 5-yearhighs. 100 percent ofUSAFA 2008 Class passed the AF Fitness Assessment and 60 percent scored at the Excellent level.

Most ofyou have probably seen the above recap in some form on our Web site, www.goairforcefalcons.com, but I wanted to comment on some of the highlights. There were obviously many more successes and accomplishments.

So what else is going on in AD? Just as an aside, some ofyou might remember us as AH, but when Gen. Regni asked why we were AH and not AD, since AD seemed more appropriate to him for the “Athletic Department,” we didn’t have a good answer. You’ll love this—a little research revealed that when the Academy was designating letters for

spent a short time with the Western Athletic Conference office in Denver, then 15 years at Baylor University. He brings great experience and a much different perspective from a Big 12 school. We also took the opportunity to restructure the department organization to better fit the anticipated move to a non-profit status for Air Force Academy Athletic Association, but more on that in a minute. We moved from a six division structure to a more streamlined and functional dual deputy structure, with Jim Trego as the Deputy Athletic Director for External Programs and Col. Billy Walker as the Deputy Athletic Director for Internal Programs. All ofthe functions and operations underJim will more easily transition into the non-profit corporation when that finally happens. So where are we with that? I’ve learned more about the legislative process than I ever wanted to know, but with every two steps forward and one step back, we’re getting there. We’ve had great support from Gen. Regni, the top leaders in the Air

Photos courtesy ofUSAFA Athletics

Force, particularly former SecretaryWynne and former ChiefofStaffGen. Moseley, the Academy Board ofVisitors, alumni and friends in the D. C. area who have pushed hard to get through the wickets, and most recendy from CM Robin Hayes (R-NC), who has graciously taken this on for us and secured a place holder for the eventual legislation. I have great hopes that we’ll be operating as a 501c3 Colorado Corporation within a year.

On the facility side, there are some other exciting things happening to keep us at the top of our game. Like most of the buildings at the Academy, we’re getting old. The 10ABW and the 10CES have again held us together and patched us where needed so that the best events staff in the country could continue to offer the finest intercollegiate, intramural, and physical education programs in America. Gen. Regni has worked his magic to get long range funding to “Fix USAFA” and we’re part of that. It’s a long but steady process. Right now we’re redoing the indoor track, the Clune Arena floor, and starting Phase 2 of the seven year project to refurbish the Cadet Gymnasium, a $50M effort. That will addefficiencies and quality oflife for cadets and staff if we can just survive these next few years.

We will also probably break ground on the new Cadet Fitness Center next year. It will be a $ 16M milconaddition to the gym on the west side dedicated mostly to the 3000+ non-intercollegiate cadets who have been shortchanged on workout equipment that matches current physical fitness trends. It will include things like climbing walls, lots of aerobic machines, and even a Fire Arms Training System (FATS) to hone cadet marksmanship.

On the “nice-to-have-but-will-neverbe-funded” list, we are very excited about the progress toward an Indoor Practice Facility. As Coach Calhoun will tell you, it’s an absolute necessity if we wantto stay competitive at the Div I level. We were the only MWC bowl team last season without a dedicated IPF. To the right is a picture of the proposed structure. The actual structure will probably change some as we develop this, but it’ll be impressive out there on the practice fields.

So how do we pull this offin the midst of limited military construction dollars, most

ofwhich will go toward fixing this aging Air Force Academy? This is where the excitement level is reallyhigh because a relatively new organization supporting the Air Force Academy, the USAFA Endowment, Inc., has taken on the challenge ofbuilding the IPF for the Academy and the athletic department and is well on the way to making it happen. Membership in this group reads like a Who’s Who of50 years ofAcademy grads, but isn’t limited to grads. One ofthe most recent members is former Secretary ofthe Air Force Michael Wynne, a ’66 West Point graduate. This group is selflessly dedicated to the Academy and has made it their goal to raise funds to keep USAFA at the top in all areas. We are honored that they have made the IPF one oftheir first major capital projects. You’ll be hearing much more about this powerful group in years to come.

I’ve received a lot of comments and advice about the much talked about TV contract that the Mountain West Conference signed with CBS and Comcast. MWC Commissioner CraigThompson has worked tirelessly to bring this contract to completion with the kind of national exposure we need. Now that we will finally have satellite coverage for theMtn. on Direct TV beginning on Aug. 27, Air Force games will be accessible nationwide. We still have some work to do to get the same coverage on the Dish Network and some uncovered regional cable networks, but we now have some negotiating power thanks to Direct TV We are fortunate to be in a partnership with CBS, CBS-C (the old CSTV), theMtn and VS (Versus, the old Outdoor Life Network). That’s a powerful lineup ofsports networks. I have to remind people who ask why we ever left ESPN that we would have been playing games on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at any time between 10:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., and we might not know the start

times or dates until 10 days before the game. On top ofthat, we’re sharing TV revenue that’s more than twice the amount ESPN offered. I’m excited about this upcoming season and the great exposure all Air Force sports teams will receive.

Let me close this by philosophizing for a moment about what’s going on in amateur sports in America, because, as a major Div. I NCAA program, we are obviously affected by all of that. College sports is on a runaway train, and it’s hard to stay on board. Coaches’ salaries are off the scale; transportation costs are staggering because of fuel costs; recruiting budgets have doubled and tripled in the last few years; academic standards are being addressed by the NCAA but are tough to enforce; and it’s an arms race explosion of facility construction to entice recruits. Anyone who followed the press coverage ofBill Self, Kansas basketball coach, during the Final Four in San Antonio when he was being wooed by Oklahoma State to the tune of a rumored $4M/year for ten years, knows that this is out ofcontrol. When Coach Saban signed with Alabama for $32M for eight years, a new standard was set. There’s no end in sight for programs which literally want, and have the money, to buy national championships. Ohio State University has an athletic budget over $100M, four times our budget, yet they sponsor fewer sports teams and athletes than USAFA. On the academic side, NCAA President Myles Brand has set high performance standards but has found them tough to enforce. The two significant measures are Academic Progress Report and Graduation Success Rate. The Air Force Academy is among the top ten schools in the NCAA in both ofthose measures, but it’s tough to compete against schools in our own conference which have GSRs of 15 percent and 30 percent. When winning is the only priority, student-athletes suffer.

I point this out because all of us should be even more proud of the competitive spirit of all of our cadet-athletes—we win while holding to the highest standards of fair play, academic excellence, and the right priority. Our #1 priority hasn’t changed. We’re producing leaders of character for America. “Tomorrow’s Leaders Forged Through Competition Today.” H

The proposed Indoor Practice Facility

With a friendlyschedule and a strong roster ofreturningplayers, the Air Force volleyball team embarks on an exciting 2008 competitive season. Six talented freshmenjoin a returningplatoon of 16 athletes. With several mem- bers of last year’sstarting rotation back in the lineup, veteran presence and incoming talent should provide a strong combination for success.

Although the Falcons will have to replace a four- year starting setter and a combination who started 24 matches, Air Force does return six athletes who spent some part ofthe season as significant starters, including both ofthe team’s captains, and the last two MVPs.

THE RETURNING STARTERS

The Air Force volleyball team embarks on the 2008 season with much ofthe same lineup as one year ago, when the Falcons posted their most victories (7) since the 2003 season.

Sophomore Nichole Stilwell (Divide, Colo.) and junior Michelle Harrington (Stuttgart,Germany) may very well be the most consistent ofthe returning starters. Last season, the duo started 30 ofthe team’s 31 matches and played in 100 of 104 games. In fact, Stilwell was the onlyfreshman to earn a spot in the startingline-upduring the season opener. Stilwell returns to the lineup afterposting the best hittingpercentage (.210) and blockingaverage (0.75) on the team lastyear, while Harrington was second in those same categories (.194hittingpercentage; 0.68 blocking). The twosome also assumed at least some part of

Womciis VolleyDini Season Preview

Courtesy ofAir Force Athletics

the team lead in blockingduring 25 matches, while having seasons worthy of a spot on the program’s Division I single-season lists. Stilwell moved into seventh with 63 assisted blocks, while Harrington is ranked 10th with 17 solo stops.

One ofthe team’s top threats,junior Katie Batchelder (Chico, Calif.), brings two years ofstarting experience back to the rotation. Since entering the lineup in the season opener ofher freshman cam- paign, Batchelder has missedjust three matches over the last two years.

Batchelder led the team with a 2.56 kills-per-game average, while ranking second on the team in digs (2.29 per game). She is also a force from the backline, havingaccounted for at least 25 kills in each ofher first two seasons.

Sophomore Caroline Kurtz (Albuquerque, N.M.), who started 20 matches—including 15 ofthe last 16—and saw action in 93 total games, became a strong presence on both the offensive and defensive sides ofthe net. Along with Batchelder, Kurtz was one ofjust two Falcons to clear the 200 kills/200 digs plateau,averaging a team-high 2.47 digs per game. Like her starting classmate Stilwell, Kurtz made her mark on the team’s single-season record book as a rookie. Entering the list tied for seventh with 230 digs, Kurtz looks to return her name to that list with a standout sophomorecampaign.

The foundation ofthe 2008 squad will be set by seniorsJasamine Pettie (Baton Rouge, La.) and Kristina Stewart (Glendale,Ariz.), as the duo was selected to

share the captaincy duties for the Falcons this season.

These two leaders provide a wealth ofknowledge for their younger teammates, as they have been members of the starting rotation for each of their first three years. Pettie, a Rookie of the Year in 2005, and Stewart, last year’s team MVP, have become vital pieces of the Air Force program and look to continue that tradition in 2008.

Pettie, who served as a co-captain last season for the Falcons, has played in 259 games during her first three years, posting a 1.28 kills-per-game average, while collecting 79 total blocks. Stewart has been in 261 career games, compiling averages of 1.74 kills and 1.91 digs per games.

In an award selected by her teammates, Stewart earned the team’s MVP honor last year. She started 21 matches, but was also a strong bench player in other matches. Throughout the season, she posted a team-high in nearly every statistical category. Pettie was in the starting rotation for 21 matches, including the final six.

Stewart and Pettie were in the starting rotation for 22 and 21 matches, respectively. And when they were not in the opening lineup, they were usually the first ones offthe bench. They are strong all-around players, having posted team-high marks in several statistical categories throughout the season. SS

Courtesy ofAir Force Athletics

005 Academy grad and four-year letterwinner returns to Falcon women’s hoops.

Lt. Jennifer Roesch has agreed to become an assistant coach on the Air Force women’s basketball staff, head coach Ardie Mclnelly announced. Roesch was a four-year letterwinner on the Falcon basketball team from 2001-05.

“We are very excited to have Jenn on our staff,” Mclnelly said. “As someone who has played at the Academy, in addition to the Prep Schooland gone out into the Air Force, Lt. Roesch can help our recruits and our younger players better understand what being a cadet-athlete at the Academy is all about.”

Roesch’s responsibilities will be game day and practice preparation, opponent scouting and recruiting. In addition she will work with the Falcon guards.

A native ofPhoenix, Ariz., Roesch returns to the Academy after three years at Andrews AFB, Md., where she served as contracting officer in the 316th Contracting Squadron, providing acquisition support for the presidential airlift group (home of Air Force One). Various jobs were contracts manager and buyer/ administrator for base operation support and civil engineering services, government purchase card inspector, Global War on Terror equipment buyer and squadron executive officer.

While at Andrews, Roesch was an assistant coach for the Fairfax Stars, an AAU Club team. In 2007, Roesch helped guide the Stars to a fifth-place finish at U-14 AAU Div. I National Tournament. In addition to her coaching duties, Roesch was a member of the 2007 All-Air Force Women’s Basketball Team.

Roesch was a four-year letterwinner at Air Force appearing in 92 career games, scoring 458 career points. A scoring threat from long-range, she ranks 10th all-time at the Academy with 68 three-point baskets made. As a senior, Roesch startedall 28 games and earned the teams’ Falcon Award. As a sophomore, Roesch averaged a career-best 6.8 points per game, ranking third on the team.

“This is an absolute dream job for me,” Roesch said. “I really look forward to coaching and instructing the amazing young women and men of this institution on and off the basketball court.”

Roesch earned a Bachelor of Science in behavioral science with an emphasis in counseling and human development from the Academy in 2005. She replaces Capt. Ali Anders, who took a position as the executive Air Force Athletic Department Executive Officer.

Roesch is one of two new coaches to join the Falcon staff for the 2008-09 season. Kirk Crawford joined the Falcon staff in July. H

in Prcsc^son Poll

Courtesy ofAir Force Athletics

he Falcons are the highest ranked service academy. The Air Force men’s gymnastics team earned a 12th-place ranking in the first preseason poll, the NCAA recently announced. The Falcons, under the direction of fourth-year headcoach Kip Simons, are coming off one of the best seasons in program history. Bolstered by an impressive lineup of returning gymnasts, the Falcons welcome a talented class of newcomers to the program.

“It’s awesome to know that people out there believe in our program,” Simons said.

Air Force is the highest ranked service academy, as Navy is ranked 13th and Army is 18th. In addition, the Falcons have the fourth-highest ranking of teams in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. Defending champion Oklahoma is ranked first, while Stanford is second. Rounding out the strong fiveteam league are California (ninth) and Nebraska (15th).

“Taking a team to the NCAA would be a dream come true for us,” Simons continued. “It is a great honor to be recognized like this, now it’s up to us to make it happen.” I

Cadet T-Shirt

100% Pre-shrunk cotton. White with dark navy ringer collar anc sleeve cuff. $10.50

Cadet Sweatshirt

92% cotton, 8% polyester. Light gray with reflective lettering $45.00

Hoodies - Zippered or Pullover

MV Sport. 80% cotton, 20% polyester. "Air Force''' applique across chest with "Academy" embroidered beneath $38.25

Crewneck Sweatshirt \j

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54" x 84" Pro-Weave sweatshirt blanket. Air Force Academy and AFA crest printed

blanket $20

MV Sport. 80% cotton, 20% pop ft rorce embroidered beneath.

ppuque across chest with

Squadron Pins

Pins match all current squadron patches and many previously used patches (Please specify squadron) $4.25

AF/ AOG TOTE BAG

Black, blue, and white tote with AF insignia and AOG Crest. Large zippered compartment with storage pockets. Size: 17.5 x 14x3, 400D polyester. $10.25

Laser Engraved Pen Set

Order Options: Up to 3 lines and 2 crests maximum on case; USAFA, AOG, or Class crest -if crest is available; name on the pen; and wood choice of Maple or Rosewood. Please allow 4 weeks for delivery. $21.25

2007 Ornament

Prop & Wings in front of USAFA and US flags in silver-tone. Background is 24kt gold plated with Air Force Academy across the top and 2007 at the bottom amid holly leaves. Approx. 2.5" in diameter. $17.(

Coming Soon1

Watch the AOG's Web site at www, usafa,orq for more information,

Expect Great Things

A historical documentary of the first fifty years of the U.S. Air Force Academy. Available in DVD and VHS $12.75

Return With Honor - DVD Documentary recounting the first-hand stories of American fighter pilots shot down over North Vietnam and their time in captivity $21.25

License Piate Frames 'Alumni', 'Falcons', or 'Parent' across the top and 'Air Force Academy' across the bottom. Each frame $5.25

Onc£ Vpon a Time

Remember all the great stories your classmates shared with one another at your last reunion? Share some of the most important memories of your life with the readers of Checkpoints magazine. Checkpoints wants to publish your cadet experiences and stories of how your four years at the Academy affected your career and life.

Submit story between 500-2,000 words. Photos must be in “jpg” format, 300 dpi at 7 inches wide. E-mail to editor@aogusafa.org. If mailed, include a digital copy (photos will be scanned and returned) and mail to: 3116 Academy Dr., USAF Academy, CO 80840.

AFA Society of North Carolina

We meet, informally, on the third Wed. of each month at Players Retreat, 105 Oberlin Road in Raleigh. No RSVP is required. Also, the second round of the Triangle Area Service Academy GolfTournament will be played on Sept. 20.

Arizona Chapter

Our Chapter will once again travel to San Diego this Oct. 11, for the USAFA-San Diego State Football game. This has been a fun trip in the past and we tailgate with other Chapters before the game. Ifyou are interested, please contact Tim Furst, ’78, at (602) 222-3003; Tim@FamiliesFurst.com

Heartland-Lemay Chapter

We are in the process of determining interest in a joint group trip with members of the local Naval Academy Society to watch the AF/Navy game in Oct.

Houston Chapter

The Chapter, the AOG and the UH ROTC are planning the pregame mixer for the 1st ever USAFA vs. UH football game, Sept. 13. Many thanks to Col. Phil Bossert, ’82, commander ofthe UH ROTC detachment, for his work in helping us coordinate with UH and his efforts in arranging a fly-by and

half-time medal presentation ceremony. UH designated this game as their annual salute to the Armed Forces, and we are expecting it to be a great event.

Iowa Chapter

“Iowa AOG Chapter Formed!” Congratulations to the Iowa Chapter and to Luke Porisch, ’01, for rallying the graduates in forming the Chapter! If you are interested in getting involved with the Iowa Chapter, contact Luke Porisch, lporisch@gmail. com or (319) 654-6345. Website: http:// iowaaog.blogspot.com/

New England Chapter

The Chapter is planning a bus trip to West Point to watch the Falcons beat ‘em up in football. Everyone is invited to attend on Nov. 1. We will travel by Motor Coach Bus! Our goal is to get at least 50 fans to sign up, making the cost/person approximately $70-80 (including $36 for the group game ticket). Please contact 2Lt. Andrew Ramsey, ’07, (781) 377-6876, Andrew. Ramsey@HANSCOM.AF.MIL. The bus rental is contingent on the participants. Purchase game tickets for AF vs. Army at https://www.groupticketwindow.com/ groupticket/college/falcons/group username: NEAOG, password: BEATARMY.

New York Metropolitan Area Chapter

The Chapter website is up and running at WWW.NYAOG.COM. Visit thewebsite for all of the latest information on chapter events including the West Point tailgate party, chapter meetings, and other local social/sporting events.

North Texas Association

We are planning our Fall Barbeque to watch the Navy game on Oct. 3. All grads in the North Texas areaare invited. Our main focus this fall is working with the AOG on the Tailgate Party for the AF/ TCU football game on Nov. 22. Longtime member H. Ownby, ’69, is heading up the effort with volunteer work done by NTAAFAG members. Unfortunately, it is on the same day as our annual Flag Football tournament with the grads from West Point and Annapolis, so we may not be able to defend our crown.

Northern California Chapter

Mark your calendars for the weekend of Sept. 13, for a summer event. We are planning a summer picnic and would love to have you attend. Watch your emails for more details. Please contact Susan at oisusan@yahoo.com if you have suggestions or would like to coordinate an event.

Goal 1

Celebrate Academy Heritage North Texas Association

Our Founder’s Day celebration was at the home of Kirk Bell, ’76, in the form of a “Margaritaville” party with 50 grads and guests for catered Tex-Mex and beverages. The price was free for paid members of NTAAFAG (dues only $30).

Goal 2

Keep abreast ofAir Force and USAFA topics

Houston Chapter

Gary Howe,’69, former AOG CEO, spoke at our spring dinner where he gave an update regarding the AOG, its search for a new president, and what the future holds for the AOG and the grad community.

North Texas Association

Our monthly luncheon has had several interesting speakers, most notable ofwhich included AOG Chairman JimWheeler, ’64, discussing the current state ofthe AOG.

Goal 4

Provide graduates networking opportunities

AFA Society of North Carolina

On Feb. 7, “Wild Bill” Stealey, 70, and Tom Sylvester, ’82, hosted a dinner at Prestonwood Country Club in Cary, NC. The guest speaker was Ernie St. Gelais, ’78. Ernie was invited by his classmate Steve Lofgren, ’78, to present his experiences in the start up of two companies.

Arizona Chapter

Barb and Ron Marusiak, ’71, again graciously hosted a fireworks/dessert/beverages party at their house on the Arizona Country Club golf course. The fireworks and patriotic music were awesome and a good time was had by all. This has become an annual tradition. Our thanks to Carol and Doug Pelton, 74, for hosting our annual pig roast. We had a great turnout and this was a first class event.

Goal 5

Interact with other service academy graduates.

AFA Society of North Carolina

On May 10, Society members participated in the 1st round ofthe Triangle Area Service Academy Golf Tournament in Holly Springs, NC. The competition includes USMA, USNA, USAFA and USCGA graduates in the area. The winning team takes possession ofthe “Old Boot”, which may not be the Commander-in-Chief s Trophy, but is prized nonetheless. T1 has been going on for eight years. In the beginning, we only played one round. However, everyone has so much fun; we decided to play one round in May and 2nd round in Sept.

Goal 6

Give back to the community

AFA Society of North Carolina

On June 24, Chuck Kavcsak, ’68, hosted Society members to a Durham Bulls baseball game. Attendees had a great time and watched the Bulls defeat the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs. Also, Rob Marshall, ’01, and Christian Helms, ’01 were up from Hurlburt Field, having flown their CV-22 Osprey through the mountains ofN. Carolina. Since we were all well behaved, Chuck promised to take us out to the ball game again.

Stuart Hixon, ’83, ofWoodstock, GA. Miss Hixon will be attending the University of Alabama this fall. She is both an outstanding student and athlete in swimming.

78, Jack Swanson, ’62, Rick Wahl, 74, Ed Reisdorf, ’63, Bob Mazet, ’63, Doug Pelton, 74, Sig Nelson, 78, Bill Gregory, 79, Ron Marusiak, 71, and Doug Frost,

Society of North Carolina - Front Row (L-R) Marcella (Gomez), ’82 and AndyStanaski, ’80, Pat Yanke, ’93, Sally and Mike Wagner, ’68, Ann and Lou Kingsland, ’59, Kathyand Tom Pratt, 70, Second Row (L-R): Courtney, Chris, Lynn and Chuck Kavcsak, ’68, Dianaand Ron Marquette, ’67.Third Row (L-R) Rob Marshall, ’01, Christian Helms, ’01, Jenna (Sharp) Reed, ’01 and Kaly(McKenna) Godfrey, ’03. Not Pictured: Karen (cut out due to operatorerror) and Jim Herrmann, 72 (behind the camera).

Atlanta Chapter

On July 14, members ofthe Atlanta Chapter presented a National AOG Graduate Dependent Scholarship check for $1000 to Miss Shelby Hixon, daughter ofVictoria and

Houston Chapter

The Houston Chapter watched Bob Lowe, ’59, perform in “Twelve Angry Men.” Also, the Chapter sat with a local band at a neighborhood nightclub to watch Rick Wade, 70, (where he stole the show) who was a professional musician for 12 years (before getting a real job), singing and playing the guitar and harmonica.

Goal 8

Assist Liaison Officers and Recruit Qualified Candidates

North Texas Association

The Association also supported “Academy Night”, organized by the Liaison Officers from all branches. Held on May 5, representatives and speakers from the Academies, ROTC, and Congressional office staffers informed students interested in pursuing military educationabout the options and processes.

Goal 9

Assist Parents Clubs/Cadets

Atlanta Chapter

On May 18, members of the Atlanta Chapter joined the Georgia Parents Club

AFA Society of North Carolina- Tom Sylvester, ’82 and Matt Valle, ’85

Arizona Chapter Annual Pig Roast: Jack Frost, ’68, Mike Lynch, ’65, Mark Donnelly, 75, Jeff Hackett, 75, Dianne Langmade, ’80, Mike Langley, ’68, Roy Miller, '67, Dick Bethurem, ’66, Terry Issacson, ’64, Tim Furst,

’64.

AFA

Atlanta Chapter - L to R: EricZurbrugg,’65, Miss Shelby Hixon, Ken Grizzle,’63, Bill Morgan,’65.

Atlanta Chapter - L to R: Waldo “YourWingman” Waldman, '90, Larry Engleson, 76, Dave Spencer, ’69, Guy Gardner, ’69, EricZurbrugg, ’65, Ken Grizzle, ’63, and Les Dyer. ’69.

at their annual Hail & Farewell Banquet. Guest speaker was Col. Guy Gardner, ’69, who fascinated all present with a terrific presentation on his astronaut operations augmented with great videos from space. Col. Gardner personally welcomed each incoming member of the class of 2012 as they were introduced.

Heartland-Lemay Chapter

The Chapter hosted two events in conjunction with the cadet’s “Operation AF” tour to Offutt AFB. We had a cookout for the USAFA and ROTC cadets at Dave Webster’s, ’80, home and invited the cadets to attend a presentation from a member ofthe League ofWWI Aviation Historians.

North California Chapter

The Chapter supported the Doolie Send Off/Appointee Dinner on June 15. We had an incredible outpouring ofhelp for the event! Bill Coleman, ’71, Major Kevin Minor, ’97, and Major Dave Abrahamson, ’95, were speakers and did a fabulous job! The Parent’s Association ofNorthern California, the Appointees, and the cadets were thrilled by the advice and stories.

North Texas Association

On June 14, the NTAAFAG participated in the annual “Summer Send-off organized by local Liaison Officers and the Parents Club in Grapevine. Academy or Prep School appointees attended with their parents to collaborate with current cadets and their parents. A picnic and a softball game featured AF grads who teamed with West Point grads to compete against 18 and 19 year old cadetsto-be. The old guys won, but we hope the young people won bygetting familiar with others from the DFW area as they start their new schooling and careers.

Piedmont Chapter

The Chapter hosted its Fifth Annual Cadet Appointee Luncheon on June 12, in Charlotte, NC. The appointees had an opportunity to meet future classmates and graduates.

At the luncheon, each graduate recounted their funniest USAFA memory. After, the appointees asked questions ofthe graduates. Trip Ashe, ’86 (president), and Drew Riolo, ’72 (vice president) thank theattendants and cadet sponsors: Steve Hoagland, ’70; Jim Thomasson, ’60; Kevin Barnes, ’94; Steve Huntley, ’69; James Dye, ’86; Steven Freund, ’85; Ray Haile, ’74; and Tim Comin, ’67. Also, thanks to 2Lt. Erica Juchter, ’08, who provided current USAFA activities. More importantly, we thank the attending appointees: Cole Smith, Zach Hamby, Jonathan Cody, Joel Short, Michael Malone, Lee Embry, and Morgan Grohol.

AcademyWomen

Our newsletter Focus features inspiring stories and articles for personal and professional development. Check the website, www.academywomen.org, for information and to sign up for free membership. Registration is open for the 5th Annual AcademyWomen Symposium on Oct. 17-19

Silver Falcons

Gaye and Gordon Palmer went on a Danube River cruise Aug. 19 Sept. 8. Delene and Stan Keck attended Stan’s 54th reunion at USNA and they havebeen on the road since the end ofMay. Jeanette and Lester Bergsten won’t be able to attend this year’s convention since they are listed as VIP visitors for the Shuttle launch in Sept. Carol and Chuck Foster report that their grandson Hans was transferred from Fairchild AFB in Spokane WA, to Vance AFBin Enid OK, where he will begin Undergraduate Pilot FlyingTraining. Jill and Kirk Brown have been crossing the country every three months to visit their first grandchild, KatelynJeanne Duerr, born Jan 23, to Tracy (daughter) and Adam Duerr ofSyracuse, NY. Jill and Kirk were there for the birth, and thenvisited again in March. There are requests for Academy catalogs to be sent to high school students in the home area ofretired Silver Falcons. The Academy catalog is no longer available in printed form, only available on the web at www.academyadmissions.com. Students who want to contact their local Admissions Liaison Officer, they can call 1-800-443-9266. Silver Falcons Conference in Sept, include potential attendees: Hilda and Bob Dodge, Carol and Chuck Foster, Delene and Stan Keck, Gaye and Gordon Palmer, Ruth Whitaker, Jill and Kirk Brown. This year’s agenda includes many of the usual events: Updated briefings from the AOG, Admissions, and the Superintendent; Staff Tower and Football luncheons; a tour ofAcademy facilities; outside dinner at the Flying W Ranch; a pre-football game tailgate, and the football game vs. Utah. Rooms are secured at the USAFA Rampart Lodge. Please contact Rampart Lodge at ( 19) 333-4910 for availability. New events for this year include a visit to the Colorado Wolfand Wildlife Center and a melodrama play at the Iron Springs Chateau.

Space Group

in Arlington, VA. Speakers include the 1st female generals: Jeanne Holm, Wilma Vaught, Pat Foote and Admiral Marty Evans. On Oct. 17, AcademyWomen will host a Career Workshop devoted to professional development. Panels include Women and War, The Superwoman Complex. There will be a preview screening of the newly produced film, “Lioness,” on women in Iraq.

Graduates interested in learning more about the Space Group can check out the Web site usafaspace.tripod.com or contact Stan Rosen, ’69, at 310-642-4653. We are expanding our use ofZoomieNation as a communication forum for the Space Group. Anyone interested in learning more about our activities should check that site or our Web site usafaspace.tripod.com.

North Texas Association Send Off

Piedmont Chapter- Fifth Annual Cadet Appointee Luncheon

Your Association of Graduates will hold an election for seven new AOG Board members during the spring of 2009. We are looking for great graduates who want to continue to move the AOG forward. If you are interested please follow the directions below and good luck.

PROCESS

Deadline for application or petition is October 10, 2008.

Specific requirements and forms are available on the AOG Web site. www.usafa.org/about/Governance/NominationProcedures.aspx

THE ELECTION

Will be conducted during March and April of 2009.

The election will be a “hybrid” system of paper ballots and electronic voting. We will elect 5 directors to four-year terms and 2 directors to two-year terms.

CANDIDATE COMMITMENT

Be dedicated to the vision, mission, ideals and principles for which the AOG stands.

Be capable of attending all meetings of the AOG Board, and any committees to which he/she is assigned. Be able to commit the time required to discharge Board and committee duties.

Be able to discharge his/her duties in good faith, with the care that an ordinarily prudent person in a like position would exercise under similar circumstances, in a manner consistent with the best interests of the AOG.

Important notes

1) “Capable ofattending” means being able and willing to afford the travel to and from Colorado Springs at least four times a year and able to afford the time away from his/her profession to attend these meetings and for related work. The AOG travel expense policy is currently under review. The bylaws allow reimbursement, and the Board would like to reimburse directors for expenses as long as it can be done in a financially responsible manner. It is expected that a new travel policy will be adopted at the December 2008 Board meeting.

2) The workload of a Board member is very significant. In addition to quarterly two or three day meetings, Board members have daily discussions and debates via email as well as committee and Board meetings by teleconference.

- A good rule of thumb would be a requirement of 10 to 15 hours per week.

TheodoreJ. Stumm, ’60

Theodore Joseph Stumm, 69, of Jacksonville, Fla., died on May 25, 2008 at Mayo Clinic Medical Center after an extensive battle with cancer and complications resulting from pneumonia. Ted was born Dec. 5, 1938, a native of Batavia, Ill., the son of the late Joseph J. and Kathleen (Esser) Stumm Stevens. He was also preceded in death by his stepfather, Elmer A. Stevens. He graduated from Batavia High School in 1956, and received a Congressional appointment to the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

Ted served 29 years in the USAF after graduating from the Air Force Academy in 1960, retiring with the rank of Colonel. He was a command pilot in the MilitaryAirlift Command and during his career flew the C-135, C-123, and C-5A aircraft. His last command was as the Base Commander ofPopeAFB, N.C., from 1984 to 1986. His Vietnam service ineluded over 1,000 combat missions flying the C-123. From 1979 through 1981, Ted served as the chief negotiator for the United States and helped secure the current defense treaty between the United States and Turkey. His many military decorations include the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Bronze Star.

Ted earned a Doctorate Degree in Public Administration in 1994, and a Master’s Degree in Industrial Engineering in 1972 from Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. In 2007, he retired after 13 years with the University of North Florida where he had last served as chair of the Department of Political Science and Public Administration. In addition, he was the former Director of the Master’s of Public Administration Program at UNF and was an Associate Professor of Political Science and Public Administration.

An Eagle Scout in his 60th year of service to the Boy Scouts of America, he was currently an Assistant District Commissioner for the Shawnee district of the North Florida Council. He was especially proud that his sons are also Eagle Scouts and that his grandsons have begun their own careers in Scouting. He was a Vigil member (highest level) ofthe Order of the Arrow, an honor societywithin the Boy Scouts dedicated to the service of others.

He is survived by his son Randall Stumm of San Antonio, Texas; his son and daughter-in-law, James and Tiffany Stumm of Lubbock, Texas; his former wife, Dona M. Stumm of Jacksonville, Fla.; and his four grandchildren: Brandon and Daniella Stumm (Randall); and Jacob and Cason Stumm (James). He is also survived by his sister and brother-in-law, Sarah and Tom Burke of Saint Charles, Ill.; and his three nephews, Philip, David and Chris Burke. Ted Stumm will be missed greatly by his family, many friends and professional acquaintances, and hundreds of largemouth bass throughout America that will now, sadly, remain uncaught.

The family wishes to honor his years of service to his country and community, and his dedication to teaching by requesting that gifts, in lieu of flowers, be made in memory of Theodore Stumm either to the Boy Scouts of America, North Florida Council; the Scholarship Fund of the Jacksonville AFA Falcon Chapter #399; or sent to the University of North Florida Foundation designated to the Ted Stumm Memorial Scholarship at UNF, 1 UNF Drive, Suite 51/3301, Jacksonville, FL, 32224-2664.

A memorial mass was held on June 21, 2008 at St. Paul's Catholic Church in Jacksonville Beach, Fla. with Father William Kelly officiating. Interment will be at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs at a later date. (Randy Stumm, Ted’s son)

Gregory W. Halley, ’63

Gregory Wayne Halley passed away at home in Richland, Ore. on July 10, 2008, surrounded by his family. Greg’s battle with melanoma cancer over the last one and a half years was fierce, but finally took its toll. A celebration of Greg’s life was held July 13 at the New Bridge Grange Hall. Gordon Bond of the Richland Christian Church officiated the service.

Greg was born in Bend, Ore. to Ronald Lloyd and Grace Margret (Jones) Halley on April 6,1939. When Greg was four, his family returned to Richland, where his parents were originally from. Spending his youth in Eagle Valley, Greg loved hunting, camping, trapping, 4H and enjoying all the social activities of the New Bridge Grange until his graduation from Eagle Valley High School.

Greg continued his education, graduating from the Air Force Academy Class of 1963. He was commissioned in the Air Force, serving as a pilot at various duty stations within the United States and two tours of duty in Vietnam. Greg resigned his commission as a Captain in 1969 with honors, receiving various medals, including the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Entering the civilian work force, Greg used his pilot skills to obtain employment with several companies, first working as a rainmaker, seeding clouds forWeather Science in Norman, Okla. Randall Sharpe Construetion, which was looking for a pilot with engineering skills, was Greg’s next step in his civilian career. Since his time with Randall, construetion and industrial engineering jobs had been his main focus.

From 1973, Greg’s career took him to Morrison-Knudsen out ofBoise, Idaho. Greg traveled North America from Alaska to Mexico, working various projects until 1992. Settling back to the ranch life in Richland for several years, Greg enjoyed his time back in Eagle Valley. In 1994, construction-engineeringjobs took him to California and New Mexico with Flatiron Construction. Greg finished his career in 2000, after building freeways in the fast-growing Southwest for Flatiron. He then retired and returned to Richland to the things he enjoyed most.

He enjoyed many days with his animals and helped his younger brother’s business with day rides in the mountains, which he loved.

Greg is survived by his wife, June; sons Dirk Preston of Gardnerville, Nev., Bret Howard and wife, Marion (Mimi), of Phoenix, Ariz., and Shane Christopher and wife, Lee Anne, of Puyallup, Wash.; grandchildren Andrew Austin of Phoenix, Jacob Ronald of Phoenix, and Joshua Shane of Puyallup; brother and sister-in-law Mark Preston Halley and Gail, of Bend, Ore.; uncle Richard Halley of Portland, Ore; numerous cousins, nieces and nephews; Dancer (Greg’s horse) and Sarah (beloved donkey).

He was preceded in death by his parents and older brother, Ron Halley, Jr. Memorial donations may be made to either Pathway Hospice, EagleValley Ambulance EMTs or the New Bridge Grange through Tami’s Pine Valley Funeral Home, P.O. Box 543, Halfway, Ore. 97834. (Excerptedfrom a local newspaper.)

For more current information about graduate deaths, please visit the AOG web site.

www.usafa.org

Ted Stumm

Greg Halley

RichardA. Benson, ’65

Richard A. Benson, age 65, died on June 8, 2008 in Presbyterian Hospital after a brief two-week struggle with an extremely aggressive cancer. His terrific sense of humor was intact until the end and he was surrounded by family and friends, including air force classmates, Jim “Grub” Soulek and Herb Campbell.

Dick was born September 19, 1942 in Tucumcari, N.M. to George Morris Benson and Pauline Mildred (Wilson) Benson. An avid sportsman, he was recruited by the University of New Mexico to play football for the Lobos and was one of the first to use the new football stadium. He left UNM in 1961 to join the Air Force Academy Class of ’65 where he was lovingly known as “Whale”. During that time he forged life-long friendships with many of his fellow cadets. He served ten years active duty. Much of that time he was stationed in Izmir, Turkey and Washington D.C. He loved to entertain family and friends with stories of his time in Turkeymany of which grew more elaborate over the years. Dick’s motto was “never let the truth get in the way of a good story” and it became fondly known in the family as the BEF (Benson Exaggeration Factor).

Following his military career he accepted a position with the Department of Energy in Washington D.C. where he was able to pursue his life-long passion for renewal energy. He worked on many projects including theAdvanced Nuclear Reactor, Strategic Petroleum Reserves and Solar, Geothermal, and Energy Storage Programs. In 1983 he joined Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico where he created and managed R & D programs in hazardous and toxic waste technology, biotechnology, magneteoncephalography, and biomass alternative fuels. Prior to retirement from the LANL in 2006 he was a key player in geothermal energy research and helped form the Big Sky partnership for Carbon Sequestration.

A typical TYPE A, Dick could not really retire so he didn't. Until his death he served as Senior Vice President of Energy and National Security Programs for Applied Science Laboratory, Inc., located in Albuquerque and started his own company, Choctaw Tech. Of all his many accomplishments, the awards, the positions of power and responsibilities, the groundbreaking technologies he helped make possible - Dick felt hisreal achievements were the lives he was able to impact. During his career he took the most pleasure in mentoring brilliant young scientists and business men and womenmany who became like surrogate kids. He loved helping creative, brilliant people achieve their potential. He was most proud of the many he helped to mentor and their considerable achievements.

Dick also forged close friendships with his colleagues. A Scientist, Joel Brown wrote: “1 have never encountered a more innovative and creative person. Dick really believedthere was a solution to humanity’s most difficult problems and he had a role to play in that solution. He was never naive enough to believe that he had all the answers - only that he had a part to play. He did whatever it took. But most of all he was a friend - a very good friend”. Dick’s Dad always said that if you could count your good friends on one hand you were lucky. Dick was richly blessed with family and many close friends from various walks of life. He is survived by his wife, Kerry; histhree son’s Steven, Arik and Mark; five grandchildren; three siblings and his mother, Pauline Peters. (Kerry Benson, Dick's wife)

PeterF. Fazio, ’65

Ret. Lt. Col. Peter F. Fazio, 66, passed away peacefully on May 11, 2008 in Lafayette, La. with his family at his bedside.

Peter is survived by his wife of 42 years, Diane (Downey) Fazio; two daughters, Toni (Fazio) Gonsoulin and Andrea (Fazio) Miller; two sonsin-law, Shannon Gonsoulin and Ramsey Miller; and five grandchildren, Taylor Gonsoulin, John Gonsoulin, Anna Gonsoulin, Joshua Gonsoulin, and Abigail Miller.

Peter was born in Joliet, Ill. and graduated from Joliet Central High School. He was then selected to attend the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs where he graduated with honors. Early in his military career, Peter honored his country by courageously serving two and a half years in the Vietnam War. He was an electronic warfare officer in B-52 warplanes and was among the first group of soldiers to cross enemy lines to ultimately end the Vietnam War.

Peter also received two master’s degrees during his military career. The first, from USC, in Systems Management andthe second, from the Air Force Institute of Technology, in Logistics Management. Both degrees held a 4.0 grade point average. During this time, Peter also completed a master’s thesis that was eventually published and put into action by the United States Air Force.

Among his many posts while in the Air Force, Peter was an Assistant Professor of Aerospace Studies at USC where upon reassignment The Faz Award was created to honor and recognize his unmatched hard work and respect of his subordinates. Eventually Peter received his final military assignment at the Pentagon in Washington D.C. where he was a Deputy Commander in the Research and Development department. It was here where a brain tumor was found and Peter was diagnosed with brain cancer, thus ending his career of 20 years. After receiving superior medical treatment at Bethesda Hospital in Maryland, Peter and his wife decided to relocate to Pineville, La. to raise their young daughters. After his daughters had completed their college careers and began to start families of their own, Peter and Diane decided to move to New Iberia, La. to be closer to their grandchildren.

Peter received many awards during his lifetime including: Distinguished Flyers Cross with one oak leaf cluster, Meritorious service medal with two oak leaf clusters, Air medal with three silver and one bronze oak leaf cluster, Air Force Commendation medal with one oak leaf cluster, Air Force Outstanding Unit award with three oak leaf clusters, CMBT Readiness medal, National Defense Service medal, Armed Forces Expeditionary medal, Vietnam Service medal with one silver oak leaf cluster, Air Force Longevity Service award ribbon with four oak leaf clusters, Small Arms Expert Marksmanship ribbon, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with palm, and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign medal. He belonged to several elite organizations including being a VFW Lifetime Member, Reserve Officers Association Lifetime Member, Sigma Xi Scientific Research Society of North America, Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, Sigma Iota Epsilon and the Honorary Management Fraternity.

Peter has made the honorable decision to donate his body to medical science; therefore a mass and memorial gathering was planned. Friends and family may contact Peter’s family for detailed information at rariel01@yahoo.com. (Andrea Miller, Peter’s daughter)

Dick Benson

Peter Fazio

Kenneth V.Funkhouser, ’66

Colonel Kenneth V. Funkhouser, Class of 1966, passed away in June 2008 in Avon Lake, Ohio. He was born in New Castle, Pa. on Dec. 17th 1944. His birth coincided with the 41stAnniversary oftheWright Brothers historic flight at Kitty Hawk, a seemingly unrelated event that ultimately would shape his future.

On a Sunday in his early childhood, Ken and a neighborhood friend took money from their savings and hiked two miles to the local airport. They found a pilot who agreed to take them for a ride over their hometown. Once he felt the rumbleof the engine and rose through the clouds Ken knew that his fate was sealed—he would be a pilot. His wife, Chris, said that he was one of the lucky ones—a person who realized his life’s calling at an early age.

Originally selected to attend the United Sates Naval Academy, fate intervened when he was offered a slot as an alternate to the Air Force Academy in 1962. After graduation in 1966, he completed UPT and was assigned to his career long partner in flight-- the F-4 Phantom. After a successful tour in Udorn, Thailand, he was later selected to command the 57th FIS at Keflavik Naval Station, Iceland; and as Commander of the 26th RECON Wing at Zweibrucken AB, Germany, he and his Phantom wereone again!

Throughout his 28 year career, his numerous awards included two Legions of Merit, the Distinguished Flying Cross, two Meritorious Service Medals, the Air Medal with three silver clusters, the Distinguished Presidential Unit Citation, six Air Force Outstanding Unit Awards, the Vietnam Service Medal with four clusters andthe Republie of Vietnam Gallantry Cross. He served in support of DESERT SHIELD/DESERT STORM from August 1990 through August 1991. His last assignment in the service of his country was as the Defense Air Attache in Ottawa, Canada. Ken also found a rewarding career at Concurrent Technology Corporation in Johnstown, Pa. from 19992007 as manager for software engineering and mentor to many of the young staff there.

After his dedicated career, Ken loved retirement. Whether reading, playing tennis, tooling around in his convertible, searching for a great Greek festival, taking a boating safety course, or entertaining family and friends—life was good, and way too short.

In his sympathy note to Chris, Mike Rhynard, a fellow 3rd Squadron member from the Class of ’66, offered that “Ken’s always had a special place in my ‘feelings bank’ because he WAS who he appeared to be. When we were cadets, we were at the age of “who’s cool” and “who’s in” and “who’s out.” Ken was ALWAYS Ken—a solid rock of consistency and integrity. People like Ken are rare, and that’s why it’s such a loss that he’s gone.”

Colonel Funkhouser is survived by his wife, Chris; son Todd, daughter Lauren, her husband Chris Joseph and grandson Jackson Joseph. Family, friends, his fellow warriors, and a grateful nation will salute a dedicated husband, father, and fighter pilot as Colonel Funkhouser is laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery on September the 2nd, 2008. (Lt. Col. [USAF, Ret] Howard Funkhouser, Ken's brother)

For more current information about graduate deaths, please visit the AOG web site. www.usafa.org.

Douglas S. Hawkins, ’67

It is with great sadness we announce that Col. Douglas S. Hawkins passed away on Apr. 21, 2008. Doug was diagnosed with lung cancer in October 2007, and he bravely struggled against the disease until he finally succumbed with his wife, Nancy, and three children, Scott, Keith, and Emily at his side. He was the rock in his family’s life and will be sorely missed.

Doug was born in Charlottesville, Va. on June 30, 1945 to Forrest and Myra Hawkins. He grew up in rural Virginia dreaming of someday flying airplanes. After graduating valedictorian from Madison County High School he attended the Air Force Academy (CS-11). During his tenure he was fortunate to meet the love ofhis life, NancyApian. After graduation the two were married in her hometown of Portland, Ore. and began life together at Webb AFB, Texas for pilot training. It was during this time that Scott was born. After completing F-100 training Doug served a year of duty at Tuy Hoa, Vietnam. Upon returning to the States he was selected to be in the initial A-7 squadron at Myrtle Beach, S.C. His second son, Keith, was born at this time. He then helped create the A-7 Operational Test & Evaluation team as a test pilot at Nellis AFB, Nev.

He continued as a test pilot on exchange with the Navy at China Lake NAS, Calif. After attending ACSC he was stationed at the Pentagon in the Fighter Plans & Analysis Division. His daughter Emily was born during this time. Doug was then selected for another exchange tour; this time to attend the Royal Air War College in Cranwell, England. Following this it was off to Heidelberg, Germany at the NATO headquarters for the 4th Allied Tactical Air Force. Doug was then assigned to the USAF Air War College at Maxwell, AFB as an instructor. Next he was assigned to HQ TAC at Langley AFB, Va. as Director of the Joint Studies Group. It was at this time that he helped with the planning of Operation Desert Shield/ Storm air campaign at the Checkmate planning cell in the Pentagon. Then it was off to Europe again to Brunssum, The Netherlands to be Chief of Nuclear Ops for the Northern NATO headquarters. His final assignment took him to Hurlburt Field AFB, Fla. where he retired as the 505th Command & Control Evaluation Group Commander. It was Doug’s life dream to serve his country in the Air Force, and he did so with great competence and integrity.

After retirement Doug and Nancy moved to Portland, Ore. to be near her mother. In addition to being a family man and patriot, Doug was also a devout man of faith. He volunteered untold hours at the West Linn Lutheran Church, especially in the church library. Doug always loved books and learning and continued this throughout his life. He loved to travel and visit new places, and he experienced great joy spending time with his three granddaughters, Hadyn, Caroline, and Samantha.

He was always there for his family with a helping hand and word of encouragement, and so it was extremely difficult for his family knowing that his cancer treatments had reached the limits of medical knowhow. Even still, Doug forged ahead with great fortitude and a positive attitude. While he may not be here in body, he is still with us in spirit, still watching over us.

A memorial service was held on Apr. 26, 2008, at West Linn Lutheran Church in West Linn, Ore. The family invites anyone to make donations to cancer research at the Lance Armstrong LiveStrong Foundation at www.livestrong.org. (Maj. Keith Hawkins, USAF)

Ken Funkhouser

Doug Hawkins

Milton P. KudlaCy’69

Milton "Sandy" Kudlac passed away suddenly on March 9, 2007 of a ruptured aortic aneurysm. He is survived by his wife, Drenda, of Parker, Colo, and his son Marc, a helicopter pilot working with the Army National Guard.

Sandy was born Dec. 2, 1945 in Johnson City/Binghamton, N.Y. and attended high school there. He graduated in January 1965 second in his class. On the football and track teams, he was not just a superb athlete, but he also epitomized a true sportsman by having a positive attitude and inspiring his teammates with words of encouragement to always give 100 percent. Sandy also participated in gymnastics and played and sang in a band while in high schooland at the Academy.

Upon graduating from USAFA in June 1969, Sandy attended various flight schoolsassociated with the C130 program. He ended up in the 62nd Tactical Airlift Squadron at Little Rock, Ark. in 1970. His principal duty was to participate in various rotations to Europe and South America. During the off time, he enjoyed the outdoor life of hunting, fishing, and exploring Arkansas. Eventually he was reassigned to the 21st TAW at CCK in Taiwan in 1972 and subsequently to Clark in the Philippines, supporting airlift throughout Southeast Asia. He was reassigned back to Little Rock in 1975. Sandy worked in the 62 TAS Stan Eval and performed flight training and pilot check rides. In tandem, he studied and received his Master’s Degree from the University of Utah in 1976.

In 1978, Sandy resigned his active duty commission and was hired by Trans International Airlines based out of Indianapolis. After six months of commuting from Little Rock, he was hired by the original Frontier Airlines and subsequently moved to Denver. In January 1987, he was hired by Continental Airlines flying the MD-80, DC-10, and retiring in the 737 on November 23, 2005.

Sandy had joined the Air Force Reserves serving at Warren AFB in Cheyenne, Wyo. flying C-130s during the problematic days of the airlines in the early 1980s. From December 1985 to April 1992, he distinguished himself as Exercise Plans and Air Operations Staff Officer, Directorate of Operations, JE, United States SouthernCommand. During this period his outstanding professional skill, leadership and ceaseless efforts contributed immeasurably to the accomplishment of the United States’ national objectives in Latin America. Sandy had loved his time at the USAFA so returned as a Liaison Officer for many years and acquired active duty days until his Reserve retirement.

Sandy Kudlac had an appreciation for what matters most in life. He was a man of strong principles, a dry sense of humor, and was a loyal friend. Probably best described as a quiet guy, he mulled over every word someone said before he responded he gave a lot of thought to what he said and what he felt. He had a great love for his country and his family. Although his last flight has been taken, his smile will never fade. (DrendaKudlac, Sandy’s wife)

Thomas E. Distelhorst/70

ThomasEdward Distelhorst, age 56, of O’Fallon, Ill., passed away unexpectedly on June 17, 2005, following heart-bypass surgery. Born Oct. 15, 1948, to Phyllis and Milton Distelhorst, Tom spent his childhood years on the family farm near Burlington, Iowa. He dreamed from a young age of becoming a pilot. Tom graduated valedictorian from Mediapolis High School in 1966 and left the farmlands of Iowa

for the mountains of Coloradowhere he graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1970 with a BS in International Affairs. He later earned a MS in Logistics Management from the Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio, in 1977.

Colonel Tom Distelhorst had a distinguished 30-year career in the U.S. Air Force. He was a command pilot on the C-141 Starlifter, a respected leader, and superb logistician. He attended pilot training at Reese AFB, Texas, and then transitioned to Norton AFB, Calif., as a C141 pilot with the 15th Military Airlift Squadron. His Air Force career then took him to Wright Patterson AFB; Sheppard AFB, Texas; Anderson AFB, Guam; Travis AFB, Calif.; Norfolk, Va.; McGuire AFB, N.J. at this point with five children in tow and then to Ramstein AFB, Germany, where he commanded the 608th Aerial Port Squadron from 1987-1990.

Tom was chosen to attend the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, Fort McNair, Wash. D.C. in 1990, after which he was assigned to the Joint Staff at the Pentagon. In 1993, he moved to Kirtland AFB and served as Chief of Nuclear Weapons Systems Programs and Evaluation Division, and was reassigned in 1997 to Scott AFB, Ill. His decorations include the Defense Meritorious Service Medal and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal. Following retirement in 2000, he began a second career as a Commercial Air Carrier Evaluator for DOD, Scott AFB, Ill. a job which found him back in the cockpit.

Even more impressive than his military career were his genuine kindness, superb intelligence, integrity, humility, love of family, and faith in God. Tom taught his children to love God, family, country, and baseball. Tom was a devoted Cardinalsfanand considered baseball the only heavenly sport. Tom also immersed himself in the American West the land, the music, andthe stories. He excelled at trivia and New York Times Crosswords. His superb logistical skills carried over into his family, and he became an expert at packing luggage for family vacations.

Tom married Dana Jean Wursten on June 25, 1981, in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was a faithful son, brother, husband, father, friend and devoted member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Tom departed this world at peace with his life and with God.

Tom is preceded in death by his father, Milton Distelhorst, and recently, his mother, Phyllis Distelhorst. He is survived by his sweetheart and loving wife, Dana (nee Wursten) Distelhorst; two siblings: Ann Distelhorst ofBurlington, Iowa; and David Distelhorst of St. Louis, Mo.; his five children: Mary Kool of Sacramento, Calif.; Cpt. John Distelhorst (USAFA Class of ’02) of Evans, Ga.; Amy Walker of Oklahoma City, Okla.; PFC Mark Distelhorst of Rexburg, Idaho; and Kathryn Distelhorst of Provo, Utah; five grandchildren, and other extended family members.

Funeral services were held at the Church of Jesus Christ of LatterDay Saints in O’Fallon, Ill. Tom was buried at the U.S. Air Force Academy surrounded by loving family and friends. "...Until we meet again.” (Kathryn A. Distelhorst, Tom’s youngest daughter)

Stetson R. Cowan, ’71

Colonel Stetson R. Cowan, 59, of Mesa, Ariz., took his last flight Sunday, July 6, 2008. He was born on Dec. 16, 1948 in Eastland, Texas, to William Kenneth Cowan and Eleanor Rowles Cowan. Cowan graduated from Colorado City High School in Colorado City, Texas in 1967.

Sandy Kudlac

Tom Distelhorst

He graduated from the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., in 1971.

He went on to pilot training at Vance AFB in Enid, Okla., then Randolph AFB, Texas, for pilot instructor training. He flew T-38s and other fixed-wing aircraft until he decided helicopters were more fun. Other assignments included: Hurlburt Field, Fla., Howard AFB, Panama, and Kirtland AFB, N. M. He was then chosen to attend the U.S. Navy's Test Pilot School at Patuxent River, Md., then on to Edwards AFB where he flew many experimental aircraft and then taught at the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School. While there, he received his Master's Degree from Golden Gate University, and became a member of The Society of Experimental Test Pilots. (SETP).

In 1989, he became the Commander of the 6514th Test Squadron at Hill AFB, near Ogden, Utah. His last Air Force assignment was WrightPatterson AFB, in Dayton, Ohio. After two years of Ohio weather, he was thrilled to be offered a job at The Boeing Company, Mesa, where he was the happiest as a Test Pilot for the Apache Helicopter. He also worked on the unmanned X-50A Dragonfly, and then as a Systems Safety Engineer. Throughout his fight with cancer, he continued to work at Boeing until the very end. Colonel Cowan was a member of the Order of Daedalians, Flight 82, Mesa.

He was happiest around helicopters, airplanes, a golf course, family and allhis best buddies.

Cowan is survived by his wife of almost 19 years, Major Tess Taft Cowan,(USAF, Ret); their niece, Theresa Bennett; his sister Alexis McRoberts; brother-in-law Roger McRoberts, and nephews Dr. Lowell McRoberts and Colin McRoberts. Also, Betty Cowan, sister-in-law, and nephews Will Cowan and Kevin Cowan. He is also survived by many cousins, including brother-like Dr Seth Cowan and Roy Chandler. He is also survived by his father-in-law, Bill Taft, ofClinton, Conn.; sisters-in-law Valerie Harris, Debbie Seagraves, and Diana Taft; nephew Marty Seagraves; nieces Cathy, Rosie and Angela Edmonds, and all their children.

Many other cousins and friends all over the world loved Stetson. He is a role model to many. In addition to his parents, he is predeceased by his brother, Bill Cowan. The family would appreciate donations to Cowan's favorite church, St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Mesa, where he served as the Senior Warden. Bunker Mortuary handled the eremation, and services were held July 12, at St. Mark's Episcopal Church, in Mesa. Military friends wore their uniforms, andothers wore red or blue, for Military Honors.

He fought pancreatic/liver/stomach cancer for more than six years and never complained. Colonel Cowan died at home, under the care of Hospice of the Valley and his family. Rest eternal grant to him, and let lightperpetual shine upon him. (Col. Stetson Cowan's wifeand niece: Tess Cowan and Theresa Bennett)

Terence R. Bench, ’72

Terry Riddick Bench, at the young age of 57, passed away peacefully March 29, 2008, following a braveand courageous battle with kidney cancer.

He is survived by his loving wife Denise and his two incredible young boys, Danny and David, whom he loved deeply and were at the young ages of 14 and 12 when their father became ill. They were very proud of their dad, and along with Denise, were by his side throughout his illness.

Terry is also survived by his parents, Brig Gen (Ret) Herbert and Dianne Bench; and fellow Air Force Academy graduates, brothers

Ferry was a graduate of the USAFA Class of 1972, member of the Air Force Academy Golf Team, a retired Delta Captain and an avid golfer his entire life, holding the long-standing record of Club Champion at the Country Club of Coral Springs. He was also a six-time winnerin the championship flight of the Delta Golf Open. Terry was always known for his golfing abilities, his challenge towards others to "dothe right thing", genuine good nature, compassion and always a crowd pleaser. Whenever anyone speaks or refers to "Terry Bench", it is not without a smile or a story to tell. He was truly one of a kind and a special guy to everyone. A tribute to celebrate Terry's life was held April 19 and 20 near his home in Florida and attended by over 450 friends, family and coworkers. To honor Terry, a memorial marble 'bench' near the AOG has been named and a veteran’s memorial marker has been placed at the Academy Cemetery with his pilot wings.

Terry was known and loved by many and will be dearly missed by all. Terry may have flown many times before, but no flight he piloted can be compared to the flight he is on now or the view he has. He will remain forever as our 'Spirit in the Sky'. (Col. Roger Parsons [USAFR, Ret] and Lt. Gen. ChuckJohnson fUSAF, Ret], both USAFA Class of1972)

John M. Garrard, ’73

John Manning Garrard arrived at USAFA in the Class of '73 on June 23, 1969. Assigned to 31st Sq. ‘‘Grim Reapers,” he started BCT in “Hellcat” Squadron. Classmate Howard Mitchell recalls, "I was John's first roommate during Basic Cadet Training and we shared many ‘sperial’ moments together! We studied our Contrails together and helped each other cope with the incredible changes that were occurring in our lives. I came to know John as a man of integrity, dedication to God and Country, and a loving husband and proud father I will miss him." Classmate Sherm Nelson recalls, “I roomed with John for awhile at the Academy and have told many people stories over the years about John and some of the funny experiences we shared there. John loved North Carolina, and he knew even then that he would return there when he completed his Air Force service.” Fellow Grim Reapers learned of John’s illness in October 2007. In November, eight squadron mates gathered at John’s North Carolina home to share memories with him and his family. Even after 38 years since those early days of “Hellcat” and 31st Sq., the camaraderie was as strong as ever.

John’s USAF career included flying assignments in SAC, ATC, and MAC. He retired from the 89th MAW, Andrews AFB in 1993. He returned to North Carolina and was a B-737 Captain with ATA Airlines. John’s illness first struck in flight Sept. 5, 2004, requiring his First Offleer to safely land the airplane “solo.” Soon after, John advised his brother Ed (USAFA ’69), “Tell every pilot you meet, they better know their ‘stuff’ because they never know what might happen. Today is a gift and tomorrow is not promised.”

For more current information about graduate deaths, please visit the AOG web site.

www.usafa.org.

Stetson Cowan

Scott, Tim and Kevin Bench.

Terry Bench

With heroic help from wife, Ann, and family, John struggled valiantly with brain cancer for three and a half years until April 9, 2008.

John’s teenage children expressed their sentiments in poignant poems. Son John wrote, “John M. Garrard was known better as Dad to me. He was my father, my mentor, my hero. I’ll most definitely miss him but, more importantly, I’ll remember. Every time 1 apply one of the hundreds of skills I learned in Scouts, I’ll remember. I’ll remember the sums of time I spent as a child with my face plastered to the window in anticipation of his return from work. I would stand in anxiety awaiting a huge bear hug as he walked in the door. Every time I run into hardship I’ll remember the fight he went through and rememher his courage. I won’t ever forget my motivator, my influence, my one and only father.”

Daughter Elizabeth wrote, “I’ve always been Daddy’s Little Girl, and I always will be. Many things remind me of his presence: the smell of new books and their pages of history, tobacco smoke and coffee with whiskey, vanilla ice cream, and an ice cold Pepsi. I’ll always remember dancing with my feet on top of his big black shoes to James Taylor, Doc Watson, and even some blues. I always remember his dignity, and grace, and love. He loved his family, and always showed it. He loved his history, and always told it. He made me appreciate life through walks in the forest, and to say my prayers when life grew hardest. I’ll be Daddy’s Little Girl until I’m old and gray, and I know I’ll see him in heaven one day”

As a USAF honor guard saluted, we all wished John well, on what his pastor described as John’s “final flight home.” And so we remember you, John Godspeed and tail winds. (Squadron mates Tom Kennedy and Bud Gammon, '73; Ed Garrard, ’69)

Herbert K. Crissman,’78

On March 22, 2008, we lost a Great American... Herbie Jo Crissman. Herbie Jo graduated in the Class of ’78 and served in the USAF as an Instructor Electronic Warfare Officer in the McDonnell-Douglas F-4G Wild Weasel aircraft. He served several assignments in the United States as well as in the Philippines and Germany. Herbie Jo enjoyed coaching his sons’ soccer teams, flying sailplanes, camping with his family, and cheering on the Kansas City Chiefs. Always able to see the best in every situation and within every individual, Herbie Jo was a great cadet, a great officer, and a great friend.

Herbie Jo (51) died at his home in Tucson, Ariz. following a long illness. He is survived by his wife, Vicki, of AppleValley, Calif., and his two sons, Justin and Jeff. He is also survived by his mother, Marian (Bob) Gilbert; five siblings and their families: Lynette (Mike) Christensen of Littleton Colo.; Bruce Crissman of Irvine Calif.; Craig (Michele, Tyler andAlison) Crissman of Sioux Falls, S.D.; Blaine (Mary, Cole and Chloe) Crissman of Kenilworth, Ill.; and Beth (Rod) Collett of Richmond, Texas. Herbie Jo was preceded in death by his father Herbert.

Herb Crissman

The memorial service was held in Ipswich, South Dakota, where Herbie Jo was laid to rest alongside his father.

Herbie Jo will forever be emblazoned in the hearts and minds of his friends and loved ones as a bold, dynamic individual with an irresistible zest for life and love for every adventure that life can hold. He will be missed... (Owen ‘OpieJo’Dwire, a goodfriend)

Steven E. Struck, ’86

Steven Edward Struck, age 44, passed away suddenly at his home in Foothill Ranch, Calif, on May 7, 2008. He was born Feb. 14, 1964 in Chicago, Ill. to the late Louis Andrew and Donna Mae Struck (nee

Loving husband and best friend to Patricia Ann (nee Loftus) for 20 years. Brother to Glenn David Struck. Son-inlaw of Michael and Maureen Loftus. Brother-in-law to Cathy (Dave) Otis, Jean (Pat) Lynch and Claire (Gregg) Ratkovic who will miss him greatly. Cherished uncle to 13 nephews and nieces who loved him deeply.

Steve was a graduate of N :>tre Dame High school, class of 1982. He went on to the United States Air Force Academy graduating as a Second Lieutenant in 1986. He served in the United States Air Force on active duty for 13 years, a proud veteran of Desert Storm.

After Steve left the Academy he went to Williams AFB for pilot training. He spent one year there and moved onto flying KC-135s at Minot, N.D. He arrived at Minot in September of 1987 and flourished in his career there. He was in Training Flight and Stan Eval.

After two years in Minot, he was next assigned to March AFB in September 1989. There he began flying KC-lOs. He served in Desert Storm and ran missions into Somalia, leaving active duty in March 1994 but continuing to serve his country through the Reserves. He was part of the79th Air Refueling Squadron. Steve was proud to be an American and even prouder to serve his country.

Steve was employed by United Airlines as a pilot for the last 13 years. Just recently he fulfilled his dream of becoming Captain.

Steve loved his country, his family and friends and anything Chicago. He touched so many lives that will forever be better for knowing him. He truly was a special man. (Excerptedfrom the Chicago Tribune newspaper with additionsfrom Patricia Struck, his wife.)

Martin H. Nelson, ’87

Lt. Col. Martin H. Nelson USAF (Ret), beloved husband of Tina Nelson, passed away on Junel4th, 2008 from complications of cancer. He was laid to rest at the Air Force Academy.

Marty was born in St. Louis, Mo. on July 11th 1963 as the sixth of eight children belonging to Ray and Marilyn Nelson. Marty’s family settled in Rockford, Ill. where he graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School in 1981. Though a life-long Chicago Cub’s fan, Marty decided to leave Rockford behind and serve his country by enlisting in the Air Force. After six weeks of “Boot Camp” at Lackland AFB, San Antonio, Texas, Airman Nelson made his first stop in Colorado where at Lowry AFB in Denver he entered Tech School for training as a Video Systems Specialist. Marty was then assigned to Hill AFB, Utah and worked hard to receive an appointment to the US Air Force Academy. Cadet Nelson entered the Academy in 1983 and during the course of the next four years learned about leadership, earned a degree in Human Factors Engineering and met a University of Wyoming student named Tina Carwin before graduating in 1987.

John Garrard

Steve Struck

Newly commissioned Lieutenant Nelson was then sent to Undergraduate Pilot Training at Reese, AFB, Texas. While there, he married the love of his life, Tina, and with her began his dream of being an Air Force officer and pilot. During his career, Marty would fly five different aircraft and be stationed across the country.

He began flying Tankers at Carswell AFB, Texas and later at Minot AFB, N.D. in the KC-135A, Q, and R models. During this time Marty was blessed with the birth of his first daughter, Kayla. In 1994 Captain Nelson was honored to be chosen as Initial Cadre to bring on-line Air Education and Training Commands newest jet trainer, the T’-IA Jayhawk. He moved his family to Vance AFB, Okla. where he was blessed with the birth of his second daughter, Hannah. In 1998, now-Major Nelson was hand picked by Air Mobility Command’s highly selective Phoenix Horizon Crossflow Board to fly the C-17A Globemaster III. Marty was reassigned to Charleston AFB, S.C. and during his tour he was once again blessed with a daughter, Emma. In 2001 Major Nelsonmovedhis family back into AETC at Randolph AFB, Texas where he became the instructor for the instructors of the T-1A Jayhawk in the Pilot Instructor Training program. During this period Marty was blessed with his fourth daughter, Mia. While serving as Chief of Safety for the 12th FTW, he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel in 2003. He was selected to return to the Air Force Academy in 2004 serving as an instructor, Director of Fitness Testing & Evaluation, and Assistant Baseball Coach.

After retirement in 2006 Marty followed another dream: buying and operating a business in Winter Park, Colo. Shortly after selling his business Marty was diagnosed with advanced cancer. Despite all the love of his family, prayers of his friends, and courage of his soul, his battle ended tragically at a local hospital on June 14, 2008 with his loving wife, Tina, by his side.

In addition to Marty’s many professional accomplishments, he was a mentor and witness to many, including sponsoring numerous cadets. He exhibited a standard of faith and morality to anyone who knew him. We will miss Marty’s humor, dedication to family and friends, devotion to his wife, his children and his love for Jesus. We all know Marty’s example, love, and faith will live on with us in our hearts lifting us each up to a better place. (Frank Self, ’87)

John H. Alley, ’06

United States Air Force First Lieutenant John Harold Alley, 26, returned home to his loving Heavenly Father on May 24, 2008, in Pensacola, Fla. He was stationed at NAS Whiting Field in Milton, Fla. where he was in pilot training. John was passionate about flying and felt very blessed to be living his childhood dream. He often commented that he did not care what plane he flew, just so long as he was flying! John was born in the Azores, Portugal to Lt Col (Ret) W. David and Eva J. (Poljanec) Alley on March 28,1982 at Lajes Air Field. He lived in various places throughout the world including Columbus, Ohio; Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio; The Air Force Academy, Colo.; Misawa Air Base, Japan; Colorado Springs, Colo.; Bountiful, Utah; and Milton,

For more current information about graduate deaths, please visit theAOG web site. www.usafa.org.

Fla. He graduated from Air Academy High School in 2000 with High Honors and the Air Force Academy in 2006 with a Bachelor of Science in Aeronautical Engineering. Upon graduation he was commissioned a Second Lieutenant on May 26, 2006.

John’s time spent at the Academy was dear to him, and his friends became “brothers.” At the memorial and funeral service many humorous stories were shared about their adventures, including a trip around the world. He had an infectious smile that drew people to him.

John was accomplished athletically and was a NCAA Division IA wrestler at the Air Force Academy. Besides wrestling, John loved skiing, soccer, rugby, scuba diving, climbing, biking, and was just developing a passion for golf. Fascinated by wildlife, John found solace in nature and never missed an opportunity to go camping, hiking, or mountain climbing. He was also an Eagle Scout.

John was a faithful member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His love for the Savior and the Gospel were inspirational to all who John Alley knew him. A highlight of his life was serving as a missionary for the Church in the Venezuela-Barcelona Mission from 2002 to 2004. It was well known that in the months preceding hisdeath he did not have a free Saturday to himself, regardless of the rigors of training, because he was always helping others, whether it be moving, repairing a roof, or catching loose chickens. He truly was an example of service above self. John will be missed by many, especially his wife of 10 months, Emily. John and Emily met in Bountiful, Utah while John was stationed at Hill Air Force Base. They were married for eternity on July 14, 2007 and were very excited for the arrival of their first child, John Harold Alley, Jr., who is expected to be born in October. John loved children, especially his many nieces and nephews. It was not uncommon to find John playing with the children when a family gathering occurred.

(Continued on last page.)

At press time we hadlearned of the deaths of the following graduates:

Col. (Ret) David D. Anderson, Class of 1959, who died on May 19, 2008 in Provo, Utah.

Mr. Robert B. Macfarlane, Class of 1963, who died on Aug. 4, 2008 at Dunnsville, Va.

Maj. (Ret) Gerald L. Holmes, Class of 1964, who died on May 25, 2008 in California.

Lt. Col. (Ret) Kevin J. McManus, Class of 1964, who died on July 31, 2008 in Oakton, Va.

Maj. (Ret) James D. Davies, Class of 1967, who died on July 2, 2008 in Azle, Texas.

Mr. John S. Cobb, Class of 1968, who died on April 11, 2008 in Arizona.

Mr. John A. McCreight, Class of 1968, who died on May 14, 2006.

Mr. Stephen W. Thomson, Class of 1968, who died on Nov. 10, 2006.

Lt. Col. Thomas A. Bouley, Class of 1988, who died on July 30, 2008 at Nellis AFB, Nev.

Our sincere condolences to the family and friends of these graduates.

Marty Nelson

Feast or Famine bedevils the scribe! This quarter, I actually received some reallyinteresting news from classmates, but some ofthe stories will have to waitforthe next issue. The fascinatingtravelogue from Dick Carrneeds to bepublishedinits entiretyand itfills most ofmy allocated space. Dickwrites ofa nearlymonth-long visit to SEA, a trip many ofus have contemplated, but fewhave undertaken. Flerewith, his succinct account.

“Webegan in Hanoi a citybeginningto modernize, but not as much as, say, Bangkok.There is a large monument onWest Lakewhere theyrecoveredJohnMcCain.Apparentlytheydid this for many or all the captured fliers. Interestingly, it describes McCain as a ‘Colonel, USAir Force.’

“A trip to the ‘Hilton’ made me awfullyhappy that I was never shot down. Onlythe firstfourth ofitremains as a museum, as the ‘yard partwas takenfor a new high-rise hotel - ironic. McCain's flight suit is on displayin the Hilton. Went to a ‘B-52 Museum’ that even ourtour guide did notknowexisted. Enough parts for about3 BUFs as well as alltheAAAguns, SAMs, and MIGs on display. Drove out and back on the Hanoi-Haiphong road. Got goodpictures ofthe Paul Doumer Bridge. All the steel mills and other factories we bombedhave been replacedwithverymodern, efficient and apparentlybusyfactories, surrounded by new subdivisions.

“The sharp karsts rising out ofthe sea make HalongBay a uniqueexperience (think Bond movie, "Manwith the Golden Gun"). Spent the night on a junk cruisingthe sights ofHalong.

“In DaNang our concrete fighterarches are stillthere. ‘China Beach’ is being developed as a large resort. MonkeyMountain Radaris theATC radarforall of the centralpartofVietnam.Also went to Marble Mountain, which theVCused

to mortar the Marines and Da NangAir Base. It is mostlymarble.

Hue is still the beautiful old historical place. The Citadel is the same as whenIlanded at the smallgrass airfield inside the fourthwall in 1963. Damage from the fighting on the west side duringTet is quite visible.

NhaTrang is unbelievable. It was a small fishingvillage ofmaybe 25,000 people in ’63-’64when I spent myfirst tour there. In those days the beautiful beach boulevard was linedwith Frenchvillas. It is now linedwith huge hotels (three more under construction) and a populationof400,000! The town has completelyencompassedtheairfield such that onlylight aircraft can flyfrom there andguess where the commercial airfield is - Cam Ranh Bay!

“The CamRanh airport still has our hardstands, but there are onlythree buildings (terminal, admin and fire station). A resort is under construction and a new highway goes to NhaTrang on the ocean side. (We used to have to goway around the mountains; a longtrip.) There is a very nice island in the harbor, which used to have a very small fishingvillage. The island is now a mega-resortwith a cable car to cross thewaterto the island. I spenthours, but could not find the villawhere I lived.

DaLat is still a wonderful spot. More population, but clean and essentially the same. Thepavilions on the centrallakewhere we used to eat are stillthere. Had a greattime talkingwith students ofDa Lat Universitywho were thirsting fortalks in English, which is very popular.

Ho Chi Minh City/Saigon District One (downtown) is the same but modernized. The Rex, Continental and Caravelle Hotels are still there, but very modern. It is bustlingwith four or so million motorbikes and thousands of cars. Cyclos are banned. The onlythingmissing is the old train terminal. Ton Son Nhat (new spelling) also still sports our concrete arches for fighters. Outskirts are linedwith modern factories. Mybiggestsurprise ofthe trip was intheWarRemnants Museum. The accompanyingphoto fromthat museum features me and the same aircraft I flewin ’63-’64! Nicelypreserved.Also took pics ofan A-37, probablyflown byJimConnally or Charlie May.Ventured out oftown to visit the Chu Chi Tunnels (quite interesting) and down into the delta (MyTho).

“The YankeeAirPirate poses by hisjuggernautofdeath and conquest.” Cambodia: verypoor; 45% ofthe population is under 15 years ofage. They have not recovered from Pol Pot. Documents saythat only seven educated peopleescapedhispurge oftwo m illion dead.AngkorWat andthe ancientcity ofAngkorThom make a trulyuniqueplace to visit.When Paris and London were small towns, a million people lived there, thentheyall disappeared and no one has ever figured out why or how.

“Ingeneral: The people love to see Americans. Service at hotels and restaurants is excellent. BothVietnam and Cambodia take dollars and actuallyhave the Dong (Viet) and Rial (Cam) tied to the dollar, so it is inexpensive to eat, shop, etc. in bothplaces. No one remembersthewar. Everymuseum isloaded with propaganda such as Jane and theYankeeAir Pirates, but it is what I expected so did not bother me. Vietnam is a net exporterofoil due to offshore drilling.Moneyis pouringin fordevelopmentand industry. Had dinnerand spent the eveningwith the head ofDeutsche Bank in Saigon and he said the onlythingholdingboth countries back is corruption, which is verybad.

“We were therefornearly a monthandtook505pictures. Ifanyofour classmates would like to see a picture ofthe Rex or theirfavorite place I mayhave one. About the onlything I would add is that I would heartily recommend going backfor anyof our guyswith a historyin SEA.

To the chagrin ofsome of our brethren, theAcademy made a big deal this year about the graduation ofthe 50th Class. Some whinged that the truly importantheritage event ought to be the 50thanniversary ofthe graduation ofthe 1stClass. Harrumph! In viewofthefacts that (a) both events will stand as significantmilestones in ourAcademy’shistoryand (b) the USAFAleadership has devoted/committed significant attention and resources to honor and support our Class on both occasions; we ought not to entertain a pointless debate aboutwhich should predominate. Get over it!

On27 May, a sizable contingentof’59ers was seated together as guestsofthe Superintendent and recognized publicly at the Class of2008’s graduation parade. Classmateswho had traveled some distance (includingtwo who flew directlyfrom Europe)joinedthelocals both in the grandstands andthat eveningfor our monthlysocial to markthe occasion. Those who bravedthe 35°

Thoughtforthe Quarter: Ifyou looklikeyourpassport photo, you probably needthe trip.

A.J. (Rosie) Cler, Jr.

5423 Myrtle Wood

Sarasota, FL 34235-4624

Phone: (941) 371-4843

E-mail: RCtherose@aol.com

Class Web Site: www.usafa.ne1/l960

89 %

AfterSteveBishop was diagnosedwith a badticker, good-guyJimGlazathrew a bash at his mountainsidevilla near Monument for Steve Feb. 29,2008, with Jennycooking ratatouille and cassoulet. Assigned to ward offominous portents were Georgeand DianaPupich, DuckandMaryWaddle,Wayne andBarb Kendall, Bruce and Caryl Mosier, and “The English Patient” and tennis star- (formerAcademytennis player Steve starred in doubles with GerryStack). DuckWaddlegavethebenedictionwithunprecedentedaplomb,sendingSteve racing offto his surgeryfulloffriendship and warm stuff. The first operation was performedbyopen-heart surgery, removingthe aorticvalve and replacingit; later, a second operationrepaired the carotid artery. Dr. MarkDouthit, world-renowned and well-knownBoulder, CO surgeonperformedthe successful changes to Steve’s plumbing. So when I (Rosie) got a telephone call from Steve July2nd, he was again at the Glazas, this time with martiniin-hand and enthusiasticallyattributingthe success ofboth operations to the Februaryratatouille and the potent and powerfulprayersofMr. Waddle. (R:There’s a message inthere somewhere...)

Ben and Hideko Furuta took a Baltic sea cmise of 12 days; first stopWarnemunde, Germany, then a train to SachsenhausenLaborCamp (formerlyEast Germany), and Berlin. “I again saw manyofthe sites we visited during our summer trip to Europe in 1958, said Ben, “like the Russian Memorial a fewblocks fromthe BrandenburgGate, Reichstag, remnants ofthe Berlin Wall, andthe commercializationof‘CheckpointCharlie’ (now a souvenirvenue fortourists).Theapartments ofStalinAlleehavebeen ‘prettified, andthewhole ofBerlin is now so modern; the changes in these 50 years are unimaginable. Ben and Hideko also visited Moscow and saw Red Square and the Kremlin. FriendlyFire. The DC area’s Ralph Lalime and Tony Burshnickgather at

Starbucks most Fridays, sometimes joinedbyGerrydela Cruz their meetings, which include cigars, are dubbed “StarGars”... Fires were perilously close to his SantaBarbarahome, and Goose Gulbransenwrote that“We evacuated to Mammoth Lakes, where we stayforfamilyvacations. The fires were 20 miles to the northwest, made interesting sunsets, and we lost electricity one night.You’re not in trouble ’til the DC-10 arrives!”... George Pupichrecently introduced himselfto TroyCalhoun (AFA, ’89), Falcon Football Coach, and Troy’s immediate response was: “Alex’s Dad! So happy to finally meet you! (George, football star from our era, had to be proud that son Alex now merits some football fame on his own)... AlexPupich (AFA ’97), iswith the California Guard C-130 outfit and has been on hissecond tour inAfghanistan at Bagram Air Base on 07/21 /08, Alex called George from St. Johns, Newfoundland after “departingAfghanistan and on hiswayhome. He arrivedyesterday(July 22nd) and was in great spirits,” said George.

“Ina and I went to the NewZealand and Australia Forward Air Controller Association reunion in Canberra, Australia,” wrote Dale Thompson. “We combined that trip with a 2-1 /2 week tour ofboth countries, then a week in Canberrawith the FACs, who flewin support ofUS combat units inVietnam. In addition to thebanquets and tours, we participated in theAnzac Day sunrise ceremony and mid-dayparade. The patriotism we witnessed was extremelyimpressive. The photo shows me leadingup the combined countries' forward air controller groups. We were actuallyin the water four hours that dayseeing incredible things, in addition to the boat trip out and back. Some other highlights were spending our anniversarywith a champagne toast at sunset on AyersRock, snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef, boattrip through the fiords and Milford Sound,visiting Mount Cookandthe glaciers, exploring a number ofbeautiful cities like Sydneyandthewonderful hospitality ofthe FACs in Canberra.”

There is some very sad news to report: On June 16th, 2008, Frankand Faye Gorhamlost their oldest son inhis aerobaticplane the one inwhichheholds an FAAair showwaiver. The aileron control linkage bent andjammedduring a high stress maneuver near Panama City, FL, and he ordered his passenger to bail.There was not enough time forKevin to get out. (R: From theJune ’08Web Column,you’ll recall that Kevin is shown in the picturepromoting a local air showtwo years ago.) Condolences to frankgorham@comcast.net, and contributions to http://www.precisionavjet.com.

More (Mostly)FriendlyFire. “I'm an ordained minister ofthe Gospel and an insurance agent with Bankers Life and CasualtyCompany,” writes Charlie Folkart, who lives in Fairmont, WV... In March, Dean Bristow had openheart surgeryfor coronary arteryproblems (NotAm to Dean:We knowyou’re a doctor, Dean, but, you just might want to call Steve Bishop about his “ratatouille andWaddle cure”)... Doug Rekenthaler’s medical history: “I’ve had two heart attacks (one in Moscow), broken leg, broken ankle, two cataract operations, and a righthipreplacement”... George Luck’s one-yearold grandson, RiverLuckofKansas City, MO, represents the 10th generation ofLucks in the U.S., from England in the 1670s toVirginia and then Georgia in the 1850s, through the present... Jerry de la Cruz’s AFA diploma shows a “Degree in PublicAffairs. Anyone else get one ofthose?

For those who track such things, I have prepared a list ofclassmates who enteredwith us in 1956 with previousmilitaryexperience. That list contains the names of18who were in themilitaryprior to coming to theAcademy go to www.usafa.net/1960, and click “Artifacts.” One ofthe manyinteresting stories is that ofKenAlnwick: “I was a non-prior-serviceA3C draftsman in the AFRES 514th Troop CarrierWing, Mitchell Field, Long Island, NY (C-l 18) while stillin high school and during myyear at StephensTech in Hoboken, NJ. AtStephens, I was also inthe USAF ROTCprogram. My‘A’ inROTCkeptmyGPA above 2.0 when I tried the second time for an appointment to theAcademy (I was an alternate for ’59). I believe I was one of 1On or so members ofour class to be selectedunder the 'militaryservice' category.

“In 1954,1 was also a member ofthe Continental Air Command's civilian volunteer Ground Observer Corps, which was formed to supplement what

chillfactor at Falcon Stadiumthe next daywere similarlyrecognized at graduation.

(Most of) the Graduation Parade attendees. From left are Ed Lankenau, ChuckFerrari,JohnMiltner,JackBryan,JimBlackwell, EdMontgomery, Max Miller,JackHundemer, Pete Todd, WileyBurch, Bruce Thompson, DonBrooks, and ‘Dusty’ Trail.

Ben andHideko

Dale Thompson leadingFACs in Canberra.

would become the NORAD system. In the evenings, while in high school, I would climb to the roofofthe Garden City Hotel and report byphone to a control and reporting center the altitude, direction, and type (multi-engine, singleengine) ofairtrafficpassingoverhead. This was the same systemusedby ClaireChennaultin Burma duringWWII. Iwonderifanyone elsehadthe same or similiarintroduction to the USAF?"

We received this photograph and message from marlyxl@yahoo.com on 07/19/08:

WE'REENGAGED! RICHARDANDMARILYNN!

ClassHistoryBook: SendWarStories to KenWerrell at kwerrell@radford.edu and Humorous Stories toVicYoakum atVyoakum@comcast.net.

FinalRoll Call. Sandra Bristow, wife ofDean Bristow, died June 15,2008. Ted Stumm died May25,2008 inJacksonville, FL; his body was cremated, and the IntermentCeremonywill beheld at the USAFACemeteryOctober3,2008.

(For extended Class News additional stories and more photos go to our ClassWebsite at www.usafa.net/1960, click “Class News,” then September 2008.)

Earl N. “Nelson” 0’Rear 50582 Stonington Drive Granger, IN 46530-8243

H: (574) 273-2597

E-mail: enoandtjo@gmail.com

Class Web Site: www.usafal961.org

87% Members

Ginger and MarkAnderson escaped the southTexas summer heat for a few days in Colorado's beautiful Estes Park. Mark is still flying the Cessna and keepinghis golfhandicaprespectable.

Stu and Marnie Boyd have moved from their barn into their house, leaving theirpreviouslivingquarters to thehorses, cats, and a dog. Between teaching atWeber State, training horses, flying with Civil Air Patrol, filling in for the chaplains at Hill AFB, and continuing to add to the flora and fauna on the ranch things are never dull. Their irrigationpond is stocked with trout, so ifyou go throughUtah, takeyour fly rod.

InJuly, Jackie andTom Brophyenjoyed a Marian Pilgrimage from Portugal, through northern Spain (Galicia), into southern France, to Paris. Both grew up Catholic andhad heard about the Marian Shrines at Lourdesand Fatima but had never been there. Northern Spain is quite lush and mountainous, where theyraise bullsforthe ring but don't fight them. After theirtour, Jackie andTom spent fourwonderful days in Paris on theLeft Bankand were treated verywell. Even the waiters were nice to them. Aside from a miserable exchange rate on the Euro, it was a greattrip.

Like many, Dee and DougCairns have celebrated their47thwedding anniversary. That means that it is time to get ready to start thinking about and researchingoptionsforthebig50th. Dougwonderswhat his classmateshave up theirsleeves. Their son Rob retired from the Army on 30 July in Naples, Italy, where he hasbeen forthe pastfouryears. Rob gets the COLA. Dougand Dee don’t, so the Euro exchange rate is making it reallytough to continue their regularcycle ofvisits, but he is sure theywill manage.

Gene andJudyDavisjoined a FlyingTigersAssociation (FTA) tour to China inMarch. The 18 daysincluded a five-daycruise on theYangtze, a tripthrough thelocks thatbypass the new Gezhouba Dam, and a visit to Chennault's cave headquarters attheYangtangAirport. Theyalso sawtheQinTerra-cottaWarriors Museum andthe GreatWall. Additionally,theyvisited the ChineseAviation Museum andenjoyed a Li Rivercmise. Ifyou are interested in a first class trip to China next March, contact Gene, and hewill putyou in touchwith the FTA. Judy and Gene also went to Tryon, NC, in June to hawkhis new book, Murder at theBlueRidgeBBQFestival, at the NC BBQ Championships. Contact him ifyou'd like to buy a personalized copy.

Bob Deanis enjoyinghis retiredlifeimmensely. Hiswife, Patty, stillmanages a data communications office about 20 minutes from theirhome. She loves herjob, andwon'tquit. Three areas keep Bobbusy: 1) tradingeveryday on the stockmarket, 2) following alternativehealth practices, and3) being involved with spiritualism, occult, and psychic activities.

On 5 JulyTom andAnne Ellerhosted the local members ofour class for a 4th ofJuly barbecue and a place from which to watch the fireworks associated with the Symphony Above the Clouds in Woodland Park. Tom and Susan Conley, Randy and Jan Cubero, Dean and Jo Jones, Charlie and Lynda Neel, Terryand Carleen Storm, and Jim and NancyWilhelm attended. Susan’s recent surgeryprevented Mike and Susan Quinlan from attending. It was great fellowship with an abundance ofgoodjokes. Tom and Anne also enjoyed having all oftheir children and their families visitWoodland Park for several days in Julysince having everyone togetheris a rare treat. It included a family fishingtrip to Farish and a trip to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.

InJuly, Erna andWayneHaringfinished a six-weektripusingtheirfifthwheel camper: from Colorado to Minnesota to Battle Creek, MI, to Raleigh, NC, to visit their sons and relatives. They were also scheduledfor a cruise in lateAugust from England to Ireland, Norway, Iceland, Greenland, St Johns CN, and NewYork.

Haven and Roberta Hillboth remain healthyand expect to continue theirtravel abroad, startingwith a tour through the Panama Canal ending in Miami in February ’09. Tennis is stillthe mainstayofHaven’s activities, but golf(twice a week) keeps him ready for combat with Wayne and Dean (when he's in town) Jones. Haven said that theyhope to see/hear from other GrayTagswhen they are in the San Diego area.

Peggy and Henry Howe enjoyed a Julyvisit with her father in Loveland, as well as with friends in Cuchara, CO, andmade a "lowpass" pasttheAcademy going up and down the Front Range. All continueswellwith them. He has now transitioned from the Interim Executive Directorposition at the Retreat Center since they hired their new Director in May. He said it feels great to have more time to do personal and "honey do" items.

Lowell said that DC area attendees at the 9 July luncheon were: Charley Dixon, Bill Foster, Lowell Jones, John Kohout, Jack McDonough, Hector Negroni,TerryNorris, Jim Rogers, and Bill Sanzenbaeher. Theydecided that they received enough responses from out-of-DC-area classmates to proceed with theirproposed 2009 mini-reunion. Bill Foster, Jack McDonough, Hector Negroni, andJohnKohout briefed theothers on several good hotel proposals. Theysubsequently signed a contract with the Fairview Park Marriott Hotel, located near the Metro, about a quarter mile inside the beltway on Route 50. Thehotel pricewill be $133 per night(includingtax). Information and a photo tour of the Fairview Park Marriott (Falls Church, VA) are at: https:// www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/wasfp-fairview-park-marriott/.

A roughactivityoutline: Thursday. 1 Oct: Arrival and preparation; Friday, 2 Oct: DC sightseeing and catered dinner at a local classmate’s home. You can metro to most ofthe great sites in DC (newer ones include theWWII Memorial, Air Force Memorial, Pentagon 9/11 Memorial, and of course an older one theVietnam Memorial with our classmates’ names). Dulles has the recentlycompleted Aerospace Museum. Saturday. 3 Oct: Bus from the hotel to the game and back. VictoryParty (catered) at a local classmate’s home; Sunday, 4 Oct: Brunch at the hotel and departure. The hotel is also very close to our classmates (Hector Negroni and Bill Foster), who have offered their homes for Friday and Saturdayevenings, respectively. They will keep us all posted on progress, and our Class website will also have the latest information. Everyone is invited to add their name to the list ofprospective attendees. Binding commitmentswill not be needed untilmuch later. Footballticketinformation will be requested in the May 2009 timeframe.

Wayne Jones enjoyed attending the U.S. Open golftournament at Torrey Pines in June and watchingTigerplay. Wayne and Maryrecently visited their daughter inVentura and attendedthe 56th Annual Lompoc Flower Festival, whereher new husband performed on the saxophonewith a terrific Latinjazz band. The next daytheytook a ferryto the beautiful Channel Islands National Parkto go hiking. Theyhighlyrecommend it. Theyspent three weeks inWashington State inAugustvisitingfamilyand sightseeing.

Carleen andTerryStormspent 12 great days in Italy(Venice, Florence, Capri, Pompeii, Rome, travelingbytrain and ferry). During a week in the Northwest, Pat and CorkyCochranejoined them for a beautiful day inVictoria, B.C. They enjoyed a nice ferryride roundtrip, plus absolutely gorgeous flowers at the gardens there. Terry also updated Art Kerr, Dick McMonigal, Oleg Komarnitsky, JackTaylor and Gene Hopp on theAOG issues at a morninggettogether. Although theirweek-longtrip purpose was a Ketchikan High School reunion near Seattle, theyvisited manyrelatives andAF friends in Oregon and Washington.

Gina and Charlie Thomas enjoyedlastyear'sAlaskan cmise so much, they went again thisAugust. The HollandAmerica cmise departed and returned to Seattle, with stops in Juneau, Sitka, Ketchikan, andVictoria, BC. In October,

JOIN THE SABRE SOCIETY!

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theywill return to Kauai for a week on the north shore. In between are family andAF football trips. Their neighbors suggest renting out their home since theytravel so much.

NealWestbrook’s daughterand son-in lawgifted him and his grandsonwith a ride on a B-24 named "Witchcraft". Neal said it was a blast, and he means literally; the wind whips through the aircraft unhindered, andthe noise was nearlydeafening. He now has a vivid appreciation and admiration forwhat thoseguys did over Europe. That was flying, like usingbuckboards was riding.

JimWilhelmsaidthattheyhad a nice ’61 get-togetherin Colorado Springs on 22 May. PB and Marilyn O'Connor spent the nightwith them, on their way fromTucson toWestminster, CO, to see their oldest granddaughtergraduate from high school and attend her trumpet recital. What better time to host a partyforthe old GrayTags? Besidesthem, theNeels, Harings, Storms, Jones, Conleys (and son, Andrewandwife), Cuberos, andWorthMcCue attended andhad a greattime. Theweekbefore, theWilhelmshosted a cocktail partyfor Charlieand Sarah Stebbins, honoring son, Charlie “Brown" and Michelle, on his retirementfrom theAirForce. Manyclassmates attended the retirement ceremony, which Charlie conducted for his son. Both Charlies did an outstandingjob. Ourclassmates and theirwives were all honored to be included, and Charlie and Sarah said it was great to have the support oftheirclassmates andfriends at this retirement ceremony, as well as happy to see them all. Sarah saidthattheytooktheirchildrenand grandchildren to theirannual Nags Head summervacation spotandhad theirusual great time together. Sarah also said that Charlie is preparing forhislast (hopefully) year as Provost at the University ofCharleston.

JudyandTomWilsonhave "survived" amajorkitchen remodeling. It'sbeen relativelysmooth, but not without moments ofpure panic: not unlike flying. Theyalso had their annual reunion with their children and 10 grandchildren forthree nights andfourdays at a water parklodge in north centralWisconsin. It's always a challenge to get everyone together but certainlyworth all the effort. Ify'allhaven'ttried it, JudyandTom highly recommend the experience. They are hopeful ofgetting to Colorado Springs this fall for a football game. Tom said itwould be great to see many ofyou there.

Thanks to allwho shared. Ifyou did not share this time, pleaseplan to do so next time. It is always nice to catch up.

John W. “Jack” Jamba

4 Judy Court

Satellite Beach, FL 32937

H: (321) 777-5520 0: (321) 861-6279

Cell: (321) 432-1370

E-Mail: jwjamba@aol.com

“My son Brian is an aircraft commander on the KC-135. I kid him that he's drivin’ machines I was probablygassing up behind inVietnam.

“I couldn't ‘set the table’ on the vintage racer thing in 50 words, so do with it whatyou wish. It'd be OKwith me ifitwasn't included at all. There MUST be more excitingthings being done in our second childhood than me and my little racer... Hope all is well, Jim.”

No Jim, I don’t think too manyofus do more excitingthings than mow lawns or drive our wheelchairs to the corner drugstore. But, I’m not a know-it-all. So how about some inputs from the rest ofyou all on exciting or interesting hobhies or pastimes thatyou do.Wewould all love to hear about it.

Botold us abouthisdaughterandherhusband and refreshed mymemorywith the following emailtoday, to wit: “Nannette andherhusband, Ryan Menath (both Classof2001 at USAFA), are both aircraft commanders in the McGuire AFB KC- 10A unit (32nd ARS, I believe). Theyboth just got back from the sandbox after a two-plus month deployment. They were happyto getbackto the 95 degree and90 per cent humidityof central NewJersey. So now Nancyand I are headed back to Colorado with a few stops along the way. (Scribe note: Bo and Nancy were house-sitters at times.)

“Nannetteand Ryan were in the same summer trainingelement and became good friends, Later the relationship grew beyond that. After pilottraining for both (Ryan atVance, Nannette at Laughlin) they had a great USAFA Chapel wedding then both were FAIPs at Laughlin.

“I reallyenjoyed our dinner at Solo's. My best to your wife, also. I hope we can gettogetheragain soon. Bo.”

Later that week, we had lunch at the Garden ofthe Gods CountryClub with Ralph and Karen Sporyand Rip and Jeannie Blaisdell. A deerwalked out ofthe brush to within 30 feet ofour patio table. I would have taken its picture forthis column but itwasn’t a Grad. So you’ll have to settle forthe three Redtagcouples shown here.

80% Members

HiRedtags,

Well I got a chance to go to Colorado Springs in late June to tagalongwith my wife on HER Air Force businesstrip. Bigchange, since she previouslytagged alongwith me. We stayed at the PetersonAFBVOQ and had opportunities to visitwith a fewRedtags. OneeveningCarolineand Ihad dinnerwith Bo Ohman and Jim Mack at Solo’s, the restaurant built around a KB-97 and where the Redtags’ 45thReunionkicked offlastyear. The photoshows, from left, Caroline and JackJamba, Bo Ohman and Jim Mack.

Asyou’ll notice in the picture, part ofthe plane is inside the restaurant and part ofthe plane is visible outside the window. The plane has seating in the fuselage forabout 12 couples. The rest ofthe seatingis outside the plane. Good location. During the evening, Jim told us about one ofhis pastimes and repeated in an email forthis column. “AfterWWII the open cockpitmidget and ‘bigCar’ craze hitthe Midwest. Several ofthe ‘Dads’, my Dad included, went together to fund a racer to run the Midwest fair circuit. I fondlyremember thosetimes as ayoungster. Hence, in 19901 found and restored a vintage 1940 midget. I run the car invintage races about sixto seven times a summer. ItsV8 Ford enginepulls the car along like crazy. In fact, I call it my ol’ man’s F-100. Folks ask me how fastwill it go and I tell them I run out of‘brave’ before I run out ofhorsepower.

Ralph and Karen Spory, Jean n ie and Rip Blaisdell and CarolineandJack Jamba enjoy lunch at the Garden ofthe Gods Country Club.

Itjust so happened that I was in town during the daythat the cadets entered the Academy. Rip, Ralph and a few other Redtags hosted candidates for the eveningbefore their entrance. T he hosts drove the candidates to the Bring Me Men Ramp to drop them off. I didn’t tryto go to the entrance ceremonybecause I figured that 1 probablyneeded a special pass. I would saythatit broughtback manymemories but I can’t rememberverymuch anymore. So I like to thinkI had a great time there exchangingjokeswith the upperclassmen and giving them high fives or whatever it was we did with our hands back then.

One afternoon I had to go to Denver to see some OSHApeople so I arranged to have lunchwith Don Egan. It was great seeinghis smilingface after so many years. We reminisced about some funny times we had as cadets. DJ is doing verywell and enjoyinglife. But I forgot to take a picture. NextTime. On theway back to Colorado Springs, I stoppedbythe cemeteryand found several ofour classmates’ graves. I was the onlyvisitor there. I took some pictures oftheir headstones.Verytouching moments.

The Fridaythat Caroline and I left Colorado was the50th anniversary ofour entrance into USAFA. A contingent ofRedtags drove down to Lowry to take some pictures ofthe remnants ofthe USAFA site there. I am restricted to three pictures percolumn, so I will have to wait until next issue to run the picture of that Redtag group that captured a piece ofhistory for us.

Andthen I gotthis from Chet Griffin. “Thanks to Dickand Liz Klass forhosting a celebration ofthe day, a long time ago, in a land far away, our intrepid band started on one ofour formativejourneys. Agoodtime was hadbyall, and since LannyLancaster is in the wine business, libations were abundant and well received.

TheRedTagBabes suppliedenoughgourmetfood to feed two armies,which helped balance out Lanny’s fruit ofthe vine. MarcyDykesbrought hersuperb yeast rolls to a collective sigh ofreliefby those hopingshe woulddo so. I don't knowhowmany ofthe world's problems we solved, but I think those attendingwould agree that we all felt the spirit ofBob Hope's theme song, ‘Thanks for the Memories’.”

I guess that’s it for now. Keep the news and memories flowing. As mywife remarks, “I’ve been at reunions andget-togethers forabout38 years and I always hear new stories every time the Redtags get together.” And I agreewith her. Well, all I can say is either our memories get better with age or our Alzheimer’s gets worse with age. Or we can make up some good stories on the spur ofthe moment. Cheers, Go Redtags!

Norman I. (Skip) Lee

63119 E. Cat Claw Lane Tucson, AZ 85739-2058

Home: (520) 825-7980

Cell: (520) 241-3498

E-mail: 54wrs@msn.com

83% Members

We recentlylearnedfrom theAOG that our classmate GregoryW. Halley, CS 07, passedaway on 10July2008. Gregdied as a result ofStage IVmelanomathat was diagnosed about 18 months ago. A Memorial Service was held 13 July at the NewBridgeGrange in Oregon. Condolences may be sent to his familyin care ofhis wife, June: Mrs. June Halley, 42886 Old Foothill Road, Richland OR 97870-6658.

We also had a message from theAOG informing us ofthe death ofRobert B. Macfarlane, CS-21, who passed away on Aug. 4,2008. Condolences maybe sent to his familyin care ofhiswife, Dorothy, at: Mrs. Dorothy K. Macfarlane, 113ValleyLane, Pittsboro, NC 27312-7519.

JohnHeimburger wrote to sayhehad drivenup to NewBridge to attend the memorial service and couldn’tsay enough about Greg’sfamily;wife, June, and three sons Dirk, BretandMark. All three sons served in theArmy or Navyand were presentedflagsbytheVFW. He alsosaid that area in the corner ofIdahoOregon-Washington is sure prettycountry.

John included an update ofhis son, Kais, who is a First Classman this year which I can’tbelieve it seems like Kais was just a Doolie a littlewhile ago. Kais will be a Group Commander this summer. Time is reallyflying. He also attached a photo ofwife, Chris, Kais, and Cheyenne (daughterwho attended RingDance with one ofKais classmates). Some veryhandsome folks there.

Spoke with Neil Sorensen a fewdays ago who is working on the “Gone but Not Forgotten” input for Greg. We also talked a little about Neil’s woodworking efforts onWhidbeyIsland, WA and fishing in Idaho. Neil sent a brochure about a wood showcalled Woodpalooza.” It is the 5th annual Show ofthe WhidbeyIslandWoodworkersGuildbeingheldAugust30ththroughSeptemher 7th and he is displaying some ofhiswoodworkingpieces at the show.

MickRoth forwarded a picture taken in earlyin May, whenhe andJerryThies hosted a reunion oftheirPilotTraining Class, 65-B, fromWilliamsAFB. Mick said that many of our '63 classmates plus a number ofGermans who were at Willywith them were there and the picture belowconfirms that.

Kneelingfrom left are Jim Allburn, Ken Kopke, Hank Hoffman,

When this issue ofCheckpointsarrives in the mail boxyouwill most likelybe gettingready to travel to Colorado Springs or may alreadybe there. So there isn’t much to be gained bywriting about Reunion plans and events. Still it seems important to mention two ofthe issues that have been cussed and discussed over the past few months: the Class Gift, the Class Cups and what we maywant to do about the 50th in 2013

I know some guys are not coming to Colorado this time but manyofus have definiteplans to be at the50th so we should reallybegin now to makethat event even more special.

MuchoftheClassGiftdiscussion seems to befocusingin on thepossibilityofour classsupporting an oralhistoiyprogram headed bythe USAFADepartmentof History (DFH). The program was briefed to the Dean byDFH, and according to Drue DeBerrythe Dean was veryenthusiastic abouttheproject. Thevision is to establish a financiallyindependent USAFACenterfor Oral Historyrequiring a ratherlarge endowment as well as annualoperatingfunds. It hasbeen suggested thatwe, theClass of1963, form a classgift committee to leadthefundraisingeffortforthis or some other projectinconnectionwith our 50threunion. AnywaytheClass Gift, the Class Cups and the50th Reunionwill be a part ofthe ClassBusinessMeetingon FridayafternoonduringtheReunion.

KenandKayBromansenttheirannual ChristmasLetterand photo last Decemberwhich included a description oftheir trip to India and, due to space requirements, it was not possiblefor me to includetheinformation aboutthemin thewinter or springeditions ofthis column. That beingsaid, thewrite-up on theirtrip lastNovember was so remarkabletheletterwas putinmy“lookingfor an opportunity” folder to be sure I couldshareitwithyou at some pointintime. Alas, Ken and Kay tell their story: “... the highlight ofthe year was our trip to India in November.Wehavebeentalkingabout goingforthree years and it finally came about. The flights were long and we were delayed in London arriving in New Delhininehourslate. Butfromthen on, things wentwell. NewDelhiishuge and attracts therichestand thepoorest. Someofthebeggars can breakyourheart. We traveled bybus to five different areas. The roads can be quiteprimitive andthe trafficvaries from largetmeks, buses and tractors to cows, camel carts and bicycles. We sawtheTaj Mahalinthelate afternoon sunlightandit isbeautiful. We rode elephantsup to theAmberFortinJodhpur. We spenttwo nigfits at a castlelike settingjustoutsideRanthamboreWildlifeParkand on threejeep safarisinto the park saw tiger, deer, antelope, bear and crocodile. The Indian people are friendly and the women dress in brightly-colored saris; many men in bright turbans. The children have learned to askfor shampoo thattourists takefrom their hotel rooms. We explored fabulous palaces and forts high on hills. We strolledin an islandparkin themiddle ofa lake. We timed ourtrip to takeinthe annualPushkarCamelFair. Asmall town of20,000peoplehosts200,000 fortwo weeks. Over25,000 camels, cattle and horses arrivefor sellingand trading. We slept in tents with carpeted floors and flush toilets. But the mnningwaterwas coldand we were allowed two buckets ofhotwater a day. We rode a camel cart outintothemidstofallthepeopleandanimalsandwatchedthe sun setthrough thehaze ofdung-fueledcampfires. Our two weeks passedquicklyand we endured thelongflight home. We were happy to taste American cuisine again.” Thanksguys it was obviously a greattrip.

The “Redtags plusBabes”photo shows,fromleftsitting:MarcyDykes, EvaLee Griffin, SueHaugen,andDickKlass. Standing:ChetGriffin, TomMoore,Bobbie andBob Gibson, VirginiaMoore, Tom Keaney,ArtandSandyFarrington, Scott Fisher,BillHaugen,DonHallager, TedDykesandFannyLancaster. (LizKlass was in the kitchen.)

Gordie BredvikjoeCoates,Jerry Thies, andFred Bauer. Standing:HansMuermans, RonMe CollumjimDiffendorfei; Tim Gallagher, SteveDotson, LuckyEkman, MickRoth, BobMeBeth, Chuck Ogren, Bob Venkus, Mike Goold, Willi Goebel, Bodo Meyer, Bob Parlette,JackZygner, and Fred Lindahl.

KayandKen at the TajMahal.

Earlierthis month I exchanged notes with DennyKingaskingforanyinputs hemayhaveforthe Class News. He didsayhe can’tdo theAOG ClassAdvisory Senatejob anylongerandtheremaybe some guys in the classwho would love it and I wish one wouldvolunteer. So, ifyou are interestedsendDiffa note or an e-mail and maybeapplyfor thejob. Before you do; however, go the AOG Web Siteandunder“AbouttheAOG” click on the ClassAdvisorySenatebutton andtake a look around.

That’s it forthis time. Be careful out there and we sincerelyhope to see you at the Reunion in October.

Bob Hovde

206 Walker Ave. Huntsville, AL 35801 (H) (256) 532-3923 (M) (256) 348-9794

bob@hovde.us

p 78%1 .Members,

MallofHeroes - Asadvertisedlastissue, Sandyand I went to ColoradoSprings forthegraduation ofthe Class of2008 and the dedication oftheMall ofHeroes and the statue ofKarl Richter. The Class of2008 (for those ofyou with long memories) chose Karl as their class “Exemplar” - that is, as the person the Class held up as exemplifyingwhat they strove to become. They wore Karl’s name on theirjacketsjustabovetheirclass date, andeverytime someone said “Class of2008, theywould yell out, “Richter!” Rod Wells sent a picture of some ofthe Class of2008 with Karl’s statue at the dedication.

F-l05Pilots withKarlRichter. (Photo credit-Patti Olin)

Dougand Lois Jenkins were also at the dedication and attendedthe Class of 2008’s Graduation Parade, CS28’s CommissioningCeremony and the Graduation Commencement, all in honor ofCadet (now 2/Lt) Eliza Enyart, who theysponsored in the Bed andBreakfastprogram fouryearsago. The dayafter the graduation, they went to Tyndall AFB for a reunion ofthe 95th Fighter Squadron, withwhichDougflewF-l06s backinthe ’60s.While there, theyran into Fred and Barbara Olmstead. Fred and Doug were roommates in CS20 in the fall of 1960.

Later, inJuly, Dougreported that the OldTrolls met at the Rockyard in Castle Rockfor their quarterly OldTrolls lunch. Theyhad a good turnout of seven OldTrolls. [Why do they call them “Old” Trolls?Someofthemmaybetrolls, but we aren’t even middleaged yet, are we? I mean, middle-aged is the age half-way between me and the oldestperson I know, isn’t it?] Anyway, Doug,JerryBuder, FredMalmstrom,TomMorris, RodWells, JimHermanson, andBobbyBeverlymade it to theJulymeeting.Theysolved a great numberoftheworld’s biggestproblems while there, and even discussed the first reunion planningmeeting at Kelly’s on 8/23,Jerry’s retirementfromColorado Springs Utilities on 8/29, Rod’s grandkids’ visit, andDoug’s son’s pending four-month deployment to Afghanistan, Jim’s recent visit to Canada and Israel, andTom Jobin’s return from Korea after a month’s visit there. Their next meetingwill be in Castle Rockto celebrateJerry’s retirement and then they’ll try a couple ofmeetings in Denver. Life is goodalong the Front Range. [Doug sent in several goodphotos, but I was limited to just three for the article.]

AnotherLawyer-buttheyprobablyneedtheminIllinois-FredMalmstrom reports that his son, Carl, was just admitted to the Illinois Bar. For some reason, Fred and Susan seem to think it’s a goodthing to have another lawyer associatedwith our class like we didn’t have anyalready.

Class of2008 Cadets with theirExemplar-KarlRichter.

Thenightbeforethe dedication, a largecontingent ofF-105 drivers (fromthe war waged out ofThailand several centuries ago) met at theAntlers to welcome Karl’s family andtell (probably) true stories oflongago. Afterthe dedication, we returned to theAntlers fordinner (and more “There I was stories). Sandyand I had dinnerthatnightwithKarl’s sister,who regaled us with stories ofKarl as a boy. (She taught him how to fly.) Karl, it seems, came byhis “Sure I can do it!” attitude naturally.

NickLaceysent in the next photo ofthe 11 classmates at the dedicationwho flew the F-105 in southeastAsia during the years that Karl flew from Korat RTAFB, Thailand (1966/1967). Two others, Nels Running and DickHackford, were unable to attend. Five classmates who were also F-105 pilots have died: Karl RichterKIA, fimWhite KIA, Bob LodgeKIA, Ron Bliss (formerPOW) and JimShively(formerPOW). In the front rowfromleft are EdHarvey, GaryOlin, NickLacey, MartyNeuens (formerPOW), and Ken Hallmark. Second row: A1

FalconAlert! - OurreporterfromtheLeft Coast, DaveNeal, reported on the peregrine falcon populationgrowth in the San Francisco area. He reports, “Today was a momentous day forthe pair ofperegrines that are nesting in eucalyptus trees in frontofmyoffice. Their two fledglings have left the nest to take up the art ofaerialcombat,helpingto reduce thepigeonpopulationinthe neighborhood.While we knewtheywere nestingin the trees on our property, we have not seen much ofthem. So it was a pleasant surprise to see the two youngfalcons down on the ground and in the lowerbranches. Bothparents were observingthem from perches in the lower branches as well. [Yes. Dave sent in pictures to prove the sightings.Theyreallywere falcons.]

Rogers, Tom Browning (formerPOW), MiltRutter, Tim O’Keefe, GarySmith, andTom McNish (former POW).

ProudparentsFredandSusanMalmstrom congratulate the latestIllinois lawyer - their son Carl.

To Salute or NotTo Salute? Paul Belmont sent out a missive announcingthat Section 594 oftheNationalDefenseAuthorizationAct, signed into law as Publie Law 110-181 on Jan28,2008, allows members oftheArmed Forces and veterans out ofuniform to salute the flag.John Graves repliedthat nowwe’re going to have a real mess, because, “You guys probably don'trememberthe Great American Public (youbeingmuch olderthanI) who used to stand and gawk at noon formation but I sure do. I guaranteeyouthe ONLYpeoplewho will note this change will be veterans (and a few others... the 1% who trulyget EVERYTHING).When the flag passes by or otherwise receives honors, most people lookaround to see what others are doing (thegreatAmericanlemmingbehavior) and followsuit. Itwon't take longbefore EVERYBODYis saluting! The GAP don'tchange its spots, Buddy!Then, you knowwhat?We'll need a flag education PROGRAMforthe GARWe maybe a goofypeople sometimes but bygolly we come by it honest, as we say in the South. I thought the old guidance was simple and understandable: ‘Ifyou're in uniform, salute. Otherwise putyour hand over yourheart.’What, for Pete's sake, was wrongwith that? On the other hand, maybewe'll get some ‘Humorin Uniform’ stories out ofit. Signed: John Graves, American PatriotNumber 1 and sole member (I think) oftheclassof’64 who trulyLOVED marching in parades (andtherapyhasn't helped).”

I can’t top that, so I’m signing offfor this issue.

Rick Zurbrugg

2929 Gavin Place Duluth, GA 30096 (770) 476-4437

E-mail: ezurb@bellsouth.net

76% Members

Hey’65!

Please take a moment to remember the lives and contributions ofour good friends and classmates PeterFazio (May 11,2008) andRichardBenson (June8, 2008) who have transitioned to eternity. Jude Terhall was thoughtfulenough to send the following:

Bob PenryandJude Terhall attended Pete Fazio’s Memorial Service on May 31 st in Loreauxville, LA. Pete donated his body to science.Afterthe service, there was a sharingsession at ShannonandToniGonsoulin’s residence. Memories were shared byJude, Bob, and John Clark, one ofPete’s best friends from his active dutyAFdays.Attachedis a picture ofPete'sfamily-wife, Diane, and daughters, Toni andAndreawith theirhusbands.

memberoftheAOG, thereis no programwithin theAssociationforGraduates or spouses without partners to find a friend/companion. Because you receive news from graduates through your column, I am assuming that you wouldhave a list ofthosewho are single. I am hopingthatyou can point me in the right direction. Allow me to provide a short resume in case someone comes to mind: I am 62,5' 4", 120 lbs. I take pride in the fact that I workout everydayto maintain myappearance. I am a 1966 graduate ofLoretto Heights College. I live on Meadowlake airport east ofColorado Springs. Ihave a deeded taxiwayeasement, from myfive acres, to a 6,000 foot runway. I train and show horses at a world level. Ifyou know anyone in theColorado Springs area or elsewhere who wouldlike to live here, I would appreciate yourhelp. Hopefully, thewordwill trickle back to theAOG that somethingneeds to be done. As eachyear passes, more and more grads and spouses are alone. TheAcademyfamilyhas meant so much to so many. TheAOG should be the glue that keeps us together. Thanks for your time and kindness. Looking forward to your reply.” Thankyou Ma’am. Scribe’s note: This ladywas married to a classysquadron mate ofmine. This is, I believe, for real, and obviously from a person who knows who she is andwhat she wants. I can putyou in touch with her. One bachelor classmate withwhom I shared her letter, asked, “Howlong did she saythat runwaywas?”

GaryClose: “...I read in the June "Checkpoints" that (Bill Cole) can stilldo 16 pull-upsfrom a dead hang. Ifthat is tme I am highlyimpressed.. .1 have worked myway up to five and am shooting for twelve. I just read Lone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell... I... recommend it highly... the story ofthe battle is incredible, but also very interesting is the description ofSEAL training. I find that I need a fitnessgoal or mytrainingis not consistent or focused enough. I ran the Phoenixmarathon in January, so that kept me goingduring 2007, but since then I haven't reallyfound anything that has me motivated... Areyou interestedin takingthis on as a ‘project’? Ranger standards include a two-mile run in 13 minutes and I simply can't run a 6:30 mile, and also 80 push-ups in two minutes I trained to be able to do 60 push-ups on my60thbirthdayand the most I could ever do was 55; it seemed like I just hit a wall and couldn't improve no matterwhatI did.Anyway, since goals have to be reasonable enough so you can believeyou can achieve them I decided to shoot for something more within the realm ofpossibility. Anyway, what do you think? Can you think ofotherAcademy guys who might want to take an appropriate challenge?We're all getting to the age where maintaining and even improving physicalcapabilities is harderbut more importantthan ever... Mywife,Patty, and Ijust returned from a threeweektrip to China, and Iwill bewatching the Olympics with more than normal interest because I have seen the venues in Beijing. I pity the endurance athletes; the level ofairpollution in China and especiallyBeijing is astounding. Staywell, Gary”

Thanks Gary, your energylevel and ambition are inspirational. I can give you Gary’s email ifyou want to take his challenge. I and Goodwife walk 50 minutes five days a week, then swim 10 laps a dayfrom Memorial to Labor Days, mow on the6th day, and take overdoses ofChristiantheology, the NY Times, and fat free DoubleChurned FudgeTracks on the 7th day.

Let me hear from all y’all about your fitness program. Include pictures. Anybodygoing toWestPoint Game in NewYork? Sendpictures. ReadWalking on Eggshells (or how to navigate relationshipswith your adult children) by Jane Irsay.

Gentlemen, we are indeed, “playingthe back nine”. Please feel freewhen you hear of a classmate who has passed to let me know and share some remembrances ofhim for this column that may not appear in his obituary. In meantime, CheckYourSix:: PSA, BR BMI, LDL, HDL, and glucose. Bewell, do goodwork, and keep in touch and as the Rocwould say, “Cheers!” Rick

Celebration ofthe lifeofPeterFazio. In theback row are Shannon Gonsoulin, RamseyMiller,Jude Terhall, and BobPenry.

Gonsoulin,Andrea Miller, and Diane Fazio.

Jude Terhall: “I'm still working, live in the Dallas area, and plan to ‘retire’ next summer. Bob and I happened to be available for the weekend ofPete's service; we were good friends ofPete back at theZoo, and decided to attend. About ayear ago I was contactedbyPete'sdaughterAndreaand asked to serve as a focalpointforany memoriesfromPete's 7th SquadronAcademyfriends. Andreawas onlythreeyears oldwhen Pete hadhis brain tumor operation and she never reallygot to knowthe ‘real’ Pete even though this was about 25 years ago. So, she reasoned that his past buddies' memorieswould be the best inputs she could obtain to bridge this gap. This has been ongoingfor a while and culminatedwith Pete's passing and service inMay. Andreagotemailsfromabout a dozen or so ofPete'sclassmates andshewas veryappreciative ofthis. This and our presence at the service helped Pete's family get a lot ofclosure even thoughtheyhave known for some time thathe was a short timer on thisearth.AsforBob, I'lllethim replyifhewishes. ButI knowhe is healthy, semi-retired in Colorado, and still breaking bones playing softball.

OnApril 19th, yourhumble scribe received this email entitled “Class News”.

“Rick: The catchysubject line is a guarantee thatyou will not delete this before opening. I do hope to get feedback. Let me explain... Mylate husband, —, was a memberofthe Class of1967.1 havebeenponderinghowI might meet anAcademy grad, active or retired, to fill the emptyspace in mylife... Even though I am a life

Ryan Denny

1635 Mary Todd Lane

O’Fallon, IL 62269

H: (618) 624-4255

W: (314) 232-5117

E-mail: ryanden@aol.com

80% Members

Greetings,Redtags! Once again, I’msittingup here at 35,000 feet, with220 of myfellowroad warriors, on mywayto LAXfor a fun-filledweek ofmeetings. I know this must cause a flash ofenvy from those ofyou who have retiredretired, butyou’lljusthave to continue onyour365-dayvacations, keepplayingwith the grandkids, pursuingyourhobbies, and get over it.

Hugh Gommelhas retired a couple oftimes, and is combiningworkwith play at Cirrus Aircraft in LasVegas. Hugh describes himselfas an “investor, owner, advocate, consultant, instructor, and adventurer.” The work part of this is instructor”,when Hugh teaches parttime in thefullmotion, full visual Cirrus simulator inVegas. The playpart is allthe rest ofthe stuffhe gets to do— like helpingbuild a newjet, the CirrusVision. Hugh says that the Cirrusjets have the most advanced avionics systems in general aviation, and theirjets have an “airframe parachute” (I guess this is for that occasion whenyou run

Front row: Toni

out ofairspeed and ideas atthe same time—youjustpushthe“do over” button and the chute deploys.) Hugh sayshe is having a ballwith thisthird career, and welcomes anyonewho wants to come to LasVegas and see forthemselves.

Someonewho tookhim up on thisofferwas Ed Bielo, who stoppedthrough LasVegas on business and dropped in on Hugh. Ed owns his own company and travels all over theworld representingvarious manufacturers. Hugh says that Ed is thriving in this internationalenvironment and always seems to know exactly the right bottle ofredwine to order or offer.

EdBieloandHugh Gommel holdingeach other up in thebrightlightsofLas Vegas.

Another ofour still-workingclassmates, Dan Cecil, writes thathe is livingin Littleton CO and working for Jeppesen. We figured out that, since Boeing boughtJeppesen a fewyears ago, Dan and I are working for the same company. Dan’sbig news was that hisyoungest son, Stephen,justgraduated from USAFA. The rest ofDan and Diana’s bigfamily is doingprettywell, too. Brien, the oldest, is the DeputyDA for El Paso County in Colorado; Andrewgraduated fromWest Point and is a major, flyingApachehelicopters (Armyversion of a fighterpilot); David is the pastor ofRichards Baptist Church in Texas, Careyis a secretary, and Stephen, as the squadroncommanderof23rdSquadron, got the squadronpatch restored to its original version before he graduated with the Class of2008. That’s a little bitofthe “Long Blue Line”!

time. It sounds like Mike got a lot offree help punching cattle or rounding up horses or whatevertheydo on Montana ranches.VicAndrews said that he saw a bull moose grazing in the frontyard about 15 feet from the front porch. Are you supposed to round those up, too? Whatever they all did, it sure looks like theyhad a fantastictime in a beautiful place.

The Cecil Clan Carey, Brien, Steven (’08), David,Amy, Tracy, andAndrew. Theydidn’tneed Dan in thisshotbecauseall the boys lookjustlike him!

Ron Talcottwrites thathe and wife, Gigi, stumbled across some ’66 history while eating at a restaurant near McChord AFB. Theypicked a flyer for the McChordAir Expo that had an article about the origins of theAcademy’sWings ofBlue Parachute Team. The article said that the team was started by Cadet Pete Johnston and anothercadet,who competed (andwon) theAcademy’sfirst goldmedal in collegiatecompetitionwithouttheAcademy’s permission. It seems that, in those days, sportparachuting was considered too dangerous to riskallthe moneythat the AirForce hadinvested in us cadets. But once Pete won a few ofthese competitions, theAcademy reconsidered and the Wings ofBlue has become the most successful sport parachute team inthe United States. Thanks, Ron, forthat “I did not knowthat” (or at leastdidn’t remember it) storyabout Pete.

Both MikeRhynardand Bill Berry sent e-mails and pictures from the latest BigThree (3rdSquadron) mini-reunion at Mike’s ranch in Montana. Bill said thatthey “worked hard andplayedhard”, and Mike saidthat theyhad a great

Visit the AOGWeb Site.

Merchandise, Gone ButNot Forgotten and more!

www.usafa.org

BubbaandSuzanne Berry, VicandSueAndrews, MikeandAlida Rhynard, Mike(Hurtin) and CharHeenangive the “BigThree”signaftera dayofplaying CitySlickeratMike’s ranch.

The 3rd Squadron crew and a lot of our DC classmates also pulledtogether to support Ken Funkhouser’swife, Chris, andfamilyafter Ken’s sudden death at his home inAvon Lake OH. Duringhis 28-yearAirForce career, Ken flewthe F-102, F-106, and F-4 aircraft, and served in all ofthestaffjobs that theAirForce makes us do. He thenhad anotherfull careerworking for ConcurrentTechnology Corp in Pennsylvania. Afterhis second retirement in 2007, he moved to Avon Lake, near Cleveland OH. Ken was buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery on 2 Sept2008. (Seethe“Gone but not Forgotten” section ofthis magazine.)

Anotherreminderthat life is precious and we don’t control either the beginning or the end—just the middle. So, live it well. Until next time... Happy Landings!

Larry Wilson

13100 Pinehurst Ave. NE

Albuquerque, NM 87111

H: (505) 291-8949

E-mail: Lwilsn628@aol.com

Hola amigos - as I compose this, I am in Minnesota, departing tomorrowfor a multi-family, multi- generationalfishingtrip in Canada, prior to the annual trip I have madewithThe Boys (truly a euphemism as theyears go on...). And I am doingthis somewhat on the fly, as the deadline for submission crept up and will be upon me while I am out ofthe country, in “rustic” accommodations and out ofe-contact. IfI am missinganythingpertinent that some ofyou mayhave sent to memy apologies, and I’ll catch it next quarter. HoweverI think I have most notes etc - so awaywe go....

A briefnote about NewMexico’s spring and early summer: it started out hot and drywith all sorts ofdismalGlobalWarmingprojections offires etc. Then-it seems thatthe monsoons arrived severalweeks earlierthan normal, and NM has had rain and humidityalmost dailyfor much ofJuly. There have been some fires,which are devastating to some - butmuchless so thanhadbeen anticipated and feared. Nowthe Rio Grande andtributaries are flowinghigh, reservoirs are higherthan forseveralpastyears - alltold, it is turning out to be a good summer in NM. And - though I see news todayof5.4 level earthquake in southern California - -1 hopethatyour summers are going OKweather-wise too.

As mywife and I drove to Minnesota from NewMexico, we visited Les andJackieJensen inAnkeny, Iowa - perhaps our last opportunity to catchthem there, as they are relocatingto Madison,WI, to be closerto theirkids and other family. I had located an oldphoto from our doolie year and among other things we chatted about howkind (?) theyears have been to us. In our minds and diminishedvision we have not changed a bit. (Photo at top ofnext column.)

Tom Griesserforwarded to me an article from BusinessWeekwhichfeatured our own Tom Hepner. The story describes how he “.. .has always been an entrepreneurat heart” - afterhis time in the USAF, he went to Harvardbusiness school, thenworked for a major investment group. Afterseveralyears therehe became involved in newspaper-related financial activities. He subsequently was involved in merging some failingweekly newspapers into one successful one, whichgrewinto a chain ofweeklies.When that business was sold in about 2000, he moved to Colorado and bought a health-services company. He sold that in 2007, “retired” and subsequently moved to Floridawhere he is now

Tim Reich, LesJensen, LarryWilson,JackFryand TerryBroadway-allfrom the North Dakota contingentofbasic cadets in ’63. Assessforyourself, and apply toyourcurrentandformerstates: each of is livingproofthat we are no differentfrom thesteely-eyedzoomies that we were Back Then, and that none ofus has changed a bitsince then, exceptfor the better! involvedwith client relations ofmajorinvestors. The article describesTom as a “wheeler- dealer.” Congratulations, Tom, on your successes.

Briefnotes on some ofour otherguys: JimWhite, retired and living in Califomia, recentlycelebratedthe 40th anniversaryofhis marriage to Gayle. They hadjoinedTed andTricia Legaseycelebratingtheir40th too. I don’t knowof statistics ofthe number of’67 gradswho were married soon aftergraduation, or how many are still married. Obviously some, and probably many. Congratulations to all who have made it that long! And to those who have a few feweryears (Pat and I celebrated our 29ththispastsummer). Congratulations to you/us too.

We hope to catch up this summer withAbner and Patti Haynes - they are comingto NewMexico for a vacationand we plan to linkupwith them. They are retired and living in St George, Utah.

A note from Bob Muldrow: “John Olive placed in the top six or so forqualilyingforthe SeniorOpen to beheldhere in Colorado Springs. The course was laid out to be very tough. I thinkJohn shot a 76 or 78, but consideringonly about 20 golfersbroke 90 andthe best score was 74, thatwas prettygood for a sixtyyear old.”

RogerCarletonconfirmedwhat a numberofus have discovered, that “This retirement ain't allbad...” Rogerhadjustreturned to Colorado from a period ofcatching trout in Montana.

On a sad note, Jim Daviespassed awayin earlyJuly. AMemorial Service was planned attheUnitedMethodistChurchinAzle, TXinJulyand at theAcademy on August 15th. There was consideration ofa fly-by as part ofthe funeral service at theAcademybut at thetime ofmywritingI do not knowifthathadbeen set up. To Caron andJim’sfamilyandfriends - sincere sympathy.

Consistentwiththat note - thisfrom EmMonda: My son is a BoyScoutand we plantsmallAmericanFlags atthegraves ofveterans atZacharyTaylorCemeteryhere in Louisville to honor our US veterans who served our country in both peacetime as well as war time. There is a ceremonywith a color guard andtheplayingoftaps. Severalhundred Scouts participate eachyear and it is one ofthethingsthatmake the BoyScouts such a great organization... Em’s son is “...close to becoming an Eagle Scout... - andEm is clear in describing that Em’s own outdoorand scouting skillshad little to do with that...

Andwiththat - time to loadup the truckforthetrekinto thewilds ofCanada, where we plan to spend the next several dayscatching manyverylarge walleyes and northern pike; eating our fill, sipping a variety ofbeverages, and generallyindulging in family-outdoor stuff, meanwhile attempting to avoid mosquitoes, gnats, sunburn, hangovers, familysquabbles etc. I thinkyou mayget the picture...

Bestwishes to all - Vaya con Dios!

Tim Davidson

9712 Hidden Valley Road

Vienna, VA 22181-6094

(703) 255-5313

Fax: (703) 255-5377

E-mail: timd@erols.com

HELLO ’68! Greetings and bestwishes for much success to General Norty Schwartz (USAFA ’73) in assuming the reins oftheAir Force as our 19th Chief ofStaff. Also, a hearty '68welcome to members ofthe Class of2008 as theyjoin the honored ranks ofthe Long Blue Line.

REUNIONNOTAM #5: LAST CALL! Our 40th Reunion is from 1 -5 October at the EmbassySuites in Colorado Springs. Manythanks to Reunion Committee Chairman Gene Rose and our C-Springs-based crew for putting an excellentprogram together! You can purchase ’68 merchandiseand footballtickets on-line through theAOGwebsitebyclicking on Class Reunions. For specifics on the reunion and other class news, please check our class website at www.usafa68.org. Hope to see you there!

FAC MEMORIALDONATION: On 15April, members ofthe FACAssociation andtheUSAFAClassof1968gathered on thesiteofthe2008FACMemorialforthe presentationofa donationof$10,000fromtheClass of1968. TheClassmadethe donation to honorofthefiveclassmates we lostflyingtheForwardAirControllerMission in SoutheastAsia: John E. Duffy, John L. Ryder,Willis G. Uhls, Paul V “Skip” Jackson, III, andTed B. Hallenback. The Class’ generosityrepresents thelargest cash donation received bythe 2008 FAC Memorial Committee. As you may recall from my last column, buseswill be provided at the Embassy Suites for thosewho wish to attend the dedication ofthe FAC Memorial.

CLASSMATE FOUND! Through the impetus ofthe lost classmate search conducted by Gene Rose, Bob Daley, and Pat McBride, I made contact with ColonelDeVere Henderson (USAFA’63), who is the brother ofour classmate, Don Henderson. After a flurry ofphone calls and an e-mail or two, Don and I reconnected over the phone after some 40years since our last conversation. When askedwhathe had been doingforthe last40years, Don provided a briefsummary. Aftergraduating from pilottraining at MoodyAFB, DonflewKC-135s at GriffissAFB, NYandthen volunteered for a tour in C-7As at Cam Rhan Bay. For the end-of-tourtriphomefromVietnam, hevolunteeredto ferry one of15 C-7ACaribous backto the States guidedby a C-130 on thefive-stageisland-hoppingtrip to HamiltonAFB near San Francisco, CA. On the last andlongestleg, one engine seized to a halt near thehalf-waypoint while flying at 10,000 feet in the middle ofthe night. The aircraft could not maintain altitude and descended to level flight at 3,700 ft. above the water. Afterflyingfor 13 more hours in mostlyIFR conditions, thefuel bladders were empty, and the fuel gages were pegged on “E”. The aircraft had reached the Farallon Islands about 25 miles offthe California coast. Clearance had been given to flyunderthe Golden Gate Bridge, and emergencyactions were being taken to clear segments ofbeach and freewayforlanding. After ditching,they exited through the cargo door and were picked up by a Coast Guard vessel within minutes. Don was trapped and entangled in cockpitdebris in the submerged aircraft nose and was rescued byAir Force divers only two minutes before the fuselagedisappeared beneath thewater’s surface.

Afterleaving theAir Force in 1973, Don went to work as an engineerfirst on

AlexMonda, EagleScoutcandidate, plantingmemorialflags on veterans’ graves at theZacharyTaylorcemetery in Louisville.

’68 GivesDonation to FACAssociation. From leftareJim Palmer (President, FACAssociation), Bob Sallee, Rhip Worrell, SteveMcPhail, andAlBlumberg.

safetyequipment andthen on air-deliveredweapons forthe Navy. Next, he worked on weapon systems at GeneralDynamics Convair Divisionwhere he was employed as a mechanical test engineer. This was followed byemployment as a contract engineerforjobshopagencieswherehis positions included stress analysisengineerand mechanical test engineer. For the past 14 years, Don hasworked as an independent Christian missionaryin the Puget Sound area. He authored the book GodSigns - - The Bible in a Nutshell, which was published in 2007.

MartyCole has a number of"quests" sort oflike a "Bucket List" butjust a littlebit different. One ofthese is to visit all oftheMajorLeague Baseball stadiurns. As BuckMcCants notes, “Martyhas graciouslyallowed me to participate. We knocked outWrigleyField in Chicago andMillerParkin Milwaukee inJuly of2007. In 2008, we visitedYankee Stadium (whichwill soon be torn down), Citizens BankParkin Philadelphia, andthe new Nationals Stadium inWashington, DC.” Ifanyone lives near one ofthe stadiums and would like to help Marty and Buckfulfill their quest, pleasedrop them a line.

BUMPED INTO INTAMPA:While on my pilgrimage to US Special Operations’ “Mecca” in Tampa to participate in a SOF conference for Industry in May, I bumped into Lindsey Bierer. Lindsey and I had not seen each other since theAcademyand enjoyedcatchingup on whatwe hadbeen doing over the past 40 years. Lindseyis now a Principal for Energy and Environmental Business Development for Keystone Government Services in Poway, CA. Lindsey and I were joined by Charlie Coolidge and Charlie Holland, who were also in attendance.

The photo was snapped at Bob Beanblossom's private operation about 10 miles south ofLeadville, CO in June. Their place is called Mount Massive Lakes and it sits up above theArkansas River. As Carl Janssenwrites, “The mountains to the west are spectacular and so is the fishing! For you nonfishermen, those are all rainbow trout ranging from 2 to 4 pounds. Occasionally, Bob serves as a flyfishingguide in Colorado and isveryknowledgeable on the subject. For classmates who would like to grab a pole and drop a line, Bob and wife, Julie, would be glad to have classmates and families stop by.

PRAYERS REQUESTED: Bob and ThuyJohnston’s daughterCarolyn has been diagnosedwith acute promyelocyticleukemia (APML) and is undergoingchemotherapy at the Hospital ofthe University ofPennsylvania (HUP) in Philadelphia. In addition, I receivedword on the death ofour classmateJohn Cobb inApril. Please keep the Johnston and Cobb families inyour prayers. THAT’SAWRAP: Pleasejoin us for our 40threunion! Mindtheflak; keep ’em flying, andkeepthose cards,letters, e-mails, andphotoscominginto PatRussell and me. Please go to the ClassWebsite to see photos included in this column in color and in full size. Ciao for now. Tim

Lindsey Parris

616 King’s Cloister Circle

Alexandria, VA 22302

Home: (703) 836-3604

E-mail: 102177.1033@compuserve.com

Top ofthe fall to you all. Maythe Falcons be offto a resounding start in this new season and all your seasonal colors crystalline and brilliant. I’ve been awayfromthe DC area for3 Vz months and am not equipped as fullyas I should be to offer the usual update, but here goes with what I do have and know. Apologies ifI omit anything ofimport.

The latest “reallybig” event for the Class was the retirement ofMaj. Gen. Charlie Baldwin from active duty on a sparklingday in late MayattheAFMemorial overlookingthePentagonandWashingtonDC.. Charlie was our lastGreyTag on active duty, and hislast dayin uniform represents a watershed forboth him and the Class of 1969. AF CSAF Gen Buzz Moseleydid the honors for our Classmate, one ofthe few blue suiters ever who wore both pilot’swings andthe chaplain’s cross. Charlie statedthreeprimarylessons hehadlearned inhis long, distinguished career: (1) God is faithful andalways present, (2) we are a familyin so manyways and forms, and (3) being a Chaplain is great service. He ended his remarkswith a prayer: “Maythe Lord blessyou, and keepyou, and giveyou his peace. Amen. In thewords ofDarrel Whitcomb, in attendance with many ’69ers, “Tail end Charlie concluded his greatAirForce careerwith graceand style.” Godspeed to you, Charlie Baldwin, and to all ofthose who took their oaths on June 4,1969.

Skip Daleyattended the Memorial DayCeremonyhonoringAlexandrians listed on thatVirginiacity’sVietnamMemorial. Skip read the name of“Captain George B. (Barry) Lockhart, USAF” during the roll call.

Tom Oliverhas moved fromhisposition as CEO ofGame Ready, aboutwhich youhaveread inthesepages, to COO ofNEXT Proteins, themakers ofDesigner Whey,America’s top-selling (andbest-tasting, according to Tom) whey-based nutritionalproduct. (Whatdoeswheytastelike,Tom?) HeandMartiandthegirls decampedfromgreaterOaklanddownthe coastto theCarlsbad area and are now settledinfullyto accommodatevisitors andtake NEXT to biggerthingsyet.

Four ’69erbikers tookpart in theBicycleTourofColorado this summer. Rick Olafson, Flip Keck, Dennis Ryll, and JimDowneytook a week to do over 400

TakeMe Out to theBall Game! From left are MartyColeandBuckMcCants atWrigleyField.

GoneFishiri! From leftare CarlJanssenandBobBeanblossom with Catch of the Day.

Charlie and Ann Baldwin are flankedfrom left by Don Rakestraw, Dave Astle, Waly Moorhead, Bugs Forsythe, Jeff Grime, Ron Love, and Darrel Whitcomb.

miles riding into beautiful vistas and cranking up gnarlyhills. Flip, Dennis, and Jim are doing it again next year, hoping to rope others (John Buckner was in Memphis and couldn’t join. Steve Kirby was biking Idaho’s trails, Chip Ambroseplayinggolfin Ireland, DanThomashoardinggasoline to flyhisT-34, andJimmyCummingsmakingweddingpreparations-ortheywould certainly have been alongforthe ride, too) into next year’s extravaganza ofascents and descents in spectacularsettings.

Jimleads LearningandOrganizationaldevelopmentforCF12M HILL, a large, employee-ownedengineering and construction companywithlargeprojects such as rebuildingthe Panama Canal. Jim travels around theworld helping the company’s26,000employeeswithpeople issues. The companywas #54 on the Fortune Best Places toWorklist. Linda and Jim have 10 acres not far from Castle Rock, home ofthe Doll BabyLoungewhich, according to Jim, turned into a used care lot two years ago. Ahh, the memories. Who among us did not stop there at least once during our USAFA days for a cool one en route to the Zoo after partying in Denver?

Hip,Buck, TomFleming, andBrianNelson met for a roundofgolfon USAFA’s Blue course before Brian’s synched up with three other Seagram’s Seveners for a weekin Steamboat Springs. I understandJuly’supticks on the seismic readings in Steamboat correlatedwith Glenn Schlabs dancing to Brian’s over-5000songiPod.

BarryCreighton and JeffStephenson spent a week sailingtogether in June on Barry’s 37’ “CrewRest,” which according to Barry proves that once you’ve stood against thewallwith a buddyinwhitey-tighteysand a towel, you can do most anythingtogether.

The occasion was the annual gathering ofDickersonYacht owners to determine thefastest Dickerson in theworld. Team 69 placedsecond, by two seconds, losing out due to cancellation ofone leg ofthe race. But, bynot winning outright, Barry can sail again nextyear and (more important) he doesn’thave to serve as Commodore oftheDickersonAssociation forthe next 12 months.

BarryandJeffbothworkfull time, Barrywith Lockheed-Martin andJeffwith CSXRailroad. Judyhelpedwith some ofthe crewingduringthe cruisingparts ofthe trip, and Jeffand Julie are once again riding the 150 miles for MS, in Florida’s summer heat.

Move over Hemingway!Jeffand Barry asea.

Norris “Junior” Boyd (you all rememberhis 427 'Vette with lake pipes from days ofyore! I participatedin one stirringbit ofmotoringwith him one day) is busy with his Boyd/Wilson Property Management company developing projects inPennsylvania and BritishColumbia. On the side, he spends time in the mountains ofeasternWashington, oftenwith his huntingdogs. He and Barbara are anticipatingtheirfirstgrandchild, and two daughters Heatherand Erinhave a globalfootprint, the former a guidance counselorin an elementary school in the SpokaneValley and the latter finishing herdissertation in Economics from the UniversityofLondon.

DennyJoneswrites blissfullyofhis nearly27,000flyinghours in a varietyof aircraft, and ofhis retirement. Says “Pam is still flying and he is still retired. Wonderfulsystem.”

Ifyou are planning to attend a football game at the Zoo thisyear, then think about picking the 15 November for the BYU game. Falcon head coach Troy Calhoun, who is emphasizingconnectingwith grads, especiallythose who playedfootball, invited Dick Swanson to be an honorarycaptain for a game this fall, so Swanie will be on the field in mid-November.

On a sadnote, please knowthat MarcEnger’swife, Suzanne, passed away on June 16,2008 in SanAntonio. Manyofyou, especiallyHarry Evans and Jerry Ball, who roomedwith Marc duringtheir 1st quarter at UCLAin the summer of’69, have known Suzannefor some fourdecades, and knowshe was the light ofMarc’s life. Please rememberher in yourthoughts and prayers.

The 40th ReunionClass gifthas encountered a hiccup or two due to escalating costs. So, nowwould be a good time to contribute ifyou haven’t already, or to doubleup ifyouhave! In addition to theAOG’s Class of1969 40th Reunion GiftFund, to which contributions to date havebeen directed, the new USAFA Endowment can also accommodate contributions, whose principalwill earn interest in behalfofthe Gift until spent. You know how to contribute to the former. To contribute to the latter, endorse the contribution to the “USAFA Endowment" and include on the Note Line “Class of 1969 AdmissionsWeicome Center” or “Class of 1969 40th Reunion Gift Fund.” Mail to “USAFA

Endowment, 1975 Research Parkway, Suite 300, Colorado Springs, CO 80920.”

Both ofthese qualify as charitable organizations, and both have been created specifically for the purpose offunding the Center. Update letter coming as soon as the smoke has cleared. Cheers until next time. Lindsey

Dick Rauschkolb

130 Luxury Lane

Colorado Springs, CO 80921

H: (719) 761-5764

Cell: (719) 310-6928

Email: AOG70@comcast.net

Richard Rauschkolb@usafa.edu

Are you ready for some football?! By the time you read this, Falcons will probablyhave played two or three games. But as I sit here in mid-August, I am gettingreally excited about this year’s team. I have talked to Coach Calhoun and attended several practices. There is no doubt that we are going to be a very young team with an unproven quarterback. It will be hard to match last year’s great success byTroyandhis superb staff. Nevertheless, I have noticed thatthe team is in greatshape and much leaner than in past years. Looks like we are going for speed more than size. Unfortunately, the injurybug has already hit two key players—Travis DekkerandTyPaffet.Theymay not be available untilthe end ofSeptember. BYU is once again the class oftheleague.We get to playthetop teams in theconference— BYU andUtah at home.We had a greatrecruitingyearandthe Prep School has provided some great players including a potentialsuperQB. I think we can go 7-5 or 6-6 this year and hopefully go to a bowl again. The support ofmany ofyou and others in the graduatecommunityin purchasingtickets lastyearmaypaybigdividends this yearwhen it comes bowl selection time. Armyand Navy are toast—I guarantee it! CIC Trophywill be coming back to its rightful home at USAFA! Hooah! Got a great note from Ron Kelly. The Air Force Society ofWashington arranged a memorial ceremony at theAir Force Memorial near the Pentagon on theWednesdayevening ofthis year’sgraduation.TerryWeimar, ’71, and our own Dave Sterlingconducted the ceremonywith assistance fromYogi Royce. The ceremonyinvolved the reading the 53 names ofgraduates who died over the pastyear. Ron indicated that this was Dave’s idea and he carried it to fruition. The wreath that you see in the photo was presented by the oldest grad there and theyoungest cadet in attendance. This was the start ofa great a tradition. Mega-kudos Dave for startingsomething so meaningful and that will last after we are not here.

Rumor has it thatWildWood Woodhead, my very good friend from CS-15 days, retired from theAFL-CIO in May. TheAFL-CIO President, Mr. Sweeney, praisedWood forhis generous and enthusiastic support ofthe organization for over 17 years and praised his many contributions to the organizations’ growth in a number ofkey areas.. His great sense ofhumor was naturally mentioned as well as his geographicalknowledge oflocal union locales around the country—andassociated nearbybars and eateries. Dr.Woodheadcertainly made many contributions to a keypart ofAmerican society—the AFL-CIO. HeyWood—did theygive you the framed picture ofthe “Masterpiece” that

JOIN THE SABRE SOCIETY!

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CADETWING PROGRAMS THAT WOULD OTHERWISE GO UNFUNDED.

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SeventyMen Part ofInaugural Memorial Ceremony in DC. From left are YogiRoyce, TerryWeimer, 71, Dave Sterling, DougCarlson, and Ron Kelly.

Chuck Gray and I signed? Chip Terrill, Oker O’Connor, and Ron Kelley attended the ceremony.Woodyalso celebrated thebigSix-Ohbirthdayrecently and several classmates and their significant others attended a party at George Keys’ beautiful home in DC.

WildWoodenjoys60th with classmates.

Shared a beerwithJim Bechtel at the USAFA golfcourse a fewweeks ago. I was hoping to play a roundwith him, but somethingpopped up at the last minute. It was good to see Jim aftermanyyears. He lives in beautifulAnnapolis, butisworkingwiththe NavyinDC. Hehas takenhisfairshareofhitsthe last fewyears overAF losses to Navy—notthisyear! Ron and MonaVolkmar are in LasVegas. Ron is into bigtime cycling. SorryI missed you on your trip here.

Had a greattimeplayinggolfwithMike Kelley a fewweeks ago. MyP-school classmate and I sharedlots oflaughs over a great dinnerthat Mike hosted for Marilyn and me. We bothhad a supertime! I knewletting Mike beat me on the linkswouldhave some benefit!Mike mentionedPaulCatosh’s son or daughter was getting married near the GrandTetons in August and Mike planned to attend. Mike saidhevisited GreggPopovich in SanAntonio and also saw Ed Rashid. Seems Edhad incurred some type ofmajorinjuryriding a mountain bike—he is backin the saddle now. MikeTorreano bowed out ofthe Bechtel golfmatch due to a “strained groin” from playing softball. Those “strained groin” muscles can be a problem at our age men. I strained mine a fewweeks agojustreaching for the remotewith myfoot. Laid me up forweeks!

TooeyEmeryand GaryDahlen met with theAcademy architect to discuss our class gift and the design oftheVietnam Pavilion. This is going to be awesome classmates. Make a pledge now—we need to make this project a reality by our next Reunion.

ChuckWeir tookhis sorrygolfgame to Coronado for two weeks and said it got worse! He is gearing up forthe influxof8,000 freshmen at Arizona State. Chuck took it upon himselfto organize all the sororities to give him a hand. You’re too late buddy—thatmight have been a greatjob at age 25—not at 62! You probablyremind those girls oftheir grandfathers!

ForyouPrepSchoolers, I havebeen intouchwithDave Sabey.We chatted on thephoneseveralweeks ago.Asyoumayknow, Davehas beenverysuccessful inthe construction business in Seattle. He is assisting me in raising funds for a movie about the Academy and the values it teaches—Wings of Honor (www.wingsofhonormovie.com). Dave is verysupportive ofthe project and was verystraightforward abouthowthe Prep School had a tremendous positive impact on his life andthe success he has achieved. Mike Kelley also said thatformerPreppie, CharlieHall, was also a successfulbusinessman in Seattle andhas remained close to Dave.

I made my annual Memorial Dayvisit to the cemetery. Always sad to see classmatesand goodfriendsintheirfinalrestingplace—andthe numbers grow everyyear.

On6August our LegacyClass,2010,had a dinnerinMitchellHall to maketheir formal commitment to serve our nation. This is a relatively new tradition. I got a littleemotionalwatching over 1,000young men and women take the Oath of Office inthesetimes ofwar. Thoughtbackto when we were cadets andhearing the names ofmembers ofthe Class of1967who had trained us beingreadfrom the stafftower aftertheyhad made the supreme sacrifice in SEA.

I was veryproud to see so manyclassmates turn out fortheceremony. It was also pretty neat to get a bighugfrom C2C Brian O’Connor, Oker’s son. He has his Dad’s sense ofhumor. He said to me, “Well it looks like I am stuck now— justlike mybrother atWest Point.” Knowthe O’Connor’s are proud oftheir boys—as is the Class of1970!

The attendees had theirpicturetaken in front ofour last class gift—the MemorialWall at Doolittle Hall.

Ohyes, I got a parttimeteachingjob in theAcademy’sEnglishDepartment. Am teachingDoolies how to write (hopefullybetterthanIdo!).Itisa thrill and honor to bebackin the classroomwith these greatyoung cadets. My contact info at work should be in the box at top ofarticle.

As always, am proud to be a memberofthe Class of 1970! Hope to see some ofyou at some games thisyear! Arriba Falcones!

Paul D. Knott

5565 Lantana Drive Colorado Springs, CO 80920

H: (719) 570-9162

W: (719) 594-0100

E-mail: pk71knott@gmail.com

53% Members

Ifyou were ever a FAC or knewRichard Gray or MarkPeterson, therewill be a ForwardAir Controller Memorial dedicated during the 2008 FAC National Convention here in the Springs, 1-5 Oct.

One ofthe least enjoyable duties ofa Class Scribe is to inform you that our ranks are diminished. Stetson Cowan passed away in July. His and my first assignments were toVance AFB. He definitely “Flewwith Relish!” Ifyou need information on how to express your condolences to Tess, please let me know.

On a much happier note, one ofthe newest adjunct professors of English at the Academy is our own Darryl Wimberley. The plan is to stayfor a year and do as much as possible to produce not onlyproficient writers but critical thinkers in theAir Force ranks. As you who knowhim can imagine, he and some ofthejunior instructors have already had definite differences ofopinion. One ofthe young lieutenants was describing how her favorite actor “accidently” imitated another actor in a dramatic scene. Darrylpatientlyexplained, from his perspective as a screen writer, that, with the costs ofmovie production, that nothing gets on screen by accident. Of course, his insider’s knowledge did nothing to swayherignorance. Ifall elsefails, Darrylwill be able to displayhis trophy as the firstwinneroftheWillieMorris Prize for Southern Fiction, which he will receive in October.

In mylast column, I mentioned Darryl’s essayabout LeonWhite. A spouse from another class was kind enough to thank me for mentioning it. Then she casuallymentioned that ofcourse we had informedhis familyabout this tribute.Well... After a couple ofabortive efforts to find them, I appeal to all ofyou now; ifany ofyou have kept in touchwith any members oftheWhite family, please either make a point ofcontacting them and forwarding the original memory on behalfofLeon’s class or get me the contact information.

Nick and Mike Stooke’s son, Adam, graduated in May. In the words ofhis proudparents, “Adam graduated#3 academicallyin the USAFA Class of2008. His GPA missed #1 by .02! He completed a dual major in Physics and MathematicsintheScholarsProgramandreceivedthe awardsforthe"Outstanding Cadetin BasicSciences" and"OutstandingCadetinAppliedPhysics." He also was selectedfor a Hertz FoundationFellowship whichis fundingfor fiveyears

SeventyHonors2010 at CommitmentDinner. From left in the back row are C3C Kevin Hodges (our escort), Skip Penny, Dave Gaw, Gary Dahlen, Jack Mueller, andBob Snead. Frontrow:JoeKupko, BillKirkman, ThePhantom, andLarryBush. Greg GillesandBrian Pendergast were therebutmissed this photo op.

Nick, Mike, andAdam Stooke withPatricia Gallagher(BasicSciencesAward presenter.

ofPhD study. His firstAF assignmentwill be to attend the University ofCalifomia at Berkeleyto work on his master's degree inPhysics. Afterthat, the plan is forhim to do a stintwith anAF lab, then return to finishhis PhD. Wehave no ideawhere he got his academic abilities, but we are veryproud ofhim! (His sponsor family in theColorado Springs area was one ofNick's former roommates, LarrySmith, and his wife, Suzanne.)

The first paragraph mentioned DickGray. Tann Pinneyattended a special MemorialDaytribute to Dickand66xotherresidents oftheAlexandria,VA area who died in theVietnamWar.

An Update to last summer’s mention ofBob “Skiman” Peterman. He had been hiking theAppalachian Trail. I’m happy to report that he and his sister covered over 1,000 miles on foot from SouthwestVirginia in Mayto Maine in August oflastyear. He finished 30 poundslighter andwith memories thatwill last a lifetime.

Speakingofupdates,HarryDavis spent some more time inthehospitalsince the last column. His blood pressure readings had reallygotten out ofhand, andhespent anotherroundin the ICU. He andCindywould reallyappreciate hearing from you guys. Perhaps, Harry, you should stay awayfrom Falcon Stadiumthis fall. I understandthatthisyear’s team mayhavetheleast experience since, oh, 1957!

Bob Bell

13 Pacific Ave.

Sinking Spring, PA 19608 (610) 678-3182/Fax: 678-4513

E-mail: rabell767@aol.com

53% Members

We have some great news from our class in recentAcceptance Day ceremonies.Additionally, we havetheplannedTerryBench MemorialWeekendGolfing Event set up for September 19-21 in conjunctionwith the USAFA- Utah footballgame.

Dave KerberreportsthatheinrunningfortheColorado State House ofRepresentatives, District HD-38 which includes Littleton, GreenwoodVillage and Englewood. He saysthat one ofthebenefitsofhaving to raise moneyforhis campaign is thathehas hadtheopportunityto talkwith anumberoftheBigBlue. Just afewoftheguysinclude TJMancuso, attorneyin Denver; Pete Harry, attorneyin Dallas,TX; GregAnderson, the Executive DirectorofWings Over theRockies; andTimo Sullivan, retired.Additionally, Davehas been around the Frat Fivers who have been supporting his campaign:SmokeyStover, apparentlyretiredfromAmerican Airlines; John Fuss, workingwith Lockheed Martin in New Mexico; GaryGrant, retired; Don MacNiven, livingright outside the North Gate ofUSAFA; andPeteVogel, NewYorkPortAuthority.

Therewill be a golfouting. Thatis allthe die-hard duffers need to hear. But in this case, the linkswill befulloffolkswho are there for a dual purpose - the golf will ensue, butin additionwillbe the celebration ofa life - that ofour dearfriend TerryBench. Abriefdialogue ensued inthe effort to set this event in motion.

First, there was HarveyLeCato’s e-mail to all class addressees (that we currentlyknowof) informingthem ofthe upcomingSeptember GolfEvent. The actual drivers on this eventwhere Harvey’s e-mail originated include Doug Hill, Jim Reed and RogerParsons,just to name a few.

Class President ScottySturmanfollowedupwith a shortparagraphdefining the query on the subject ofpossiblyusingthe Class Fund to assistthe children ofdeceased grads with their undergraduate education, mentioninghowthe amount would have to be at a level thatwould not jeopardize our ability to conduct class business and insure our class could consistentlysupport future scholarships. AmountswouldbedetermineduponfurtherreviewbytheClass Treasurer to ascertainlegalityand recommend the amount.

RogerParsonsthenrespondedto Scottywith some details: “Ithinkyourideais a good one. Forthebenefitofour classmateswho mighthavebeen a bitconfused from the e-mail Harveyforwarded from DougHill, permit me to elaborate.

TerryBench was one ofmy roommates when wewere in “Fightin’ Fourth Squadron. As manyofyou know, “Bunch” as he was affectionatelyknown by his 4thSquadronclassmates, was a greatgolferand awonderfulguythatwould do anythingforhis buddies. He was struckdownby cancer andleft a wonderfulwife in Denise and two greatyoung sons in Dannyage 15andDavidage 12. Afewofhis squadron mates and fellowclassmates thoughtitwouldbe a good idea to come out to theZoo, have Denise and the boys as our guests, and celebrateTerryand our memories ofhim.

FellowFourthSquadronclassmateandgolfteammember,JimReed, who lives neartheAcademy,hasbeenmakingarrangementsforus tohave agolftournament on Friday,Sept. 19,2008 attheAcademygolfcourse. Thetee timewilllikelybeearly intheafternoon so those comingfrom out oftown can come inFridaymorning. Whilenotthemainpurposeofthetournament, wehopetotakein somedonations fromtheparticipantsfor an education fundforDannyandDavid.

On Saturdaymanyofus will be attending theAir Force - Utah game scheduledfor a 2 p.m. MT start and have a tailgate partybefore the game.

Denise has purchased a memorial bench through theAOG and she will be dedicating it to Terry’s memory. I know, how could one pass up a bench for Bench? AlthoughTerry’s remains were cremated in Floridawhere he was a long-timeresident, we plan on a memorial service at theAcademycemetery as a fittingtribute and a movingexperience forTerry’sfamily. Ifyou care tojoin us forthe golftournament please let Jim Reed knowASAP.

Finally, Denise sent a reply, “Hi Roger. I would not want to use any class funds that classmates have donated to the academyfortheboys. Atthis point in time, I am onlyrequesting thatTerry’s buddiesandformerclassmates help us to honorhim and to demonstrate to Dannyand David that theirdad was a great guy, well liked and respectedby many. I’d rather everyone thoroughly enjoytheweekend ofgolfas simply a game to enjoywithTerry’sboys, nothing more. Have fun cheeringfor the Falcons, and then pay final respect to Terry at the chapel event andvisit the memorial “bench. Thanks for all you have done to help me conveythis message. - Denise”

In other news, a class of’75 member, Jim Carlson, relayed a request to our class and some nice comments as well. Hewouldlike to have anyphotos that members of’72 mayhave coveringthe Class of’75 BCTsummerwhen we were Firsties. Even after some 37years, Jim saidhewanted to expresswhatmanyof his class still feel, that theygot a good solid start from us and a lot ofwhatthey were exposed to those first sixweeks stood them in good stead through the fouryears at the Zoo, in theirlater careers, andtheirpersonal lives. He closed stating that we were good role models... what better compliment from one class to another! Anyone who maywish to send photos can forwardthem through me, and I will see thatJim and ’75 gets to see what evidence there is of that beastly summer.

Ourclassmates were partofthisyear’sAcceptanceParadefortheClassof2012.

In the back rowfromleftare SandyLewis, GregAnderson, Bob Waller, Harvey LeCato, Kurt Chamberlin, Al Sellers, and Chuck Winter. Kneeling: George Pollard, DougHill, andRalph “Buzz"Allen.

In the year 2000 theAcademyinitiated a new tradition called the Legacy Class. The Class of 1964 was the first Legacy Class for the Class of2004. The LegacyClass participates in major events with theyoungerclass, for example, theAcceptance Parade, Recognition, Exemplar Dinner, Commitment Dinner, Ring-Dining Out and Graduation. At this year’sAcceptance Parade on August6th, 10 ofour Classmates ceremoniouslypresentedcopies ofContrails to the 10 outstandingbasic cadets, one from each ofthe 10 basic squadrons.

Bytheway, our Class paid for the printing ofthe 1,300 copies.Additionally, HarveyLeCato addressedthe Class of2012 with a motivationalspeech. (Alas, we are up to our word limit for this column, and Harvey’swords will have to wait until the Checkpoints Class News, Fall edition in November. Be on the lookoutfor it!)

Visit the AOG Web Site.

Merchandise, Gone But Not Forgotten and more!

www.usafa.org

Members ofClass ofl 972presentingContrails to Members ofClass of2012.

Joe Kahoe

4140 Saddle Rock Road

Colorado Springs, CO 80918

Cell: (719) 210-5568

joekahoe@gmail.com

http://73.texascomputerhelp.com

Members

Classof73,thankyouforyourgreatinputs. Nowlookingforreunionstories andpicturesfortheWinteredition. WehavelimitedspaceinCheckpoints, but allinputswill be included on our webversion ofthe Checkpoints article at http://usafa73.org. Respectfully, Joe Kahoe, CS-07.

Congrats to our newest four-starandcommanderofAETC, General Steve Lorenz! (Web site for more pictures.)

the two CD set. Ifanyone is interestedin obtainingcopies,please contact me at info@lucidtechnologies.info.

VanceWatt (CS-01): “I decided to skip themergerwith Delta (beenthrough threealready!). I gaveupmyspot as the most seniorNWA73 gradto RickWest, who stood in line behind me on day 1 inJune 23rd, 1969, was in same UPT class, and we flewin the same C-130 squadron for a year at PopeAFB. Tom Schuessleris now one senioritynumber at NW, behindRick, andbothplan to stickaround a fewmore years as theyhave offspringwho are collegebound.

Congrats

Also,heartycongratulations toWilliam L. Thompson,who was selectedby theAOG as it’s newpresidentandchiefexecutiveofficer. Accordingto theAOG pressrelease, “Knownas‘T’ to his classmates andfriends, he bringsyears of experience to theAOG as an award-winningentrepreneur, airlinepilot, com- munityand governmentleader, taxattorney, andpublicspeaker.” We know he’ll do a greatjob at thehelm oftheAOG.

MikeSmithisinhislastquarterofclassesforhisPhD...compsthisfallandwill starthisdissertationresearchinJan09.MikeisalsoworkingwiththeAcademy's CenterforCharacterandLeadershipDevelopment,doing a study on characterdevelopment as a resultoftheAcademy experience.Mikewas PresidentofbdSystemsuntilboughtby SAIC,whereheis now aVP inColoradoSprings.

Tom andJaneKroessiglivePeachtreeCity, GA. “I am cop- ingwithchronichealthproblems and am on longterm dis- abilityfromDeltaAirLines. I am anAmbassadorFieldDirec- tor forPromise Keepers. One ofmypassions is to workfor unityamong churchesinthis area. Janeworksparttimefor a companycalledVetrimark,sellingproducts to veterinarian officesandis a costumerfortheatercompaniesinAtlanta. Ourolderdaughter, Katie,livesinBocaRatonandworksforBostonProper. Outyoungerdaughter, Amy, isaboutto startherfreshmanyearatSpartanburgMethodistCollege,SC, whereshewillbe a goalie on thewomen's soccer team.” kroessig4@aol.com Rev. Msgr. SteveRossetti, PhD DMin (CS-37): Stevehas been a Monsignor forover ayearandheisstillministeringatStLukeInstituteinSilverSpring, MD as a Catholicpriest and its CEO... 16years at same location. Steve is also a licensedpsychologistandworkswithpriests andreligious in the residential psychologicaltreatmentprogram, called St LukeInstitute (www.sli.org). He had aJuly4thBBQ athishomeandDaveOclimanekand Lt. GenFrankKlotz, bothfromCS-37, came, withspouses. Dave is stillworkingat RAND, a think tank,doingdefenseanalysis.

CraigE. Lady(CS-16) andhisfiancee,AnnMartin, were marriedintheProt- estantCadetChapelduring our reunionby our formercadetchaplain, now- retiredChaplain (Col) Bob Browning, ’59. NewemailforErnestButlerisemest.butler@disa.mil ErnieDSN227-9971.

SteveHarmonistheProgramExecutiveOfficerforPreparationandTraining atSOCOM,whereheworkswithfolkslike LtGenDonWurster atAFSOC. He isplanning a familyreunionwithhisfolksinSeattleforThanksgiving(Dad92 and Mom 88). “Dinneris on me when folks come throughTampa.”

Skip Sanders recently hosted Orville Wright’s daughter, F-15E pilot, at Tyndall. Wentto SteveLorenz'spromotionandCoCatRandolph. Itwasavery goodtime.

BrianBeard... “I was in the CadetChorale andaftergraduationobtained a copyofthereel-to-reelrecordingoftheJuneWeekChoraleConcertfromMr. Boyd, our director. I recentlyrediscoveredthetapes, and digitized to CDs. I alsohad some otherrecordings ofChoralandChapelChoirsthat I added to

VanceWattandRickWestatVance’sretirementafter28.5yearsatNW. MikeHay. IntheFWIWdepartment, Ijustdiscovered andjoinedthissite, as a way to re-connect with some quality people, http://www.usafa.org/ ZoomieNation_Redirect.aspx

RickKarvosky “Afterfourmonthsofdust storms andartilleryshellsrock- ingmybed atnight, I finallygaveup andtook an assignment atAlDhafra,Abu Dhabi, UAE as the CivilEngineeragain. I was supposed to be gonelastFriday, butwe hadfourdaysofduststorms andtheBlackhawks were on weatherhold! I'llbedoingthe sameworkI did at Dhaftafrom2003-06. It'11begoodto getback to a more civilizedandnormallife!Wish I couldmake it to the35th it'llbethe firstI'llmiss. Iwas at the 10th,20th,25thand30th! I'll be at the40th. I planto stay hereonly ayearandthencall itquitsandgoback to Nantucketandbuya small boatrentalbusinessandworkonlyMemorialDay to LaborDayfromthen on! Nantucketiswheremysignificantotherlives. Denisewas myseniorpromdate and"dropped" me when I entered theAcademythat summer and I had not seen heruntilshe sent me an emailthroughClassmates.Com inSept2006- 37 yearslater!We'vebeentogether ever since!”

From Dougand RuthRichter (CS-35): “Ourdaughter Kari marriedJeffin Dec2007, and our son NickmarriedKharissainJunethisyear. Ruth was pro- moted to a newjob at thelocalhospital. Dougpassedtheprofessionalengi- neers exam andis moving to Fredericksburg,VA.

RogerSmithandAJRanfttaken inMayata barinRomecelebratingthe35th anniversaryoftheirEuropean road trip the summer aftergraduation. AJ's wife,Andree, andRoger’swife,Jackye, taggedalong to help them relivetheir youth.

AfternineyearswithUnitedAirlines,JoeMitchell (CS36) is nowwiththeFAA inLouisville, KYasActingManagerforGeneralAviationintheFSDO. Theywent to Louisville to benearbydaughterStephanie’sfamily. Their sonJoeylefttheAF as a captainafter 10yearsand is now at BaladAB inIraq as an ITcontractor.

BuddyGammon won hisPrimaryelectionJuly 15th so willbe on theNov. 4 GeneralElectionBallot as a candidateforU.S CongressfromGeorgia, the 11th District. Budgammon.com.

FredBeckmanndoesriskmanagementforNorthropGrummanatBWI. Loves to travelandstayproficientinlanguages...Happilymarried...Twoboys - one at UnivofMarylandand one at GeorgiaTech earninghis master’s.

Flashback: OnDec. 9,1971, DonRightmyerwas thedesignatedwingrepre- sentativeto speak atthededicationoftheMinutemanIII missile infrontofthe fieldhouse... awesome photo on ourweb site.

Ourheartfeltcondolencesandprayers go out to MikeHarmon,whosewife, Renee, was buriedintheAcademyCemetery on Aug2nd next to herbrother,

From leftare MikeandSandraMosier, Skip (seated) andJoanneSanders, PaulandJaneFreund, SteveandLeslieLorenz, MikeNishimuta, Bruceand JanetMeyer, andBobandPam Munson.

to GeneralNortySchwartzforbeingconfirmedbythe Senate on Aug 1st as ournext USAFChiefofStaff!

Greg Renko, who was laid to rest two years ago. Mike and Greg had been roommatesin CS-28 and a numberoftheirclassmatesattended includingJohn Thompson, Mike Tillman, HarryWalker, JackHower, Chuck Stewart, Bob Munson, and Bill Gillin.

Joe Brezovic

1209 Bayou Oaks Drive

Friendswood, TX 77546

H: (281) 482-6860

E-mail: jbrezovic@comcast.net

Hello Classmates around the globe!

48% Members

Wehad our classmate Duncan McNabb as the USAF ChiefofStaff! Congratulations Duncan!Within a few days! TheAir Force Secretary then requested Duncan to become the Commander ofTRANSCOM, utilizing allthe experience he had while in charge of Air Mobility Command (AMC), but implementing his skills, knowledge, and trainingto mobilizethejointcommandforces and logistics. Over at AMC, Chris Kelly is theVice-Commander. Dave Daley remarked once thathe had to reviewAMC answers to Questions forthe Record forsubmission to Congress. Dave nodeed on the staffsummary sheet that the AMCVice Commander approved the responses. “Knowing that my classmate Chris Kellyapproved made Dave’sjob easier!”

Aless than happynotice was the un-announced closingof the airlines that kept Hawaii tied to itselfand CONUS. AlohaAirlines as we knewit is dead. One ofthe analysts forthelocal airlines commentedthat this bankruptcyis airtightAfewofour classmates suffered the loss ofwork there. Emails went around and contacts made, resumes read, recommendations given, and the coconut shells thrummed. Well, at least the classmates helped as classmates could. Thankyou, Steve Lenzi for adding recommendations to your emails. Thankyou, Bill Casement from Dallas, Texas, for passing notes along. Bill is awaitingnews ofhis flyingcompanyclosingits doors. [No update to March news.] Bill is also dreaming up a 76-02 Moody reunion it's in the planningstages, pollingfor interest among class members. Interested in attending?Atthe moment, BillJones, GaryChrist, and I are gatheringup contact info for class members

AndyGalikis safe inhisworkforawhile, sincewe’re oil-dependent. Andy, a card-carryingprofessionalengineer, is a drillingengineer, for Exxon Mobil. His home is still in Houston. In fact, he plans to attend the USAFA vs Houston footballgame on Sept 13.1wonderhowmanyofthe gradsgottogether? Hopefully one ofy’allwill send me a line and a picture ofa tailgate or two so we can spread the news around? Andywould have had to leave town soon after the game. He progressed from four years work in Nigeria to Perth, Australia. I rented ‘QuigleyDown Under’ to get a feel ofit. But, I don’t think Quigley provides a goodpicture ofAustralia. Maybe the outback?

The reason I mentionedthe movie aboutAustralia is that I rented Lawrence ofArabia’ as one oftwo movies to get a feel forSaudiArabia. Yes, it does give a picture ofthe outback, and around. Joe Brezovic is in Riyadh for a bit. There are some peculiarities that I’d like to pass on. Asyou mayknow, there is prayer fivetimes a day. We’reremindedbythe speakers on themosquesthatbroadcast like the‘attentionin the area’ ofyesteryear. The remindersometimes turns into a 15-minute homilyin the evenings. Everyneighborhood has a speaker. The most noticeable time is the4 a.m.! Shops, restaurants, libraries, all close up for the prayertime. The officejob is helping to develop the Royal SaudiAir Force Center for Research and Development. That is the goal ofbroadening the systemsanalysis team the RSAF has now. Joe thinks there are so manypossibilities ofexchanging ideaswith classmates!

RobertLowreyfromColorado Springs sentin a note afterthe news ofRichard Alcorn’spassing. Forthefuture, ifanyonewishes to pass a note on to a classmate’s family, the quickestwaywouldbe to contact theAOG office. Thescribe may have some information from theAOG ora classmate - but theAOG is the best spot. Robert is a District Court Judge there in Colorado Springs! That city is gettingattention. CraigAndersonwrote thathelearned, at anAndersonFamily reunion on his aunt’s 90th Birthday, thathe has relatives inTellurideand Boulder. Craigis planning on a skitrip to Colorado inthe springof2009. He’splacing a calloutto DirtyDozenmembersto see ifanyone set sometimeaside? Ifyou are intheSprings, or thinkingaboutit, dropthescribe a note andhe’llpassit on - just trying to keep the privacyact included ify’allwouldlike itthatway. Thiswillbe the35threunionyearforyourplanningbudgets. Craigsent on a note thatheand Rite may be empty-nesters. Their oldest is a Lt JG in the Navy, working as a nuclear engineer in Naval Reactors in the NavyYard,Washington, DC. Their middle son graduated fromVirginiaTechthis spring, with a degree in human health and nutrition. Theirdaughterjustgraduatedfromhigh schoolandwill beheaded to the UniversityofVirginia to be an engineer ofsome sort. Meanwhile, the small lawfirm heworks in is about to become smaller as a few announcedplans to leavethis summer! He added I thinkthe rest ofus will continue on together, butreallycan’tbe sure about anythinganymore.”

Anotherclassmatetrying to be a permanentmemberin Colorado Springs in our USAFAbehalfis SteveMalutich. As ofthiswriting, Steve is in charge ofthe Texas School ofBusiness in Houston, Texas. The parent company is Kaplan HigherEducation Corporation, part ofKaplan, Inc, which is part oftheWashington Post organization.

Here’s a new email and face to the news. After 34 years RayHaile sent in an update! Raywas inspiredbyseeing in the last 'Checkpoints' Hank, Cat and Kerls (“three guys I used to knowin a previouslife”). Rayattached a picture of his family(daughterCortney, son Mike, wife, Susie) after finishingthe Marine Corps Marathon last fall.

Hailes: Cortney,Mike, Susie,Ray.

And so long to the last ofknown ’74 family establishments! Keith Quinn relates that although he’s had some greattimes, due to the economy, he decided to sell his burger restaurant. “Now I spend mydaysjob-hunting on the net. I had no idea there were so manyjobhelp sites. I'mtrying to stayin the Dayton area. Valerie (wife) has a goodjob with UniversityofDayton Research Institute so we can continue pushing our son throughWrightState.” Last note: classmate Scott Huddleson was remembered in the Gone, but No Forgotten column last issue. I had not learned that Scott had passed on. But classmate Ralph Tate learned ofit and wrote a very touching article. Thankyou, Ralph forremembering Scott to us.

That’s allthatfits for this round. Send in your notes! Mayyou each live long and prosper.

Paul Kent

18166 S.E. 41st Place

Issaquah, WA 98027-9717

Mobile: (425) 785-3586

E-mail: zooscribe@mac.com

OurClassHeads to theMoon.When classmate/astronaut Brian Duffyheard aboutthis, he responded "cool... alwayswanted to go to the moon... we just got too old too soon." To which the organizer of our adventure, Webmaster MartyStytz retorts "Who sayswe're too old? Someone still has to be the first man on Mars. Course, thatwill take a bit more effort bythe class." Al Bready: "So... what do Martian women look like?" The LRO Class Projectwas a resoundingsuccess! Eachofour squadrons submitted its name to accompany the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), the first mission in NASA's plan to return to the Moon and then to travel to Mars and beyond. On Marty's own initiative, our GBNF classmates are also inscribed.

ClassmateUpdates. CharlieBuck's son Chadplaysrhythm guitar in "The Dorian Green Blues Band." Charlie adds "It's some kind ofplay on OscarWilde's 'The Picture ofDorian Gray', which I don't understand." He sent the scribe some of their music. Prettygood stuff. Even old folks can enjoy. Chuck Molzon was flyingforAmerican TransAirwhen theyfiled bankruptcy. Paul Lotakis, NW Region POC: Got a short-notice call from Mike BuckleythatLarryRichterwas in town andtheytooktheferryfrom Seattle to Bainbridge Island. Had a noonmeal formationand thentrekked the Bloedel Reserve here on Bainbridge. Got verythirstyand went back to mydeckfor some barleypops.

JeffChappell: Just saw a well-done documentarycalled "FightingforLife," aboutmilitarymedical operations in Iraq. Saw ourvery own Charlie Beadling. Itrenewedmyappreciationfor our classmates and others (includingmywife) in medical professions. Mickey Clemons: I am recovering from surgery for a detached retina. Mike Matte: Mydaughtergraduated from lawschool. Brian Barnes: Teri and I have started a bed and breakfasthere in Seattle. HugoGray: Was watchinglast part ofthe film "Top Gun” and up pop thecredits forthe pilotswho supported the cast.Was stunned to see Capt. Mike "Boa” Straight as himselfplaying a MiG pilot! Mike responds: The Navygraciouslylet the tokenAF exchange guyfly a littie bit ofthe film. Agood bunch ofguys. But I tell Dottie I was actuallyTom Cruise's stunt double for the bedroom scene.

Charles Schmitz: Hello from wild and wonderfulIraq, wish you were here. Settled into my new job and well into my fourthweek, not that 1' m counting. It has been interestingworking a joint billet with theArmy, onlyconfirms my reasons for going to USAFA and notWest Point. Bill Davis: Had a wonderful two-week cruise of the Mediterranean with Annette and her folks. Raider Ramstad appears to be a San Francisco-based 747 copilot. Should I just tell him thatJim Carlsonhas the 75 Mafiasearchingfor him, andthat he can run, butnothide?Officialannouncementwas publishedforBrigGenDave Ehrhart s retirement 15 Aug. Bill Dalson: A1 Peck will pin on his third star and assume command ofAirUniversity. MaxDellaPia: I retired from themilitaryandfrom mycivil serviceposition.Theygave me a brevet promotion to BG at myretirement. My son John has accepted a slot at the Prep School to play soccer.

Stan Schoener to Jim Carlson: Seeing you, Mark Beesley andJohn Loucks certainlybrought backgreat memories. It's amazing how the bad memories don't seem so bad any more. Forthose ofyou out therewho, like me, have not made it to anyofthe reunions, I hope you make it to the next one. Stan adds: Mydaughter, who is a senior at USC (AFROTC), has been accepted to UNR (Reno) med school. I went thru cancer surgery (bladder). Scott Smith: Imagine my delight when I got to the Delta crew wine bar in Rome to find fellow Deltapilot Mike Roznovskywaiting for me with a glass ofwine ready to toast "75 BestAlive." I did not realize he was at Delta. William Rohde: Delta has a crew wine bar?

well from prostate

SandyTerry wants to sincerelythankallofyouwho supported his recent Leukemia & LymphomaSocietybicycle ride. Dick Webber: Am alive andwell at the Pentagon. MikeAnderson: I was havingbreakfast, and I looked up and saw a FedExpilot dude lookingsharp and being in command and stuff. I thought"I knowthat guy! That's my roomo! (Jack Barton)" My Comm Director noted how we seemed to befriendswho were justcatchingup- and was surprised that the lasttime we saw each other was threeyears ago at the reunion. "That'stheway it is with our class," I told her. "It’s like a Band-of-Brothers thing. We went through a lot together, and we will go throughanythingtogether. It could be years since we saw each other.... but itwill seem likejustyesterday when we spendanytimetogether."

HarryMathis: Miracles stillhappen. Against many odds, the Air Force has decided to promote me to 0-6.With so manyyoungthoroughbreds in the race I was pretty sure this old plowhorse was headed forthe barn (thought I could even smellthe hay), but God andtheAF had other plans. Mark Risi: I had my left knee replaced. John Scherer: I have a son who is at USNA and is a third classman. I am tired ofhearing about NavyFootball! Bill Murray: I got a layoff notice from Lockheed Martin, so I've been in the "job search" mode! Duane Jones sent the followingphoto of our classmates at theAF Blue Summit. Invited, but not able to attend: Dave Tillotson, DickWebber, and Ric Rosburg. Not pictured: Steve Rogers.

Beesley, Dale and Linda Meyerrose, Dan McCorry, Greg Schmitt, John and KathySullivan, Duane andJanJones (the Hosts!), Ebola Bill Lyerly and Sylvia +2, CowboyAwtrey and Jani, Joe May and Nancy,Jerry Manthei, Chappie Hargrove, MikeAndersonandRene, Dickand MicheleWebber, BillandAnnette Davis. On June 4, CS-33 sent out a "Happy33rd from 33" message to the class. We onlyhave seven more graduation anniversaries before we won't be able to do that anymore.

at BollingAFB. Apicturesque covered pavilion on the Potomac. Attending: Phil andArlene Saenger, TerryandPegYoung, Rick Benbow, Marv CoxFamily, RudyRoth, Don Byers, Duane Lodrige,Al andBillieBready, Bill and Cleo Dalson, JimCarlson, Mark

The DC Picnic Group

Chris Glaeserwrote to the scribe: I thinkwe should have a NWcoast-to-coast picnic on June 7th also. The gracious Chris even offered to host at his house. Unfortunately, the scribe and others in the Pacific NWcould not make itwork with their schedules.

Dan Beatty

12196 Stanley Canyon Road Colorado Springs, CO 80921

H: (719) 488-1962

E-Mail: whrlybrd76@aol.com

Dan.Beatty@usafa.af.mil

http://www.AFAcademy.com/76

Fellow 76 ers, Classof2012 (yes, 12!) has taken up residence at the BlueZoo and are just finishingBCT as I write this.

Movingup/moving on. HowieThompson from Commander’s MobilizationAssistant, 8thAF to CSAF MA. Brian Meenan from MAHQAMC to CC MA, 18th AF. Willie Shelton confirmed to Lt Gen with move to Chief,WarfightingIntegration / ChiefInformation Officer, SAF. TonyPrzybyslawski fromAETC Director, Intelligence andAir, Space and Information to AETC/CV Doug Loverro is now the SMC SES Executive Director. Congrats to you all! Larry New retired. Good luck in the next life Larry.

General Class Stuff: I am still expanding/updating my Scribedatabase and appreciate any contact infoyou have for any ’76ers including email/snail mail addresses and phone numbers. I will not share info withoutyour permission to protectyourprivacy. Please send any and all contact datayou have. Iwill sort out anyduplicates. Ifyou are on some sort of“linked-in” site, send me an invite to join and I can get contact info you have for other ’76ers.

HUGE responsesthis go! I appreciate theplethora of’76erswho responded to my note about 76 entering Beast 36 years ago, and I have now been convinced we entered on 03 Jul, not 05 Jul as shown in the Register. Apologies to Lee Cuevas for not adding his input from last session about racing his 944. BarryMuhlenberg’s son Kai gothis Navywings and is offto flyF/A-18s, and son Eric recentlygraduated fromWest ChesterU. Barryis still a UPSA-300 captain.

Delta PilotsRoznovskyandSmith at the DeltaAirWine Barin Rome. Scott Hente is recovering

cancer surgery.

Ehrhart, Peck, Jones, McClendon, Commons, Fraser, Knauff, and Schuessler.

Class of75 33rdAnniversary Picnic. Saturday, 7 June

Eric, Terry, Kai andBarryMuhlenberg atson Kai’sNaval winging. Bill Rogge sees Jack Catton and Larry New frequently. DougFryand Cendy will begrandparents x 4 in Sept. Dougand BenThomson were the only ’76ers at theTri-ServiceAcademygolftourneybut Ben said to not askhowthey did. RandySchaverien seems to have theperfectjob... ”1 am fourmiles awayfrom myboss, I don't supervise anyone, and am theflightsafetyguyfor a wingthat

doesn't own airplanes.” MikeWalsh is still hanging out in Hawaii and has a newgrandson. MikeFricanoisnowacivDepDiratHQPACAF. Says theAloha AOGChapterhostedthree groups ofcadets this summer. Dave Berghad nothing to report fromLangley. EdGallagherfinishedhis BaghdadEmbassytour and heads to the Paris embassyJun 09 to work in the Consular section. He figures he will get more 76 visitors than in Baghdad. Ed saw Dave Clary at Baghdad airport ceremonyrecently.

TerryWilliams sayshe, StefEisen, andDennyRea are stillkeepingtheinvading hordes from attackingMontgomery, AL. DennyShupe still doing great things with USO. He is co-chair of PA and south NJ USO event in Oct and welcomes any and allsupportfrom Zooms in the area. Son Nathan hasweddingplannedforJul 09 and daughterEllenjustfinished 1styear at Gettysburg college. Kim and LaurieWeber report no big news from Gilroy. Doug Stewart still doing a little part time helo workbut says he mayhang that up byyears’ end andjust continue to workfor Scitor.

Greg Lewis talkswithTonyP and Rico Racosky a good bit andjust ran into Mike Elyduring a plane swap. Tom Bowie is directing honors program at Regis andenjoyinghis four grandkids. Joe Wysocki saw Kevin Chilton (Chili’s daughterMadison is nowin BCT) andWillie Shelton recently. Joe tore a hamstringwhile water skiingbut hopes to befullyrecovered to walkhis daughter down the aisle in Sept. Says Win Macklin and Lee Leber are doing great. Enrique Saaforwarded a note and photo from RickCaballero. The ‘3Amigos’, Rick, Enrique and Bill Franklinwent flyingin Rick’s Navion. Rick says he may get his medical cert back and return to American later this year.

3AmigosBillFranklin, Rick Caballero, andEnriqueSaa beforeflight.

Jay Kleven is doing computer contracting for Google for the foreseeable future. Ben Dilla and Sharon were in UK last monthfor an exec coaching program in Oxford. Says the familyrecentlyvacationed in IA. MikePonzani works for FSI in Columbus, OH and sees Dave Pyshoraoccasionally. Says he plans to hire new FSI sim instructors in the next several months. Ifyou’re interested, let him know. Chris ReamyworkingforAirbus. He and Gretchen are enjoyingthe DC area. KevinMartin in St Louis asa consultant. Plans to go nationalwithhis businesslaterthisyear. Stillhas two kids in college. Sees Bob Norman andTim Cantwell on occasion. Wade McRoberts sent pic ofhimself, son-in-lawJoe Stallings (03), and grandson Luke.

McFarlane, Bob Swanson, RayWild, and Duke Evans all wrote to say hi or comment on our BCT entrydate. Thanks guys!

On a personal note, I became a 1st time Grandpa in June, and in Julystarted my dreamjob - flying‘Life-Flight’ helosjust north ofDenver. Never thought I’d get a lotofhelo time again, but after 12 years out ofthe cockpit I’m flying helos and savingfolks...damn theluck!

Well classmates, again time to stick a fork in it. Send me your notes, inputs, address updates, suggestion,junkmail, etc and I will do mybest to keep all of you intheloop. As always, ifyou are headed to the Springs, let me andthe other locals know. Keepflyingyourflags and let our deployedtroops knowyou have them inyour thoughts and prayers.

The Spirit of76 is STILL alive and well! Until next time. Beatty

John J “Lou” Michels, Jr.

4107 Harvey

Western Springs, IL 60558

Voice: (312) 849-8150

Fax: (312) 849-8151

E-Mail: jmichels@mcguirewoods.com

Ihopethisfindseveryonetanned, notburned (that’slike, “shaken, not stirred”), andreadyto charge into autumn andFalconfootballafter a relaxing summer. As I look outmywindowin Chicago, there is a thunderstormwithlightninghitting Lake Michigan. The flashes illuminate thebottom ofthe lake quitewell. lean justmake out the rows ofcement overshoes offthe breakwaterbyBentonHarbor. (Justkidding-all those guys got dumped in the Chicago River.)

ReunionLeftovers: I finally located a long-delayed picture ofmy cohorts from 16th Squadron at the reunion.

Joe Stallings (03), Luke Stallings (29), andWade McRoberts (76) Bob Rykazewski works for General Dynamics at Cape Canaveral; says he and Lisa are enjoying empty nest. Son Ryan is U ofMiami gradworking on PhD, son Kyle (06) headed to DM inA-10s, son Sam (USNA08) headed to naval flighttraining. TomAppoloniis a software engineerdoing3D visualization in Florida, enjoyinggrandsonLogan. Pat Petersen lives inAnchorage and flies a747 cargo birdforAtlasAirlines and adoreshis two granddaughters. JoeMets currentlyliving inTexas hill countrybetween SanAntonio andAustininvestinginreal estate. Dave Clarystill in Iraq, butflewin a helo recentlyduring 115degree heat. Sayshe now “hillycomprehends how a convection oven works!”

Hope you enjoyed the helo Dave... it’s the ONLY was to fly! Rich McNally worksmodelingand simtoolsforSAIC inMaryland. He too enjoyshisgrandkid. Pat Flanagan lives inAustin, onlybecause hecan’t convince his bride to live somewhere cooland dry.

Not enough space to put the comments, but Ernie Wollard, Mike Reames, TerryPetrie, Jim Crowe, DustyRhoades, Chris Inglis, Scott Lounsberry, Bob Bivins, Chris Curry, Brad Forrest, Ralph Gibson, Marc Felman, Tim Lewis, Mike Cunningham,JohnHope, GregSchneider, DaveJareo, Dave Robinson, Pete Mapes, Mark Shanks, Mike Hoyes, Tom Greene, Paul Auclair, Jerry

Russ is working as an investment advisor in Ohio (at last check, anyway), while Pat B. is with Raytheon in Dallas. Pat M. is working at Offutt as a GS (it should be SES bynow), and Mags flies for United. It’s hard to believe thatthis distinguishedgroup actually associatedwith me back in the day, but no one had goodjudgmentthen.Thanks forthe shot, guys, and I promise Iwon’tmiss the next reunion.

MaskoMaskowitz (Rita) dropped me a note to update me on his status. Masko retired as an 0-6 in the Reserves at FortMonmouth in Jersey, where he was the EmergencyPreparedness guyfor the State ofFlorida. What that means is that he was coordinating military air and support to the civilians during major disasters, including9-11 and a varietyofhurricanes. Masko is in theprocess of jumping from the 737 to the 767 forAmerican at his realjob, and he recently poppeddown to Caracaswith Rita to visitLee Bauer,who hasjustretired as the militaryattache at the embassythere.

From leftare RussFinney (Kathie), PatBurke (Denise), PatMcVay(Cyndee) and Don Magee (Valerie).

Jim Maskowitz and Friends at the end.

Jim sent me thisgreatpicture ofhis retirementgathering. Fromleft are Norm Thompson (Mary), who is currentlyflying 767s forAmerican on international routes out ofNewYork; Lee Bauer (nowretired as the attache in Caracas and currentlyvacationingin Des Moines); Bill Rhoden (Laura), who is aTechnol-

ogyManager at Hamilton Sunstrand and living in Connecticut; and Monty Montgomery (Neana), flyingthe 757 forNorthwest out ofDetroit and on the Master Executive Council for theAirline Pilots’ Association for Northwest. I should note that Montyfired me offan email at the end ofJim’s queue, noting thathisVice-Chairmanjob atALPAonlyrequires 30 hours a day, and thatJim was correct in all other details. Montycloses bysaying, “I hope that all is well and that I never have to say Jim was right again.” That’s a great group, Jim, notwithstandingyour close geographicproximity to a union member. Congratulationsagain, andflysafe.

BookReport: Tom Jones (Liz), having finished one book about P-47sis now working on a new one, “Planetology”, from National Geographic, that is due out aroundthe time thiscolumnis published. Lookforit in the science section at your nearest mega-mall bookstore. Tom and Liz headed down to Costa Rica for a little R&Rwalkingthrough an active volcanic area before headingback to their home in Reston, VA, andthenjetted offto Italyfor a fewdays. Being an author sounds tough. They’ve got one kid in graduate school and one who’swell into undergradstudyat Davidson. Thanksfor the update, Tom.

InfrequentUpdates: Bob McGrath (Stephanie) sent me his “once in a blue moon” checkin to let me loiowthathe is running his own business consulting operation out of Baton Rougewhere they now reside. BobisaPh.D. outofLSU (GeauxTigers!) and left his professorship at the school to set up his own business. Now, I know what some ofyou are saying - “I didn’tknowtheyawarded anydegrees at LSU, much less a Ph.D.,” but Bob assures me this is completelylegitimate. On a more somber note, part ofBob’s new role is to look after Stephanie, who has beenailing as oflate. Thanksfortheupdateandourverybest to youboth, guys.

RickNewton (Kathy) sent me a quickupdate from Eglinwhere he is teaching specialoperations courses to all service classes at theJSOC at Hurlburt. Newt’s son is an ’06grad and is nowheaded to EWO school andultimatelyplacement on theAC-130 at, you guessed it, Hurlburt. Nothinglike havingyour parents just down the street to keep an eye on you while you chase members ofthe opposite sex up and down the strip there in PortWalton Beach. Newt noted that the kid is nothing like his father, mainly on the basis ofhis winningthe AcademicPerformerAward forhis nav class. I will agree that no one has ever used “Newt” and “academic proficiency” in the same sentence, at least in my experience. Notwithstanding that, congrats all around.

FrenchConnection: Greg Smith (Angelika) sent his first communication to the old scribe, and it’s a good one. Greg is posting awayfrom his position at USPS and retiring. But the realinteresting news follows. Greg hosted one of the French Exchange Cadets as his roommate for the fall semester our first class year. His roomie, Jean-Luc Delon, went on to bigger and better things and thisyearfinished up a two-yearstint as the French DefenseAttache, and retired as a MajorGeneral. GeneralDelon’swifegot a holdofGregandAngelika andbroughtthembackforthe General’s retirement at theFrench Embassyin Washington. There, Greg made a presentationeffectively“closing the circle” on the General’s military career with its earlylinks to USAFA.

Closeout: That's it from the Northern tier. Hope everyone is doingwell. Be seeingyou.

Bob Kay

40411 Tesoro Lane

Palmdale, CA 93551

Home:(661) 274-2201

Work: (661) 824-6426

Email: Robert.kay@baesystems.com

47% Members

GregSmith and his roomie relivingold times.

I can onlyhope thatthefoodforthe ceremonywas preparedbythe embassy, and not byMitchell Hall. There are some memories that simply shouldn’tbe broughtback. Congrats, Greg, anddon’tmakeit31 yearsbeforeyouwrite again. JimMoschgat(Becky) lives inMonument andworks as the DeputyComm at the National SecuritySpace Institute at Peterson. It soundslike he’s living the goodlifewith a minimal commute andtrying to catch glider rides at theBlack Forest Glider Port. One ofhis flights was with QuaySnyder (Elezabeth),who is a member ofthe club and gives rides to demented old graduates. Horst Roehler (Mary) is also a member ofthe club and owns his own aircraft. Ironically,JimandHorstflewF- 16s atTorrejonbackinthe early'80s. Jimisworking on a project to place a marker on the crash site where Michael Gerardi died during a Stardustflight on September 11,1974. Mike was in CS-10 at the time ofcrash, which also killed his pilot. Jim is looking for anyone who has any information about the crash site or Mike’s family or would be willing to help himwithhis efforts to locate the exact location ofthe crash. Jim’s been hiking throughthe area and has a lot ofinformationbut could always use some assistance. Anyone who needs help contactinghim, pleaselet me know.

Greetings ’78ers...

As manyofyoumighthave seen on theAOGweb site “Gone but Not Forgotten”, Herb Crissman passed back in March. I'm not sure what the circumstances were but our prayers go out toVictoria during this difficult time. Herb servedhiscountryandfamilywithdistinctionformanyyearsandwillbegreatly missed by all ofus who knew him.

I’veshared a couple oftimes before thevarious endeavors that Greg“Holly” Hollisterhas been doingbut this one is trulyexciting. His companyis leading a technicalcoalition andworkingdiligently on several energy initiatives. His group met recentlywith the Kentucky Secretaries ofEnergyand Labor as well as the Economic Development officeofWestVirginia andtheNationalEnergyTechnologylab. Thenear-termfocusis on“employingalgae as a method to sequester carbon byusing it as a feedstock to grow algae and, in turn, create bio-crude. Thiswill allowcoal burning powerplants to continue operationwithouthaving to lose up to 33 percent oftheirpower generationcapabilitybypumpingC02 into the ground. This process, in turn, can be used to ‘sequester’ C02 fromplants that convert coal to oil somethingthat has been done since the late 1880's.” Talk about making a difference on a major scale. They are working on other very exciting areas with more details at www.MoveOnNow.info it makes for some veryinterestingreading!

Here’s something that is pretty cool. Chuck Stiles sent two great pix ofhim and Kip Self. Until 22 Maywhen he retired after30 years, Chuck was the vice commander ofthe USAF Expeditionary Center at Fort Dix, NJ. The commander, and Chuck’s boss was none other than Kip who officiated at the retirement. The first shotis ofKip and Chuckbythe entrance to the center and thesecond one is afterthe retirementwith the appropriate ’78 accoutrements ofred suspenders. Well done gents and thanks for sending these Chuck.

A couple ofweeks ago I was sitting at my desk at MojaveAirport and saw a smallrocketplaneflyingaround in thepattern (called the Rocket Racerappropriatelyenough). Found out that it was being flown by none other than our own RickSearfoss anditlookedlike he was havingserious fun. I left a message on his cell and he called back a little while later explainingwhat he’s been up to. Some forward thinkingentrepreneurs are creating a conceptwhere these

types ofairplaneswill race on a closed circuit course much like traditional air racing (check outwww.rocketracingleague.com). The company that Rick works for is leading the development ofthe initial prototype. He keepsbusy withthat and stilltravels thecountryspeaking on leadership. Who says retirement has to be boring?

BillHadawayhasalsobeenkeepingfairlybusy. He was promoted to Brig Gen intheOklahomaANGlast monthafterserving as the 138th FighterWing commanderinTulsaforthepastfouryears. He is now the ChiefofStaffforthe state havingbeen in the Guard since 1987. Hewas also the 125FS/DO, 125FS/CC, 1380G/CC andwing commanderflyingthe F-16C Block42 since 1993. In his dayjob, he’s a 777 Captain forDelta flyinglong-rangeflights to Mumbai, Seoul, Dubai,Tokyo, TelAvivand others. He considers himselfmost “fortunate to fly four different fightersuninterrupted for30 years and beverysenior at the airline at the same time. “I was able to participate in six combat deployments since 1996. Ann and I had our 30th Cadet Chapelweddinganniversarylast month andhavethree children, Laura 17, Evan 21 and Robert 24. Thanks for the info Hads.. .lookingforward to seeingyou at the reunion.

VicSummers sentthisadorablepicture ofhis eldestgranddaughterSummer in highlyappropriate attire. He said that since he couldn’t get anyofhis three daughtersinterestedinUSAFA, hethoughthe’d start earlywithhissecondround ofgirls (two granddaughters - Summer and Kimberly). He bought the flight suit on his lastvisit to the Zoo. Vic is stillVP ofU.S. Furniture Operations the U.S. forCorporateExpress (recentlypurchasedbyStaples). He andCheristill live the good life in northwest Denver (Broomfield),just south ofBoulder. Vic also mentioned thatJohn Murtari was in the Denver area in June visiting his son in Boulderand they were able to catch up.

Mike “Smacko” McMillie sends regular notes on senior officer goings-on and mentioned backinJune that Dave Lengyel had his retirement in the early partofthe month. Lots offamiliarfaces attended including DonAlston, Garry Dean,JohnPuffenbarger,WayneHermendorfer, and RussFraz amongothers. Everyone had a nice lunch afterthe ceremony.

I was sitting in the lobbyofthe HolidayInn in Panama Citylastweek doing e-mail on Mr. CrackBerrywhen up walks non other than Greg “Kais” Kaiser! He was in town with his fiancee who was doing some work at Tyndall. Kais tragicallyhad a heartattack (mild to moderate in his words) backin January andjust receivedword that the flight doc approved his Class 1FAA medical certificate. Nowordyetwhether FedExwill let him come back on the line but he thinks he has a good shot. He was still flying in the right seat ofthe MD-11 whenhe hadthe attack. Was great to meet his future brideandcatch up a bit... talkaboutcoincidences.

Speaking ofsenior officer goings-on, LarryJames is now the 14thAF commanderatVandenberg, PunchMoultonistheJ-3 at EUCOM inGermany, Kevin Kennedy came home fromAfghanistan and is now the J-8 (Requirements and Integration) at Joint Forces Command in Norfolk. Three guys put on their second star inJune: Dave “Limo” Scottwho is stillthe deputycommanderof the 7th CAOC in Larissa, Greece (sounds like a rough tour).JayLindellwill be leavingAfghanistan soon and going to DC as the Directorofthe Global Power Programs at SAF/AQ. Finally, Mike “Snod” Snodgrass is the ChiefofStafffor Africa Command in Stuttgart. Congrats to all ofyou. Have run out ofroom on this round so thanks, as always, to everyonewho took the time to write. Will have a nice reunion recap next time. Looking forward to seeing everyone back“on campus” next month. ’78 is Great!

John Pardo 1843 Miller Drive

DuPont, WA 98327

H: (253) 507-4889

W: (253) 298-4813

C: (781) 439-2036

pardoJohn@hotmail.com

Greetings from the greatNorthwest and congratulations to theAir Force’s newest majorgenerals: Burt Field, RandyFullhart, Steve Mueller and Steve

Schmidt. Burt (Lisa) is on hiswayto take over as theVice DirectorStrategicPlans & Policy at theJoint Staffwhile Randy(Kathleen) sent me the followingupdate, “.. .Bythefirstweek inAugust I'll be in mynext job asVice Commander, AFCyber (Provisional). Ifall goes as planned, and that remains to be seen, that position will become theVice for the full up command anddual-hatted as the 24th NAF/CC, andAFNETOPS/ CC. Kathyand I are looking forward to the move to Barksdale as itwill put us a little closer to our son Stephen who is a television news reporter, anchor, and assistant news director at KBTX, Channel 3, in Bryan-College Station, Texas. Not sure whatplans theAirForce has forSteve (Debbie) and Steve (Sarah) butI do not thinkthere are any bad 2-star jobs out there.

Speaking ofgeneral officers, Jan-Marc Jouas (Marion) is on hisway to Hawaii to become SpecialAssistant to Commander PACAF. Also receivedword from Keith Kries (Micki) that hejust pinned on brigadier general—the first ’79er in the Air Force Reserve to make general officer. He has been serving as theVice Commander, 4th AF at March Air Reserve Base since 2006. He spent 20 years flying for US Airways and then switched to FedEx. Spencer (8) andBrooke (4) round out the family.

Brig. Gen. Keith Kries and Micki at pin-on.

Also on the general officer front, Steve Lepper (Kathryn), AMC’s StaffJudge Advocate sent wordthat hejustpinnedcaptain on #1 daughterJennifer (USAFA ’04), a Bioenvironmental Engineer at Keesler, while #2 daughter, Helen, graduated from CSU in Decemberwith a degree in Biology and was hired within a month as a research assistant a Colorado University Medical Centerin Denver doing research on organ transplantrejection. He also mentioned that he mns into Don Lustig (Rhonda), AMC’s IG, and Dr. Doug Robb (Gloria), AMC’s Command Surgeon, once in a while.

Speaking ofdoctors and organ transplants, Dr. Butch Rayfield (Karen) “celebrated” his one-yearkidneytransplantanniversary in March. He had several stays in JohnsHopkinsduring the pastyearbut overall he is doingwell and the kidneyis functioningproperly. Steve Grafvisited Butch in the hospitalduring one ofhis layovers in the Baltimore area and said Butch “looks great and not much differentthan he did at the Zoo. Steve also caught up with Bob Siegrist (Carol) who isworkingtheJoint Strike Fighterprogram atAFOTEC and living inAlbuquerque.

In the “it’s a smallworld” category, I was walking out ofthe McChord BXlast month when I spotted a familiar face heading the otherway. I stopped the unsuspecting shopper and started to introduce myself but Jim Miyamoto (Christine) instantlyrecognized me even though we hadn’t seen each otherin over 27 years. Jim isworking for Raytheon out ofCaliforniabut was inWashington forbusiness and to visit family. About the same time, I received an email

Bob Siegrist and Steve Graf

from Joe Marquardt (Jeanne) who is living and flying out ofDubai as a 111 CaptainforEmiratesAirlines. He asked me to send out an openinvitation for a cold one to anyone who happens to be in the area.

WesMiller (Kathy) isstillflyingforBrownandlivinginLouisville. TheirdaughterismarriedandlivinginDenverwhiletheirson istryingto makeit as a musician inNashville. TedDuBose (Stephanie) islivingin andworkingforthe cityofCharlotte, NC. Steve Sosa (Sunisa) isdoinglogisticsmodelingforConocoPhillipsand livinginthe Houston area. He’s beeninthe Guardfor over 20years andisgetting readyto deploytoTurkeyin supportofPredatoroperations.

Dave “DJ” Jowers (Mary) just retired citing the 2.5 hour (on good days) commute as DeputyDirector, RegionalAffairs for the Under Secretaryofthe Air Force forInternationalAffairs as the cause. He and the familyhave relocated to Littleton, MAabout 15 miles west ofHanscom. Sons John and Matthewwill start 7th grade there.

MarkReid (Cynthia) isworkingforMITRE Corporationsupportingthe Missile DefenseAgencyat SchrieverAir Force Base as is Eldon “Kojak” Koucerek (Candace). Markforwarded an email from Thom “TMac” McCarthywith a picture ofhim, Burt Field and Mike “Brillo” Brill after Brillo became the first guyin the world—that’s right, ’79 does it again—tofly6000 hours in the F-16. It was a combatmission out ofBaladwith Burt on Brillo’swing. All three were stationed at Balad; Burt as commander, TMac as Director ofStaffand Brillo with his unit from Hill.

Brillo, TMac and Burt

Also in the news, Pete Bunce (Jane) received a no-kidding Kudos from the MilitaryOfficersAssociation ofAmerica for being namedAirport Journal’s “AviationIndustryLeaderoftheYear” fortheworkhehas done as CEO ofthe GeneralAviation ManufacturersAssociationforthe past threeyears. That’s itforthisedition. Nextup isBudVasquez atbud.vasquez@us.ibm.com so sendyour updates and pictures to him.

Don Myers

401 Chambray Hill Peachtree City, GA 30269-4247

(770) 631-1429

E-mail: DMyers80@hotmail.com

ZN=ZoomieNation.usafa.org

Members

Refreshing? I’m sure you’ll agree it was nice to hear from A1 Wallace, our GuestScribelastquarter. Notlongafterhefinishedthe article,Alheadedsouth, waysouth: “I was slayingdragons in Peru—actually,building a patientwing to a hospitalwith USAFA cadets, college and high school students, and some timber framers from Canada and Colorado.” My/our sincere thanks to Al fortakingthe time for us—who’s up next at batfor Guest Scribe?

Comms. To bettercommunicate andstayintouch, we put some heads togetherand came-upwith the following, twopronged, game plan: Theclasshome pagewill be disbanded. Thanks, again to Steve Dawidowiczforthe initial 1980 Home Page, and to Bud Uyeda in recentyears formaintaining the last iteration. ZoomieNation.org (ZN) willtake its place. It’s veryeasy to use the ZN networkingsite. As such, this will be the next step in the evolutionary comms chain. There’s no need to be an AOG member to access this powerful, flexible, informative tool (ofwhich our protected class section isjust a small part)—so pass theword along.

Prong Two: Debbie (Dubbe)(David) Gray, our AOG Class Senator, volunteered to maintain a class email list. For this part ofthe comms picture to succeed, y'u have to send her (ddgray@embarqmail.com) your preferred email address andkeep it up to date. Finally, the bestway to extend our reach one more level is to provide Deb with email addresses thatyou have of our fellowclassmates. Withthislaststep, Debbie can capture a significantnumber ofout theresomewhere classmates. In advance, thankyou.

A Great Day. I flew from Kona, HI, to Dallas-Love and put the plane into maintenance at Gulfstream. Since itlooked like I’dhave the next dayfree inthe 100-degreeheat, I pluckedfrom mymemorythatMike (Jane+2) Opatowsky,

whenhewasn’t plyinghis instructor-doctortrade, volunteered as a docent (an in-the-knowtourguide) at thelocal air museum, Frontiers ofFlight. I gave him a call. Hehad a rare weekdayoffandoffered to give me a private tour. I also rememberedJim (Shelley+5) Easierwas inthe area, tracked him downin Plano (with Raytheon as OpsMgrwith theArmy’s Future Combat Systems), and invited him along. Jim declined—something about having to work for living.

Before the tour, Mike and I grabbed a seat andchatted. Here’swhat I gleaned: Mike, an avidbicyclist, lefttheZoo to the Missile field (Whiteman), gotaccepted to medschool, finished his fouryears in the hole, graduated fromWake Forest, then Keeslerfor surgeryexperience (oneyear), backto the Zoo as a Flight Doc (’90-’94), Travis forradiology, remote to Osan as Head ofRadiology (“Down the plane stairs as theguyI was replacingwas walkingup, handing me his pager.”), again to theZoo (’95-’97), into theAFReserves and a Neuroradiologyfellowship (two years) atWake Forest, followed by three years on faculty, now at Baylor UniversityMed Ctr (fiveyears) teaching and part-time on-call.

We startedwalking aroundthe museum, talkingaboutthe artifacts, aviation history, etc., when Mike saidhe saw someone he wanted me to meet. Forthe next hour, I got to listen to the living history of a P-47 pilot, Charlie Mohrle, who flew one ofthe greatest fighters for a period before, during, and after DDay. He was inspirational, entertaining, proud, educational, patriotic, and humble. Yep, a great day. (Thanks, Mike.)

Charlie, Don, and Mike Reconnect. Mikeput me intouchwith Emi(Takashima) andEdVishoot. Emi wrote howshetooktheearlyretirement atWright-Patandthey’vebeen inDayton ever since. She’s self-employed as a pro volleyball official, includingleadershippositions. “Yeah, not yourtypicalpost-AF career and an ironic choice, since I swore mynextjobwould not involvewearing a uniform!” Lately, Emihas concentrated on men’s andwomen’s DivI and travels all over the country. She also worked theinaugural beachvolleyball event at the 1996Atlanta Olympics andParalympics. Ed tooktheVSI option and left theAF in ’92, started his own computersupport/videobusiness, then had to shelve itwhenboth ofhis parents became seriouslyill in Colorado. He’sjusthad totalhipreplacement surgery, buthe’s beenupbeatthroughthe arduous recoveryand rehab phase.

MooreDayton? CD writes, “There are a handful of ’80 grads still kicking around the AF—four of us, in fact, living the dream and loving life here at Wright-Pat. Thoughtyou’d like the picture ofour last mini-reunion at a local pizzajoint, where we debated the finer points ofAF doctrine, recapitalization... and the long-term health benefits ofeating Italian food! In the picture from left are four “seasoned” BGs from the class of’80: Joe Lanni, Director of Air, Space and Information Operations, HQ AFMC; Paula Thornhill, Commandant, Air Force Institute ofTechnology; Janet (Libby) Wolfenbarger, Director, Intelligence and Requirements, HQAFMC; and me (CD Moore) Commander, 478thAeronautical SystemWing (F-22 program). I’m also happy to report that my son will bejoining the LongBlueLinethis summer as another Legacy in the Class of2012. Hard to believe we were doing the same thing nearly32 years ago.

Who’sWhere/What. Myear-to-the-ground sez: JeffMielke is the Director, Development / Director, Planned and Class Giving, USAFAAOG; LG (select) Paul (Ricki Smith) Selva, from Director, Air Force StrategicPlanning, Deputy ChiefofStaff,StrategicPlansandPrograms,FleadquartersUnitedStatesAirForce, Pentagon, toAssistantto the ChairmanoftheJointChiefs ofStaff,Pentagon; BG Sue HelmsfromCommander, 45th SpaceWingandDirector, EasternRange,Air Force Space Command, Patrick AFB, FL, to Director, Plans and Policy, J-5, HeadquartersUnitedStatesStrategicCommand, OfluttAFB, NE; BGC.D. Moore, fromWright-Pat to Director, SpecialPrograms, Office ofthe Under Secretaryof Defense forAcquisition,TechnologyandLogistics, Pentagon; BG Mike Moeller from Director, Strategy, Policy, and Plans, US Southern Command, to Commander 379thAir ExpeditionaryWing, Air Combat Command,A1 UdeidAB, Qutar; BGJanetTherianos from SpecialAssistant to theAssistantVice Chiefof Staff, to Director, Intelligence, Air MobilityCommand, ScottAFB.

BG Doug Owens is Commander, 36thWing, AndersenAFB, Guam, as it is beingtransformed into a super-base—they’re even going so far as to uncover (and use) old B-29 runways/taxiways fromWWII. Among other growth, it’s becoming a majorB-2 deploymentbase andhomeforGlobalHawkUAVs. Col Bruce Townsend,Vice Commander, Global Cyberspace Integration Center, LangleyAFB, was recently elected as Flight Captain ofthe localDaedalian flight. Both BG FrankKisner,Director, Center for Force Structure, Requirements, Resources, and StrategicAssessments, US Special Ops Command, MacDillAFB, andChris Miller, Director ofPlans, Policy, and Strategy, NORAD, PetersonAFB, havebeennominatedforanother star. AndTom (Ann) Williams from Mere Mortal to... Reverend,Auburn, AL.

I ran out of room here; a good thing. Go to ZN for several more tidbits, including our (good news) Gift Fund update. BEAT’EM! Don

Rich Trentman

11102 Asbee St.

Falcon, CO 80831-8170

Home: (719) 494-8438

Work: (719) 234-0754

E-mail: trentman@usafa81.com

Class Website: www.usafa81.com

Summer is over! This will be the extremely“lean” edition ofour class news. Incominginfo andphotos were slim this quarter and I was a bit busy as we all get at times. I’llreach out and try to bring inmuch more info forthe falledition. I had grown overlycomfortable (lazy) with a fairlysteady flow ofemails. My apologies.

Class News: John Marlin was kind enough to give me a “heads-up” he was comingthrough Colorado Springs this summer, so we gotthe familiestogether at Fargo’s Pizza. The Marlins had been on a familytrip through theWest to see the Grand Canyon, Utah, andColorado. Their son, Joseph, attended Summer Research atWest Point shortlyaftertheirvacation. Jim Kilty sent me a short email that he and his three sons are doing welljust outside ofChicago. Jake Jakobi is still playing lacrosse and said he was heading toVail for his 11th year in a row to playforthe Graybirds. He planned to visit with Kelly Oberbilligin Denver enroute to the tournament.

AmyMarkertvisited Rich and Heather Brook, but again, not much info.

I tookmygang to Denverthis summer for a mini-vacation thatincluded thefamous Casa Bonita. My sons enjoyed it! I hadn’t been there since wewere cadets. I have been on the road a lotwith my current project. Recently, I spent a week at Ft Leavenworth demonstrating our software at the Battle Lab. Mywife and I didenjoy a relaxingdinnerwith Marty and Becky France at ScottTrimboli and Lauri Cross beautiful Black Forest ranch early this summer. Marty is offto the Pentagon for a year. It is a well deservedbreakffomhisstressfuljoboverseeingtheAstro Department atUSAFA. I’ll miss seeing him at football and basketball this season. Chris Campbell

Rich at oldFtLeavenworth prisongate. called me the other day to let me know he is retiring from theAir Force and movingto Charleston, SC to teach English at the Citadel. Iwishedhimthebest ofluck.Chris is the keeper of our class flag.

[Picture #2 - Rich atoldFtLeavenworth prisongate.

Senate Update: I dialed into theJulyClass Senate meeting. The main discussion was on AOG support to Chapters and how to growAlumni Chapters. Bottom line: theAOG does providesupport, but getslittle databackfrom the Chapters. I have the presentationgiven to the board and would be happy to senditto anyone interested. There was also a discussionreinforcingtheAOG’s role in fundraising and howto best workwith the other major fundraising groups supporting ourAcademy. I’m always openfor ideas and feedback to pass on to the Senate.

Send me your summer andfallpictures. Falconfootballis upon us and snow (for some of us) is just around the corner. Our Class of '81 group is slowly growing on the Zoomienation website (zoomienation.usafa.org). Consider signingup, so you can keep in touch and look at photos from old Checkpoints articles and Reunions.

Jim Ratti

2860 Arbor Pointe Drive Middletown, OH 45042 (937) 760-2333

rattijm@mindspring.com http://usafa82.org

GreetingsRedtags!

Summertime, summertime... hot and muggy (finally) here in Ohio, butthat’s following a cooler and wetter spring than usual here, so no complaints. I’ve completed myfirstfullyearsince retirementfrom active duty and although I’m still working (I didn’t retire as much as I changedjobs), I’ve got to sayI’m reallyenjoyingit. My stress level is a LOT lower, and I enjoyschedule flexibility as never before. As manyofyou have alreadylearned (or are about to learn), there is indeedlife aftertheAirForce! I’mverythankful andgrateful forthe career I had, and I’m also grateful to all of you and to theAcademyforthe experience I hadtherewhich prepared me so well. Speaking ofwhich, we passed 30years sinceenteringtheAcademy, and26years sincegraduationthis pastJune. Hard to believe it’s been thatlong, but ”it iswhat it is” I guess!

Marlins and Trentmans atFargos.

2ndLtDavidMauerand his proudDad Tony (Col, USAF,Retired)!

We’re clearly to the point of“baton passing” as evidencedbythis picture of TonyMauer and his son 2nd Lt David Mauer. Tonymade the trekto USAFA to commission Dave inJune, and thenretired from active duty at ScottAFB on 7 July. David headed out immediately to beginpilottraining atVance.

Not to be outdone, Tom Sylvester sent a note entitled ’’Letthe braggingbegin” to Mike Sinisi’s mailing list to let us knowthathis daughterJillgraduated from Harvardwith honors in microbiology. She was on thevarsitytrack& field team andwas also a memberoftheHarvardUniversityBand, andwillbeheaded to med school in the fall.

I heard about a couple otherfolkswho marked transitions this pastquarter. Rocky Reiners retired from hisjob in SAF/AQ on 26 Jun, 30 years to the day fromwhen we headed up the ’’BringMe Men” ramp. (Yes, that’s the name I’ll always associatewith it!) I don’t have anyinfo on what Rocky’s going to be up to next. I also learned that David ”H+11” Hagginbothom retired for the second time. He had beenworking as a test & evaluation engineerforWyleAero in the F-35 program office in D.C., and will be retiring to Williamsburg,VA.

Not everyone’sretiringhowever! Afewofus have managed to hangin there and continue getting promoted. Our latest BG is none other than Sharon Dunbar.

BGen Sharon Dunbarwith proudhusbandDoug, at left, and proudclassmateMikeSinisi.

OurWashington, DC-areanewshound and rumor control expertMike Sinisi sent this picture from Sharon’s promotion ceremony in July. Mike said the ceremony was a “fun and grand time” and that he was proud to have been there. Sharon is now serving as the Director ofManpower, Organization and Resources, DeputyChiefofStaffforManpower, PersonnelandServices, Headquarters U.S. Air Force.

Andalthoughwe’regettingolder, we stillhaven’tgiven up on athleticpursuits. Courtesyofan e-mail from Bill Erikson (his first Checkpointssubmission!), I knowofatleastthree classmateswho ran thisyear’s BostonMarathon inApril.

info. Bytheway, Dan retired in 2003 and isworking forJacobs Engineeringin the 605thTest & Evaluation Squadron at Eglin.

So I guess that’s about allthe news forthis time around. Remember to keep yourfaithful scribe on your Christmas cardlist and let me knowallthat’s happening in yourworld. Until next time, be safe! Ratman

Stu Pope

520 Ramona Ave.

Sierra Madre, CA 91024 stu_pope@yahoo.com

Dideveryone read the articlein a recent Checkpointsabout common recurring USAFA dreams? Man, I could relate. In halfthe dreams I remember, I’m inexplicablywearing a uniform or a flight suit.Whatwould our formerpsych instructors have to sayabout that?

Sadly, one ofthe greatBehavioralScienceprofessorsfrom ouryears at theZoo, Lt Col Bob Gregory, is no longeraround to give us an answer. Bob passed away suddenlyjust a couple ofmonths ago. Thoseofuswhoknewhimwillremember him forhis humor, his generosity, andhis mean pitchers ofmartinis.

Sue Ross wrote in to relate the details ofhusband Dave’s 50th birthdayparty inMarch. She speculates thatDave maybethefirstperson in our class to hit the halfcenturymark, but I think a couple ofotherBohicans mayhave beathim to that dubious milestone. Joining Dave at the celebration were former roommates Rick Carrier andTonySmith.

Powell and Bill were all in the same squadron at USAFA, so they decided to makethe trekto Beantown to cheer on Tom, TL and Ray. Tom andTL are 747 First Officers with United, based out ofSan Francisco (Tom lives in Colorado Springs andTLlives in LasVegas). RayisVice Presidentand COO ofINTECON in Colorado Springs. Powell is aVice PresidentwithKarta and Bill is a Research StaffMember at the Institute for DefenseAnalyses. Powell and Bill live and workin NorthernVirginia. And since everyone wantsto knowtimes, herethey are: TL-3:10:17, Ray-3:19:10;Tom-3:19:54.

And finally, I got a note from Dan Pike asking for some help publicizing a Stalag 17 Squadron Reunionhe and a couple other “Stalagtites” are planning to holdin Florida overVeteran’s Dayweekend thisyear. Dan, Dennis Delaney, andBrendan Clare alllive inthe panhandle area andwouldlike to gettheword out to all squadron mates about the upcominggathering. Dan didn’ttell me exactlywhere they’replanning on holdingit, butmyguesswouldbetheEglin/ Niceville area. Contact Dan directly(Daniel.pike.ctr@eglin.af.mil) for more

50th BirthdayPartyforDaveRoss (flankedbyRick Carrierand TonySmith.

Dave’s a pilotforAirborne Express. Rick’s doingdefense contract work out of SchreiverAFB andTony’sworking for an energy firm in Denver.

Lured by rumors ofa multi-kegger,Tony, Mike ShanahanandJimTaylorall descendedupon Sue and Dave’s place in Monumentwhen Sue’s former roommateTammyRankstoppedbyfor a visitearlierthisyear.Tamracurrentlyworks inAMCA-1, which may or may not be one ofthose multi-theatre complexes. Mikeworks for the EPA (I can’ttype thatwithoutthinkingof the Simpsons movie; eee-pah! eee-pah!) in Denver. Jim’s a substitute teacher in Monument, and occasionallyteaches at Sue’s daughter’selementaryschool.

Suewent on to sayshe’s currentlydoingspeechwritingand othercommunications-relatedstuffandhas evenwritten two books forhigh schoolkidswho are contemplatingUSAFA or Annapolis. I’m not sure whatthebooktitles are, butI’mguess somethingalong the lines ofHey,WhyGo ToWest Point?

PaulVernoski reports that his wife, Barbara, recentlywon the Mrs. NewJerseyAmerican Queen contest. As a mother of seven kids (!), she’d never even had the time to enter a pageant before, butwill now be representingNewJersey at the national pageant in Daytona, FI..

Hugh “Hughbob” Funk wrote in to let us know he, Penne and their two2 sons, Christian (19) and Spencer (16) are alljust funkydory and have been livinginMelbourne, FLsince 1995. ChristianandSpencer are bothEagleScouts, which frompersonalexperience means they’llprobablyboth end up as SERE survival instructors.

OriginallywithAmerican, Hugh’s been flyingforUPS since ’95 and is now a 757/767 Captain on the international circuit. He’s also in the Reserve as commander ofthe 39th Rescue Squadron and pinned on 0-6 in June. Like most Bohicanswho have beenwritingin, he plans to be at the25th reunion this fall.

Usinghis “south ofthe equator” alias of“Raimundo,” RayBlustshot me an email to sayhe saw Dave “TreatMe” Ruffley at the Pittsburghairport, which is Dave’s childhoodhome (Pittsburgh, that is - not the airport). Dave’s currently looking into a full-time teachingposition at Colorado College, whichwould be especially cool because he could give cadets the scoop on upcoming CC parties to crash. Dave’s daughter is finishinghigh schoolthis year andhis son iswrappingup a four-year stint in the Navy. Both Dave and Raimundo report they’ll be manning the margaritabooth at the reunion.

For those ofus who have beenfollowingthe presidential election (andwho

Tom LaValley, TLJohnson, andRayPhillips(center three), cheeredbysquadron-matesPowellWilson (left) andBillErikson (right).

hasn’t?),you can hearagreatstoryfromBillChangose atwww.breitbart.tv/html/ 68124.html. It’s kind ofold news now, buttranscriptgoes somethinglikethis:

“Thepilotwho commanded the C-17 aircraft on which Sen. HillaryClinton, D-N.Y., flew into Bosnia says there wasn't even a bumblebee flying around when the aircraftlanded... ColonelWilliam‘Goose’ Changose told radio talk showhostRustyHumphriestodaythatthe areawas secured fortheMarch25, 1996, landing, withtanks around the base and helicoptersflyingoverhead. ‘I gotta tellya, Iwill give it to thecommanderofAirBase Eagle. He hadthatplace -youknow, not onlywere there no bulletsflyingaround, therewasn'tabumblebee flyingaround,’ the pilot told Humphries. Clinton's trip to Bosnia hasbecome an electionissue becauseofherrepeatedreferences to the sniperdanger that was there the day she landed. She has used the trip as a reference point when she describes her foreignpolicyexperience.

Bill also notes he was appointedbythe President to three more years on the USAFABoardofVisitors, wherehe serves as Chair. So ifyouwant good seats for a USAFAfootball game, you now knowwho to blackmail, er, talk to.

The Big Island is sort of our home awayfrom homewhen it comes to vacations, and as luckwould have it, Beth and ChuckJones and their kids were visitingthe same time as Noelle, thegirls and I were. Whenwe happened to fly in during a hurricane, Chuck called me to sayhe knewI’d arrived because he saw me on TV beinginterviewedby a local reporter (thegist ofthe interview being, “Are you really crazy enough to flyfrom Honolulu to Kona in a hurricane?”).We later gottogetherfor a great dinner at Merriman’s up inWaimea, and, in true cadet fashion, found a way to sneakcopious amounts ofrum out to the pool at Chuck’s hotel afterthe barsclosed.

Mike Jensen 12035 Milam Road Colorado Springs, CO 80908 l-(800)-G0-AFA-G0 michaeljensen@remax.net www.usafa84.com

Thankyou! Greatupdates! Go to www.usafa84.com for more. AND the next time you send out a note, tell those who you see to sign up too!

Not at all readyforthis! First and foremost, our 25th reunion is next year! I will beworkingwith theAOG for our options. Let me knowwhatyouwant to do forthat momentous occasion.

Joneses

andPopes on TheBigIsland.

Speakingofhotelpools, MarkAbbottandColinMoffat sent me a photo from Dakar, Senegal, where the two ex-Air Serve pilots were laying over en route to Jo’burg. I always sayifyou can’t trust the localwater, drinkthelocal beer, but Mark and Colin tookthe adage to a new extreme bydrinkingthe local beerin the local water.

Fromleft are Sam Cox,TerryFeehan, GenSchwartz (confirmed as 19th CSAF, Class of’73), JohnThompson, andJeffLofgren, ourvery own Class of 19841Star Selects, none ofwhom had ever written into Checkpoints! (So I guess I made a bad career move as scribe!) Samwillbe our next Commandant at USAFA (Change ofCommand scheduled for Oct 15). Terry is theVice Commander, Electronic Systems Center, Hanscom AFB, JT is currently Chief of Staff, Air Force Materiel Command at WrightPattersonAFB, andJeffisVice Commander, FirstAir Force at Tyndall. Not shownis Cheryl (DeVita) Roberson... therewith her husband (BGen (S) Darryl, ’83). Greatjob!

Nowfor some updatesfrom some ofourotherSuperstars! Steve Sheprojustleftvice command at Balad to take command ofAndrewsAFB (316thWing). Herman Bakerisworkingfor Consolidated Edison Companyin NYC for21 /2 years now. A Colonel in the USAFR. Barb Walker got married on Sep 1 lastyear. Herhusbands name is SteveWileyfrom Scotland (theylovethe brough). Barb has three daughters: Amber (CU), Brittany (HS) and Chloe' (middleschooler). And her cancer is in remission! Sold Thunderand Buttons in Feb to JeffMielke ’80 and his wife, Hillary!

Also doingwell is DougFogle backwith SouthwestAirlines; he andhis familyhad some greattimes this summer in Italyand theirfamilyreunion.

Actually, thefamilyandIjust saw Colin, Sophie andtheirgirls inthe southof France in late June (Sophie’s clan is from that area). Mof fired up his “Sea Eagle” (a Zodiac-type boat) daily and took us to some ofhis favorite rockjumping sites in the calanques around Cassis andToulon. Fullyprovisioned withbaguettes, saucisson, camembertand (mostcrucially) pastis, a splendid time was had by all.

As always,WadeWheelerwrites the next article.Althoughyou’ll never actuallyseeWade (sincebecoming anArmyguy, he’s alwayscamouflaged), you can easilycontact him atwwade83@verizon.net. So blasthim an emailwith some fodderforthe next class news. And, hey, don’t even think aboutmissing the reunion in November. It’s guaranteed to be the event ofthe season.

Visit the AOGWeb Site Merchandise, Gone But Not Forgotten and More!

www.usafa.org

TheFogleFamily

Rich "Bugs" Call is still at UPS (looks as cute as Bradshaw in those brown shorts!) andhasjust beenreassigned to theleft seat on the 747-400 inAnchorage. Bugs is still living in Albuquerque. Scott Welker made 0-6, but retired before he pinned on. He is the new surgeon fortheWallaWallaClinic inWashington. Our oldest livinggrad, Tom Kolkmeier, is a Plant Engineer for a John Morrell plant located in Springdale, Ohio (Northern Cincinnati). Oldest daughter, Heidi, was married inAugust thisyear. As the most senior (agewise) in the class, he hit the "magical” 50 in July. He would tell everyonewhat it felt like to turn 50, ifhe could onlyremember! Another daughter, Katrina, is up at Ohio Statestudyingengineering. His son is a highschooljuniorand two daughters are still in grade school! (I’ve lost count... five kids?)

JohnWeigand commutes to PAFB as 0-6 inUSAFR, ReserveAdvisorto Director ofOps, HQ NORAD. Brent "Mongo" Johnson commands the 611 Air Support Group responsible for40 remote sites throughoutAlaska. His son plans on becoming a pararescue specialistwiththeAlaska Guard. Joel Henness is leaving Houston! After 10 years in the Texas Air National Guard, he just got

MarkAbbottand ColinMoffat, drinkinglikefish.

picked up to be theANG advisor to 12thAF CC, at Davis-Monthan. So Joel, wife and 3.5 year old are heading to Tucson. They are looking for a sub in Houston to keep Doi Heckler out oftrouble forthe next fouryears. (Sounds like a job forJeffHays (who returned backhomewith Gina and the girls!)

Everyone’s bestfriend, EricWallace owns and operates Left HandBrewery. TheirLeft Hand MilkStout won the Gold for sweet stout at theWorld Beer Cup inApril for the second time in a row. This is probablythe most prestigious award in theworld and ittakesplace everytwo years. Left Hand SawtoothAle was namedthebest "bitter" intheUSbythe NewYorkTimes.Wife, Cinzia, runs the tasting room at thebrewery, so anyone stoppingbyshould sayhi and make yourselfknown to her, so she can trackEric down. Speakingofbeer, Bob Perry and I keeptalkingabout grabbing one, and bythe timeyouread this hopefully we have. His wife, Lori, went back to work in the EnglishDepartment at the Zoo as permanent staff.

Joe Sherman reportsfamilyis good (wife, Gail, daughterMeagan, son Spencer, dogs Elvis and Lily). His onlybigfamily news is honorable daughterwill be startingcollege in the fall atVirginiaTech, not that he is or old enough to have a child starting college. (Tell that to Kolkmeier!) He has been flying SikorskyS-61s and nowthe newS-92 helicopters forthelastyearwith Cougar Helicopters out ofStJohn's, Newfoundland and Galliano, LA, providingpassenger service foroilworkers to offshore platforms as well as search and rescue and medical evacuation response for oil companies.

ScottandKelly Cain lefttheAirForce in 1992 for California. He went to work formyfather-in-lawinthewholesalefuelandlubricantsindustry. Beendistributingfuels and lubes ever since! Theyformed a petroleumtrucking company with anotherpartnerandhave beenrunningtrucks forthepastcoupleofyears. Married to his beautifulwife, Kelly. Theyhave two grown sons, Ryan (23) and Brandon (20). Ryan finishedhis undergraduatework atAzusa Pacific University, nowinhissecondyear as a Physician'sAssistantstudent. Brandon isjunior at Fresno Pacific Universitymajoringin EnglishLiterature, andHistory.

Tiina Mundyreports that Carol Pugh O'Heam and her husband, Cal,just adopted a little boy, Kelly, from China. Monica (Schweitz) Smith’s nephew, NickReed, is at USAFA as a basic right now. She says theyalreadyget email!

WallaceR. Fajardo separated in 1999 as a MajorfromAETC andis nowPresident and PrincipalEngineerofAdvanced Consultingand Engineering Solutions, Inc. Living in Dania Beach, FL, theyhave two boys, Wallace andJulian, andwife Lillian of24 years.

TheFajardoFamily

Jerry Stanton became a full partner in the patent law firm Harrington & Smith PC at the start ofthisyearand has added two more attorneys since then. This summer he went skydivingwith mynephewwho is also interning at the lawofficewhilehiswife and two kids are offat summer camp. That was his first jump sincetheairmanship course in 1981, andthefirsttime ever formynephew. Next year theyplan to run with the bulls in Pamplona, so if anyone else is interested in that for the firstweek ofJuly2009 drop him a line! (Sounds like a TDYfor the new Commandant.) Kurt Hornbacker is in the BayArea at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. An analystforthe exportlicensing program to ensure thatU.S. companies don'texport commodities that could be used to makeWMD forthe bad guys.

That is allthe room we have. Go to thewebsite and GO FALCONS! jens

Frank “Q.” Williams

13209 Topsfield Court Herndon, VA 20171 (703)657-3227 USAFA1985@aol.com

Hi everyone

I hopeeverything is goingwellyouwith all. This quarter’s column is mainly comprisedofinputs fromKeithLambert, who sent a card me an invitation to his change-of-command ceremony andWandaWright, who sent an e-mail update with a couple ofpictures.

Colonel Keith Lambert sent an invitation to his change-of-command ceremony as a Mission SupportGroup Commander at MoodyAFB, GA. Regrettably, I was not able to attend the ceremonydue a major test activity I had to support on myjob. I tried to calland congratulateKeith, but as you mightexpect, things were prettyhectic and I could not actuallyreach Keith the morning ofthe ceremony. Keith, if you’rereadingthis... knowthat I’m extremelyproudofyou... old roomie! Ireallywishlcouldhavemadeit. Hopefully, I’ll get to see you see andyour family before too long.

AnotherfriendI’m reallyproudofis ColonelWandaWright. Wanda sent an e-mailwith a couple ofpictures ofherselfand her two kids.

Wanda said she is still inArizona. She reported that she is the Director ofStaffat the Joint Force Headquarters in Phoenix, AZ. She said she has been working hard as the COMAFFOR on the OperationJump Start mission assistingtheborderpatrol on the southwestborder to keep out illegal personnel. Wanda said her kids, Tyler and Jordyn, are growing like weeds. Wanda said her husband is alwaystaking the pictures so he is never in one.

Additionally,Wandasaid she emailed Susan Bessilieu. Wandasaidthat Sueis in South Carolina doing greatworks as a nurse. Wanda said she hopes to see Suewhen she travels to the East Coast.

It’s short and sweet this time. I hope you enjoyed it. Keep those cards and letters (and e-mails) coming! Until the next time... Q

Gary Burg

9301 Harness Horse Ct. Springfield, VA 22153 (703)455-3176

rkacolella@cox.net colellar@ndu.edu

Greetings FellowClassmates:

I regretfullyreportthe sad news that one of our classmates from Mach One has passed away. The Association ofGraduates was informed that Steven Struck, CS-01 passed away on 7 May. Steve left the service in 1997 as a Chief Warrant Officer (CW5) serving in theArmyReserves—likely a unique distinction amongsthis manyclassmates. Uponleavingthe servicehe became a pilot forUnitedAirlines. Condolences maybe sent to his familyin care ofhis wife Tricia: 9EsternayDr, Foothills Ranch CA92610-1929, (949) 463-6964.

Steve andTricia

I was pleased to hear from fellowCS-32 Road RunnerAlum CindyDurhamReese-Zimmerle. (She never could decide on a last name.) Cindy is working in the C-17 program out in California. She sends alongmemories; evenings well spent discharging testosterone in ye olde seminary: “Itjust seems like yesterdayyou were practicing the "fireman's carry" on me in our hallway... I

WandaWright

stilltellthe stories ofthe races we had downthe hallwayriding on our laundry bags... always had to watch out forthat "kamikaze" Ambrose NH Kim.” She sent her email: cynthia.a.zimmerle@boeing.com as well.

BecauseI was desperateformaterialand giventhe factwe haven’theardfrom AmbroseNH Kim since he left us oh so long agowhile flyingthemightyeightengined Stratofortress at the now defunctWurtsmithAir Patch in northern Michigan (hehadthe timingnailed on the bomb runs, hejust couldn’t hold down a flight lunch) I searched and found photographic evidence ofhim hiding out in South Korea on his Facebook profile—you will have to join or go on-line to see it (which bythewayisn’t a badwayto keep in touchwith the scribe). As forAmbrose NH Kim, I recall we convinced thefreshmanjustabout everyyearthatthe “NH” inhis name stood for “Not Hawaiian” - It was always a goodnightwhen he found out we had corrupted another underclass.

I found a bunch ofyou on Facebookactually. I even found HiawathaNewton on Facebook - now I want an honest count - howmanyof you didn’t knowwe had a classmatenamedHiawatha? Count me. Butthe real questionis;howis itAndyHart, KenNorris andJose RolandoAlvarado-Avellan (the man who absolutelygotTHE mostvalue out ofa nametag at the zoo as it wound around the backofhisA-Jacket) have time for a Facebookprofile but no time to update the scribe at the Zoo?

I also found Joel Schubbe - he is hanging out in Baltimore, MD working on theJoint Strike Fighter - his Facebookphoto offers evidence ofwhyyou don’t want to uploadpictures to Facebookwhenyou are drunk!

So my new source for ScribeArticlesyou got it: Facebook. Can’t get you folks to write so, I am goingcyber on you.

Good news from the Colella front-1 escaped theJoint Staffand find myself back at the NationalWar College as a member ofthe faculty - whatjoy! I can’t decide ifI feltbetterafterrecognition or afterleavingthe Pentagon - pretty sure it was thePentagon.

Recent CGO ofthe QuarterGaryBurgis up next - he is backfromthe Desert (one S) and while earningCGOQ honors mayhave also created a Facebook profileusingthat precious desert bandwidth - or maybe not - tune in next time.

IHl

Ezra Vance

7320 Brixham Circle Castle Rock, CO 80108

Home: (303) 6885431

Work: (303) 304-1287

ezravance@hotmail.com

Wings FromHeaven

Ihave averybriefsubmissionforthisissue ofCheckpoints. Iunderstandthat there is majorelection about to take place, but more thanthree ofyou should be able to send me an update. In fact, it was only two ofyou, since Brady Glick’swife wrote in forBrady. I hope to hear from more of you and please reach out to everyone you knowand stayin contact with. I am happy to reach out to the people I know andthepeople thatIhavealreadyheardfrom, butI don’tknow thatyoureallywantto readthe same stuffover and over again.

First comes this great note I received from Michelle Glick (Brady Glick's wife). “I knewhe wouldn't get the following informationunless I tookituponmyselfto make sure you got it. Ijustfinishedup leafingthroughBrady's most recent edition ofCheckpointsmagazine, and read thatyou were looking/needing some content. Well, I have some. (ThankyouMichelle forreadingthearticle and most importantlyforrespondingto myplea.) Last month, (June 13th, ’08) Brady setthe all time record to haveflownthe most hours (as ofthat day, 4,666 hours, to be exact) in the historyoftheA-10Warthog! After finishingupwith flight schoolin 1988, hehas flowntheHawg. He sayshe has

beenoneofthe few luckyenough to have flown theWarthog his wholeAir Force career. He is still racking up the hours today as I write this to you! Over the past 20 years, we have been stationed all over, but have been here in the 'South' (both transplants fromthe North) since 2000 andlove it (can't say we miss coldwinters! Bradyis a flight and weapons instructor for the 47th FighterSquadron/917thWinghereatBarksdaleAFB. We, especiallymyself and our five children, alongwith family and friends were all very proud and honored to be there to watch him make historythat day! I could go on and on about him, and his day, etc. --1 must admit I'm probably pretty biased”. Michelleyou have everyright to be. Please CongratulateBrady on behalfofa Grateful Nation forthis tremendous accomplishment.

Dave Stilwell sent me a short note and a picture to accompanythe following: “Picture is ofTom Sharpy, Dave Stilwell, Scott Murrayand DonWingate at ‘The Muff-inn’ at the CAOC celebrating 21 years with Spirit Cheese. Note Don promptlyescorted us offthe premises for throwing said Spirit Cheese. Just like at the Reunion!”

Finally, I got a briefnote from Dave Holland.Thanks fortakingup the scribe job; I've enjoyedthe reading, so thoughtI'ddropyou a quick note and picture. We've beenhere at RAF Mildenhall forfouryears now and in command ofthe 352 OperationsSupportSquadronforthelasttwo years. 5 Jun08 is the changeof-command date andthen we are headed offto ArmyWar College at Carlisle Barracks, PA. DaveSullivanandMattSmithwill alsobe there. Dave is a UAVSq/ CC at Nellis andMattis a fellowSpecOpsSq/ CC atKadena. Sorry, I didn'tmake it out forthe reunion, so I don'thave much recent info on anymore folks. The attachedpicture is from a familyvacation to southern Germanylastyear. The NeuschwansteinCastle isthe backdrop andblessingnumber5, LukeHolland, arrived Dec07. Godhas trulyblessed our familyand we are lookingforward to ayear ofschooltogether. Thanks again for efforts, they are appreciated.

So with that final update, Iwill close thisverybriefupdate. I hope that all of you are well and that I will receive much more material in the weeks and months ahead. I hope thatyou are safe, and ifyou have a moment, take the time to drop me a note to let me knowwhatyou are doing andwhatyou have been up to. Kindest Regards, Ezra.

Mark Peters

2437 Bedford Circle Bedford, TX 76021-1823 (817) 937-9696 pylt@yahoo.com

Hello ’88!

Lots ofinput this time so I’ll keep it short and to the point. Todd Tofaute wrote in after an appeal fromyourtrustyscribe: “Lynn and I are trying to hold the title ‘Oldest Parents of’88.’ Our son, Charles “Chas” HenryTofaute, was born on 3 May2007, nine months afterJoe Mazur’sweddingin LasVegas. You can do the math. Our recommendation: don’t go to aTim McGraw-FaithHill concert. Justkidding. What a true blessingChashas been andhis older sisters Jessie, 11, and Brie, 8,just adore him. I’ve attached a couple ofphotosforyou.

The GlickfamilycelebratesBrady’s recordflight time in theA-10.

The familypicturehas, from left, Chas (1), me, Jessie (11), Lynn, and Brie (8). I’m a Lt Col in the Reserves currentlyserving as an Admission Liaison Officer (ALO) in Arizona.”

The TofauteThanksgiving(with latestaddition to thefamily).

DavidGaineswrotewith news ofatransitionforhisfamily: “The Gainesfamily ishangingup theAirForceuniformand tryingitshand as gentlemenfarmers in Kentucky. We're settlinginVersailles, KY (about 10 miles west ofLexington), in a nice single-widewith a built-instill and acres and acres ofcom mash. Please drop in ifyou're ever intheBluegrass—we'llhave the corn squeezinsready!” Dave can be reached at 3095TyronePike,Versailles, KY40383.

InJune I had a short email fromTom Sadlo who is certainlyseeing much of theworld on behalfofthe USAF: “Justmade the time to lookthrough thelatest Checkpoints and decided to drop you a note. Ijustreturned from a 6+ month deploymentwhere I was the Operations Officerin a Navyunit atAlAsadAB, Iraq. Uponreturning I was pulled into the mis-shipment to Taiwan issue and havebeenworking that ever since. Dave Briar is the Provost Marshall atYong San and should be moving soon.” Tom can be reached at DSN 223-5903.

Julybrought a descriptive note fromAllan and Claire Wright. “Just a quick blurbfromStuttgart, Germany. IworkfortheMITRE Corporation insupportof DoDISRsystems atEUCOM andforthelastyearplus,AFRICOM aswell,withmy wife, Claire, and son Nathan. Over at EUCOM, I had the opportunityto reconnectwith several ’88ers: Colonel Mike Ganttandhiswife,Erika, andkids. Mike moved on toAviano a couple ofmonths ago. I’ve also bumped into Lt Col Jeff WohlfordandColMarthaMcSalley,who'stheAFRICOMJoint Operations Center chief. Incidentally, for those who were smacks in Stalag 17,1sawColonelEric Beene (’86), who's the J5 Executive Officer. Have heard recentlyfrom a couple of folks a year or two behind us, JamesHodges (’90) movingto a NATOjob in Heidelbergafter a tour in the box, andAndy Hamann, (’90),nowaDAOinNorthAfrica. Great email correspondence continueswiththeThunderbolts of34, butanyonegoingto thereunion can catchup with the crew. Folks retiring—how’dyou guys get so old?”

Lastly, atdeadlineIreceivedthefollowingnoticefromtheAOG: “TheAOGhas beennotified ofthe recent deathofLtColThomasA Bouley. He was killedin an F15 accident near LasVegas. Condolencesmaybe sent to hiswidow, Mrs.Toni L. Bouleyat2029 RoyalGardensPlace, LasVegasNV89084.” FromACCIhavethe followingedited press release: Nellis celebrates life offallenAirmen: Lt. Col. ThomasBouleyMemorial,byAirman 1stClassRyanWhitney, NellisAFB Public Affairs. 8/5/2008-NellisAirForce Base. More than 800Airmen, family members, and friends gathered to celebrate the life of a fallen NellisAirman at the NellisBaseChapelandNellisBaseTheatreAug.4,2008. Lt. Col. Thomas "Moses" Bouley, 65thAggressorSquadroncommander, was killedwhentheU.S.AirForce F-15D Eagle, atwo-seaterhewaspiloting, crashed on theNevadaTestandTrainingRangeduring a RedFlagtraining exerciseJuly30,2008.

"Todaywegather to honor ColonelBouley, or Moses, as manyknewhim," said Capt. Dave Horton, NellisAir Force Base chaplain. "Moses was a commander, a leader, a fellowAirman, and a greatpilot. But before that, he was a lovingfather, son, brother, friend, and a greatguyto know.Thelegacyheleaves behind is a rich one."

Duringthe service, friends, family and coworkers shared humorous anecdotes and tales about the Eagle Scout born in Chateauroux, France.

Throughout his illustrious career, Colonel Bouley served in numerous capacifieswhere he affectedthelives ofindividuals, as well as thebiggerpicture oftheAirForce. From teaching as an instructorpilot, to flyingwith the Royal Air Force, to serving as the interim Red Flag commander ColonelBouley's life had global reach.

"Moses has touched the life ofmore people than we could ever fit into this chapel or theatre," said Col. David Stillwell, 57thAdversaryTactics Group commander. "Wewill miss him more than we could ever say."

"This time lastyear, we were figuring outwho was going to be the 65thAGRS commander, and there were lots ofstrong candidates to choose from," Colonel Stilwellcontinued. "While lookingthrough the performance reports I saw a generalwho Ihadworkedwithinthepast. I spokewithhimaboutMoses and his response was perfect. Only two words - 'Hire him.' How can you argue with that?"

Colonel Bouley’s father was also in the military, and achieved the rank of chiefmaster sergeant. Mr. Bouleyrecalledwhen his little brother, Tom, was born, weighing 10+ lbs. at birth. "Back then, dad was a tech sergeant, and because ofwhattheywere paid in 1965, had to take as manyjobs as possible to provide for us sixkids, but it was mainly to provide forTom."

Mr. Bouleycontinued to speakofhowpeople take things forgrantedduring theirnormal day-to-daylives, and how a tragedyreminds you ofpastexperiences. ”We are shocked, we mourn, we cryand then we laugh. InTom's case, there are a lot offunnythings, so we will be laughing for a long time."

Mr. Bouley told how Colonel Bouleyloved to read, and one ofhis favorite books was a fictionbookaboutRangersintheVietnamWar. CharlieMike means continue the mission, he explained.

"For thosewho reallyknewTom, you knowhe is probablylookingdown on us completelyamused byall ofthis stuffforhim. But ifhe could, hewould tell us to go out and continue the mission," said Mr. Bouley.

ColonelBouleyenteredtheAirForcewith his commissionfromtheAirForce Academy in 1988. He is survived byhis wife and two sons.

Inlieu offlowers, a non-profitmemorialfundhas been established for Colonel Bouley'sfamily. Donations can be sent to "ThomasBouleyMemorialFund" at theArmed Forces Bank, 4325 N.WashingtonBlvd., RO. Box9719, NellisAFB, NV89191.

Please be sure to note our reunion from 12 to 15 November.

Paul W. Tibbets, IV

PSC 80, Box 76 APO AE, 09702

Home: 011-32-2-251-2772

E-mail: p2a2@skynet.be

Class web site: http://www. usafaclasses.org/1989/

Greetings classmates! Preparations and fundraisingfor our 20th reunion are goingwell! We nowsitwithapproximately$125,000 incash on handandpledges forthe classgiftproject. Onbehalfoftheclass, I can’tthankthose ofyou enough who have generouslydonated to this great cause. With agoalof$150,000,we are over 80% there, so we stillneedyourhelp! The class offleers and a fewother classmates have started Phase II ofour fundraisingeffortbye-mailingas manyofyou as we can find. Ifyou are able to give, great! Ifnot, we will remove you from our contact list so you will not be bothered again. As a reminder, the moneyraisedwill go towards our HeritageTrail plot (thanks to Mike Chapa forwalking the different plots andselecting a fantasticlocation) where we will honor Kevin Shea, pavers for all our fallen classmates and several cadet programs. Ifyou have pledged, please send in your donations as soon as possible as the work on the bust for Kevin (see preliminary drawingbelow) cannot begin until the funds are received. Also, thiswouldbe a good time tocontact otherclassmatesyouknowandencourage them to give. Let’s spread the word!! More information can be found at our class web site listed at thebeginningofthis article, or you can contact our class giftPOC, Alex “Gonzo” Gonzalez-Rojas at gonzo5insp@hotmail.com.

Artist’sdrawingofKevin’s bustfor theHeritage Trail.

On otherreunion developments, we are lookingforvolunteerswho are interested in serving as squadron POCs. Some ofthe functions include:

Helporganize individual gatherings/functions forthe respectivesquadron for our upcomingreunion;

Help gather additional help and support from squadron mates for overall planningand execution ofreunion functions; Assist in gettingtheword out and make contact with members from now

through the reunion to ensure everyone is notified and informed ofreunion scheduling, actions and requirements.

This is a greatwayto get involved andhelpspread theword. As mentioned previously, one ofour biggestchallengesright now isjustgettingin touchwith everyone! Ifyou are interested, pleasedrop me an e-mail and Iwill getyou in touchwith the right folks. Additionally, we are working on a project to award LarryMcNeel, who passed awayin a glider accidentfall semester ofour senior year, a posthumousdegree atthe reunion. Lastly, manythanks to RondallRice, who is doing a superbjob developing the design for our Heritage Trail plot. Check out the classweb site forthese and otherreunion information and updates. I will keep you up to speed in Checkpoints each quarter. We lookforward to a great reunion! On to the news.

As I mentionedlastquarter, Doug“Mugsy” Malone retired a fewmonths ago andishesayslifeisgreat! He andthefamilyhave nowreturned to theUSwhere Mugsyis working as a contractor for USJFCOM. He recentlyhad lunch with Dave Doe and stumbled across Dave Banko, who is a seniorprojectmanager for SunGard doing software development. He lives south ofLondon and is doing some missionaryworkfor his church. Thanks Mugsy!

ColJamesFairchild,Jacqui, andDougpose as theMalones leave ouractive dutyAirForceafterservingwith honoranddistinctionfor20years. You willbe missed!

It was also great to hearfrom Mark Synovitz, who is enjoying command of AMCAir Ops Squadron, Detachment 2, atAltusAFB. He enjoysleading this small, highlyprofessional HQ AMC unit in conducting semi-annual FAAequivalent KC-135 andC-17 simulatorcertificationsaround theworld. While home from these shortTDYs, Mark and his folks maintain flight currency by augmenting instruction ofunqualifiedAETC FTU students. Thanks Mark!

report to Athens, Greece to do almost exactlywhat I was doing in FortWorth withLockheed. AGreekaerospace companywas awarded a contractto modify USAF F-16sfrom Spangdahlem andAviano and I'm the FCF pilotflyingthejets when they're done. Still don't have a house and I've been here since 29 May. Familyjustgotherelastweek. Ournewest daughterwas bom29 March. Ellyana Jean Newman. It's a zoo brother!

Joe Tegtmeyer(’88),goodfriendofMark,followinghis wetdownfrom his last KC-135flight atAltus. Joejustfinished his 18-month tour as the OSS/CCat Altus and is offto FairchildAFB as thedeputy OG/CC.

That’s a wrap for this quarter. On a side note, we are trying to expand our classweb site, so please send some photos and short comments on your activities to ourweb master, Scott Shinberg, at scott.shinberg@gmail.com. Wewill postthese on the Class Historysection. Bestwishes to you andyour families. Take care and God bless.

James Sanchez

8301 Emerald Circle

NorthRichland Hills, TX 76180

Cell: (817) 881-6357

Web: WWW.USAFA90.COM

alohatiger@gmail.com

JohnTree: I was promoted to Colonel in the USAF Reserves this pastMay andhave a newjob as the SeniorIMAto theDirectorofGlobal ChannelOperations in theTACC at ScottAFB, IL.

GregNewman: I was shoveled a shortnotice assignment. I hadfourweeks to

GregNewmanfamily with and new daughterEllyana.

GeorgeHalley:Wereturned to ColoradoSpringslastyearandhavebeenworkingforSanborn MappingCompany. InAugust, I am beingpromoted to aerial acquisition department managerandwill mean be in charge ofseven airplanes. Once again, this SpaceOperationsmajoris put in charge ofa bunch ofpilots.

Mark Leonard:Aloha from Maui! Been a while since I last sent an update. I am currentlyassigned as theAir Force ResearchLab (AFRL) Detachment 15 Commander for the Air Force Maui Optical andSupercomputing Site (AMOS). Kimberly, Josh (13), Luke (9), James (7), and I have been here for ayearalready. AMOS is the homeofthelargestDoD telescope. It's on top ofthe 10Kfoot summit ofHaleakela. B. Scott Hunt (also CS-15) is also stationedhere... at leastfor a month or two more. We've had manyvisitors to the island includingCarl Schaefer andhis family. We are really enjoyingtheassignmentandtheisland. Ifyou or anyMighty’90gradsfindthemselves on Maui, I hopey'all look us up!

MarkLeonardand Carl Schaeferandfamilies.

Ruthann (Shelton) Fisher’s Husband, John: Ruthann is out oftown not sure whatyou need forupdates. I can tell you thatshe was recently moved to be the DeputyDivisionforIntel, Surveillance Reconnaissance Divisionwithin the 601stAOC here atTyndall. Puttinginlonghours to get her arms around the challenges she was hired to correct/improve.

KenDeGraaf: I am stationed at theAlpenaCRTC (APN) so it'dbe great to hear from anyone comingthrough for training. I did a four-month TDY to HQUSAFE last Oct-Jan. Excellent experience for a whirlwind tour. Otherthan that, ops normal.

Mark Phelps: Being a prior enlisted preppie had some perks while being a cadet, butthebest came recentlywhen I was able to retire from the USAFR on Feb 1,2008. That date was 20 years to day,though I stillcan'tbelieve I'm that old. IreallyenjoyedmytimeintheUSAFbutrmhappytobedone. I've been flying with FedExfor almost eight years now and probably see at least two classmates everytime I'm at work there is a BUNCH of ’90 guys here. Now ifI can make it to age 60 andremember to turn in some form in 17 years I'11 get a retirement check. Cheers!!

This update is short; sorry about that. I think I need to redo the original USAFA90.com website. Between MySpace, FaceBook, Plaxo, and the other gazillion social networkingsites, it’s hard to keep upwith people. When I have time I’ll redo the site andwe’ll be back on track.

Carson Tavenner

6828 Raccoon Court

Waldorf, MD 20603

(202) 231-2484

DSN: (312) 428-2484

Home: (301) 374-2752

Carson_wendy@comcast.net

43% ■ksSifers

First, I want to give a big“THANKYOU” toAngie Cadwell forsendingindividual emails to thosewho’vebeen neglectingtheirinfo on thewebsite for so long. There have beenjustdozensand dozens offolks checkingin! Awesome!

One thing,though. Ifyou are writingsomething for Checkpoints, you can go ahead and send it directly to me. Angie is verykind to forward them, but you can save herthechorebysendingitdirect. I have changed myhome email to make this easier to be in touch; I was not monitoringthe Hotmail account adequately. For any ofyouwho might’vewritten and never received a reply, please acceptmysincere apologies andwrite again.

To complementAngie’s effort on contactingfolks slowlybut surelyfor the 20-yearreunion, here’s a listofthe more than200 names who don’thave an “as of” date in theirpersonal info. Maybe some datais there, but we have no idea howold it is. In 50% ofthe cases, there is no other datawhatsoever. In a few cases, it is ReeseAFB”! Hmmm. Ifyou knowwhere these folks are, contact themandtell them to log onto usafa91 .com and go fromthere to getlinked in with us:

Timothy Adams, Craig Allton, Jeffrey Anderson, William Anderson, Jr., MichaelAndrews, Jr., DouglasAnnanie,AnthonyBaade, Anna Bailey, Pride Barker, LaneBeene, Brian Bernett, KennethBibb,Jr,JamesBlackburnIII, Kevin Blanchard,William Blitt,Jr, StevenBrahm, BlakeBrewer, BrianBrindle,Andrew Bruce, GeoffreyBurns, Michael Callender, Manuel Candelaria,Jr, Cherianne Carlisle, DavidChapman, Boon Chng, ThomasChoi, MarkCiero,JamesClark, Richard Clark, Gregory Colby, Christopher Cortez, John Culton III, Margaret Cundiff, Jonas D'Andrea, Christopher Darcy, Anthony Davis, Amy Dayon, Christopher Decolli, David Deniz, PatrickDonley, Michelle Dubois, LarryEarls, Jr,AndrewEnglish, BradfordEverman,RoyFatur, MarcFisher, MarkFlanders, DanielFonte,Jr, ElizabethFrederick, Heather Fries, Michael Gartrell, Jeffrey Gauser, Ohn Gordon, Max Grannan,RobertGrey,Jr, MarkGrotelueschen, RobertHaataja, PeterHagis, PeterHahn, Sandra Harrington, RobertHayes, Thomas Jahn, Thomas Jensen, Antoine Johnson, James Johnson, Lyle Johnson, Mike Johnson, Wi-Suk Jung, Kathy Kennedy, Brian Kilian, DaveKnolmayer,KyKobayashi, LeisaKollars, MarkKruse, DavidLaione II, KentLandreth, KimberliLane, GlenLehman, MichaelLehnhardt,Stephanie Lind, LindaLingg, Paul Lockwood, Richard Louthan, Daniel Malles, Daniel Maruyama,ChristopherMayerle, GlennMayes, ErnestMcClure, DaveMcCune, Ronald McMinn, Russell Michaud, MartyMiller, Eric Moeller, Marc Moeller, TimothyMonarski, Thomas Moreno II, BenjaminMorley,TimothyMurphy, JeffNeal, Ken Norris, Inalegwu Odeh, Esme Ohshita, Mark Oldford, Brian O'Rourk,DanOrtwerth, EricPatten, ScottPattison,TommyPeasley,DirkPorath, EdwardPorta, PaulPowell, HeatherPringle, MikePuralewski, PaulRades, Kevin Raymond, Colin Reilly, John Riordan, Somporn Rompayom, Joseph Roth, GlennRuhl, Russell Sakati,Vanessa Savas, Charles Schlegel, John Scott II, AndrewSimmons, Shannon Simms, Ken Skillern, Jr,JeffreySlevin, Brian Smith, BryanSmith, Marcus Smith,Visut Sompugdee, Mike Stewart, Jr, LeroyStrain, DonaldStrickland, Thaddeus Summers, RichardSvoboda, Bartz Sykes, BradleyTebrugge, PeterTeller, MiculThompson, Jr, JohnTokish, GeorgeTombe IV KenVan Eyk, JulianaWalker, JustinWafrath, LindaWashburn, JennyWatson, RodneyWeaver, RichardWells, RobertWolverton, MikeWood, DavidWooten, BenWyborney, KenYu.

You can imaginethis took us almost to the 1200word max limit for this column. So, the news fromherewill be decidedlybrief, though there are some GREATstories I’mhave to skipexpandingon!

I was privileged to have lunch todaywithJoe Laville,workingwith Security Forces on theAir Staff, career-broadening from his usual workwithAFOSI. Joe PCSed here fromTurkeylastyear; he still has thatyouthful, warm, welcoming Laville smile ofhis! So good to see on a Monday, ya know?

We have at least 40 classmates on the DC local distro; next time maybe I’ll have room to print thatlist in this column.

Several ofour classmateshave leftthePentagonthis summer to go cut their

babyteeth on thecommandexperience. Forthesakeofnotleaving out anyone who I’d forget to mention, allow me to give you all one big GO GET ‘EM, ’91! Never let ’em see you sweat.

Lynn Gawell has beensending me a fewfriendlyemails from hercommandingperch atWright-Pat; she travels to DC fairlyoften, butwe’ve both been too caught up in our schedules to actuallyvisitwith one another. Thanks forstaying in touch, Lynn!

My old roommate, Don Yu, recently wrote in and gave me a hard time (of course). Ifyou can’trely on your roommate to point out your shortcomings, who CAN you relyon! Don isworkingwith UPS inTexas, BTW.

Todd Stewart is in the area and tells me Stan Bennett lives in Chicago, but is in the DC area quite a bitwhile flying for FedEx.

Dave Siegristjust tookcommand ofthe 1stAirlift Squadron atAndrews supportingPOTUS (prettycool, yagottaadmit!). He’s therewithTom Thibault (who apparentlydoes notwork) and StefEling (hard at work as the 89 OSS/DO).

Joe Rubier wrote in with,”I've been with Jetblue for a little over three years now. I was flyingthe C-141/C-17at McGuire but it got to be too much so I'm doing the ALO thing now in New Jersey. At Jetblue are Dave Deames, John Riordan, DanZubrid and Kurt Schuster. I also ran into JohnWagnerduring an Orlando layover. He's a squadron commander at Cape Canaveral; his oldest son, Jeff, is applying to USAFA.”

Susan (Rank) Foy gave birth to her second child, Aiden Karl Foy, 16 July. Congratulations, Susan!

I will write more laterwhen we have actual details, but Jim Dutton is about to getassigned to a shuttle mission! Iwouldlike to go down to Florida to watch! Will youjoin me?

ScottMcLeanworks as a contractor and a Reservist atVandenbergAFB, supporting 14AF’s space operations in both capacities.

Excitingwords fromArt Romero: He and Chris Howard started a company recruiting executives into financial service companies. He also does a lot of gliding up in Boulder as a commercialgliderpilot. Art wouldratherbe flying for a living, but for now he gets his "fix" bygliding.

Finally, and most recently, Robb Erickson ascended Mt. Rainier alongwith threedisabled Iraq veterans (two blind, one with a prostheticleg)! F-15s did a fly-overwhen theywere at the top, too! Robb, that ROCKS! Wish I couldhave putthewhole article from the Klamath Fallspaperin here. Not enough room; those interested should definitelycheck it out! Congratulations as well on the Pacific CrestTriathlon Robb!

In closing, I’m excited to announce my own post-Air Force location: Darrington,WA, less than 30m SWfrom the entrance to North Cascades NationalPark. You are all invitedto comebyforadrinkonthedeckin2013. (I gotta build thehouse first!).

James S. Mehta

3802 Elbert Ave.

Alexandria, VA 22305 (703) 697-4511; DSN: 227-4511

james.mehta@ogn.af.mil

jamesmehta@pentagon.af.mil

jamesmehta@earthlink.net

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Attention in the area, attention in the area. Remember those announcements? Anyway, I guess I now haveyourattention foranotherquarter'sCheckpointsupdate for Class of 1992.1 accidentally sent the wrong photos when I submitted mylast column, so I am going to try to include them this time.

Michelle, Sarah (2), and I continue to enjoyDC. There are so manyways to keepbusyin this cityand I have also seen a lot ofyou around here. I frequently getthegreatopportunityto reconnectwith people considering so manypeople are stationed here, have separated and live here, or just come hereTDY.

Passingthetorch. Elaine (Riley) Sersunhadbeenplanning the regular ’92 lunches here in DC. She and her husband PCSedthis quarter, so she turned over thelunch bunch list to JeanTwomeywho is a Reservist inthe Pentagon. Lasttimewe met in Rosslyn forlunch. There were about nine or ten ofus. I don’t have the whole list of attendees, but sat with Todd McDowell, Steve Broderick, Rick Bailey and Jean. Jean has recentlymoved to DC and is working a full-time Reservejob at the Joint Staff. She picked up scheduling the ’92 social events rightwhere Elaine left off.The next event is goingto be a HappyHourwhich should entice a few more people. Rickisleavinghis tour at the State Department andheaded to the NATO Joint Forces Combat Command in the Netherlands. Stevejust relocated to the DC area from Phoenix. Steve separated severalyears ago and is flying for Southwest. As I wrote last column, Todd inAF/JA is moving over to an execjob here at the Pentagon.

MikeRokawcontinuesto thriveinthe SouthernCaliforniawithAngela,Sophie, and Sammy. Mikewrote, “I am trulyenjoyingbeing a SQ CC. Itis nice to get to a point in your career whereyou can give back to the younger troops and teach them from the mistakesyou have made. It is also good to be back in program managementand deliveringspace superioritysystems to help the fight.

“I oversee three programs and am constantly on the go, but it is great. Last month I was TDY to the Springs and visited my old stompinggrounds at 4 SOPS, where our classmateTommyRoberts is the commander. It was a nice stroll down memorylane.”

I lookforward to seeing Mike on a futureTDY. Thanks forthe greatupdate!

Iraqcontingency. Paul Cairneywrote from the International Zone (IZ) of Baghdad. I’ll let him speakfor awhile: “I gottatellyou, ithasbeen a regular’92 reunionhere. In between the rocket attacks we have constantlybumped into each other coming and going. We managed to get a few ofus together for a picture. We frequentlybump into eachotherinthe coffee shop inthe Embassy, what used to be Saddam's palace not a bad way to spend a war!

From left are Monte Harner, Skip Pribyl, Michael Bob Starr, Paul "Bo" Bovanlcovich, andPaul Cairney.

“Monte Hamerfinished up a yearhereworkinginthe Baghdad Urban Planning (aka "BURP" no kidding) where hehelpedplan out the future development ofthe IZ. Prettyambitious stuff, including convention centers and golf courses. He scored a Bronze Star out ofhere, so he must have knownwhat he was doing! SkipPribyl is theplannerforMNC-IC5 at CampVictory, butlots of his work happens here in the IZ. Michael Bob Starr was my roomie for our upperclassyears in CS-15, so it was a treat to run into him againhere. He is the DeputyChiefoftheMNF-I StrategyDivision, whichsounds prettysexy. Hesays itinvolves alotofthinkingdeepthoughtsandsummarizingmeaninglessbumper stickers on Powerpoint slides.

“Paul"Bo" Bovankovich is the Executive Officerforthe IntelligenceTransitionTeam ofMulti-National SecurityTransition Command Iraq. Yours truly is the DirectorofLawandOrderfortheJointArea SupportGroup Central, and Commander ofthe IZ Police. Steve Coxcouldn't make it for the picture, unfortunately, and hejust finished a year here as well. Rush Williams was also here for a few months. He was part ofthe FBI contingenthere, so we got to work together as well as sit and reminisce. Fellow cop and preppie Rudy Cdebaca got paroled from his instructor duties at ACSC to return to the SF world forayearhere in Baghdad. His instructor duties preppedhimwell to be the DirectorofDetaineeOps at CampVictory. Mike Reschkejust arrived as the ChiefofStaffforthe MNF-IAF Commander out ofVictoryBase. I ran into Lisa Thomas recently as well here in the IZ. I saw her as I was coming through Baghdad InternationalAirport, and she is now here for spell. Kevin Cullen is nothere in theIZ, buthe is thecommanderofthe 732d ExpeditionarySecurity Forces Squadron at Balad. Since I am one ofhis detachment commanders, I gottamention him. He is a tough boss, you know!

Quite a True Blue contingent in the IZ—I’m sure there are dozens more throughout theater. Great update, Paul!

Here are the photos fromthe last column:

Here’s a photofrom Mark and Xavi Slocum’s wedding on 19Apr 08 at the Washington National Cathedral.

AwesomefamilyphotoofSteveand Steph Whyte withtheir nine kids at the ministry theyfounded—-A Place Called Home (www.apchm.org)—to help supportand mentorexceptionalfosterandadoptiveparents.

Donna (Ward) Boyce’spromotion in Dec 07atPentagon—pinned on byher husband, Don.

Doolie roommate. Out ofthe blue, I got an email from Dan Charbonneau who was myfirst roommate 4-degreeyear. Dan separated as a Captain after an assignmentto Korea andhas since started a computertrainingbusiness called CBTNuggets (www.cbtnuggets.com). He is livingin Eugene, OR andhasthree boys and recentlyflew to China to pickup his adopteddaughter. I visited his website and it is clearhe’s doinggreat things.

Thatwraps anothergreatTrue Blue column. Send me a notewhenyouhave a moment andthose ofyou in the DC area bettercall or stop by room 5B919 in the Pentagon. God Bless, James.

Michael D. Sundsted

yppWi | j. */iff1805 Macadams Place Alexandria, VA 22308 (240) 338-9839

Michael.sundsted@afncr.af.mil

Class Website: www.highflight.com

(3 Sabre Society Donors)

(Editor’s note: We did not receive a columnfrom Mikefor this issue. Please send himyour inputs andphotosfor the next magazine.)

C.C. M. Masotti

psc 116Box 215 APO AE 09777

W: +33-1-43-12-26-69 or 202-536-2780, 1 (for English) X2669

Cell: +33-1 6-25-74-69-13

cc.masotti@yahoo.com

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(Editor’s note: We did not receive a columnfrom C. C. for this issue. Please send heryour inputs andphotosfor the next magazine.)

R. TravisKoch

^g|g||lp||gy^ 5304 Sports Club Lane Suffolk, VA 23435

\@wf

myjpf&f

Home: (757) 686-2607

Cell: (850) 499-8242

richard.koch@langley.af.mil

traviskoch@yahoo.com

RexBallingerhere, bringingyou the latest update on members ofthe Class of1995... at least as I can tell it...

Nikki (Gumina) andI are stillin DCwith our two youngboysJude andZane. Nikki is finishingthe final year ofher FP/Psychresidencyand training for a triathlon, Jude is learning to talkvia the seven basic responses, and Zane is putting on enoughweight to prop for the Zoomie RugbyFootball Club.

Apparently, DC is the place to be this summer. Bryan Green and Kenneth Hugh Butlerjustmovedhereaftertheir stints atACSC. Ken isworking at SAF/ AQ andrequested a nod to his Skyraiderclassmates atACSC (send us a picture, willyou?). All I knowabout Bryan is that he gets a civilian clothes allowance. Recently, Nikki ran intoTrevorBenitone and his two kids at a localpark. Trevor just moved here for the AF Intern Program (I think); and the beauty ofthe whole encounter is that I still get confused with my evil twin, Rick Bolander. Nikki also bumped intoWade Gordonwho is doing a fellowship in trauma surgery atWalter Reed - looks like he’ll be busy...

Mike Foutch is at Bollingworkingforthe surgeon general. We recentlycelebrated his birthday at their local pool, where we hooked up with Chuck Podolakandhiswife,AndreaVineyard (‘96). AndiworkswithMike, and Chuck is working on a Ph.D. in some sort ofriver engineering. As far as I can tell, his researchinvolves kayaking allofthegreatwhitewaterspots in Oregon. I definitelypicked the wrong graduate program. Chad Bondurant and hiswife, Angela, were also at the party. Chad was gettingready to go on a motorcycle roadtrip andenjoysome vacationtimebeforehe starts theAF Internprogram. Rocky Thurston and his family were there, as well. Rocky is a high roller at Lockheed Martin, but he still builds his own furniture.

ScottArbogastrecentlytraded in his technician positionwith theAndrews AirNationalGuardfor a frill-timeAGRslotwith the same unit as ifhe needed anyadditionalgrooming. Scott is alsoworking on his MBA at JohnsHopkins. I don’t get to see him as often as I’d like, but he is still a great friend (he’s got Nationals season tickets and aboat!). Sean Cotterlivesjust downtheroadfromScott, andheandMimi are gettinggeared up fortheAnnual Ship ofFoolshouse-boatingtrip with the likes ofJakeMaloy, Mike Mills andTravis Koch. I’m not sure who else is goingthisyear; butI hope to hear all aboutit, and soon. Sean also passedalonganothernugget ofinformation that I am sure will have many a woman crying in herwhite zinfandel: Jake Maloyis engaged to be married to thelovely Heather. CongratulationsJake!

Congratulations are also in order forMatt Baadewho recentlygot engaged to Kate, a terrific gal from Chicago that he met out here. Shouldbe a bang-upwedding, so putthat one on your calendar. Keepingwith the engagementtheme, word on the street is thatSangPark, the most eligible bachelorinKorea (fiveyearsrunning), is alsoveryclose to nuptials. Mysources tell me thathisparents are currentlyinKoreameetingherparents. Ifmymemory serves me correct, that amounts to common law in Seoul. Sang’sgirlfriend, Sheean Hwang, is a pop-star/model/actress and a perennial favorite for the annual Korean “Slashie” awards. Last but not least, NoelKelly:heyman, send me a text.

Jim Olsen is flyingfor Southwestthese days. He lives in our neighborhood, but has been on hiatus due to a three-plusmonth gig as a memberofa grand jury-look out BarryBonds, Jimmy-0 is coming to getcha. We get to see Mike Miller (’94) andAndrea (Kirkman) everyThursdayfor softball on the mall. Mikejust returned from a tour in Baghdad, andAndreajust started school at the Marine Corps Command and StaffCollege. While Mike was in Baghdad, Andrea was able to finagle a short conjugalvisit, but both ofthem still swear that alltheydid was have dinnerinthe mess hall - is thatwhattheycall it these days? Other alumni members of our softball team include: Bill Speros (’93), Chris Eden (’94), PattyRodriguez-Rey(’94), KurtKremser (’96),Amy (Petrina) Kremser (’98), Blair Kaiser (’96), and Kris Ecker (’96). Speaking of sports, there was a KristenAbbott sightingrecentlyin theAlexandria soccer leagues. She was wearingnumber 15 and playing sweeper. Nikki can’t wait to line up across fromhersometime this fall...

ThefinalDC-centricinfo I must mentionisthattheFirstAnnualOldDominion Duffwas a tremendous success. On July 19,2008, a date that will live in infamy, 12 ofus mustered at a golfcourse near Fredericksburg,VA to settle an old score left over from the CivilWar. It was an epic struggle - North versus South, Blue versus Grey, Brother versus Brother, Greek-Italian versus Hooters... In the end, the South was victorious; butmarkmywords, the Northwill rise again...

Here’s some news fromACSC. Apparendy us olderfolks arrive earlyand are deemedtheFirst50. MembersofthisclassincludeChadBalettie,BrianSchafer, Matt Lowe and Mike Simon. So farthey are having a tremendous time; we’ll see howthings pan out once thegeneralpopulationarrives. ColbyHoefarand family are doinggreat out in Colorado. He recentlystarted a companycalled The Ecolution, which specializes in green construction. Another surprising tree hugger is Brian MacDonald (Varney) who’s got all sorts ofplans forsolar

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energy. Brian lives in Denver, works for a huge engineering firm, and often hangs out withJames Manu, who recently recovered from a prolonged episode ofthegout/torn-ligament/dislocated-kneecap.

John Nemecek was recentlypromoted to Mr. He and the family are setting up shop in Houston, where John is working for GE Energy. He loves the civilian life and alreadyhas plans for an ocean-going vessel and a bass boat. Benji Glazer is also in Houston working for Praxair; ofcourse, that’s onlywhen he’s not playingrugby or surfing in Costa Rica. Miles Mathieu andAudrey (Allcom) are still enjoyingMonterey and will soon be moving their family to MacDill, once Miles finishes NPS. Curtis “Axe” Green recently entered the NYFD Fire Academy. Curtwill still fly helos with the ANG out ofLongIsland; so once he becomes a NYC fireman, he’ll have two part-timejobs. Ken Gjone is no longer a “special student” at the University ofAnkara inTurkey, and he’ll be working toward an MA in Economics while on the Olmsted Scholarship. His wife, Meagan (McCann, ‘96), and their two boys recently took a break from their summer villa on the Med to cheer on Ken as he swam the Bosporus Straits. Did I mention that I picked thewrong graduate program

Andfinally, we come to the JohnHambysection ofthe update: a picture says a thousandwords...

Sang Park and Sheean Hwangafter her performance with FreeTempo in Tokyo.

South: Bryan Green, Jonathan Hamby, Travis Koch, ChristopherHamby, Jason Tone, and Michael Foutch. North: Rocky Thurston, Ken Butler, Chris Tengwall, Rex Ballinger, MattBaade, and Sean Cotter.

JonathanHamby

Melissa S. Cunningham

5785 Ft. Wright Oval

Fairchild AFB, WA 99011

W: (509) 247-2525/DSN: 657-2525

H: (509) 244-9775

Melissa.cunningham@fairchild.af.mil fchdrider@msn.com

We made it! After two months ofbasicallyliving like hobos, Fred and I are settled at FairchildAFB. It’s been a whirlwind since we arrived. We tookhousehold goods on a Monday, and next day I had a change ofcommand. So, it’s been“on” ever since. I’vepromisedFredwe’ll get around to unpackingboxes... sometime soon. As I’vebeendoing a little in-processing, I ran intoJeffCrouse who is flying KC-135s at Fairchild and pulling a tour as the wing exec. I’m lookingforward to hanging out with Jeffand his family over the next year.

I received an update andphoto fromJD Hoskinscheckinginfrommedschool at USU inBethesda. Things are goinggreat! He has a reallygood classandthey have beenverybusythislastyear. Theyjustfinished some physiologylabs and got a chance to test their“divereflex” in the 37-degree dive tank. Theyalso did exercise physiology and a litter carry course in full MOPP gear. Attached is a picture ofRoss Graham (2002) and JD presenting their poster on using air trafficcontrolmethods to increasepatientthroughputin a trauma center. They are going to test theidea this summer. They are encouraged because there has been a lot ofinterestgenerated on theirstudyalready.

JD also had a chance to visit Morris Fontenot at the HRbuildings in DC. Mo’s classes are goingfine and he has learned a great deal about the legislative systern. Mo and Kara are also busyteaching their two girls (Natalie and Nicole) soccer and enjoyingthe area.

Our class competed verywell during the 2008-9 White House Fellow program selections. Founded in 1964, the White House Fellows program is America's most prestigious program for leadership and public service.White House Fellowships offer exceptionalyoung men and women first-hand experience working at the highestlevels ofthe federal government. White House Fellows typically spend a year working as full-time, paid special assistants to seniorWhite House Staff, theVice President, CabinetSecretaries and othertop-rankinggovernment officials. Fellows also participate in an education program consisting ofroundtable discussionswith renownedleaders from the private and public sectors, and trips to study U.S. policyin action both domesticallyand internationally.

On 3 Mar08, theWhite House announced that97 outstanding men and women from across the countryhad been selected as Regional Finalists for theWhite House Fellows Program Theyrepresented a broad cross-section ofprofessions, including technology, education, health care, state government, engineering, business, consuiting, lawand the non-profit sector. Ofthose 97 people, four were from our class: Paul Birch, James Hughes, George Schwartz, and Nicole Malachowski (Ellingwood) On 29April 08, theWhite House announcedthe names ofthe32 outstanding men and women that were selected as National Finalists forthe White House Fellows Programamongthose 32, Nicole was chosen. I could not be more proud or inspiredbyhowwell our classmates interviewedforthis prestigious program. I’m not sure ifit’s unprecedented, but to have four regional finalists from one class is prettyimpressive.

PiotrBlazeusz sent a note fromPoland. He is finallygetting a much-needed summer vacationbefore out-processingfrom his current assignment as Chief ofCommand Center at the Operational Command (OHQ). It was a very dynamic and demanding assignment for Peter and he had an opportunity to learnmanygoodlessons. He was a Colonel in a one-star positiondealingwith Flag officers at every turn. Soon, he has a two-month TDY to the 1st Mech Division and theyhe starts the Senior Defense PolicyCourse, the Polish ver

sion of“charm school” for flag officers at the Polish National Defense University. After, graduation, hewill meet all ofthe requirements forFlagofficer, but it does not necessarily mean thathewill beselected at that time. As Petersays, “life is full ofsurprises.”We’llwait and see how it all turns out. Meanwhile, all is well with his wife, Mariola, and two beautiful daughters.

I got a short note fromJenHammerstedt. She recentlymoved toVirginiaand is discoveringhowlongthe commute fromWoodbridge to the Pentagonreally is. She started school lastweek and said that she felt like she was at a USAFA reunion with so manyfolks backin the DC area. She’ll be working in the Pentagon until December and then starts her LegislativeFellowship in Jan. Between working, school, and training for the Marine Corps Marathon, she is also stayingbusyhelpingwith a 501 (c) 3 non-profitorganization. Itisasmall group thatbeganhelpingwith home construction/refurbishmentforfamilies devastatedbythehurricanes on the Mississippi GulfCoast. The organization has grown as people get energized about helping others get their lives and homes back. Please check out theirwebsite atwww.emccharities.com. Ifyou are an itemizer on your tax return, this charityhas done the appropriate paperworkfor a charitablewrite-offand it’s posted on the site. Also ifyou are interested in volunteering, the next majorproject is scheduled for 20-28 Sept in Biloxi, MS. Please check out thewebsite to get more details on howthe group started and see pictures ofprogress they are making to help families move on withtheirlives.

Before I left, I had a chance to have dinnerwith Shawn andMickiAnger and Colleen McBratney. Shawn has already started his classes at UCCS toward a degree in Leadership and Counseling. He is lovingthis newpace oflife. I’m not sure ifMickiwill knowwhat to do with him around so much. Hmmm... I’m sure she’ll figure out how to activate the HoneyDo List. Colleen is now the ChiefofOrthopedic Surgeryat theAcademy. I stoppedby to leave her a note one dayin thehospitaland saw the sign on the door. She totallydown-played itwhen I askedherabout it, but I was reallyimpressed. Then I askedherifshe would bewilling to take the nine screws and metal plate out ofmyankle next yearwhen I’m healed up from mylittle batdewith blackice last Feb. Well see ifwe can swing it.

That’s all I have for now. Please make a note ofmy new address, email, etc and keep the updates and pictures coming. Take care and God bless! Harley

Melvin E. Maxwell, Jr.

756 Granite Drive Ofallon, IL 62269

mel_maxwell97@hotmail.com

melvin.maxwell@ustranscom.mil

Heyall,

Bythe time this is in print, college football season should bewell underway. I’m excited for another Falconfootball season—hopefullywell continue the roll started bylastyear’s squad. Ifyou come to myhouse on Saturdays, you might see me wearing a “game worn” jersey of our classmate Beau Morgan, which I pickedup online a month ago. Go Falcons! Bytheway, eitherBeau was reallysmall backthen or I have to lose some weight.

I received an emailfromChris Senseney. Chris went to Bagram,Afghanistan on a 365-day TDYfrom April 06 to April 07 where he served on a Provincial ReconstructionTeam buildingroads, schools, clinics, wells and other infrastructure projects for the Afghan people. Chris ran into Chris Wiley, Dave Rayman, and Ryan Haden in Bagram who were there flyingA- 10s (Chris and Dave out ofSpangdahlem and Ryan out ofPope). Upon returning fromAfghanistan, Chris’ wife held a Baptism/Welcome Home partyfortheir son Thomas, and Chris. Rob Barnett was apparentlyquite a character as Thomas’ Godfather. Chris is back atWright-Pattersonwhere he’s linked up with Dave

JDHoskinsandRoss Graham, ’02, presenttheirIncreasedPatient ThroughputInitiative.

Chris and some localchildren in the PanjshirValley inAfghanistan.

Carlson at HQ/AFMC andPat Suermannwho’sbeentoWright-PatTDYfrom the University ofFlorida. Chris is following Pat’s footsteps this summer; going to get a PhD in CivilEngineeringfrom the Colorado School ofMines after which he’ll return to theAcademyto teach in the CE Department.

Apart from the news Chris sent me, I was struggling with finding news to report on the class. Luckyfor me, Kate Baileyrelayed how she recentiy ereated a Facebook account andfound a numberofclassmates.

I tookheradvice andvoila, a numberoffaces I hadn’t seen in quite a while suddenlyappeared.

Noah Oviedo is out and living back in his hometown of SanAntonio, TXwhere he is a GeneralManagerfor a lumber wholesaler/retailer. Noah and hiswife grewup in the same neighborhood and love being backhomewith theirfamily. Noah and his wife have a two-year-old son.

Megan Kuzmich recently moved back to California to be closerto herfamily. She recendygraduated fromYale in May and nowisworkingat a cancer centerinthe SanFrancisco area. Meganpassed on thatJessi Clune (Lederman) just had her3rd boylast month and she and herfamily are backin Colorado Springs after an assignment in Germany.

PhilWarlickpassed on somenews whilehe was sittinginthe DenverAirport on his way home from a conference he attended as a Reservist. Phil is an Individual MobilizationAugmentee for a PACOM Reserve detachment in Fort Worth, TX. Philandhisfamilyhavebeen inFt.Worthforthreeyearswhere he works as a militaryconsultant for a small software companywhile going to seminary. Hehas two yearsleftin school. Phil and hiswife of 10 and halfyears, Julie, have three kids (two boys, 10 and 8 years old, and a five-year-old girl) who keep them busy. Phil passed on news ofa few other classmates: Mike Williams is atTestPilot School at EdwardsAFB; CaseyLozier is flying E-4s out ofOffutt; PhilhaddinnerwithGregEllingson and hiswife a fewmonths ago... Gregis a Realtor in Melbourne, FL.

Thad Middletonansweredthe call for news. Thad is inthe DC area at theAir StaffinAF/A9 alongwith Matt Durkin. Thad lives out in Fairfax,VAwith his wife ofover 10 years, Katie. Thad and Katie are expecting their first child this Christmas—congratulations to them. Thad also passed notes on a couple otherDC-area classmates: TimWelterlives inside the beltway; Sean Keaveny and KariAgnew are in the area as well although Karijustdeployed to Iraqfor ayear; RandyAckerman andwife, Michelle, moved to the DC area last fall;Jay Hutzell, hiswife,Jessica, andtheir 11-month-oldboySamuel live in theboondocks ofMaryland.

Othertidbits: JamesFinlaysonis inMiami at USSOUTHCOM, JeremyIioyd and his wife Erin had a baby this past summer. That’s all I have for this go round, hope all is well. Until next time... Mel

Karin McWhorter

8243 Oasis Bloom St. North Las Vegas, NV 89085 (702) 476-4304

mcwhorters@hotmail.com

Hi Everyone,

Bythe time this issue gets to you our reunion will bejustdays away. I don’t have a lotforthis update butI am sure Iwillhavelots ofnews for the next one! Here are the updates forthis issue:

Mari (Schroering) Garciahad a baby on 31 Mar08. This is her second baby but her third daughter (she has her oldest byadoption). Madeline Mireya Garciajoins sistersAuri, 8, and Emma, 2. Her husband, who is a Green Beret in theArmy, got 10 days ofbabyleave to come home forthe birth and made it bythe skin ofhis teethbecauseMadelinearrivedjust22 hours before he had to go back! Mari is still at Hurlburt as the DeputyIG and in a classic case ofpoor timing, she came offmaternityleave the daybefore the start oftheir UCI!

June Cruse was aT-37 pilot in Columbus but was killingtime waiting to PCS once all the “tweets” left.

GregMartingot out ofactive dutybackin2006 to gethis PhD inAccounting at CU-Boulder. He’s finishinghis 2nd year up there now and hopes to finishhis dissertationwithin ayear or two. Then, in his words, “it’s offto being an absent-minded professor and doingmybest to stayyoung and relevant. He andhiswife have three children now, Grace (5), Hannah (3), and Grant (2). Theymoved back to the Springs while he finishes his dissertation and hehopes to get hired by a school in the Springs-Denver corridor once he finishes his degree. Meanwhile, he is still in the Reserves and might start being an ALO thisfall.

Mariand heryoungestdaughter, Madeline. DannyCamposis a Reservistlivingdownin SanAntonio doingreal estate full time and some project managementwork on the side.

GregMartin and hisfamily.

Brian Chung is a B-1 pilot and was recently married, Justin Joffrion andhis wife are expecting their first child in November, and lara Cappelli (Vice) got successfully to Korea to join herhusbandTroy (’99) but got therewith only 1 / 3 ofherluggage!

Now a quick plug for Facebook: Jaime Andersen (Melton) has created a USAFA 98 group and it has been a lot of fun to read about so many of our classmates. You should all create an account, log on and check it out!

As you can see this quarter was pretty thin on information. Hope to see you all at the reunion and those ofyouthatknowyou are going to miss it can always send an update in advance.

James W. Busch 16015 N 158th Ct.

Surprise, AZ 85374 (505) 693-2266/DSN: 896-5588 buschfl6@yahoo.com james.busch@luke.af.mil

Shiners - great to be onboard again sendingyou news from the greatestclass in school history. A big thanks to Sean Baerman, despite a couple ofcheap shots, forfillingin lastmonth duringwhat was a busytime for me. Always nice to hearabout something otherthan thelifeand timesofJamesBusch, interestingthough it may be.

Couple ofweddings to report this time around, and its good to see you all continuing to tie the knots even in middle-age. From what I can tell, the gene pool could use the potentialboost. ChrisCaredeo marriedhislong-timeflame Emilyin DC back in May. Chris is about to leave theArmyfor the second time, this time separating from the Reserves, and will start school with DLA bythe time thisarticle is published. Chris will move in near Ed Sligar in Rockville, MD. We’ll see who TPs who’s house first.

Matt Renbarger, fresh from F-16WIC, married his girlfriendTracyhere in Scottsdaleback inJune. What betterway to luckoffayoungmarriagethanhave theAF sendyou remote to Kunsan for a year? Tracy, for now, hasjoined Matt

From left are Matt's new bride, Tracy, her dad, Matt Renbarger, Sean Baerman, Will Reynolds, and me.

in the land ofrotting cabbage as they embark on theirAir Force adventure together. Attendingthewedding, andbribed in no small partbythefour-hour open bar were Sean Baerman, Will Reynolds, and myself. Fromwhat little I remember, it was a reallynice ceremony. Best ofluck to Matt andTracy!

I received an e-mail fromChristel Morgan (Gilbert), who married Scott Morganbackin2004aftertheyhad met inKorea. She exchanged a lucrative career as an AF intel officerforthelowlyYorkshire Riding School in England, where she trainedwith Olympians inthesport ofEventing. Now, that couldhave allkinds ofmeanings to differentpeople, butwhatIdidconcludeis thatsheactuallyworks with horses, and must be quitegood at it. Christel passed herBritish Horse SocietyExamslast summer and nowruns her own businesstraininghorses inTucson, where Scott fliesA-1Os. Checkout their website:www.toplineteam.com. Christel also mentionedshe ran intoDaveShellar, ourveryown 2ndBCTpugQstickchamp, in the gym at DM. Fittinglyhe is an A-10 pilot. Also, Sarah Portele (Pierson) separated from theAF and nowworks as a Reservist/contractor inWingPlans atHurlburtField. Thanks Christel forthe e-mail and all the news!

Here’s the rundown on a few otherfolks I’ve seen or heard fromlately: Bob Farina called from NewYork. He’s married andworksfor an investmentbankingfirm onWall Street. He saidhe hopes to see everyone at the reunion next summer. He’llbethe one wearing a gold baseball cap and chanting “the goldwillshine. JohnFenwickis enteringhis secondyear ofbusiness school at Stanford. Hespentthe summer interningat Microsoftand hopefullyusinghisMITcomp scidegree to help themfixVista. Here atLukeIjust wavedgoodbye to Keith Carson,who ran offtoVance to flytheT-38. Tim Pesek left aboutthe same time to go toTestPilot School at Edwards. There hewilljoin Brian Deas, also a test pilot, and SethDeam, who is a JAG ifyou need anylegal advice. Eric Puels marriedRenee Fukumoto. Eric flies F-16s here at Luke and Renee doesthe realwork at home raisingtheir two daughters.

Expect news next article aboutthe class reunion next summer. TheAOG has beengoingthrough a little shakeuplatelyandhas been slowgettingback to me. Inthemeantime, ifyou are at the academyteaching orwhatever and are willing to help out coordinatingthis momentous event, please call me or send me an e-mail. Until next time! James

64% Members/

Jason “JW” Simmons Simmons@USAFA2000.com

Classmates,

Please sendinyourupdates and ifyouhaven’t subscribed to our emaillistyet, please do: USAFA2000-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. I’ve beenTDYforthe last couple ofmonths, and so I didn’t get a message out farin advance this time, butyou’rewelcome to send me updates at any time. Your class would like to hear what you are doing these days, about moves, new jobs, kiddies, and other events.

Chris Englandand hiswife, Leah, welcomed son Thomas BeckettinJuly. Chris andhis familylive intheNorth Carolina mountains. Chris separated in2005 andworks in real estate development; meanwhile Leah is in publishing and owns a magazine in Charleston, SC. Here is a cute picture ofthem giving Thomas a stroll.

Mike Belardo and BrianMcKay. MattMedleyhasbeen inupgradetrainingfor becoming an instructor in the HC-130.

As I said, I’vebeenTDY, it’s training, Undergrad NetworkWarfareTraining, that will be titled Undergrad CyberSpace Warfare Training in a year or so. When I get back to Barksdale I’ll be filling the role as the deputyforthe Cyber Control Division as the AFNOC merges into our local AOC, creating a new Global EffectAOC.

I hope all are doingwell and enjoying their summer. Send some pictures and shoot me an emailwithyour current happenings. Bestwishes, Jason.

Faith (Hitchcock) Dunn

6423 NW 94th Court wwrf# ,.C ,ifj if Johnson, IA 50131 faithd03@hotmail.com

\FEsggacW w3|jy|f§jj

Hi there ’Olers, I have not receivedverymanyupdateslately, but I will share thefew I have gotten and share updates on those that Mike and I keep up with.

JeffFeuring andhiswife, EunYoung, are still in LosAngeles and are expectingtheirfirst child, a boy, in mid-August. Hejustfinished SOS inJulyandmay deployfor sixmonths next year but is unsure where. Jason FeuringjustfinishedupWeapons SchoolinLasVegas inJune and is now in Germanywith hiswife, Nicky. Jesse Goolsby and his wife just leftTennessee after receiving his master’s degree. They are now in Colorado Springs where hewill be teaching at USAFA. Theirlittle girl, Ella, is almost one. Givey Kochanowski is still inAlaskaworking for the US Forestry Service. He recentlytook a jaunt downthePacific Coast; he was interviewingfor ajob inWisconsinand on hiswayhome almost had a run-inwith Matt andAmyRoloff! He andhis wife stoppedbythe RoloffFarms and even thoughtheywere closed, it didn’t stop themfromhanging out atthegate to tryto sneak a peekinside. BrentBak is stationed at EglinAFB flyingF-15s. He and Giveygot to catch up for a couple weeks while he was at Elmendorffor an exercise.

Mike Deaver andwife,Ashley, are expectingtheirthird child earlynext year. Mike is lookingforward to beginningthe B-2 Instructor Pilot course inAugust with fellow ’OOer Justin Grieve. Coincidently, the course is beingtaught by

Givey atRoloffFarms - where’s the mule?

Dustin andAubrie (Rooney) Ireland are inValdosta, GA. He is gettingready to deployin September, return in Decemberandthen turn around inJanuary and go toWeapons School inVegas untilJune. Aubrie is consideringpacking up shop and movingbackto Mainewith their son, Ethan, while he is gone on his manytrips this year. Aubrie was accepted into a Nursingprogram and deferredher start datefor ayear to spend timewith Ethan. Angie Fedden is still in Colorado; however, shehas moved from SchrieverAFB to USAFAto teach. I am sure she is keepingbusywith the three girls at home! Mike and Kristi (Delcour) Contardo justwelcomed their second little girl,TaylorJo, in July.

MikeandKristi Contardo with daughters Maddie and TaylorJo. Mike and I are stayingbusy. Grant is 18 months old now and a ball ofenergy. We callhimTornado Grant - hejustfliesthroughthe housegettinginto trouble. We sold our house in California (finally!) and feel like we can finally settle

down and enjoyIowa and our civilian lives. We havehad a busy summer with Grant. We have gone to the zoo and amusementparks forthe firsttime and we also are doinglots ofswimming at Mike’s parents’ house. Grant is a fish andis alreadyjumping offthe divingboard (with floaties ofcourse!). Well, that is all I havefor now. Please keep in touch andkeep me updated and don’tforget to send pictures too. Faith

Amy Kauvar

806 Magnolia Bend

San Antonio, TX 78251

215-280-1760

amykauvar@gmail.com

Class Website: www.usafa02.org

Greetings to all! Itis greatto bewritingagain. Thankyou to allthosewho sent in a little somethingfor us to all peruse. I hopeyou have allbeenhaving a safe and relaxing summer. Hopefully, the heat hasn’t been too much and Dollymissedyou.

Well, I gotmarried on 7June. Itwas a fabulous SanAntonio summer day (i.e. HOT!). Dave and I were able to sneakin a littlehoneymoon to Cabo forthe4thofJulyweekend. We are holdingofffor our realhoneymoon forwhen lean takeleave afterresidencyis done andwhen Dave getshome fromIraq. Maybe we will just go on a honeymoon everyyear! I have one more yearleft to complete mymaster’sdegree and periodontics certificate. Thisyearcan’tgo byfastenough. I dread writingmythesis (I am sure some ofyouknowmypain)! We are hopingto get backto the East Coast next summer. Dave is starting a vascularsurgeryfellowship in Philadelphia, and hopefully the Army and Air Force can work out a deal and keep us together for most ofour careers. We both owe uncountable years! Who knows, maybe I will be a general one day?

Brent and Maggie (Breun) Feldt and their son Griffin have recentlyPCS'd from USUHS in Maryland to LacklandAFB, Texas where Brentwill begin his ENT residency atWilford Hall. Maggie has separated from theAF and loves staying at home with theirlittle guy, who will be 2 in March.

Brandy (Ransom) Lybeckgraduated from medical school this year andwill be doing an internal medicine internship at the University ofTexas Health Science Center in SanAntonio. Her husband, Dustin (’01), is startinghis orthopaedic surgeryresidencyatWilford Hall this summer. Theyhave a beautiful little girl, Olivia, and are quicklygettingsettled with theirbusyschedules.

Some otherdoctors in SanAntonio include Chris andLeslie (USNA’02)Vojta. Chris is a flight surgeon at Brooks City Base and Leslie is in her Emergency Medicine Residencywhile theyboth chase around their little guy, Matthew. Rob McGill is almosthalfwaythroughhis orthopaedicresidency.

Luke Porsi recently PCSed to Hurlburt Field, where he is a flight surgeon supporting the special ops units.

Charlie andMargaret (Leupold) Eichner are atHickamAFB in Hawaiiwhere Charlie is flying C- 17s. Margaret stays busyhosting their many guests and taking care oftheir sweet boy,Andy, while theyawait boy#2 in a fewmonths!

Eddie Gutierrez and Catie Gillespie were married on 1 May2005 in Fresno, CA and theyjust celebrated theirthree-yearanniversary. Surprisingly, they didn’tknoweach otherall atwhile attheAcademyand meet a yearaftergraduationandhave beentogether ever since. Katie is currently at LukeAFBwaiting forF-16 training. Shejustfinished a tour as aT-6 IP and Eddie is a Contracting OfficerfortheAir Force (DoD civilian) working at the 784th Combat Support

Visit the AOGWeb Site Merchandise, Gone But Not Forgotten and More!

www.usafa.org

Group atHillAFB. Theirfamily so farconsists oftwo dogs, Bruce (Weimeraner) and Keira (Rottweiler).

ErikFisherand his wife, Lauren, send a warm hello. Erikis a C-17 Instructor Pilot and OpsGroup Exec at McChordAFB and Lauren is a 2006 Universityof Washington School ofLaw graduate and is currently a JAG at McChord, as well. They have a three-year-old boy namedAndrew and another little one who wasjustborn inMay. Congratulations to their new addition! Erikalso sent a photo from deployment. From left are Warren Halle, Dave Morales, and Erik. Theseflyingstuds are allwith the 10thAirlift Squadron at McChord. The daythis photo was taken theywere on theirway to do a combat airdrop mission inAfghanistan. Go boys!

Thanks for all ofthe noise these past couple ofmonths. Keep it coming! Enjoythe rest ofthe summer and God Speed on your travels... and remember to vote. November is coming soon! All my best-Amy Kauvar.

Susan Lynn Doyle (937) 760-1076

T&k kV

Susan.doyle@wpafb.af.mil

Susan_doyle@post.harvard.edu

Katie Eckert flies C-17s out ofCharleston and reports on hersquadron from SouthwestAsia. Most ofher squadron-mates are newACs working on their seconddeployments andhavingfunlearning on thego. The 816thEASincludes Peter Euler (newlymarried), Zach Schaffer, Scott Johnson (2nd baby on the way), RyanZackrisson, RyanGoodlin,Adrian Delafuentes, Steve Brown, andChrisKojakwithguestappearancesbyRyan Olish and DustyFahie. Things are goingwellforDustywho will begin the upgrade process to become an Aircraft Commandershortlyafterreturninghome in September. He looks forward to deploying to Turkey next Spring.

LukeFisheris guardingthe homefrontwhilethe 14thAS is gone. They’llbereplaced in Septemberbythe 15thAS out of Charlestonwhich includes: Kari (James) Fleming,JessRegni, BryanWetzel, Chris Kennedy, and Kyle Clinton. While deployed, Katie has run intoWill Dunn, Matt Platt, andWill Rodriguez who fly the C-130. Will reports that Neil Hoy, Chad Panier, and Nate Preuss are also out there flying C-130s. Additionally, Ms. Kristen Donley is now Mrs. Kristen Dunn and voluntarilyForce Shaped inApril 2006.

Matt “Ali” Olson is at BaladAB, Iraq, flyingViperswith Ryan "Yeti" Miller in the34FS, the "Rams," out ofHillAFB, UT. Matt reports thatYeti finds time out ofhis busyschedule to headup local "Dungeons and Dragons" gatherings as DungeonMaster. He also sends a shout out to Nate Jacksonwho flies KC-135s and dishes out gas forhis squadron. Aaron “Jedi” Sick flewVipers at Osan for ayearbeforegettingto ShawlastSeptember. He’sbeen inBaladfor two months flyingVipers out ofthe North Side with the 77 EFS Gamblers. Domonique

Torbert is stationed at Holloman AFB as the Section Commander for 49th Maintenance Squadron. She is also currentlyserving in BaladAB, Iraq as the 332d Maintenance Group Exec Officer where she frequently runs into Todd Zielinski, Sierra Smith and Mark Smith.

AmyWeaton recendyseparated from theAirForce and she and herhusband, Chris, are adopting two children from Ethiopia. Theyhope to travel to Africa this summer or fall to pick up their children. Stuart Fraser and his wife, Stephanie, and TJ Martin and his wile,Amanda, were at the National's game in DC and ran into Nate Church and his wife. All three ’03 grads are stationed atAndrewsAFB. Nate works in Protocol and is about to deploy to Iraqfor six months, TJ flies the UH-1, and Stuart flies C-21 s andwill PCS to McChordAFB to fly C- 17s at the end ofthis year.

providingshelter, guidance, and basic medical care. They also assisted some local clinics with TB andAIDS treatment invarious villages and compounds. Dan reports, “All in all it was an amazingtrip; first time to Africa for both ofus. Beautifulpart ofthe world andwonderful people! Liz is rounding out herfirst (intern) year as a medical resident atWPAFB, OH. She finished her medical boards and has two years left in her residency! Dan iswrapping up threeyears at Eglindoingweapons research and testing and is excited to head to Edwards inJune to become a flight test engineer.

Finally, Steve Suppe was offered a Fulbrightscholarship and left in summer/ early fall to workwith IBM Research in Haifa, Israel! Thanks to everyonewho submitted updates. Please contact me at anytime (susan.doyle@wpafb.af.mil or susan_doyle@post.harvard.edu). Keepworkinghard and having fun. Take care, Susan.

Breezy(Long) Heddinger

Cell: (719) 213-3205

breezy.heddinger@usafa-grads.com windy04@gimail.af.mil

First and foremost: To thosewho still wear the uniform, congratulations on the promotion to Captain! No more shall we answer to the affectionate call of “L-T.” Humbling, isn’t it, when you hear“Captain” and see the expectantlook on your crew or coworkers’ faces? Are theytalking to me? Suddenly, you’re brushing cobwebs offthe old leadership lessons, mistakes, and experiences of the past 8+ years.. .we’re Captains! Our old commandant, then-BrigGenWelsh, once commented thatacademygraduates makegreatCaptains because we sometimestake a while to growout ofcadetdaysthrough our lieutenantyears. Well, Sir, we have arrived!

For all ofus, in uniform and out, we have reached our four yearmark—we have now been beyond the gates ofUSAFA for as long as we were behind them (minus prep school, of course). For most of our class, we have either made the decision to separate orwill reach that decisionpoint in about a year. Thosewho became aircrewmembers may not be approachingthe end ofcommitment, but are likelywadingthrough various types ofupgrade training and trying to imagine howthe next steps ofthe career should look. Not all ofus are drawn to the same choices at the same time, but we are allstillbound togetherby our common history. Asour 1BCT cadet commandertold us all in Arnold Hall one miserable but wonderful summer eightyears ago, “I am the master ofmyfate: I am the captainofmysoul” (fromHenley’s poem “Invictus”). Let us hope that no matter what choices we face, in the AF and beyond, we remain captains of our destiny—and we don’t lose sight ofthe people who have helped us along the way.

Alright, I am done beingsappy—by now, you know that on occasions like this, I can’thelp butbe at least a little sentimental... and a lot cheesy. Butenough ofthat. We have two pieces ofhappy news to share.

On March 7, 2007, Virginia (Casillas) Frazier and her husband, Andrew, welcomed a son into the world—their first child—Ethan Drew Frazier (see photo). Back in 2006,Virginia (aka Jenna) deployed to Baghdad, Iraq for six months as a project officer for the Communications Support Office, and she separated from the USAF in September 2007. Her hubby is an acquisitions officer, and they are currentlystationed at EglinAFB. Congrats on thebundle ofjoy, and thanks for sharingwith us!

Addison, andAshley (Robinson) Gasmire.

Liz Rini and Dan Montes recentlygot back from a mission trip to Garneton, Zambia. Theyspent a couple weeks there improving life for street orphans,

Ethan

Last, butcertainlynotleast,yourClassVPJeffGouldrecentlytiedtheknotwith JessicaKing (’03). Jeffsays they “have a romantic story... well, sort of.” He and Jessicametthefirst dayJeffarrived at GrandForks, andJessicasaid sheknewhis FlightRecordswell before she knewhim! Jessicawas workingin the Stan/Eval office andin-processedJeffinto thesquadron. They are still stationedtogether atGrandForks. Jeff, I couldn’t behappier forya. Bestwishestoyouboth!

Domonique Torbert in a C-130 atBaladAB, Iraq.

From leftare TJMartin, Nate Church andStuart Fraser.

Ashley (Robinson) Gasmire and her husband Tim, a ’98 ROTC grad and a Majorfull time in theAir Force Reserve, welcomed a new babygirl, Addison Mackenzie, into theworld on May9th. They couldn't be happier!

Tim,

Liz Rini, Brian Bartee (’95), and Dan Montes in the front, and Dave Winebrener (’96) on the back right.

Baby

with mom anddad Frazier.

Well, Ready forAnything-ers, that’s all we have this quarter. Please don’t hesitate to shareyour news (contactinfo above). We see each other quite often in the desert these days, but it’s still nice to see howpeople are doing. Also, for those who aren’t sure how to keep in touchwith fellowgrads once they’re off the “global,” check out theAOGwebsite and set up email forwarding from a grad address (.. .@usafa-grad.com) to your personal address. Thatwayyou can lookup and contact an oldpal... even ifyou lost thatpeskyscrap ofpaper you wrote their address on, or ifyou upgraded to a hi-tech new phone and forgot to transferallyouroldphone numbers... anyway, just another option. Take care ofeach other out there, congrats on the four-year milestone, and “have a great summer.”

Paula Delapasse

103 Raymond Circle

Warner Robins, GA 31088

(225) 603-4450

paulamaffey@juno.com

Paula.Delapasse@robins.af.mil

As I write these words to you, the movers are packing up books, rocking chair, and turtle-tank... youknowthe scene well. Bythe timeyou read thisyou will be able to visit us in Tucson, AZ (Davis-Monthan AFB), although it will take Peter a little longer to get there since he’ll be goingthrough Combat Rescue OfficerTraining firstwhile stationed at Kirkland (Albuquerque, NM). Here is a picture ofJonathan Ferro’s baby, Riley Elizabeth, whose birth we reportedlast time.

72% M&mbmn

HappyFall2008 to all ofyou! We are into football season, gettingreadyforthe holidays, and seeing the end ofthe year creep a little closer! Where does the timego! Wehave some greatinputsfrompeople-keep them coming!Thisis my firstclassupdate fromDayton, Ohio. This summerJacob and I PCSed toWright Patterson and have enjoyedgetting to knowthe area. With our move we delinitelyrealizedwhat a smallAF this is; we have seen a lot of the same people from our old assignment to our new one! This summer I also got the chance to visit Julie Honeycutt and EmilyHaagin Germany as I made a whirlwind Europe trip. It was awesome to have an insider’s scoop ofthe area; we allhad a greattime! Thanks Julie and Emilyfor the hospitality and I can’t wait for the next time we get to share a jagerschnitzel and a beer again!

John Tamasitis is currently deployed at Bagram AB. He hasn’tlet me knowhowit is going, but we are wishing him well. Before he leftTeresa Moreno sent in an update on what she has been doing. Teresahas awesome news aboutwhat’s up ahead forher in theAF. She has been accepted to the Northern Illinois UniversityCollege ofLaw to the Class of2011. She has also been accepted to the USAF JAG Excess Leave Program allowing her to be on leave status while she is in school. She will also havepaidinternshipswith theAF duringthe summer andwill eventuallyjoin theJAGCorps upongraduationandcompletion ofthe Illinois BAR exam. This isjust awesomenews and incredible thatthat opportunityis out there! Good luck in school we will see you back on active duty in a fewyears!

I got a callin mid-JunefromMatthewMcBridebefore he separated fromthe AirForce. Matthadbeenstationed at LangleyAFB before he accepted a forceshapingslot to separate early. Matthas a lotplanned in the next year as hejust recentlyproposed to his fianceeAlicia. She is living in NewYork Cityand Matt popped the question on a romanticwalk through Central Park. They are excitedlyplanning a wedding for Summer 2009 inAtlanta, GA near Peach Tree Citywhere he calls home. The remainingpart ofthis summer Matt was going to beworking at a school in Switzerland. Have fun across the pond Matt!

Lastlyyou mayhave heard a lot aboutJoel Kurzdorferlatelybut believe me it is wellworth it. He has been all over the place as a member oftheArmed Forces Baseball Team for 2008. He has traveled around Central and South Americahostingcamps andclinics as an ambassadorforthe USAFwhile playingthe game ofbaseball. Joel said he had a greatexperienceplayingwith the team and has enjoyedtravelingtheworld. He is stationed at MaxwellAFB in the 42nd ContractingSquadronwhenworking his dayjob. Joel also had the opportunityto throwout thefirst pitch at a MontgomeryBiscuits gamewhich some ofyoumayremember fromASBC. I am sure we will see more ofyou around Joel! Keephaving fun!

That’s all from me this time around... sorry I have don’t have more! I hope everyone is doinggreat take care and send me your news! Paula

Felisa (Hervey) Dyrud

5434 S Monrovia Ave. Tucson, AZ 85706

felisa.dyrud@gmail.com (719) 352-5991

Facebook group:”Feel the Fire”

Hello 2006,

Manyofyou manyhave heard that we lost a classmate and friend in May. JohnAlley was a friend to many, a loving brother and son, and husband of a wife who is expecting their first child. We honor his life, but our hearts are heavyforthe loss ofhis friends and family. Please see a tribute to John in the “Gone butNot Forgotten” section and find out howto be a support to his bride Emily and their son at http:/ /www.helpfindjohn.info.

Nate VanLoon is in Baghdad. He will be there for a yearworking for the HQ MNC-I staffuntilAug2009.

Mike Orcuttwrites: “Due to squadron closure, myDEROS was curtailed by a year, so my2nd assignmentwill be to the Pentagon in the Air Force OperationsGroup. I will be in the weather branch ofthe Current Operations Division. Megan and I are totally stoked. She and I will be together on a permanent basis for the first time in our relationship together while she will be able to continue pursuing her PhD in Journalism through the University ofMaryland. Our wedding is on the 31st of Mayback home in GrandJunction, CO so we are even more excited about that.

In a recent newsletterRyanBaker, USA, sent a fewpictures from firebase Herrera close to the Pakistan border inAfghanistan... herehe is with a new friend.

DannyGraham, Adam Pahlsand TonyD’Amato have been dominating an Armytraining class before their deployments. Theymight send us a picture next time ifwe’re lucky.

And here is a picture from April (Linzey) Brown’s marriage to Eric Brown (’07), with friends Barbara Leo and Tina Matejik.

Casey Bayne 6925 Clovercliff Drive Rancho Palos Verdes, CA 90275 (310) 343-5969

checkpoints@caseybayne.com

77% Members

TheAllred-HendershiedWeddingParty

EngagementUpdates:

JennaMaxfield and ErikMirandette (originaliyc/o 2005, now c/ o 2008) were engaged in February2008. Eric lured her away to Chicagobyrequesting she come visit him andhis family to celebrate his birthday the weekend after Valentine's Day. Theirwedding is set for May23,2009 in Richmond,VA.

OtherUpdates:

DannyNwaelele is playingguard forthe SanAntonio Spurs summer league team. He hopes to obtain a free agent contract and compete for a roster spot. Britt Perkowski and MindyMokos did make theArmed ServicesWomen’s Soccerteam andtraveledto TheNetherlands for an international tournament. Britt and Mindyhad a blast and said it was the experience ofa lifetime.

Class of2007,

Hopeyou are all having a wonderful summer and taking some leave after a busyyear! Here are some updates from our class.

WeddingUpdates:

Keith Sanders and MeganLally were married in a beautiful, outdoor ceremony in Orange County on July 11,2008. Katie Barlow, Shaun Lee, Casey Bayne, and Blake Pickell were in attendance from our class.

Keith Sanders and MeganLally

NateAllred andKandiHenderschiedwere married on March22,2008. Troy Egbert and JennyGibson are pictured herewith the happycouple.

(Gone But Not Forgotten: Continuedfrom page 91.)

John H.Alley, ’06

John also leaves behind his parents; sisters Julie Jeanne Allen (Steve) and Anna Alley; brother Lewis “Luke” Michael Alley (Mary); grandmothers Nadra Jeanne Alley (Harold) and Mildred Amelia Poljanec; grandfather John Joseph Poljanec (Malvene); and a large extended family. He was preceded in death by his grandfather Harold Pugmire Alley and step-grandmother Malvene Poljanec.

A memorial service was held at NAS Whiting Field in Milton, FL on May 31, 2008, where he was posthumously commissioned a First Lieutenant and received his pilot wings. A funeral followed in Bountiful, Utah on June 6 where he was buried in the Bountiful City Cemetery, with full military honors.

Contributions for his unborn child can be sent to the Air Warrior Courage Foundation, PO Box 1553 Front Royal, Va. 22630 marked “Alley Family Trust Fund.” (Emily W. Alley, John 's wife)

Afterfinishingup ayear-longassignment asAcademyRecruiters, Tara Dunn, LindsayFreeman, Jocelyn Mitnaul, Michelle Dieringer,WillyLloyd, Casey Probst, JohnAhn, GregRoberts, andAndrewVasquezhave taken numerous trips around the country, spoken to thousands ofstudents, and hopefully recruited a fewprospective cadets! Tara Dunn and Michelle Dieringer are off to Vandenberg AFB, CA; Lindsay Freeman is headed to Mildenhall AFB, England; Jocelyn Mitnaul will report to GoodfellowAFB, TX;Willie Lloyd reports to LaughlinAFB, TX for pilottraining; John Ahn left for Hanscom AFB, MA; and AndrewVasquez is headed to MacDill AFB, FL.

Also accepting new assignments areAcademy/Prep school coaches Jake Burtschi, Adam Zanotti, Gilberto Perez, Letricia Castillo, Robert Kraay, and Justin Handley. Jake andAdam left forVandenbergAFB, CA; Gilberto reports to MacDillAFB, FL;Trish is headed to lovelyHollomanAFB, NM; and Rob andJustinwill be stationed at ShawAFB, SC.

Good luck in your new assignments and welcome to the real Air Force... finally! Please continue to send me your stories and updates.

Also, allyou soon to be pilots out there, please email me whenyou graduate pilottraining and find out what aircraft you will be flying!

Class Scribe Volunteer Sought. Please contact the Class News Editor, Tom Kroboth, at Tom.Kroboth@aogusafa.org.

(Editor's note: Hello Class of2008. Ifyou want to be represented in the Class News Section, please volunteer to beyourclass’scribe. Also, ifanyofthe class officers have a scribe in mind, they may also contact me at the above email address. Tom Kroboth, Class News Editor)

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USAFA ’68

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