Honoring Our Veterans

HONORING OUR

VETERANS Saluting those who served

november 11, 2018

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Bryan/College Station and those fighting to keep us safe.

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U.S. NAVY

Rhonda Nelson

By MADDIE SPERA Special to The Eagle

R

honda Nelson was 18, six months out of high school, when she joined the Navy in 1992 and went to boot camp in Orlando, Florida. Nelson, who hails from Guymon, Oklahoma, said she was able to prepare herself for the difficult moments of boot camp.

“They try to get you broken down and tired and missing home and all that stuff,” she recalled. “You know, they try to get people to give up. For me going into it, it was all just a mindset of you have to do what you’re told and not argue. If you know when you go in that this is just a mission that you

have to accomplish, then it’s easier.”

After boot camp, Nelson headed to Pensacola for a training class, which ultimately led to an assignment at the Panama Canal where she was stationed for two years. During this time, Nelson worked on Galeta Island as fleet support and handled messages and communications between fleets.

Nelson, 45, served five and a half years before she left the Navy in 1997 to raise her children. She and her husband, Howard, have four children, ranging in age from 8 to 24. But Nelson said she missed her time in the Navy.

“I tried to get back in for the whole 11 years I was out,” she said. “But they just either weren’t taking prior service at the time, or I couldn’t find a recruiter willing to work with me, but I finally found a

recruiter in Oklahoma City.

We just happened to find each other at the grocery store one day, and we were talking, and she happened to be a prior service recruiter. And she said she’d like to talk to me about joining again.”

Nelson was able to find her way back through the Navy Reserve. She eventually was able to go back to active duty in 2013 by signing up to be a recruiter in Amarillo.

“Recruiting was probably my favorite duty,” Nelson said.

“Most people don’t really like recruiting duty, but I loved it because I’m just very proud of what I do. And the Navy sells itself, you don’t have to sell the Navy. So you get to be in uniform all the time, you go out and you meet people, you do presentations and job fairs and all that stuff. I really liked it because I felt like I was helping people pursue their career.”

Nelson says her two passions in life are her family and her Navy. She left active duty in 2017, and currently serves in the Reserve out of Fort Worth. She has worked as an administrative assistant at the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service’s fire school in College Station, and recently started a job as customer service associate at Texas A&M.

The Med recognizes and honors our employees for their service to our country.

Lena Alvis (Lab) – Air Force Connie Miles (Admin) – Army DeAnn Clouse (OR) – Air Force Patricia Sperow (CSFM Clinic) – Marines Eugene Molina (OR) – Army Jen Bravo (Therapy) – Marines Barb Reed (OR) – Army Tina Buchman (HIM) – Navy Tom Smith (Risk) – Air Force Josh Miller (ER/ICU) – Marines

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U.S. AIR FORCE

John Romero

By KENNY WILEY kenny.wiley@theeagle.com

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or three generations of the Romero family, military service is a family thing.

John Romero, who works at Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service and the Cyber Readiness Center, said his father and father-in-law served, and his two eldest sons work as crew chiefs for the U.S. Air Force after being raised in the Brazos Valley.

“We all did it to better ourselves and be part of something bigger than us. That’s exactly what the Air Force provided for me,” Romero said.

Romero enlisted in November 1985, just after turning 17, and served seven years in the Air Force, achieving the rank of staff sergeant. His father, C.J. Romero, served in the Navy for three years in the 1960s as an aviator sub detector. The elder Romero met Gail, the woman who would become John’s mother, on a train back to San Diego, where he was stationed.

John Romero said that for his family, military service has represented not just duty, but an opportunity to earn an education.

C.J. Romero eventually received a chemical engineering degree from what is now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. John said he was 8 years old when his father graduated, and he remembers the graduation ceremony.

“I told him, ‘Dad, you did great. I’m

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really proud of you,” John Romero said.

Romero’s family moved “up and down the Gulf Coast,” according to John, and found their way to the Corpus Christi area by John’s teenage years.

An Air Force recruiter came by the house, and John asked him about a path in robotics. “He said, well, we have hydraulics,” Romero said.

After high school graduation, basic training and extended electronic technical training, John Romero worked in electronic warfare. He worked with B-52 bombers’ jamming equipment, he said. His time in the service ended just after the Berlin Wall fell in 1989. “I could have enlisted for four more years, but I knew I was ready to go to college,” he said.

John said that war seemed a bit remote for him during his military service. “For the most part, we don’t fight,” he said of enlisted Air Force service members. “It’s the officers who are out there putting their lives on the line. So when they come back, we’d salute them, say ‘How you doing, ma’am, how you doing, sir,’ so you don’t really think about war when stationed stateside,” he said.

Romero was last stationed in Minot, North Dakota. While there, he met Karin Haglund, and they married in 1990. Karin’s father, Bob Haglund, was a military policeman with the U.S. Army for four years. He was stationed in France in the late 1970s.

A circuitous post-service academic path brought them to College Station by the mid 1990s. John and Karin had three boys, the elder two of whom, Ross and Ryan, are stationed in Missouri and Nevada, respectively.

“I thought about and wanted to serve all through childhood,” Ryan Romero said via phone from Nellis Air Force Base, which is near Las Vegas. Ryan, 19, said his dad talked about the positive influence military service had in his life.

Like his dad, Ryan met with a recruiter at the tail end of his time in high school, and decided to follow in his father’s— and grandfathers’ — footsteps.

“I’ve always been excited for opportunities to better myself. This seemed like a wonderful opportunity to

better myself and be part of something bigger than myself,” Ryan said. Ryan, like his older brother, graduated from A&M Consolidated High School. The youngest Romero son, Rhett, is in high school.

Ryan said he signed up to join the Air Force officially on July 5, 2017, and that his last trip home to the Brazos Valley came in December. His parents have flown from Texas to Nevada to see him, and his brother Ross gets to see him a bit more frequently, he said. His role as a crew chief, he said, is to manage day-to-day operations and ensure that planes under his supervision remain ready to fly.

“Between my grandfather and my dad and my brother, it felt like a legacy, a duty to serve,” Ryan said. “I was and am excited about it for the years to come.”

Contributed photo John’s father, c.J. romero, served in the Navy for three years in the 1960s as an aviator sub detector.

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U.S. ARMY AIR CORPS

Jack W. Currie

By REBECCA FIEDLER rebecca.fiedler@theeagle.com

J

ack W. Currie, 97, enjoys his days in comfort, volunteering with his church and playing a daily game of dominoes with his daughter, Ruth Blatchley, at Crestview Retirement community in Bryan. Currie is one of the last of his kind, the only living member of his B-17 flight crew in World War II. Maj. Currie joined the United States Army Air Corps, the precursor to the Air Force, in 1939, upon graduating from high school in the small Texas town of Lott. He volunteered for the Air Corps’ aviation cadet program, and in 1943 received his pilot wings.

“When I was growing up, my dad and I would be out in the field, and planes kept flying over from [James] Connally Air Force Base,” Currie said. “I kept saying that I would like to be in one of those, but I never knew I was going to fly one.”

Currie piloted the B-17, the famous World War II aircraft, logging more than 9,000 hours by the end of his career, and flying more than 50 combat missions. Most of these missions were launched from a base out of England, and took Currie and his crew over T H e b rYA n - C o L L e G e S TAT I o n e A G L e

much of Western Europe. The B-17 crew was given various tasks to perform, including the dispersal of information.

“We dropped leaflets to tell people on ground how the war was coming around,” he said. “I made a couple of drops. One was for D-Day, telling people to get off the coast or else they might get blown up. And I made a special drop during the Battle of the Bulge.

We dropped surrender leaflets for the Germans, and a lot of them did sign a surrender leaflet and surrendered to Allied forces.”

One of Currie’s flights over Europe turned deadly for his crew. He said it’s still something he thinks about to this day.

“I was returning from a mission over Denmark, and we were on the way home when we got jumped by a couple of JU 88s; modern German planes,” Currie recalled. “They had radar. They were able to see us, and we couldn’t see them.

They shot out both of our engines — two of the four, at least. We managed to hold together and keep flying until we got back to England, but they wouldn’t let us land, because they thought that maybe we were German troops coming in. We went all the way up to Scotland before they finally let us land. I lost two waist gunners, and three other people were wounded [in the plane].“ Currie spent 20 years in the Air Force, including time in Guam, Iwo Jima and Korea. By his retirement in 1962, he’d earned the rank of major, and received the Distinguished Flying Cross and Air Medal with three oak clusters.

“I enjoyed flying and I still enjoy flying,” he said. “I couldn’t afford to fly on my own, so that’s why I stayed in. I stayed in as long as they would let me stay.”

Currie and his wife, Ruth, raised three children. Upon retiring from the Air Force, Currie attended Texas A&M, receiving his bachelor’s degree in 1964 and master’s degree in 1969. He remained at the university, where he worked as a surplus procurement officer for nearly 20 years. With this position he would travel to military bases, picking up furniture and other items for the university’s use.

After retiring from A&M in the ’80s,

Currie and Ruth spent time working on their family farm, and volunteering with First Presbyterian Church of Bryan.

Currie often took small jobs, such as ticket-taking at Aggie football games.

Currie said he misses the family, friends and fellow airmen he has lost over time. Ruth died in 2008. He continues to write letters to the sister of a fellow B-17 crew member, who passed many years ago.

Blatchley lives just a few miles away in Bryan, and visits her father nearly every day. The two play dominoes and enjoy each other’s company.

“He says all the time, ‘I don’t know why the Lord keeps me around any longer,’” Blatchley said. “But I feel blessed to have had him as long as I have.”

Blatchley said her father never talked much about his combat missions when she was a kid; not unless he was directly

asked. But today, she is happy to share Currie’s story.

“I just think it’s important people realize that the freedoms we experience today should not be taken for granted,” she said. “A lot of people who sacrificed gave their lives. ... We should treasure the freedom we have because of veterans and those fighting today.”

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U.S. MARINE CORPS

Michael Beggs

By CHELSEA KATZ chelsea.katz@theeagle.com

W

hen asked about the greatest job he ever had, Michael Beggs does not have to think long to say it was his time commanding a Marine Corps rifle platoon in Vietnam.

“I loved the Marine Corps, and I would have stayed in it until I died of old age if they would let me,” the 72-year-old Beggs said from his College Station home. “To me, leading those Marines there in combat, that was the best job I ever had.”

That job almost cost him his life — twice — but that does not change his response.

Though he thought in high school he would be a pilot, he said, “I did what I was supposed to do, lead troops down there on the ground.”

While in Vietnam, he was assigned to work with the South Vietnamese Popular Forces (PFs) in two villages.

The villages were not just the platoon’s base of operations, but also their home.

“I alternated living between the two villages. I’d spend a week in one village and a week in the other and so on and so forth,” he said. “We trained the PFs. The PFs were soldiers who lived in the villages, and they were essentially like armed neighborhood watch. They were not well-trained soldiers, so it was my job — our job — to try to train them, and so we did.”

Together, the Marines and the Popular Forces created the combined 6 | n ov e m b e r 1 1 , 20 1 8

unit Beggs commanded.

A yell leader and a modern languages major at Texas A&M, Beggs attended a Vietnamese language school after completing the Marine Corps Basic School. Despite excelling at learning the Vietnamese language, he said, he wanted to fulfill his duties as a commissioned second lieutenant.

“I’m trying to get to Vietnam because that’s my job. I’m an infantry officer, and I joined the Marine Corps to be an infantry officer. Not that I had any great desire to go over there and get killed or anything, particularly with a wife and two little boys, but this is what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I wanted to be a Marine officer who led troops,” he said.

That call to deploy to Vietnam came in December 1969 when he was given the command of second platoon of Company M, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines.

The position was dangerous for the Tyler native, with members of the enemy Viet Cong among the villagers.

“The villagers knew who they were, but they couldn’t tell us because of retribution,” he said. “That was the whole thing. These poor villagers. You want to know who the losers are in any war that’s fought anywhere, anytime?

It’s the people in whose country it’s fought, the civilians. They’re always the losers. And these poor people, they were between a rock and a hard place; there was no way that they could win.

There just wasn’t.”

By living in the villages, though, Beggs was able to get to know and develop relationships with the villagers and dine with the village elders.

“I had one little kid, about 8 years old, he asked if I could adopt him and take him home to America. His name, his American name, was Tom,” Beggs said.

When Beggs would return from a daytime patrol, he said, Tom would meet him at the village gate to carry his helmet and flak jacket.

On two separate occasions, during missions in the jungles of Vietnam, Beggs was injured and evacuated to undergo hospital treatment.

Ultimately, his injuries led to him

being medically retired in 1980.

Even now, decades after the fall of Saigon in 1975, he said, he does not know what happened to Tom or the villagers he met in South Vietnam.

“I try not to think about it an awful lot because if I did, I probably would be depressed,” he said. “Probably a lot of those people were killed simply because they were fighting for their country, and their country was one that no longer exists.”

Every April, Beggs adds a flag to the flagpole in his front yard. Below the American flag he flies the South Vietnamese flag, a yellow flag with three red stripes across the middle.

It is an important annual tradition for the Marine.

“It’s a small gesture,” he said, “but nevertheless, it is one that has meaning for me.”

Contributed photo Texas a&m Yell Leaders Don mcLeroy (left), now a dentist in Bryan, and michael Beggs, holding reveille iii’s leash, posing in front of the statue of Lawrence sullivan ross on a&m’s campus.

Contributed photo michael Beggs (far right) at the Que son District headquarters. The americans are Us army advisers to the Que son District chief, Dai Uy (captain) chinh, who is wearing the beret with hands on hips.

From left, Us army capt. Watson, unknown Vietnamese lieutenant, Us army capt. Fisak, capt. chinh, unknown Vietnamese lieutenant and Beggs.

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U.S. MARINE CORPS

Mike Morris

By JENNY TWITCHELL jenny.twitchell@theeagle.com

W

hen College Station resident Mike Morris entered the Naval Academy in 1981, he promised his retired Air Force father one thing: that he would never join the

Marines.

“I said, ‘Sure, Dad.’ That was the furthest thing from my mind,” Morris said of the good-natured joking between the two. “But I had some incredible role models who were Marines that piqued my interest, and I decided to give the Corps a shot.”

Morris made a successful career out of it. Upon graduation from the Naval Academy, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant and would spend 30 years in the Marine Corps.

As an artillery officer, he served his first 15 years in tactical assignments through regimental level, followed by a series of higher-level plans-related jobs. His service included tours in Kuwait and Iraq, along with time on a Mediterranean “float.” He also became interested in jobs that included teaching. Before retiring, he was the director of the School of Advanced

Warfighting in Quantico.

“It was an amazing experience for 30 years,” he said. “And my dad and I have subsequently reconciled.”

At the Quantico school, Morris helped teach Marines operational planning, and prepared them to be campaign planners on high-level staff. The graduates went all over the world, including serving in Iraq or Afghanistan.

One year after his 2015 retirement, Morris began to pursue a doctorate in military history at Texas A&M University.

“I saw the kind of impact that both officer and civilian professors that I worked with had on the students, and I knew I wanted to do more of that,” Morris said. “Military history has always been my passion. I harbored a See morris, page 9

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U.S. ARMY

Jack Mullen

By MADDIE SPERA Special to The Eagle

C

ol. Jack Mullen entered the U.S. Army in 1954 as a second lieutenant after graduating from Bowling Green State University in Ohio. Mullen, who hails from Kenmore, New York, served as field artillery officer for more than 20 years.

After reporting to Fort Hood for the basic officer course, Mullen was sent to the 82nd Airborne Division. He served with the 82nd for about two years and was given an opportunity to go to an expanded basic officer course. During this time, Mullen decided to apply for flight school.

“I was getting to where I liked the Army and I thought, ‘I’ll stick around for a little while,’” he said. “I hadn’t intended to, but I figured I was enjoying myself, so I might as well. At that particular time in the Army’s history, there was a big surge in the interest in aviation. There was a big recruiting

effort to get pilots, which hit us students in the artillery school, and it seemed like a pretty good deal.”

The Army was also encouraging people to make it a career, Mullen said. He applied for a Regular Army Commission during flight school and received an offer almost a year later.

“That’s how I made the decision to become a career soldier,” Mullen said. “I asked myself if there was anybody I knew working in a job they didn’t like, and I knew people like that, both in the Army and out of it. I thought as long as I enjoyed what I was doing and had a good career ahead of me, I should go for it.

I was 100 percent focused on being a career soldier and I just did the jobs I had to do, and was sent to various units, and enjoyed it very much.”

Mullen served twice in Vietnam (19621963 and 1967-1969), first as an artillery adviser, then as a Mohawk pilot. Mullen also commanded the 212th Combat Aviation

Battalion during the war, and said he helped train it from the ground up, making sure everything was done properly.

“I particularly enjoyed being a commander,” Mullen said. “A commander in the Army is a pinnacle of whatever great level you might be. The commander is responsible for everything his people do or fail to do. It’s a huge responsibility but an exciting one, because you have an extraordinary level of respect in command. You run it, with help of course, but being the commander is just an extremely satisfying job.”

Mullen was stationed at the Pentagon before returning to Fort Hood and retiring in 1976 after 22 years of service. He and his wife Maggie raised four children, three of whom are Texas A&M graduates. Mullen and his family found a home and have let their roots grow in College Station.

He described the Army as an exciting life, and saw it as a fulfilling experience.

“I was never bored in the Army,” he said.

“There was always something going on. It was never just sit there and look at the wall. It was always new challenges, new people, new concepts to try to develop. It’s a very dynamic place to be.”

VETERANS DAY November 11, 2018

thanks all Veterans for your

serViCe to our great country!

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Today we pause to honor the brave men and women who have made a great sacrifice to protect our families, our country and our freedom.

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morris from page 7 desire to go back to school, and I had that opportunity after I retired.”

His love for military history is nothing new. His father served in the Air Force Reserve, so the family moved around the country, allowing him to visit significant places in U.S. history. Morris said he would insist on stopping at every Civil War battlefield.

“Since I was knee-high to a grasshopper, I was huge into military history,” he said. “I remember as a little boy going to the Alamo and not wanting to leave until my parents read aloud every placard.”

But it was his service in the Middle East — Kuwait and Iraq, between 2001 and 2009, including right after the Sept. 11 attacks — that shaped Morris’ thinking about war and what follows, he said.

“Especially after 2008, experiencing counterinsurgency and nationbuilding operations in Anbar Province, Iraq, that had a big impact on my thinking and my interest,” Morris said.

“War and the outcomes of wars are hugely important, and unfortunately they’re often not studied seriously. As if by not paying them any attention, maybe they will go away or take

care of themselves. But the truth is quite different. I think it’s important that both officers and civilian policy makers — who have a hand in the commencement, conduct and resolution of war — be as informed as they can possibly be.”

While in the service, Morris spent eight years as a student, instructor and director at intermediate-level schools, where students study major operations and campaigns. That is what he wants to focus on as a civilian professor at a staff or war college, helping mid-level officers prepare for the second half of their military careers.

“I want to educate and train field-grade officers and civilian policy makers about what goes into operations and campaigns, how to forge strategies, and why it’s so vital to do them well,” he said. “That’s a huge challenge. Having been on both sides, studying/assessing campaigns and executing them, I’m fully aware of how hard a task it is. I want to help prepare the next generation to get ready for what are surely going to be just as challenging or even more challenging conflicts than anything that we have faced up to this point.”

This goal is a continuation of what

Morris has been living, teaching and studying the past 20 years, he said, and A&M is an ideal fit to continue his education.

“It’s widely considered to be one of the nation’s top five Ph.D. programs in military history,” he said. “It has a reputation as one of the best universities in the field.”

Morris’ wife, Sue, said she admires her husband for following his passion for education and service.

“It’s not the normal route to spend 30 years in military service, and then go back to school,” she said. “He could be going for a six-figure job. He retired out of Virginia, so most of his peers went to work in the Beltway, but he always wanted to get a Ph.D. and go back and serve the military community again as a civilian. I’m incredibly proud of him.”

Morris said he wouldn’t trade a minute of his military service.

“I can’t explain what the opportunity to serve means and why it’s so incredibly rewarding,” he said.

“If you have to put it into words, it’s the people and the mission. The quality of the folks that I served with for 34 years was amazing. It was a wonderful and humbling experience.”

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U.S. MARINE CORPS

Paul Mitchell Bonarrigo

By CAITLIN CLARK caitlin.clark@theeagle.com

J

oining the Marine Corps was a goal for Paul Mitchell Bonarrigo from his early teens. He credits working at his family’s Bryan winery at a young age alongside former Marines as the thing that helped pique his interest.

“They had served in different roles, and the stories they told me and that culture really planted a seed with me,” he said. “That’s what got me interested.”

After that, Bonarrigo said, there was no turning back. By high school he was running weekly in “boots and utes” and training for the physical fitness test, and upon graduation attended the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.

The Sept. 11 terrorist attacks occurred his freshman year, when the commandant had a sobering conversation with Bonarrigo’s class.

“He told us, ‘You will be at war your entire career.’ ... It was very apparent at that time that the war on terror was gonna be a long time. The beginning of our class was 1,400 people, and we graduated with 900,” Bonarrigo said.

For Bonarrigo, there were some worries about the unknown, but he was prepared to stay the course. He graduated in 2005 as a commissioned officer for the U.S. Marines with a degree in systems engineering.

IN The FamILY

Bonarrigo has followed a path similar to his father, Paul Vincent Bonarrigo – whose own father served in the Navy during World War II. Paul Vincent called it a “proud day” in 1968 when he was sworn into the Navy as an ensign before attending officer training in Newport, Rhode Island.

From 1968 to 1970 he was assigned to the

Oakland Naval Hospital as a physical therapist and was in charge of amputee and burn patients who were wounded in Vietnam.

“Many of the patients still had mud from Vietnam on their uniforms as they were transported from Vietnam to California,” he recalled.

Paul Vincent was later the director of physical therapy at the Naval Aerospace Medical Center in Pensacola, Florida, from 1970 to 1971. There, he began a career in sports medicine and later became director of the St. Joseph Hospital physical therapy department and opened his Sports and Back Clinic in Bryan.

“I was honored to serve our great injured veterans,” he said. “I was even more honored to have a son who was a captain in the Marines and attended the U.S. Naval Academy.”

Paul Vincent and his wife, Merrill,

Family & aggie Owned

opened Messina Hof Winery & Resort in 1977.

acTIVe DUTY

Paul Mitchell would eventually go on to continue that legacy after serving five years of active duty.

Before the Naval Academy, See BoNarrigo, page 11

Honoring All Who Serve Happy

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Bonarrigo from page 10 Bonarrigo thought he wanted to be a sniper. That was until he met his wife, Karen. In trying to find a specialty that was less combative, Bonarrigo turned toward communications.

“The communications world is so interesting,” he said. “The two lifebloods of combat are communications and logistics. So without those things, general operations can’t work. That was really intriguing to me.”

During his first deployment to Iraq, Bonarrigo said his primary role was handling computers, intelligence feeds, satellite connections and related assets in the western part of the country.

During a brief mission in Nigeria, he was part of a task force helping to train several African nations in anti-terrorism operations.

“That involved everything from logistics to communications to combat. ... They had a hard time coordinating between countries,” Bonarrigo said.

“The cells they were fighting against, all they had to do was jump over the border and the other country wasn’t tracking them. And so really the idea of a joint operation against cells that were crossing borders was a foreign idea to them. We were trying to teach them

how to properly work with each other to engage those forces.”

In his second deployment in Iraq, Bonarrigo was the operations officer for a communications detachment.

That involved handling every element of communications in the western Al Anbar province – including computer assets, radio assets and telephone and communication infrastructure in the ground.

Back in the United States, Bonarrigo also served in the Wounded Warrior Battalion in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, which helps arrange care and support for injured Marines.

Back home

Upon exiting service, Bonarrigo and other Marines discussed the fact that Brazos County was one of the only counties in Texas without a Marine Corps League. With the inaugural meetings hosted at Messina Hof, the Brazos Valley Marine Corps League was formed and formally chartered in 2012.

That same year, Bonarrigo become chief executive officer of Messina Hof, which also hosts an annual Marine Corps ball. The Bonarrigo family’s military tradition is also reflected in some of their wines. Proceeds from

Contributed photo Bonarrigo follows in the footsteps of his father, Paul Vincent Bonarrigo, who served in the Navy during the Vietnam War. a collection that includes a cabernet sauvignon, a chardonnay and a dessert red called the “Admiral’s Reserve” go toward the Admiral Nimitz Foundation, which supports and operates the National Museum of the Pacific War in Fredericksburg.

Bonarrigo stresses the sacrifice of others when describing his military service, but said that he hopes the

Bryan-College Station community continues its reputation of honoring local veterans.

“I do think it’s very important for our local community to recognize that they have a huge number of veterans [here],” he said. “They should be proud of that, and they should recognize that it’s important to include that perspective in any discussion.”

Thank you for your service

We are proud to honor our employees that are veterans

two full Service concrete PlantS

locally oWned and operated since 1996

the late a.p. Boyd

Pictured left to right: grayum davis, dexter hendricks, Sterling leepart, raymond hill and craig Miller.

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U.S. MARINE CORPS RESERVES

James ‘Jim’ Riley

By KATY BARBER katy.barber@theeagle.com

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ol. James “Jim” Riley has been enjoying the pace of retirement after a busy military career that took him and his family around the world for more than 20 years.

Riley, a member of the Texas A&M Class of 1961, joined the Marine Corps Reserves while participating in the university’s Corps of Cadets.

As he got closer to graduation, Riley said, he knew he wanted to work in law enforcement, so he elected to take his commission with the Army and the military police, the only student in his class to do so.

“My time with the Marine Corps and with A&M really prepared me well for military service. There was not a lot of new things that I experienced that others who had not had that background

Training veterans to impact communities.

Veterans looking for a new career can begin with one of our certificate programs approved for VA

experienced, so it really prepared me for a military career,” Riley said. “My fiancee and I decided to get married and our assignment was in Europe ... so we went together.”

Two years later, and now with two young girls in the family, Riley was sent to Fort Hood, where he got his orders to deploy to Vietnam in 1967.

Once he got to Vietnam, he was assigned to command the 212th Military Police company comprised of soldiers and their canine companions – “war dogs” as Riley called them. At the time, Riley says the military used German shepherds for the role.

Military K9 units have been utilized in warfare in the United States in both world wars, and the role that they played in the Vietnam War was critical, Riley said. They were deployed in locations See riLEY, page 19

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See the widely acclaimed exhibit INTO THE RAGING STORM

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Storytellers JUDGE EDDIE HARRISON CHRISTINE HOFFMAN DOUG PRICE

3pm to 6pm Sunday, November 11, 2018 Chappell Hill Historical Society Museum 9220 Poplar Street, Chappell Hill, Texas

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U.S. ARMY

Joe Wallace

By JENNY TWITCHELL jenny.twitchell@theeagle.com

A

draft didn’t tell a young Joe Wallace to join the Army. He did that on his own.

“I was going to Hearne High School, and kept hearing things about the draft coming up, and I decided to quit high school and join the Army,” Wallace said.

“Then I wouldn’t have to worry about the draft.”

Wallace joined the Army in 1966. He served three tours in Vietnam and later chose to serve in the Air Force, which he did for 17 years.

He saw combat during each of his tours in Vietnam. The first was when he was with the 101st Airborne Division.

His second assignment was with the 92nd Military Police Battalion, when his mechanic experience led to him working on and rebuilding trucks that had been

hit with land mines. During his third assignment, with the 97th Military Police Battalion, Wallace did road patrols, checking for mines in a V-100 armored car.

“Every morning, there would be a Jeep blown up on the road because they didn’t wait for us to check the road,” Wallace said. “They were handmade land mines that enemies would set off when vehicles drove over them.”

Wallace made one combat jump as a member of the 101st. He said it did not go well, and the soldiers were dropped into “a bunch of jungle.” Many got stuck hanging in trees, he said, though none were shot. Wallace went through a hatch hut that a family was living in. He still had his weapon attached. The mother, he said, started beating him with a broom, thinking he was coming to shoot the family, “which I wasn’t, but it took a while to get out of there.”

He said he doesn’t like to talk about Vietnam. He saw too many people pay the ultimate sacrifice.

“It’s not something I really pleasured; See WaLLacE, page 19

A SALUTE TO OUR VETERANS

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Sergeant • Army National Guard

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Private First Class (E3) U.S. Army

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Joaquin Hernandez

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Job Salazar US Army 1955

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U.S. Air Force - 1946-1950

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E4-CPL JaCk E. MitChELL Vietnam

BEN WhitE Ret. PRivate 1st Class

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Marvin norwood Ret. Lt. CoL.

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Spc. Naomi HerNaNdez-pledger

Ret. emilio SalazaR WWII

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Col. Joe Coughran Vietnam

Ret. 2nd Lt. Jim WaLLace

Staff Sgt. William Earl CrutChfiEld Jr.

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Major W.S. EdMondS New GuiNea, PhiliPPiNes & JaPaN wwii

BG William mccain (ret.)

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Tech 5Th Asencion M. Munoz WWII

Capt. Misty M. Munoz OperatiOn iraqi FreedOm

Spc. William l. EdWardS Baghdad, Iraq

Johnny L. Johnson

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Cpl. Gerald l. Watson Korean War

1st Lt. BiLL Youngkin 82nd Airborne - VietnAm

Mike J. Patranella

1SG Johnny yeppez RetiRed ARmy

Sgt. Sidney L. Murphy KOREA

Charles l. lowe Ret. Lt. CoL.

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Distinguished Service Cross H Distinguished Service Crosses are the second highest military decoration awarded for extraordinary heroism.

H The first to receive and wear the medal was Pvt. Jacob Parrott for his actions in “The Great Locomotive Chase” in April 1862. He received the medal the following year.

3,521

TOTAL MEDAL OF HONOR RECIPIENTS

H The most recent medal awarded went to Staff Sgt. Ronald Shurer II for acts of heroism on April 6, 2008, in Afghanistan.

Includes 19 double recipients

WAR

H The medal first was awarded in 1932, replacing the Citation Star, given for gallantry from the Spanish-American War to World War I. H It’s estimated more than 100,000 people have been awarded a Silver Star.

Purple Heart H The origins of the Purple Heart date to George Washington and the Revolutionary War. Washington, wanting a way to bolster morale, created the Badge of Military Merit. It was described as a heart in purple cloth given to soldiers in instances of unusual gallantry, extraordinary fidelity and essential service.

H It fell into disuse after the revolution, only to be revived on the 200th anniversary of Washington’s birth. On May 28, 1932, 137 World War I veterans were conferred Purple Heart medals in a ceremony in New York.

H Over the years, the criteria for receiving the medal has expanded to include people injured in acts of terror and those wounded or killed when acting as part of a peacekeeping force outside the U.S.; wounded or killed in friendly fire; prisoners of war wounded in capture or captivity; and those wounded or killed by certain kinds of domestic terrorism.

H In 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt signed an executive order allowing Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard personnel to receive the Purple Heart. The order also allowed the medal to be awarded posthumously to those killed on or after Dec. 7, 1941, and about a decade later, it was extended to April 5, 1917.

hon or i n g o u r v e t e r a n s

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Presentation and text by The (Lynchburg) News & Advance

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PURPLE HEART HISTORY

H The Bronze Star has been awarded since 1941 to any person in the Armed Forces who distinguishes themselved by heroic or meritorious achievement or service, not involving participation in aerial flight. There are three types of this medal — achievement, merit or valor.

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Bronze Star

A quick look at medals awarded for war service

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H The Silver Star is the third-highest combat decoration that can be awarded to members of the U.S. Armed Forces and is awarded for gallantry in action. Despite its name, the medal mostly is gold.

H Some well-known recipients of this medal are Gens. George S. Patton and Douglas MacArthur and former Sens. John Kerry and John McCain. A controversial recipient was Pat Tillman, the Arizona Cardinals football player who became an Army Ranger. He died as a result of friendly fire in Afghanistan.

MEDALS

H An estimated 1.8 million Purple Hearts have been awarded since 1932.

Silver Star A

H The first Medal of Honor action came from Bernard J.D. Irwin,, an assistant surgeon in the Army. In 1861, Irwin voluntarily led a command of troops to surround a detachment of the 7th Infantry. He didn’t receive the medal until 30 years later.

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Navy medal

H The medal, which dates to 1861, takes three forms — one for the Army, one for Air Force and one for the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard.

H “Actions that merit the Distinguished Service Cross must be of such high degree that they are above those required of all other U.S. combat decorations but do not merit the Medal of Honor,” according to the U.S. Department of Defense.

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H It is presented by the president and given only to members of U.S. Armed Forces who “distinguish themselves through conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty,” according to the U.S. Department of Defense.

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H The Medal of Honor is the highest military honor awarded by the U.S. government.

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Medal of Honor

H Civilians also can earn a Bronze Star. Joe Galloway, a photojournalist for United Press International News, was awarded a Bronze Star for valor for rescuing a badly injured soldier during the Battle of Ia Drang Valley in Vietnam in 1965.

H There were 395,380 Bronze Stars awarded to World War II veterans; 30,359 for Korea; 170,626 for valor and 549,343 for achievement/ service for Vietnam (the first time valor medals were tracked separately); and 2,459 for valor and 99,886 for achievement/service for Operation Iraqi Freedom.

SOURCES: WOMEN’S MEMORIAL FOUNDATION; NATIONAL PURPLE HEART HALL OF HONOR; THE MILITARY ORDER OF THE PURPLE HEART; THE INSTITUTE OF HERALDRY; THE CONGRESSIONAL MEDAL OF HONOR SOCIETY; RALLY POINT; STARS AND STRIPES; AND THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

T H e b rYA n - C o L L e G e S TAT I o n e A G L e

RILEY from page 14 throughout Vietnam, mostly guarding airfields, ammunition depots and special forces headquarters.

“There is a very special bond between the soldier and his dog because they work by themselves,” he said. “They were the first line of defense. You say in Vietnam there were no battle lines, but in fact, that is not the case. They were out patrolling the perimeters of the jungles and they were on their own. Very brave, dedicated soldiers.”

Like his men, Riley had a companion: Rex, a retired German shepherd that was the mascot of the company. Riley was eventually moved to the brigade headquarters, where he managed the Vietnam War dog program.

Following the war, Riley spent four years in school, first for an advanced military police training program and then to Texas Tech for a masters of business administration before heading to U.S. Army Command and General Staff College to build on the engineering degree he received from Texas A&M. Riley said the military wanted him to learn how to use computers.

In 1975, the Riley family moved to Belgium, where he commanded an international police force comprised of 14 countries providing security for U.S. and

European leaders, classified briefings, and classified areas within the North American Treaty Organization headquarters in Mons.

Riley and his family returned the U.S. in 1978, this time to Fort Riley in Kansas to head the 716th Military Police Battalion for the next two years. They deployed multiple times to Europe, Riley said, to aid in disputes. In the time after, he attended a doctoral program at the Naval War College until he was asked to take command of the 89th Military Police Brigade back in Fort Hood from 1981 until 1984, after which he retired from military service.

In retirement, Riley settled into a position as assistant director of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and, over his 10-year career there, served as deputy and executive director of the state prison in Huntsville, before he continued doing work related to health care in prison systems nationwide.

In 2015, Riley retired, moving with his wife, Barbara, to Watercrest in Bryan.

“We’re part of the Aggie family. ... We are in our 57th year, we dated at A&M, she went to Ring Dance, she’s been to the games, we have Class of ‘61 monthly luncheons, the ladies get together. It’s remarkable. It’s an added reward for being here.”

wallace from page 15 I wasn’t desiring to be there,” he said.

“I was just trying to serve my three years and get out.”

He had someone special waiting for him back home, and he got married as soon as he returned from Vietnam.

He and Jadwiga “Hedy” Wallace have been together almost 50 years.

Hedy recalls how irritated Wallace was when they went to get their marriage license.

“I was 19 and he was 20 when we got married, and he was ticked because even though he came back from Vietnam, he still had to have his mama with him to get the marriage license, but I didn’t,” Hedy said. “Girls could be 18, but boys had to be 21 to marry without permission. So, he could serve for three years, but still needed his mom.”

After getting married, Wallace went back to being a mechanic. But after a few years, Wallace decided he wanted to re-enlist. He said what happened next was “a funny story.”

He was told he would have to go back to being an E-1 in the Army, and also go back to basic training. But he could be an E-5 in the Air Force.

“I could also have choice of

assignment with the Air Force, and we wanted to go to San Antonio,” he said.

“I wouldn’t have been in the Air Force at all if it wasn’t for the Army wanting to send me back to basic training.”

While in the Air Force, Wallace was stationed in Texas, Germany, the Philippines and Illinois, and primarily did vehicle maintenance.

During his service, Wallace received two commendation medals, a Bronze Star in Vietnam and five Meritorious Service Medals.

He retired in 1986 from the Air Force. Five years later, he had a heart attack. Since then he’s had quadruple bypass surgery and had 19 stents put into his heart. He said Veterans Affairs put him on 100 percent disability, and that the problem with his heart was caused by effects of his exposure to Agent Orange during Vietnam.

Wallace said he is proud to have served in the military because he is proud to be an American. His wife admires his patriotism as well.

“He’s a good person,” she said.

“Very patriotic, loves his country and if anyone wants to say anything against it, they better say it away from him.”

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CHARLES BROOKS McGOWN, JR., 93 Charles Brooks “Buddy” McGown was born in Mexia, Texas, graduated from high school at age 16, and entered Sam Houston State University three months before Pearl Harbor.

He volunteered for induction two weeks before time for draft in order to be able to select the Air Force. However, at Camp Wolters, McGown was told that his eyes were 20/30 and therefore he could not be a pilot (he had already soloed an airplane in 1941).

He was sent to Camp Butner, North Carolina, for basic training in the infantry and training in an anti-tank company, completed radio training and was scheduled to receive a corporal’s rating. He was called to the adjutant’s office and was offered an opportunity to attend Officer’s Candidacy School. However, on the bulletin board in the office was a notice stating that the Air Force was losing so many pilots over Berlin that the eye requirements had been lowered to 20/30. McGown refused the offer to go to OCS and immediately went to Durham, North Carolina, for the physical exam to enter the Air Force. He was accepted and was sent to Miami,

Florida, for two weeks of mental and physical examinations. After passing these exams, he was sent to George Peabody College in Nashville, Tennessee, for three months of academic training at the College Training Detachment. Upon graduation, the commencement speaker told the 400 men who had transferred in from the ground forces that the Air Force was once again crowded with too many pilots and that all 400 of them would be transferred back into the ground forces. McGown went overseas with the 20th Armored Division, 33rd Mechanized Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron as a jeep driver, machine gunner, and radio operator. He fought in Europe as a PFC and was involved in the Battle of the Ruhr Pocket and the Battle of Munich.

Decorations received were Expert Rifle, Machine Gun, Pistol; 2 Battle Stars; Combat Ribbon; Good Conduct Ribbon; European Theater Ribbon.

He was discharged in 1946 at Camp Fannin, Texas. McGown returned to college and completed his BS degree in music and became high school band director at Dayton, Texas, in 1947,

ADVERTORIAL

and then SFA High School band director in Bryan in 1948, Bonham Elementary School principal in 1961, followed by principalship at Henderson Elementary School in 1967 until 1975 at which time he was assigned to the administration building of BISD as assistant superintendent for Personnel until he retired in 1986. McGown was finally able to realize his dream of flying when he purchased an airplane in 1976 and earned his private flying license. He was still flying at age 91 when he sold his airplane.

He and his wife Jeane, also a retired typing and shorthand teacher at SFA and Bryan High, have enjoyed 68 years of marriage and have a daughter Karen Loehr of Bryan and a son Mike McGown of Montgomery, six grandchildren and six great grandchildren.

His time now is spent working on his farm near Wheelock and enjoying his family.

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U.S. NAVY

Paul Kolasci Jr.

By JENNY TWITCHELL jenny.twitchell@theeagle.com

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t 94 years old, Paul Kolasci Jr. wishes he could still be serving his country.

“I wish I was young enough to be in the Persian Gulf right now,” Kolasci said.

Kolasci served in the Navy for 26 1/2 years with active service in three conflicts: World War II, Korea and Vietnam.

“I can’t explain it to you,” Kolasci said. “I loved being in the Navy, and it’s too bad I got out.”

The reason for leaving had to do with Kolasci’s son, Paul III. He was in the Army, and was also headed for serving in the Vietnam War. Kolasci said he knew his wife would have a hard time having them both there, so he retired as senior chief petty officer.

Kolasci is a first-generation American; his family emigrated from Poland. He said his family was as “poor as church mice,” so when Pearl Harbor was attacked, he knew he had to serve. He heard the news on Dec. 7, 1941, while at a movie. During the intermission, when Paul Whiteman and Orchestra were playing, the music stopped for the Pearl Harbor announcement.

“I said to myself, ‘Oh, I guess I’m getting into the military,’” Kolasci said.

He said he wanted to join the Navy that year in Ohio, when he was 17 years old. When recruiters asked his age, he said he was 18. When they required him to bring in a statement from his parents saying he was 18, his parents refused to sign it. He had to wait another year.

Kolasci said he doesn’t remember

much about the war. He enlisted as an apprentice seaman and his duties consisted of bombarding enemy routes.

“I visited so many ports in my career that I don’t remember them,” he said. “I didn’t think it was important to remember certain things. I served time in Europe, in Italy, then came to the Pacific and served time in the South Pacific.”

The only thing that mattered to him during the three wars, Kolasci said, was serving his country and coming home to his family.

“When you’re serving aboard ship, it’s all the same; it didn’t matter,” he said. “I never did anything heroic. All I did was serve my country.”

Even if in real danger, Kolasci said he never feared.

“You don’t have any fear; you don’t even think about it,” he said. “You overcome that; it’s not on your mind.

If it’s on your mind, then you’re in trouble, it’s just part of the service.”

See KoLasci, page 23

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In Memoriam: Lelve As a young boy, Lelve Gayle was touched by the words “love of country.” He had two uncles that served in World War II. After graduating from Lovelady High School in 1958, Lelve enrolled in the Corps of Cadets at Texas A&M University with the goal of becoming a veterinarian.

He graduated from the College of Veterinary Medicine at Texas A&M in 1964 and enlisted in the Air Force to serve during the Vietnam war. He was assigned to the SAC Medical Group at Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene, Texas as the Base veterinarian overseeing the Sentry Dogs used for guarding the base and in combat missions. Being in the Air Force was a wonderful experience, and further deepened his love for his country and the military.

His military service was followed by a period of ten years in private practice. In 1976, Dr. Gayle joined the Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory as their case supervisor and later served as the Executive Director of the Texas A&M Diagnostic Laboratory, and the diagnostic facilities in Amarillo, Center, and Gonzales, Texas. While his work as a veterinarian was fulfilling, his service to others was his lifelong passion.

During his tenure, Dr. Gayle was asked to serve as an academic advisor for the Texas A&M Corps of Cadets, Company D-2.

Gayle

ADVERTORIAL

As their advisor, Company D-2 received the General Moore Outstanding Unit Award, naming “the Dogs” the top unit in the Corps. Dr. Gayle was also named Outstanding Faculty Academic Advisor.

One of his most treasured memories from his work at Texas A&M was when the entire D2 company marched from the main building on campus to present him with an award for his leadership in advising the D-2 Unit in achieving their goals. Dr. Gayle loved the Corps of Cadets because of its influence in developing leaders for our nation’s military. The Corps instilled in Dr. Gayle and in so many young leaders “excellence, integrity, leadership, loyalty, respect, and self-service.” He firmly believed in the Aggie Code of Honor, “Aggies don’t lie, cheat or steal-nor tolerate those that do.” Dr. Gayle carried the qualities he learned in the Texas A&M Corps of Cadets with him to his service in the Air Force and throughout his life.

Dr. Gayle passed away in August of 2017. Members from Company D-2 attended his funeral, and the Singing Cadets sang his favorite song-”The Battle Hymn of the Republic.”

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U.S. ARMY

Juan Chavez

By MADDIE SPERA Special to The Eagle

C

ommand Sgt. Maj. Juan Chavez joined the Army in October 1968 when he was just 17.

Chavez, from Mission, remained in the Army for 27 years, because he said he valued serving his country and helping his fellow soldiers.

Shortly after graduating boot camp, Chavez, now 67, was sent to Germany, where he served for about two years. He then served 13 months in Korea in the Demilitarized Zone.

Chavez credits his wife, Vicki, for her support during those days.

“By this time, we had three children and one on the way, so by the time I came back from Korea we had four children,” Chavez said. “All this time my wife remained behind, taking care of and raising them. It almost

what needed to be done and to get it done throughout the unit. So if we were in short supply of anything, my job was to find resources, like water or maintenance or whatever. I also gave always seems like we forget about medical assistance to those who had the family, and I want to add that the been wounded and evacuated them as wives back home do a tremendous job. necessary. So that was probably one My wife helped out a lot in making of the highlights — going out there sure that the other wives were kept and protecting the soldiers. I’m happy informed of what was going on with to know that I had a hand in that.” us, and developed a sort of support Chavez spent his final years group with the assistance of all the in the Army as senior adviser of other officers’ wives. We were very Army ROTC for the Corps of Cadets proud of that.” at Texas A&M University in 1994 Chavez served in Operation Desert and 1995. He calls it “one of my Storm, including the Battle of Medina highlights.”

Ridge, and said that experience helped “The most challenging time to find his passion for attending to the I ever had, and most rewarding, needs of fellow soldiers. was working with those rascals,” “We’re trained to fight,” he said. he said. “Some of them have “That’s our whole purpose, and we joined the military since then, and do it in different ways. Some do it as unfortunately we have lost several of cooks and some do it as infantrymen, them. But there’s a lot of them that or whatever the case may be. I felt are still in the military, and outside of my responsibility was to take care the military in their own businesses of soldiers, and to be kind of a See cHaVEZ, page 23 freelancer. My mission was to see

With Gratitude, Happy Veterans Day! On Veterans Day, we’d like to share our admiration and appreciation for the brave men and women in uniform whose service and sacrifice have protected our freedom and our way of life through the generations. To all of our dedicated soldiers both past and present, our deepest gratitude and best wishes remain with you and your families on Veterans Day and always!

OutdOOr FOOtwear • NOrthFace Jackets • kNives • campiNg Necessities Firearms • guN saFes • scOpes aNd BiNOculars • ammuNitiON • guN accessOries

On veterans day, we pause to reflect on the courage, dedication and loyalty of our nation’s military veterans. their hard work and sacrifice have kept us safe and protected our freedom. to all of the brave men and women who have sacrificed to put their country first,

we thank you.

10% discount to all veterans (exCept fiReARMs)

during the week of nov. 11th - 18th

1055 Texas Ave. S.  979-695-2807 next to Chili’s Restaurant across from A&M Golf Course

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1914

MAJOR EVENTS OF THE WAR June 28: Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary is assassinated July 28: AustriaHungary declares war on Serbia, WWI begins

1915

Sept. 5: First Battle of the Marne April 22: First use of poison gas by the Germans May 7: Lusitania torpedoed

WWI

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The 100th anniversary of the end of World War I

1916

Feb. 21: Battle of Verdun

May 31: Battle of Jutland

1917

Sept. 15: First tanks are used in the Battle of the Somme April 6: United States enters the war under the command of Gen. John J. Pershing

1918

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t 11 a.m. this Nov. 11, the world marks exactly 100 years since the armistice agreed to by the Germans and Allied powers brought an end to more than four years of global fighting in what was hoped at the time would be the “war to end all wars.”

Here’s a look back at a key Allied offensive in 1918, notable firsts, the toll of the war, the recognition of Armistice Day and the history of Veterans Day:

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE

Americans celebrate on Grand Boulevard in Paris, France, on Nov. 11, 1918, after an armistice was signed by Germany and the Allied powers.

‘Armistice Day’ The Germans signed an armistice agreement with the Allies at 5 a.m. in Compiègne, France, on Nov. 11, 1918. It went into effect at 11 a.m. that day.

A year later, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed the first Armistice Day: “To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations … .”

A war of firsts World War I, considered the first modern war, was the first war fought in the air, the first time tanks were used in combat and the first time chemical weapons were used in the fighting. Some stats:

65,000 Number of aircraft produced by both sides.

476 Number of British tanks used in the Battle of Cambrai.

100,000 Tons of chemical weapons agent used in the war.

The Meuse-Argonne offensive It was America’s deadliest battle ever, with 26,000 U.S. soldiers killed, tens of thousands wounded and more ammunition fired than in the whole of the Civil War. The Meuse-Argonne offensive of 1918 was also a great American victory that helped to bring an end to World War 1.

During seven weeks of combat, 1.2 million American troops ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE led by Gen. John J. Pershing fought to advance on the entrenched positions held by about 450,000 Germans in the Verdun region.

The offensive that started on Sept. 26, 1918, was one of several simultaneous Allied attacks that brought the war which started in 1914 to an end, leading the Germans to retreat and sign the armistice on Nov. 11.

Pershing said “the success stands out as one of the very great achievements in the history of American arms.”

— The Associated Press

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WWI, by the numbers 65 million Number of soldiers who fought in the war.

9 million Total number of soldiers killed during the conflict.

116,516 Number of U.S. soldiers killed in combat or from disease.

21 million Number of soldiers wounded.

5 million Number of civilians killed by disease, starvation, exposure.

Veterans Day President Dwight D. Eisenhower, in 1954, officially changed the name of this holiday from Armistice Day, recognizing the end of World War I, to Veterans Day, honoring living veterans who served the country honorably during war and peacetime. From 1968-1971, Veterans Day Eisenhower was moved to the fourth Monday in October, but was moved back to Nov. 11 by President Gerald Ford, who cited the historical significance of the day.

SOURCES: HISTORY.COM; THE ASSOCIATED PRESS; RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH

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KOLASCI from page 20 Another major part of Kolasci’s service was serving as a court stenographer in California. Kolasci had attended stenographer school in San Diego in 1946, and attended the Naval Justice School in Port Hueneme, California in 1947.

After retirement from the Navy in 1968, Kolasci went to work for the U.S. Postal Service in Beeville. He then went to work at the Naval Air Station Chase Field in Beeville as a military support division officer, and retired from that in 1986 after 18 years.

Kolasci gives credit to his late wife, Thelma, for doing a great job raising their two children. They were married for almost 65 years. Kolasci’s daughter, Patti Wade, said he is humble about his service, and notes that there were always military men and women in their home during the holidays because they could not go home to their families. Kolasci still keeps in touch with many of the men and women that served with him.

“I’m proud of my dad and proud of what he did for his country,” Wade said. “How could any words explain the worthiness of any soldier? Every soldier should be recognized and held

with highest admiration. They give their life for our country and gave up family time to serve a country that my dad, at 94, still holds the highest respect for. After all, he is my dad.”

CHAVEZ from page 21 or private lives or whatever they may be doing. And I’m glad to say that they’re friends.

I really love those guys, and they made my life a rewarding time while I was there at Texas A&M.” After his retirement in 1995, Chavez opened a mortgage company in College Station for several years, then went to Houston to help the Federal Emergency Management Agency and evacuees from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

“I really have been blessed, and my family has been fantastic,” Chavez said. “After we helped out in Houston with the FEMA Katrina effort, I stayed there helping with moderate- to low-income housing, since I have a mortgage company and realty background.”

Chavez said he and his wife have since been traveling across the country. He said he feels grateful for the opportunities he’s had and is proud of his service.

From opening your first savings account to planning for retirement, and everything in between, we’re with you every step of the way.

Thank you for your service.

Join Today | aggielandcu.org

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HAVE YOU VISITED OUR COMMUNITY’S

HIDDEN GEM?

THE BRAZOS VALLEY VETERANS MEMORIAL IS LOCATED IN VETERANS PARK AND ATHLETIC COMPLEX AT 3101 HARVEY ROAD. THIS 12ACRE SITE INCLUDES LIFE-SIZED STATUES, A WALL OF HONOR, INTERPRETIVE PANELS AND MEMORIAL SITES THAT COMMEMORATE THE SACRIFICES OF VETERANS FROM EVEY MAJOR WAR IN OUR NATION’S PAST. ADMISSION IS FREE. DONATIONS ARE WELCOME.

Learn more: BVVM.ORG info@bvvm.org /BVVVETS