VMI Alumni Review 2017-Issue 2

VMI 2017-Issue 2

Alumni Review

Contents

Virginia Military Institute Alumni Review 2017-Issue 2

In This Issue . . .

This issue includes class notes and news items covering the time period of Nov. 1, 2016, to Feb. 15, 2017.

Features 5

Message from the Campaign Chairman

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The Campaign Cabinet Behind An Uncommon Purpose: A Glorious Past, A Brillant Future: The Campaign for VMI

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Inauguration Parade 2017

148 Restructuring the Agencies

News and Updates 3

Our Alumni Serving

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Association/Chapter News

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Class Notes

147 Births, Marriages, Degrees 149 Provisional Appointments

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152 Taps 160 Alumni News

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Departments 2

President’s Letter

157 Association Directory

PUBLISHER The President of The VMI Alumni Association, Inc. Managing Editor: Jordan Moore Editorial Assistant: Elaine Wood ALUMNI REVIEW ONLINE www.vmialumi.org/alumnireview PUBLISHING OFFICE The VMI Alumni Association, Inc. Alumni Review Office VMI Moody Hall, P.O. Box 932, Lexington, VA 24450; 540/464-7224 review@vmiaa.org PRINTER Progress Printing Co., Inc. Lynchburg, Virginia The VMI Alumni Review (USPS 954-740) is published four times yearly in fall, winter, spring and summer

by The VMI Alumni Association, Inc., P.O. Box 932, Lexington, VA 24450. It is sent to alumni and friends of the Institute without subscription.

ATTENTION POSTMASTER : Send changes of address to: VMI Alumni Review, P.O. Box 932, Lexington, VA 24450 Periodicals postage paid at Lynchburg, VA. MISSION OF THE VMI ALUMNI ASSOCIATION To organize the alumni and old cadets of VMI into one general body to keep alive the memories of Institute life and, by their united efforts, promote the general welfare of the Institute and the successful prosecution of its educational purposes.

VMI ALUMNI AGENCIES TELEPHONE NUMBERS The VMI Alumni Association: The VMI Foundation:

The VMI Keydet Club:

540/464-7221 540/464-7287 540/464-7328

WEBSITE ADDRESSES Alumni Agencies: www.vmialumni.org VMI: www.vmi.edu

163 The Institute

ON OUR COVER

168 Keydet Athletics

Front Cover: The Corps of Cadets marched in the inaugural parade for President Donald J. Trump Jan. 20, 2017. Department of Defense photo by U.S. Army Sgt. Michael Christensen.

Inside Front Cover: Cadets march around the Parade Ground at VMI in preparation for the presidential inaugural parade. VMI photo by H. Lockwood McLaughlin.

172 The Foundation 175 The Keydet Club

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Volume 94, No. 1

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A Message From the President

Dear Alumni and Friends of VMI, As you read this, the Class of 2017 is preparing to graduate, following four years of hard work and dedication to the Institute. Strangely, they will discover just how quickly a cadetship passes. Many will commission, start careers or enter graduate school. Please join me in welcoming them to our Alumni Ranks; someday soon they will step into our shoes, lead our Association, The Foundation and The Keydet Club. Congratulations to the Class of 2017.

After a thorough and exhaustive process in which hundreds of candidates were contacted and dozens of candidates were considered, we are pleased to announce the selection and appointment of Stephen M. Maconi as CEO of the combined VMI Alumni Agencies. Please join us in welcoming Steve and his wife, Carolyn, to Lexington.

The new Corps Physical Training Facility – with its two running tracks, 34-foot rock climbing wall, and high ropes courses and other various facilities – opened its doors in early 2017. As Louthan ’82 you will read in, “CPTF Offers Myriad Training Opportunities for Corps, Track Team,” in the Keydet Athletics section, the facility boasts many features to help our athletic teams, as well as the Corps of Cadets. The facility hosted its first NCAA competition Jan. 28 with both the women’s and men’s track and field teams claiming victories over The Citadel Bulldogs.

We welcomed the Classes of ’42, ’47, ’52, ’57 and ’62 April 24-25 to Lexington for their spring reunion. The Classes of ’77, ’87 and ’97 then joined us for reunions April 28-29, along with the Class of ’67 celebrating their 50th Reunion.

The spirit of brotherhood was abundant – reunions never get old for me. When we gather around the Sentinel Box, we are One Corps spanning many generations. This is unique among all of the military academies, and distinctly VMI. The Campaign for VMI ends June 30, with $313 million raised so far. Campaign coverage in this issue highlights the campaign cabinet and their efforts to plan and execute such a successful campaign for the Institute. There is still time to be part of this historic campaign, to participate and make a lasting impact on the future of the Institute and its cadets.

May is a very busy time on post, as we celebrate New Market Day May 15 and graduation May 16. If you have not had the chance to visit post to witness the New Market Parade, I strongly encourage you to take the trip (or watch it streaming online) – it is one that will leave you speechless, and you’ll walk away from it with a renewed sense of what it means to be from VMI. In the bonds,

Robert P. Louthan ’82 President, VMI Alumni Association, Inc.

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Vmi Alumni Review

Three VMI alumni currently serve the Stafford County Justice System in Stafford, Virginia. Judge Robert E. Reibach ’77, from Waynesboro, Virginia, sits in General District Court; Judge John Franklin ’90 from Fredericksburg, Virginia, sits on the Juvenile and Domestic Court; and Deputy Charles Havasy ’73, from Stafford, serves all the courts throughout the county, to include the Circuit Court. The work and subject matter is often difficult and presents long hours, but teamwork and comradery guide the alumni in their daily interactions as they fairly serve Stafford County.

Our Alumni Serving Recognizing Those Who Serve Others in Their Communities, Country and the World The Alumni Association would like to pay tribute to our citizensoliders, who are, as Col. J.T.L. Preston said and as printed on the parapet, “an honor to our country and our state, objects of honest pride to their instructors ... and ready in every time of deepest peril ... .”

Those alumni whose photos and articles appear in this section of the Review could be members of the armed forces serving anywhere in the world, or they could be members of police and fire departments, doctors offering their services to those less fortunate, alumni volunteering at food pantries or serving as Boy or Girl Scout leaders.

If you or someone you know is serving others, please submit a high resolution photo (3 or 4 megapixels, minimum) taken at the location you are serving or with the people whom you serve.

Along with the photo, please submit a caption that explains what your service is, where you perform it and for whom. Send these to the VMI Alumni Review staff at review@vmiaa.org or by mail to VMI Alumni Review, P.O. Box 932, Lexington, VA 24450, Attention: Editor. We will review your submission and consider it for publication.

Are you or someone you know serving the community, country or the world? Send in a photo and a description of what you’re Are you orand someone you serving the community, country or the world? Send in a photo and a doing, where for whom.

See know instructions above. description of what you’re doing, where and for whom. See instructions above.

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Ensign Tatiana D. Wabrek ’15 returned in May 2016 after a 6-month deployment aboard the USS Kearsarge to the 5th Fleet AOR in support of Operation Inherent Resolve carrying the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit. Upon return, Wabrek was named BULL Ensign over her peers. She was also awarded the Surface Warfare Officer’s qualification/designation in September, then deployed aboard the USS Mesa Verde for four weeks in support of Joint Task Force Matthew for the humanitarian relief of Haiti following Hurricane Matthew. She recently returned back to the Kearsarge in Norfolk, Virginia.

Left: Ensign Tatiana D. Wabrek ’15 in front of the USS Kearsarge in Norfolk, Virginia. Right: United States Navy Capt. Larry Getz, commanding officer of the USS Kearsarge, presenting Wabrek with her Surface Warfare Officer’s qualification.

Pictured on the flight deck of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower during a 7-month deployment in support of Operation Inherent Resolve in late 2016 were, from left, front row, Jason A. Spencer ’13 and Patrick T. Magno ’07. Back row: Chelsea M. Nugent ’11, Jason T. Barnes ’10, Joshua D. Lawrence ’13 and Caleb N. Healy ’12.

On Dec. 16, 2016, Col. Pete Sniffin ’85, commandant of the U.S. Army Chaplain Center and School, presided over the graduations of Michael Hale ’15, new chaplain assistant, and Chris Perry ’05, new chaplain.

Left: From left, Chaplain Chris Perry ’05, Maj. Katrina Powell ’06 and Chaplain Col. Pete Sniffin ’85.

Right: Perry, left, and Michael Hale ’15.

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Vmi Alumni Review

Message from Donald M. Wilkinson ’61 Campaign Chairman An Uncommon Purpose: A Glorious Past, A Brilliant Future: The Campaign for VMI is now almost two months from completing its important work for the Institute. For me, it is a time of a few thoughts.

First, we are determined to keep working until the very last moment, because every dollar raised means a stronger VMI. I have a sense of satisfaction, too, that what was painstakingly planned and diligently executed by so many has been so fruitful. Admittedly, too, I am a bit relieved that the task is almost finished.

My dominant feeling, however, is gratitude for the many people who have played important roles in this effort. First are my colleagues on the Campaign Cabinet: Conrad Hall ’65, vice chairman; James Rogers ’67, vice chairman; John Jumper ’66; Tom Slater ’66; Bill Paulette ’69; and Walt Perrin ’62. Involved with the campaign from its earliest days, they used what they had gleaned from long careers and many years of service to VMI to make the campaign a success. They did everything asked of them and did so with good humor, a cooperative spirit and a common desire to see the Institute thrive. The same holds true for the volunteer leaders of the VMI Alumni Agencies who willingly and cheerfully helped An Uncommon Purpose accomplish so much.

I owe much, as well, to the VMI Alumni Agencies’ staff members who traveled hundreds of thousands of miles, engaged hundreds of alumni and friends, and applied their myriad talents to the many tasks related to this effort. Anyone who has met these people and seen them at work recognizes their high level of professionalism and their deep devotion to VMI. I thank our class agents and alumni chapter representatives. They were among the campaign’s most energetic and effective advocates. The alumni who were leaders in the Reunion Campaigns that occurred during the life of An Uncommon Purpose also made a significant contribution to its success. These campaigns generated tens of millions of dollars in support for VMI, and a few – such as the Class of 1966 – set new records in terms of participation and money raised.

I cannot say enough about how much our faculty and staff, especially our remarkable superintendent, Gen. J.H. Binford Peay III ’62, have done for the campaign. Peay’s resolute leadership and ambitious vision, as well as the ceaseless and selfless efforts of our faculty and staff, has created an incredibly strong foundation on which their successors will continue to build an ever-stronger VMI. The progress VMI has made in the past several years has inspired the broader VMI family to rally to the Institute’s standard in a truly magnificent manner.

Finally, I thank all of the alumni and friends who have donated to VMI during the campaign. No matter how you gave, you made a critically important contribution to the unceasing work of ensuring that our beloved Institute will have the most brilliant future possible.

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The Campaign Cabinet Behind An Uncommon Purpose: A Glorious Past, A Brilliant Future: The Campaign for VMI

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s An Uncommon Purpose: A Glorious Past, A Brilliant Future: The Campaign for VMI approaches its conclusion June 30, 2017, it seemed right to speak with the members of the Campaign Cabinet: Donald M. Wilkinson ’61, chairman; Conrad M. Hall ’65, vice chairman; James E. Rogers ’67, vice chairman; John P. Jumper ’66; William A. Paulette ’69; Walter C. Perrin II ’62; and Thomas G. Slater Jr. ’66. These men – all of whom also served VMI extensively to include leadership roles in the VMI Alumni Agencies, past campaigns and the Board of Visitors – planned the campaign, worked with the Institute’s leaders to set its goals and priorities, acted as its primary representatives, and helped coordinate the efforts of the VMI Alumni Agencies and the Institute to execute it. They were asked to look back at the campaign and their involvement with it.

When asked why they decided to join the Campaign Cabinet, both Wilkinson and Rogers cited a desire to help the superintendent.

“When General Peay [’62] asks you to do something,” said Wilkinson, “well, you feel compelled to do it.”

Rogers confessed, “I thought I had served my time. But how do you say, ‘No,’ to someone like General Peay who has given his life to serving the nation and given his all to serve VMI?” Others cited a desire to do what they can for VMI. “It’s a way to continue to give back,” responded Perrin, and Slater said, “I always feel a need to do whatever I can to ensure VMI can excel, grow and continue to be one of the top schools in the nation.”

“I thought the campaign was important to VMI’s future,” recalled Paulette, “and I thought the cabinet was critical to the campaign’s future. That’s why I joined.”

For all of the cabinet, An Uncommon Purpose was important, because it held out the promise of securing the Institute’s future and making it even stronger. “Under General Peay, the Institute already has ascended to

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the next level in terms of academics, quality of cadets and physical plant,” said Jumper.

“This campaign will take VMI even higher, because it will allow us to sustain excellence.”

Wilkinson put it in even stronger terms, stating, “We have a long way to go in order to ensure that the endowment is at a size necessary to sustain VMI’s mission. General Peay estimated that to be $1 billion. This campaign has been a giant step toward that goal.”

The campaign’s seeds were planted 15 years ago, according to Hall, when the percentage of VMI’s operating revenues from the commonwealth of Virginia began to decline.

“The state has been wonderfully generous in terms of capital projects; however, when it became evident that state-provided operating revenues would be on a long-term downward trend, the Institute moved toward a private school model of funding; that is, one in which private support, especially endowments, provide an ever greater share of the annual budget.”

With the campaign having raised more than $313 million, the cabinet was asked what this success says about the generosity and loyalty of the VMI family. According to Paulette, “The VMI family loves the school and what it stands for, and they’re willing to commit themselves to its support.”

Perrin echoed this sentiment, saying, “We put forth the message that if VMI doesn’t build up its endowments now, it won’t be the same college in the future. Alumni and friends, quite obviously, received that message and responded to it.”

Wilkinson asserted that the campaign’s success is evidence that “the values and principles – honor, integrity, patriotism – that VMI teaches also bind alumni and friends together as a family.”

According to Jumper, the campaign’s success “says a lot about the VMI family.” He continued, “It shows that we value traditions, and we know that the nation needs VMI.” He also pointed out that many people are

amazed by the results. “I have had people associated with the service academies ask how we did it with such a small base of donors. They want to know how they can get the same sort of results.”

Rogers has had much the same experience.

“When I tell alumni of the University of Virginia, Ivy League schools and the service academies that over the past few years, we have received around $20 million from each 50th Reunion class, they are floored, especially when I let them know just how small these classes are.”

No matter how meticulously planned, every human endeavor has its surprises. The vast majority of those associated with An Uncommon Purpose have been exceptionally pleasant ones. For Wilkinson, it has been “how little ego goes into the philanthropy of our donors. Relative to most schools, they are extremely modest, and they don’t seek a lot of recognition.”

Rogers said, “Online fundraising played a larger role than I expected. Also, I’ve been surprised by the profound impact of the Got a Minute videos.”

Paulette said he was surprised that donors gave so much in the form immediate gifts. “People understood that the needs are pressing, and they decided to make an immediate impact.”

Hall expressed his surprise at the successes of reunion campaigns during the life of the campaign. “These efforts, especially the 50th Reunion classes, have been extraordinary and helped drive the campaign’s overall success.”

For Jumper and Slater, their class’ 50th Reunion fund provided the campaign’s biggest surprise. “The Class of 1966’s performance – $50 million in gifts and commitments and a 99 percent participation rate – was a remarkable feat,” said Jumper.

“I knew that we’d beat our dykes, the Class of ’63, but I didn’t expect that we would raise double of what they did,” Slater explained.

“If you had told me that we would have, I’d have called you crazy.”

Vmi Alumni Review

Asked to point out some other successes, Wilkinson said, “Of the many great things that have happened, nothing is more important than the emergence of a new, younger generation of leaders in support of VMI. The other is, as others have mentioned, the stellar performance of our 50th Reunion classes.”

Another success, according to Paulette, is the $70 million given in support of athletics,

support made him and others even more effective advocates for the campaign and even more effective fundraisers,” Hall elaborated.

Leadership was a theme for other cabinet members. “The camaraderie among the cabinet was outstanding,” said Perrin. “We had worked with and respected each other, and we knew our job was important. You can move a lot of things in the right direction when you have that.”

the cabinet and General Peay, but everyone on the Board of Visitors and the boards of the Alumni Agencies; the Institute’s other leaders and its faculty, coaches, and staff; the hard-working people of the Alumni Agencies; and the many volunteers, like class agents and those who led their Reunion Campaigns.

Finally, there are our magnificent donors. All of them – every one – have been united in and

“The key to our success has been the people involved.” most of which went to endowments. “While they still need to grow, our endowments can now better support our coaches’ efforts to recruit young people who are determined to win and who will represent VMI in a way that’ll make us proud.”

Hall stated that what went on before the campaign was launched and behind the scenes since then has been “a success factor.”

“By creating the campaign’s infrastructure, gathering necessary data and making careful plans, the VMI Alumni Agencies’ wonderful staff helped us make the most of our time.

They also were successful in doing what I call ‘running in tandem’ with the Institute and its leaders, especially General Peay. Their

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“The key to our success,” according to Slater, “has been the people involved. Special credit has to go to Don Wilkinson and General Peay. They’ve been two ‘great captains,’ who have led by example.”

Jumper also credited these two men and their leadership. “Don Wilkinson deserves a lot of credit. He put a lot of sweat equity into this. He traveled tirelessly and gave so much of himself. We were blessed to have someone with such energy and dedication as our chairman.

General Peay’s leadership has been exemplary as superintendent and within the campaign.”

While not his last word on the campaign, Wilkinson said, “It’s been inspiring with such exceptional people. I don’t mean just my colleagues on

by two things: A love of the Institute and a vision for its future as a strong, proud and vibrant college. Stonewall Jackson once stated, ‘The Institute will be heard from today.’ The campaign ensures that VMI ‘will be heard from’ well into this century.”

Above: Members of the Campaign Cabinet with Gen. J.H. Binford Peay III ’62, superintendent, were, from left, Gen. John P. Jumper ’66; Thomas G. Slater Jr. ’66; Peay; Donald M. Wilkinson Jr. ’61, chairman; Walter C. Perrin II ’62; William A. Paulette ’69; James E. Rogers ’67, vice chairman; and Conrad M. Hall ’65, vice chairman. Photo courtesy VMI Communications & Marketing.

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Photos courtesy Department of Defense, H. Lockwood McLaughlin, Maj. John Robertson IV, Cadet Albert Wu ’17 and Cadet Marlene Haag ’18.

Inauguration Parade 2017

Vmi Alumni Review

The Corps of Cadets passed in front of the presidential reviewing stand at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 20, 2017, providing a striking finale to the parade honoring the inauguration of Donald J. Trump as the 45th president of the United States.

The Corps of Cadets trained throughout the week, drilling on the Parade Ground and performing a uniform inspection, to prepare for the 15-cadetwide battalion-sized formations that they executed during the inaugural parade. The formation differs significantly from the four-cadet-wide company-sized formations in which the Corps of Cadets typically march.

Their participation in the parade was broadcast across the nation, and it marks the 15th time the VMI Corps of Cadets has participated in a presidential inaugural parade.

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Association News

Hawaii Chapter Hosts Gathering The Hawaii Chapter held a get-together Nov. 20, 2016, at the Hale Koa Hotel. Pictured at the event were, from left, Russ Takata ’74, Cheryl Takata, Nicole Augins ’14, and Bob Pedigo ’90 and friend Judy.

New Cadet Recruiting Event Held in Baltimore, Maryland The VMI Alumni Association hosted a New Cadet Recruiting Event in Baltimore, Maryland, Dec. 5, 2016. Forty-five people attended, including 10 alumni.

Erica Putney ’15, program outreach coordinator, presented to prospective students about the Institute and Mary Shriver ’14, assistant director of Admissions, presented about the admissions process. Alumni answered questions from prospective students and told stories about their time at VMI. Photos courtesy Cassie Mulheron Photography.

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Vmi Alumni Review

Association News

Southeast Michigan Alumni Celebrate Founders Day Southeast Michigan area alumni gathered for a Founders Day Dinner Nov. 11, 2016. Pictured at the dinner were, from left, Tom Hathaway ’72, Mark Benvenuto ’83, Diana and Dave Hagemann ’80, and LeAndrew Jefferson.

Southern California Chapters Host Annual Winter Luncheon The three southern California chapters hosted the Sixth Annual Winter Luncheon in Carlsbad, California, Jan. 7, 2017. Pictured at the event were, from left, standing, Cliff Ford ’99, Matt Schell ’78, Micha Wei ’99, Jim Dillard ’56, Bobby Edwards ’83, Jake Rees ’16, Robert Smothers ’44, Cadet Zachary Anderson ’20 and John Shipley.

Kneeling: Paul Pendorf ’82.

Southern Florida Chapter Celebrates Founders Day The Southern Florida Alumni Chapter celebrated Founders Day November 2016 at the home of Pirooz Borojerdi ’79. Pictured at the event were, from left, Jarrett Brown ’04, Richard Lindquist ’61, Seth Parker ’05, Scott Houser ’98, Steve Quintavalli ’88 and Pirooz Borojerdi ’79.

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Association News

Taiwan Chapter Celebrates Founders Day

The Taiwan Chapter gathered for a Founders Day reunion in November 2016. Pictured at the event were, Charlie Lin ’90, Jun-Han Lu ’89, Chin-Pu Chen ’85, Kung-Cho Chao ’95, Chong-Hsin Wei ’94, Kaiyu Shih ’07, Wen-Lung Hsu ’98, Shuhsiang Hus ’02, Wen-Hua Jai ’97, ShuChang Liu ’07, Eric H. Chen ’08, YingChie Hsieh ’08, Kuan-Chih Wang ’10,Yi Han Chang ’16, Ching-Hang Chen ’11, Kuo-Ruey Liang ’03, Peter Chu-Wu Fang ’93, Hao-Po Chang ’05, MingChing Jou ’02, Hsin-Sheng Lee ’09, Wei-Yu Shih ’09, GangHong Wei ’09 and Cadet Luke Wang ’19.

Tampa Alumni Gather for Founders Day and VMI/Citadel Watch Party

Tampa area alumni gathered for back-to-back events of the annual Founders/Veterans Day breakfast and the VMI versus The Citadel watch party.

Left: At Panera Bread for the breakfast were, from left, Martin Andersen ’57, Jim Snead ’57, Hannah Hartley ’16, Whit Owens ’83, Cal Lloyd ’62 and Bob Bailey ’72.

Above: VMI alumni in attendance at Ducky’s Sports Bar for the watch party were Bob Bailey ’72, Jeff Hamilton ’07, Mel Anderson ’59, Stephen Hartnett ’13, Whit Owens ’83 and Hannah Hartley ’16.

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VMI Alumni Review

Association News

Williamsburg Chapter Hosts Dinner

The Williamsburg Chapter held a dinner Nov. 16, 2016. At the event, Col. Keith Gibson ’77, executive director of the VMI Museum System, spoke about VMI history.

Wilmington Chapter Celebrates Founders Day

The Wilmington Chapter celebrated Founders Day Nov. 15, 2016, at Halligan’s Irish Pub. In attendance at the event were Denise Matthews and Tim Underwood ’68, Diane and Bill Dunlap ’72, Cassie and Tom Tolbert ’66, Ann and Jim Phlegar ’67, Emily and Greg Griffith ’72, Bill Todd ’68, Susan and Jim Whitehurst ’66, George Myers ’79, and John Gangemi ’61.

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Association News

VMI, The Citadel and Texas A&M Alumni Gather

Above: Attendees at the VMI, The Citadel and Texas A&M University gathering at the Advanced Technology Center, Gulf Coast State College, in Panama City, Florida, Nov. 9, 2016, were, from left, Wayland Patterson ’80; Ken Covey, honoree/World War II naval aviator; Glenda Patterson; Renee Pappas; Jim Pappas, Citadel ’66; James Bailey, friend of Texas A&M; Beverly Rodenbeck; Don Baughn, Citadel ’68; Neil Rodenbeck, Citadel ’82; Becky Baughn; Al Lewis, Citadel ’69; Bob Wells, Citadel ’72; Barbara Wells; Andrew “Blade”Balding ’82; Charles “Chuck” Kelm, Texas A&M ’95; Shannon Kelm; Kathy Davis; Robert “Magoo” Davis, Texas A&M ’95; Mei-Ling Frishkorn; and James “Jim” Frishkorn ’81. Present by not pictured were Leigh Bailey; John Buchanan ’96; Pierre Joyner, Citadel ’14; Noah Patterson; Suzanne Remedies, Gulf Coast State College director of Military and Veteran Services; and Aaron “A.J.” Zorn, Texas A&M ’00.

VMI Veterans Transition Program

Attendees at the VMI, The Citadel and Texas A&M University gathering on the observation deck at Los Antojitos restaurant in St. Andrews, Panama City, Florida, Jan. 26, 2017, were, from left, James “Jim” Frishkorn ’81; Mei-Ling Frishkorn; Kenneth “Ken” Covey; Kara Noble ’11; Don Baughn, Citadel ’68; Becky Baughn; and Wayland Patterson ’80.

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Are you retiring or planning to transition from active duty military service to another job or career? If so, The VMI Alumni Association, Inc. can help.

Please contact Career Networking officer Eric Hunter ’08 at ehunter@vmiaa.org, and discover how you can find a rewarding career in the civilian workforce through networking with other alumni.

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Association News

Westminster-Canterbury Gathers for Cocktail Party Residents at Westminster-Canterbury in Richmond, Virginia, gathered in October 2016 for cocktails and dinner. They also celebrated the birthday of Ed Smith ’50B with three new sister rats in attendance: Peggy Stallings, Mary White and Connie Felvey. In attendance but not pictured at the event was Lola Shepherd, widow of Wilson Shepherd ’50B.

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1. From left, Sarah Smith, wife of Edward L. Smith ’50B; Joann O’Hara, widow of Robert

G. O’Hara ’35; Mary and George Hutter ’52; and Ann Artz, widow of Edwin H. Artz Jr. ’53.

2. John S. Halsey ’43.

3. From left, Peggy Stallings, widow of James M. Stallings ’52, and Jackie Whitmore, widow of John E. Whitmore ’42.

4. Maggie Bell Moore, daughter of Col. George P. Wilshire, former VMI professor.

5. Mary and George C. Hutter ’52.

6. Edward and Sarah Smith ’50B. 7. Charles and True Luck ’55.

8. Elizabeth Lee, wife of Harry G. Lee ’47, and Theda Royall, widow of William A. Royall ’37.

9. R.B. Barnes ’54 and Anne Artz.

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Association News

Evaluating Conflict Risk: Economics and Business Professor Speaks with New York City and New Jersey Alumni On March 16, 2017, Col. Atin Basu traveled to speak with alumni at the New York City Lunch & Learn and North Jersey Networking Dinner. Basu has been with VMI’s Department of Economics and Business for more than 18 years, and he brings excitement to the classroom through his interest and curiosity in the role of information in decision making. He spoke to the two groups on “Evaluating Conflict Risk,” which reflected research on which he and a few colleagues had been working.

Thank you to the alumni who took the time to attend and John Gibney ’80, Rick Wolffe ’78 and Mike Mezzacca ’87 for sponsorships.

Right: Colonel Atin Basu, economics and business professor.

Graduate School Partnerships Virginia Military Institute has forged relationships with some of the best graduate and professional schools in Virginia and across the United States. These agreements offer a range of opportunities, including admissions concessions, internships, guaranteed interviews and, in some cases, guaranteed admissions.

Partnership institutions include Virginia Commonwealth University, University of Virginia, Virginia Tech, College of William & Mary, Florida State University, Norwich University, Arizona State and the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine. Programs vary but include law, medicine, business, engineering, communications and other fields.

If interested in learning more about the available partnerships, please contact Col. Atin Basu at basuchoudharya@vmi.edu.

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We welcomed them as rats in our own special way ... now let’s welcome them as alumni!

Please join the Young Alumni Committee in giving warm and hearty congratulations to our newest alumni ranks, the Class of 2017! We will celebrate with them Sunday, May 14, 2017, in Moody Hall.

VMI Alumni Review

Association News

Networking Breakfasts Held During Spring Furlough Networking breakfasts were held for the fourth year in a row on the first Saturday of VMI’s spring furlough. On March 11, 2017, more than 100 alumni attended events in Hampton Roads, northern Virginia and Richmond and were able to meet and network with others and speak to current cadets looking for internships and entry-level positions. In Hampton Roads, Douglas Burdett ’82 spoke about the path of landing his first job and then managing a career transition. At the Richmond event, Bill Paulette ’69 shared about the development of his career and the lessons he has learned, both personal and professional, along the way.

Thank you to alumni who took the time to attend, Bill Paulette ’69 and Douglas Burdett ’82 for being guest speakers, MassMutual Greater Richmond for sponsorship, and the local chapters for their leadership and support of the events.

Douglas Burdett ’82 was the guest speaker for the Hampton Roads Networking Breakfast.

In Richmond, Virginia, Bill Paulette ’69 spoke with the group about his career.

There was a great turnout for the Potomac River Networking Breakfast.

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CLASS NOTES stands them apart from their fellows.”

After graduation, Gen. Kirks earned a law degree from Washington, D.C.,’s NaRichard H. Knight Jr. ’70 tional University, and then World War II intervened. A cavalry officer, Gen. Kirks was called to active duty and spent most of the war in Germany in combat intelligence.

Returning to the United States, Gen. Kirks joined the National UniGreetings to the VMI nation from versity faculty and was elevatthe Class of 1935! ed to dean of the law school in Because of the submission dead1949 then president of the uniline for these notes (Feb. 15), we versity in 1953. In 1954, Nacannot report on Jim Sherman’s tional University merged with 103rd birthday (March 31), but we George Washington Univerhave been told it is going to be a sity. General Kirks resigned festive occasion, and we will cover his office and began a 16-year it in detail in the next issue. professional relationship with, Jim and Peggy celebrated Christfirst, the National Automomas and the new year with the bile Dealers Association and, usual gusto. Because Jim likes to second, the American Textile exercise outdoors, he has taken adManufacturers Institute. vantage of the mild winter weather General Kirks achieved his in Southern Pines, North Carolina. greatest fame when, in 1970, If Jim, a longtime resident of the the United States Supreme Maine wilderness, misses snow, he Class of 1935: Peggy and Jim Sherman at ease.

Court appointed him director is keeping it to himself. of the Administrative Office Jim is one of North Carolina’s of the United States Courts. At most senior World War II veterthe time of his appointment, ans in both age and rank held durthe nation’s federal courts were ing the war (major). Today, the mired in antiquated business number of living veterans who practices. He worked tirelessly achieved field grade rank during to reform the courts. At his futhe war is a small fraternity of neral in late 1977, Chief Jusheroes. Jim has attracted quite a tice Warren Burger eulogized local following among local resihis close friend, declaring that dents and historians.

Gen. Kirks’ “innovative leadMoore County, North Carolina, ership enabled the judicial syshas created a quilt to honor its vettem to function in the face of erans. It features Jim’s photo, and great handicaps.” when the quilt was displayed at the General Kirks was one of assisted living center where Jim three incorporators of the Suand Peggy reside, Jim took time to preme Court Historical Socisign it and to share some amusing ety. He devoted 35 years to the war stories with a very appreciadefense of the country, holding tive audience. I am told that it was a number of posts in the U.S. an emotional experience.

Class of 1935: World War II Capt. Jim Sherman at home on leave Jim and Peggy are quite the pair. with his brother, Robert Meredith Sherman II, and their mother, Army Reserve. He was the first commander of the 97th Army They enjoy pizza parties, and Jim Alberta Sherman.

Reserve Command. He held enjoys shrimp cocktail washed down with Champagne from the “Cham- Reserve Maj. Gen. Rowland Falconer Kirks the Valley Forge Freedoms Foundation matriculated from Petersburg, Virginia. The George Washington Honor Medal and the pagne” fountain. I certify.

Our readers know that we enjoy pub- ’35 Bomb recorded, “In every group of men, Distinguished Service Medal.

He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery lishing classic nicknames from yesteryear. there are some whose intense individuality

1935

18

If we could only revive this art form, the world would be a better place. But, I digress. We turn to the 1905 Bomb for this issue. Cadet Bowles was his given name, but he answered to “Nuts,” “Balls,” “Heine,” and “Bungaboo.”

We continue our series on the Class of ’35’s general officers. United States Army

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes and, fittingly, these words are engraved on his headstone: “Citizen-Soldier.”

Thank you for your interest in the Class of 1935. We look forward to seeing you in August.

Dick Knight ’70

Class of 1935: Jim Sherman last winter.

1936

Paul E. Munson ’87

1938

Cody Hennelly ’10 It is my sad duty to report that John Gialanella has died. Mr. Gialanella died peacefully at his home Dec. 17, 2016, at the age of 102. Details of his life can be found in the Taps section of this issue. Mr. Gialanella served in World War II with the 306th Field Artillery, seeing action in Guam, Ie Shima Island and Okinawa. He was awarded the Bronze Star for his actions during the Battle for Leyte.

This concludes my service to the Class of 1936 as their class agent. Mr. Gialanella was the last member of ’36 when I began as the class agent. Many of you may remember him climbing the sentinel box last year at his 80th Reunion. It was my honor to serve as class agent and help

Class of 1935: Jim Sherman with the Moore County, North Carolina, veterans’ quilt.

2017-Issue 2

make note of class members whose status had been unknown. RIP, VMI Class of 1936. Respect and honor to you all.

Greetings from the Old Corps. Nothing new to pass on, but the great Class of 1938 wishes everyone a happy and healthy spring season! Rah Virginia Mil.

1939

Frank Parker III ’64

To start with, I had the pleasure of talking with Ira Saxe on the occasion of his 99th birthday. He was very chipper and enjoying his birthday immensely. I have also seen as few postings on Facebook from Roberta Bigler, a sister rat from the class who seems to also be doing well. Also, I received a Christmas card from Robert Buskirk, the son of Robert W Buskirk II. It’s always nice to hear from relatives of the members of the Class of ’39.

In response to my notes last time concerning our visit to Korea, I received an email from David Bledsoe ’84. He told how his biological father and his father’s older brother had escaped from North Korea into South Korea. After the death of his biological father, he was adopted by an American family and was raised and educated here, including graduating from VMI. He reported he is living the American dream with a wonderful wife, son, daughter and cat, with a great information technology job and living in their own home! It’s amazing what folks can do if someone just gives them a chance. This country is still reaping the benefits of all those sacrifices during the Korean War. Is America great or what?

19

Class Notes

1941

Stuart Seaton Jr. ’73

Class of 1939: Jennifer Godfrey née Platt, the granddaughter of Howard Golladay.

Jennifer Godfrey née Platt, the granddaughter of Howard Golladay, sent me the enclosed picture of her recent wedding. She spent a lot of time with Howard and lived with him at his house in his final days. It is such a pleasure to see how inspiring the next generation is, regardless of all the negative press. Howard and family did a great job raising Jennifer.

Marcy and I are planning a summer trip starting with the Rotary International Convention in Atlanta, Georgia, visiting relatives in Florida and the Carolinas, attending a niece’s wedding in Lexington and finally visiting grandkids in Missouri. A busy summer.

I suspect families of the members of the Class of ’39 read these notes, and I’m asking you to send me stories and pictures of these men of ’39 so I can include them here.

Keep in touch.

1940

Robert Smith

Editor’s Note: We did not receive notes for the Class of 1940.

20

Let me begin these class notes by saying it is an honor to be the acting class agent for the VMI Class of 1941. When my father, Stuart M. Seaton, died in September 2016, I wanted to do something to honor him, so I asked the VMI Alumni Association if I could continue his role as your class agent.

As of the writing of these class notes, it appears there are currently nine surviving brother rats in the class, five of which are listed on VMI’s 25 Most Senior Alumni in the 2017-Issue 1 of the Alumni Review.

As a result of mailing out the 2016 Christmas cards, I heard back from Jack Williams, who expressed his condolences regarding the passing of my father and thanked me for being the class agent for your class.

I would like to know how each of you are doing, so if possible, please drop me a line if you have a few minutes.

Thank you for providing me the privilege of being your class agent.

In the bonds of VMI, Stuart Seaton Jr. ’73

have attempted to follow it ever since.

Jack Woodward’s healthy breakfast: Mix together about a tablespoon each of raw oatmeal, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, wheat germ, and honey. Add a palmful of raisins, one-half of a banana, sliced, and enough milk to cover. Eat every day.

Jack’s recipe also called for thin slices of fresh ginger root, but that was too much trouble for me.

I have eaten the basic healthy breakfast for 50 years now. Although I no longer dance and cannot walk without a walker, at 96, I still drive, have most of my marbles, feel healthy and am happily married.

Thank you, Jack.

My daughter, Lindsay, who helps me with these notes, asked my brother rats if they also had recipes for longevity. Harry Siebert, oldest surviving member of our class, emailed right back: “As for my secret for 97 years, after surviving D-Day and St. Lo, I thank the Lord for giving me a long wonderful life and a loving wife and family.”

Fred Love, the youngest of our classmates, born April 5, 1922, said he did not have a secret for longevity but hoped to find one.

Bob Goodman wrote, “Sorry, I know of absolutely nothing that I am doing or eating to reach and pass my 96th birthday. I cannot compare physical activities with Jack Woodward, who was my roommate for

1942

Charles B. Miller

When our class arrived at VMI in 1938, there were 232 of us. Now, there are five.

Why am I still here? I think, in part, it’s due to Brother Rat Jack Woodward. Jack lived to the ripe old age of 92, playing nine holes of golf every day. Jack was a “food nut” – no salt, no sugar and a lot of other recommendations that I never listened to.

About 50 years ago, however, Jack gave me his recipe for a healthy breakfast, and I

Class of 1942: Bruce Miller in his coatee at his 70th Reunion in 2012.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes in the form of a bad parachute three years. He failed to give me landing. He suffered six fracthat menu.” tures of his spine and is now in Jack Patton doesn’t do email, a wheelchair. Bob deserves a lot so Jack’s daughter, Judy Patton of our prayers. And he deserves O’Donnell, reported his answer. all of our thanks for his service, She said her father credits his lonof which he said, “I have no gevity to “everything in moderacomplaints. It is what I signed tion, and I do mean everything!” up to do.” And, Bob, you did it Judy said she had expected him so very well! to say it’s due to a whiskey every Bill Winter’s wife, Judy, night. Jack corrected her. “Two emailed me that Bill fell in May drinks every night. No more.

2016 and fractured his femur Moderation in that, too.” (leg). He was walking their dog.

My wife, Mary Easterly, and I He underwent surgery, had a look forward to joining Jack and two-month rehab stay and “is Harry Siebert and his wife, Jody, well on the mend.” He has long at our 75th (!) Reunion in April. I returned to living at home and do not plan to climb the sentinel Class of 1942: Retired U.S. Air Force Col. John M. Patton. especially enjoyed the fall footbox as I did at our 70th, but I may ball games on TV, as did I. Bill has been try to wear my original coatee, despite the able to walk around their yard thanks to three buttons that popped off five years ago. use of his walker. (Note: He’d feel right at home at the Fairfax, the Army retirement complex at which I reside. Walkers seem almost the norm for half of our residents.)

Jeffrey G. Smith Bill especially wanted to pass along his greetings to classmates.

I had an uplifting chat with Gordon Smith recently. He is in full voice and genjeffrey@aol.com sounds as if he were age 22! He’s doing well, thanks in large part to his vigorous It is my sad duty to report the deaths of workout regimen, which I’ve described in James “Jim” Tapley Dec. 4, 2016, in Roaprevious issues. noke, Virginia, and Nathan H. Monus Don Foster left me a long telephone Dec. 19, 2016, in Palm Beach, Florida. message Jan. 27 of his comings and goMonus left after 4th Class year. Jim, of ings, the sum of which he is in good health course, graduated.

Class of 1942: Doctor Fred Love, left, with Jody and Harry Siebert at an event and reasonably busy. Good to hear, Don. By my unofficial reckoning, 22 of our last summer in Boynton Beach, Florida.

That’s a wrap for these skinny class class members survive. I received a reFred, a retired surgeon, was honored by notes.

My very personal warm wishes to quest to name the 22, with which I will Bethesda Hospital for exceptional serall my classmates. But please help me by try to comply in the forthcoming issues of vice to his community. telling me of your lives! class notes.

Jeff Accordingly, each Sunday, Monus took It is Monus who stirs my memory of how humiliating it must have been for him a solitary position in Washington Arch, each Sunday. Moreover, it is an indication there to be sent to his room until the rest of the flippancy and callousness with of the Corps returned from their respecTom L. Peyton Jr. which cadets of our era viewed various tive churches.

On Feb. 2, 2017, I had a bittersweet telethings. Church attendance was, of course, compulsory. Church details were formed phone call from Bob Tyson ’62. It was and marched off to the various churches good to hear from him, but he was also in Lexington. During our cadet years, the calling to report the tragic and premature last call from the cadet adjutant was, “All death of his wife of 25 years. Bob served Greetings to Meade Bell, George Crane, Jews and non-believers fall out and form a with me in Vietnam as a topnotch compa- Dick Doom, Jim Doss, Bob Gibson, Bob ny commander. Time caught up with him Helmen, John Irby, Harold Lockwood, detail in Washington Arch.”

1943

1944

2017-Issue 2

21

Class Notes Dick Niess, Bob Smothers, John Williams and all of the wonderful ladies of the Class of 1944.

Since the last notes, I was delighted to receive a substantial letter from John Williams responding to my appeal for some news about himself. He did a great job in bringing me up to date about his life and career since leaving the Institute in 1941.

So, here is a summary of what he had to say. John entered VMI as a member of our rat class. He was from Woodstock, Virginia. He received an appointment from the U.S. Naval Academy, leaving us after one academic year for Annapolis. You may recall that Charlie Joyce, John Mullen and George Caldwell also followed that path.

I am uncertain whether they were in the same class there or actually knew each other as midshipmen. The Naval Academy accelerated their program during that period, and John graduated in 1944. I now quote from his letter: “During the war, I was assigned to a destroyer (DD-723 USS Walke) in the Pacific. We participated in several air attacks on Formosa and the Philippines. For the invasion of Luzon, we were assigned to protect mine sweepers three days before the invasion. We had just entered Lingayen Gulf when three Kamikaze planes attacked. We shot down two of the planes, but the third hit the Walke and killed a number of people, including the captain. I was awarded the Silver Star and the Purple Heart for my part in taking over ‘command’ after the captain was killed. After repairs, the Walke was assigned to the invasion of Okinawa, where we stayed until the war was over. After World War II, I went to Renesselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York, and earned a Master of Civil Engineering degree in 1948. For the next 18 years, I served in the Navy’s Civil Engineer Corps in various assignments all over the U.S., on most of the islands in the Pacific and even in Spain. In 1966, I retired as a U.S. Navy commander, Civil Engineering Corps. Retirement didn’t last long, as I immediately went to work for the Rohm and Haas Company (now part of Dow Chemical) in Philadelphia. After working for R&H for 20 years, I retired in 1988.”

John went on to say that he and his wife, 22

Isabelle, have now lived in the same house for more than 50 years in Haddonfield, New Jersey, a place he describes as convenient and beautiful. They have two children and four grandchildren. He said that since retiring, he has enjoyed playing a lot of golf and gardening but now can barely get up from his comfortable old chair. He credits Isabelle for taking on more than her share of homeowner’s duty, keeping them from being in a retirement home. Thanks, John, for a wonderful letter and sharing some of your life’s adventures with us.

We took two very big hits in the period covered by these notes, as we lost Bob “Egypt” Jones and M.C. Wilhelm. Both remained connected with the Institute and our class membership over the years by being involved in post-graduation activities of our class and by strong support of our Alumni Agencies.

Robert “Egypt” Parke Jones Jr., 93, died Nov. 27, 2016, in Newport News, Virginia.

He was born April 15, 1923, in Baltimore, Maryland, to Robert Parke Jones and Alpha Holcomb Jones. He grew up in the Norfolk area. Of interest is that one of his earliest schoolmates was Jim Doss. Bob shared the path with many of us in an initial three-year academic program at the Institute, followed by a call to active duty in the Army’s Enlisted Reserve Corps. Following initial training, he opted for an assignment in the Army Air Corps, along with a number of our classmates. He was trained as an aerial navigator, utilizing math and science skills learned at VMI. Upon graduation, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant and, in time, was assigned to a heavy B-29 Bomber group flying missions in the Pacific area. Near the end of World War II, while flying in a raid over Japan, his plane was shot down. He survived but was captured by the Japanese. He served as a prisoner of war until the end of the war. In recognition of Bob’s bravery and skills, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Purple Heart, the Air Medal and other military decorations. After his military service, he married Faye Eggersted. Upon graduation from the Institute in 1947, with a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering, he worked as an engineer with Amoco,

Tidewater Construction and several other companies in the greater Norfolk area. He was the lead construction supervisor for the Newport News Shipyard expansion of the north yard. In 1971, he received a Master of Business Administration degree from the College of William and Mary.

Bob is survived by his wife, Faye, of 68 years and two daughters, Christina (husband Dave Cassel) of Madison, Indiana, and Ridley of Newport News, as well as four grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his son, Robert Parke Jones III, and one grandson.

In retirement, Bob and Faye enjoyed traveling, camping, sailing, skiing and playing tennis. He loved nature and volunteered at the Virginia Living Museum for many years. He also loved to tinker in his workshop, working out creative solutions to little and large problems. Bob cared for and loved many family pets over the years. His funeral service and celebration of life was held in Newport News Nov. 30, 2016. Bob was a popular, highly regarded member of our class whose service to VMI included that he performed as class agent for a recent, extended period. He and Faye were generous supporters of the Alumni Agencies, including the VMI Foundation, where they sponsored individual cadets with financial aid. I had the pleasure of working with Bob in the organizing and conducting of a number of class reunions and mini reunions. When he retired as class agent, he made it easy for me to slip into his former role. We remained in frequent contact, during which he answered my many questions with great patience and good humor. He will be greatly missed.

Morton “M.C.” Callowhill Wilhelm, M.D., 93, died Jan.18, 2017, at the University of Virginia Medical Center in Charlottesville, Virginia. M.C. was born in Roanoke, Virginia, June 22, 1923, the son of Della Turner and Walter Leroy Wilhelm.

He is survived by Jean, his wife of 68 years; his daughters, Melissa Wilhelm and Christina Owens; and three grandchildren. M.C. grew up in the Roanoke area and graduated there from Jefferson High School. M.C. served as a lieutenant in the Corps of Cadets at VMI. He was a member of the track VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes team and a proud member of Company C and the horse cavalry. As a pre-med student at the Institute, he joined the Army Specialized Training Program, enabling him to remain on track toward a medical career.

Remaining at VMI in 1943, he was able to complete his Bachelor of Science degree requirements in 1944 and move on to the University of Virginia Medical School, from which he graduated in 1947. He took his surgical training at the Virginia Mason Hospital in Seattle, Washington, from 194751. As an officer, he served as an Army surgeon from 1951-53 at Camp Polk, Louisiana. He completed his surgical fellowship at Virginia Mason in 1953 and practiced in Seattle until 1956. At that time, he returned to Charlottesville, becoming a surgeon at the Martha Jefferson Hospital there. He was on the clinical faculty at the University of Virginia Medical School and, in 1980, joined the full time faculty as professor of surgery.

His accomplishments at the University of Virginia include head of the Division of Surgical Oncology – the first director for outreach education at the UVa Cancer Center.

He was named professor emeritus in surgical oncology and was honored with the Wilhelm Chair in Diseases of the Breast. Some of his leadership roles include president of the Albemarle County Medical Society, past president of the Southern Society of Clinical Surgeons and president of the Virginia chapter of the American College of Surgeons. He was principal investigator in a National Institutes of Health study to establish standards for Medicare. In 2012, M.C. received the Commission on Cancer Chair Award for his lifelong commitment to the mission of the Commission on Cancer, the American Cancer Society and patients with cancer by the American College of Surgeons. He co-wrote, “A History of Cancer Care at the University of Virginia, 1901-2011.” He recently worked as a volunteer at the UVa Medical Library.

M.C. was active in other areas. He was a mountaineer and an avid tennis player. As a marathon runner, he won his age group in the Charlottesville Ten Miler. And as a golfer, he shot his age at 85 and, over a period of time, made several holes-in-one. I spoke with M.C. in December. With the conversation turning to sports, he lamented that 2017-Issue 2

advancing age was interfering with his passion to be on the links.

M.C.’s outstanding career and contributions to society should be clear to those reading this brief summary of his medical activities. VMI should be enormously proud of this alumnus and his accomplishments.

His career would certainly be an inspiring model for any young person considering or actually entering upon an educational experience at VMI. He seems to have achieved many outstanding levels among life’s goals: Military officer, medical doctor and surgeon, educator, researcher, author, athlete-for-life, and leader in his profession and in his community.

At the end of the second quarter of Fiscal Year 2017 in Alumni Giving in support of the Institute’s Alumni Agencies, our class is just shy of the 50 percent participation rate.

I hope this will inspire those who have yet to make a gift to do so now. Many thanks to our wonderful Class of 1944 ladies who are generously supporting this effort.

Tom Peyton Jr.

1945

William Quarles

with their dogs, Dickens and Homer. Michelle will be retiring from her practice this July and both are looking forward to traveling more. Our thoughts and prayers are with you, Jess, during your recovery.

After receiving a letter from Jim Cocke, he sent his wishes for a healthy 2017. Jim has been struggling with rheumatoid arthritis for eight years now and has had to make many lifestyle changes. He misses playing golf and sailing his CAL 224 boat. Fortunately, he is still active as a trader in the stock market. An update of his family: Bill visits once a week, for he and Joan retired last November. David visits every couple of months and was present for Jim’s 93rd birthday. Betsy and Matthew drove from Las Vegas last December and provided wonderful assistance to Jim. He is blessed to have a very supportive family.

Bob Pettigrew shared that he and Juanita spend most of their days quietly and “newsless-ly.” He said that Wyoming’s weather is quite the opposite, “roaring with a life of its own.” With temperatures plunging to an alltime state record of 45 below (Rock Springs) and winds in other areas at 120 mph, it can be unbearable. The best advice is to stay in and keep warm until the weather breaks, Bob!

1946

William A. Eliason

Charlotte Walker, wife of the late Sam Walker, shared that she enjoyed having both sons, Buck and Sam, with their wives, visit over the holidays. They have been very supportive to Charlotte working with Sam’s estate.

Jess Reed corresponded at the first of the year to say he was having some heart problems. He was scheduled for heart surgery in February, specifically to replace his aortic valve. He spoke of his wonderful supportive family: Beth, Michelle and John. Jess also provided an update with his family. He said that Beth left the corporate world and is currently working as lead concierge at the Perdido Beach Resort in Orange Beach. She has a beautiful view from her office of the Gulf of Mexico and has thoroughly enjoyed her job.

Michelle and John are still living in Auburn

Editor’s Note: We did not receive notes for the Class of 1946.

1947

Gus Robbins

It is a busy time of year at the VMI alumni office as they get all the schedules finalized for the spring reunions in April. I hope many of you are anxiously waiting for the ’47 schedule of events planned for ours Monday and Tuesday, April 24-25. I have been told it will soon be in your hands. Spring 23

Class Notes is such a beautiful time of year in Virginia, and I know all of us will be happy to visit Lexington and gaze upon House Mountain once again.

When I recall our reunion of five years ago and remember how you twisted my arm to take over as class agent, I am wondering whose arm we can twist to carry on the next five years! Any volunteers? We have lost so many faithful reunion attendees in these last five years; we will need to remember them in some way when we gather.

The latest of the “Die Hard” group, as they were affectionately called, just died in December. Brother Rat William C. Phillips Jr. (Bill) died Dec. 13, 2016, in Lynchburg, Virginia. Bill had been in declining health for several years but was always upbeat when we talked by phone. He is survived by his three children, seven grands and four greatgrands. His wife, Jeanne, died more than 10 years ago. Bill was always a strong supporter of our class, attending all of our reunions and loving our loyal group of ’47s in attendance at fall football games. Many of you will remember some years back when BR Jim Newsom lost his battle with cancer, Bill Phillips and Bill Hallett stepped in and took on the responsibility of class agents for a couple of years. He and Buck Cavedo from our class were avid supporters of the VMI band under John Brodie (Hon.) and especially enjoyed the VMI Commanders.

A few of our BRs are still well enough and mobile enough to travel here and there, and it’s heartening to hear of their trips. Garvin and Lucie Jones had a great motor trip through New Jersey, Massachusetts, Maine and Vermont and then later visited the California coast visiting family at Thanksgiving.

They were with their children in Charlotte, North Carolina, for the Christmas holidays.

Jim and Carol Wilson continue to crisscross the USA; they spent time in Florida as Carol completed her recovery from hip replacement surgery and then were in Denver for a high school graduation in early summer. Jim’s big birthday was celebrated many times over with family and friends in the Denver area, as well.

In a nice note from Carol White, she mentioned plans to have Dick’s name put on a brick in the memorial sidewalk in front of 24

the VMI barracks. His older brother, Warren White ’41, has had a brick there for some time.

I received a call from Helen Gillespie’s son, Tom Gillespie, notifying me that she died Feb. 4, 2017, at Kendal in Lexington, where she had been living for about a year or so. Helen will be memorialized when buried at Arlington with Sam. If you have any questions about the reunion schedule once you have it, please call and I will hopefully be able to answer it. The more ’47s we have, the merrier, so please try your best to join us.

In the spirit, Gus

1948A

Dale E. Wykoff

It was a terrible blow to hear our much respected Brother Rat John Trumbo died while en route to Florida (see Taps). Remaining in 1948A are now just four. All are in nursing/retirement homes. Blake McFeely is in a nursing home in California, learning to walk again after his stroke. Gilly Williamson has been in the same retirement home for more than five years in Virginia. While I was speaking with Mike Calhoun on the telephone, he suffered a stroke. I was able to contact his retirement home, and they took him to a hospital, where he remains. Dale Wykoff in North Carolina is being tested to determine spread of cancer. Given these facts, continued preparation of these 1948A Class Notes by Wykoff is now questionable.

Thanks to Buddy Bryan ’71 for assistance.

1948B

Lionel T. Wolford

Hopefully all brother rats had a wonderful Christmas and holiday season. I was fortunate to make contact with many of

you this report period. These include Jim Warrington, Rod Kallgren, Billy Guin, Lou Castellano, Charles Brown, Henry Nalven, Tommy Tucker, George Ramsey, Chris Hoeser and Doug Hamner. Also heard from Sister Rats Dr. Regina Gertsman (Applin) and Libby Danforth, as well as honorary Brother Rat Tommy Smith ’98 (Howard Smith’s son).

About a year ago, I received word from Jimbo Fitts’ son, Evans, concerning his father’s failing health. We are sad to report that Jimbo Fitts died Nov. 7, 2016.

As a cadet, Jimbo had a boyish but handsome appearance and possessed a very distinctive and pleasing Alabama drawl.

As Charles Brown pointed out to me, it took Jimbo a long time to pronounce the name of his hometown, Tuscaloosa. All of his brother rats had a very high opinion of him. He wore academic stars and was active on the Hop Committee and Bomb staff. Like Bill Bercaw, he was an accomplished horseman and was on the polo team. Of the 180 or so of us who started in June 1944, he was one of only 24 to graduate in June 1947. Although I did not room with him or take classes with him, I knew him quite well. I remember we participated in intramural wrestling together, and we also played tennis together often.

On one occasion, about two weeks before June 1947 graduation, I was playing tennis with someone else who had a strong serve. My attempt to return service failed when the ball broke the strings on my old prewar racket and came out the other side.

Shaken, I told my opponent to rest a few minutes while I obtained a replacement racket. I rushed to barracks and found Jimbo in his room studying. He loaned me his racket, which was just as old as mine.

I rushed back to the tennis court and resumed the match. My opponent delivered another strong serve, demolishing Jimbo’s racket just as he demolished mine. I gave up. I can still see the distressed look on Jimbo’s face when I returned the broken racket to him. Ever a gentleman, he said nothing. I apologized and promised to replace his racket with a new one as soon as I could. There was no opportunity to accomplish this before graduation. Then, VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Jimbo went back to Alabama, and I went back to Louisiana. We never saw each other again. For almost 70 years now, I have had a guilty feeling about this matter.

After graduation, Jimbo taught physics at VMI and went on to earn an architectural degree from Yale University. He eventually returned to Tuscaloosa, where he had a successful and distinguished career as an architect. He will be missed.

C.H. Whitehurst, a brother rat who was only with us one month in 1944, died Jan. 11, 2017. He was a distinguished professor at Clemson University.

As all of us did, I received a card from Jim Warrington. He is an Episcopal priest and a retired Air Force chaplain. Jim reported that his highly regarded pet cat died; a replacement was soon found to keep him company. Jim is now a member of the 90 club. I last saw him at the 65th Reunion, where he gave the blessing at our class dinner.

I received a Christmas card and newsletter from Rod Kallgren. He is a retired senior executive of Dow Chemical Company. Rod lost his wife of 64 years, Jean, in May. They had six sons, 18 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Last October, Rod visited a son in North Carolina.

Together with grandsons, they played golf at the legendary Pinehurst golf resort. At VMI, Rod, Dick Eichhorn, Doug Markey, Jed White and I were chemistry majors.

He and Jed White were great friends and roommates. Both left early for military service, returned to VMI and graduated, and wore academic stars. Rod joined Dow Chemical in Midland, Michigan, shortly after graduation and had a very successful career. In 1957, I was at the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) on a postdoctoral as temporary faculty. Some friends from Tulane University had recently joined Dow Chemical in Midland and invited Marion and me, along with 3-year-old Marie, to spend New Year’s Eve with them. We made the 110-mile trip in a blinding snowstorm. (It took eight hours). On New Year’s Day 1958, I telephoned Rod, and we had a very nice talk. That was my last contact with him until this year’s Christmas letter.

The 1957 trip from New Orleans to 2017-Issue 2

Michigan also included visits with Harriet and George Ramsey in Lynchburg, Virginia, and Tommy and Jerry Tucker in Amherst, Virginia. This December, George and I exchanged Christmas greetings. I consider George and Harriet to be my best friends. They are in good health and are quite busy with grandchildren and greatgrandchildren. Also in December, I talked to Tommy Tucker on his 89th birthday.

He was not feeling well but had no specific problems. He lives alone in his house; two of his children live nearby and help when needed. He has visitors every day. Tommy and the wonderful and beautiful Jerry were married in 1955, I believe. They spent their honeymoon in New Orleans, where I was a graduate student at Tulane. We had a great visit. Tommy and I finished off a bottle of Johnny Walker red label while Marion and Jerry watched in dismay. When we visited in 1957, Tommy and Jerry had acquired an old but gracious farm home and were remodeling. Tragically, Jerry was later killed in an automobile accident. Tommy and I were great friends at VMI. I last saw him at the 50th Reunion.

Likewise, I talked to Chris Hoeser on his 89th birthday. Chris was in good health and said he keeps in touch with his former roommate, Al Stupalsky, who is also in good health. I last saw Chris at the 60th Reunion. The only other post-VMI contact with Chris was in Tokyo, Japan, in 1951.

We were both on R&R leave from Korea.

We were enjoying a wonderful six-day vacation from the combat area. I was billeted at a small bachelor officer quarters in central Tokyo and spent most of my time at the bar of the nearby Yurakecho Hotel (across the street from the imperial palace). One day, I ventured to the main Tokyo PX for a late breakfast and spied a familiar face, Chris Hoeser. We greeted each other warmly and conversed at length about VMI. Chris was scheduled to join a group to climb Mount Fuji, the famous snowcapped volcano nearby. He invited me to go with him.

Now, by this time, much of my Korean duty was as an artillery forward observer with the infantry. As such, we climbed the steep, rocky, craggy hills and mountains of Korea. I had no interest in mountain

climbing; the bar at the Yurakecho Hotel was much more appealing to me. I declined Chris’ invitation, and we went our separate ways. When Chris and I met at the 60th Reunion (2008) I recalled our 1951 meeting.

Chris did not remember meeting me in Tokyo. Nor did he remember climbing Mount Fuji. I was disappointed. He did remember that he was in an eight inch howitzer unit (no infantry attached forward observers).

Chris did not have the Korean mountain climbing experience that I had.

I called Lou Castellano in late November 2016 to wish him a happy 90th birthday.

He sounded great and was in good health.

He talked a little about his World War II naval service. Shortly after the Japanese surrender, he was assigned to Gen. McArthurs’ headquarters in the Dai Ichi building, Tokyo, as a communications specialist.

While there, he met Hal Reed ’49C. I remember Brother Rat Rod Reed, who was on our 1944 football team. The two may be the same. Thinking that we may have covered the same ground, I recalled my 1951 R&R visit to Tokyo. One evening, I joined some other junior officers at the Yurakecho Hotel bar. One of them suggested we have supper at the GHQ officers’ mess (mostly reserved for generals). He said, “Since we were on leave from Korea, nobody would protest.” We made our way there and had a wonderful meal. The generals just smiled.

Lou immediately said, “That was in the Dai Ichi building.” Later, Lou helped me get in touch with Henry Nalven, who also lives in the greater New York City area. He and his wife, Sonia, attended the 65th Reunion, and my daughter, Ann, and I had dinner with them. Since then, both Henry and Sonia have had very bad falls, and both are unable to get around anymore.

In spite of this, Henry celebrated his 90th birthday Nov. 11, 2016. Henry remembered attending the 65th Reunion, but did not remember any names or faces.

I talked to Billy Guin on his 89th birthday. His health continues to improve, and he was planning to go out and renew his driver’s license. Billy said that Jed White’s sister lived near Lexington. Some time ago, he and Nancy were invited there for breakfast. The pancakes were so good that 25

Class Notes he still remembers the meal.

I wished Doug Hamner a happy 90th birthday. His children and grandchildren had a big party for him at the Boonsboro Country Club. I also talked to Betty, who sounded great. Doug is receiving substantial rehab for his 2016 neck surgery and is slowly improving. The doctor said it may take a year to get back to normal. Doug called my attention to an error in my report on his 1950 visit to Monroe. He was accompanied

by Jack Hutchinson ’49C, not I.C. Crytzer ’49C. I had the wrong football player. Doug, stick with the rehab, and best wishes for a speedy recovery.

I received a Christmas greeting from Libby Danforth. She was planning a quiet Christmas at home with family. Regina Gertsman reported a change of address. She expressed delight about reading the account of Paul Applin’s Korean War adventures in the Alumni Review. Her new address is: 5840 Hawthorne Lane, Williamsburg, Veterans Affairs 23185.

In January, Charles Brown and I met for a room 209 reunion. Charles drove the 80 miles from Shreveport to West Monroe. I met him there and drove 10 miles (my share) to Waterfront Grill in Monroe. We roomed together from October 1944 through May 1945 (second and third semesters). I believe that except for Charles Brown’s efforts, I would have flunked out or even more likely been dismissed for accumulating over 100 demerits. I am forever grateful. He is the best roommate I ever had. Although we talk on the phone frequently, we had not seen each other since the 50th Reunion in 1998. We rehashed our trips to Roanoke, visits to Hollins College and old girlfriends. Charles believed that his top accomplishment at VMI was making 3rd Class corporal. Charles left VMI for military service – Navy. After the war, he earned a degree in geology from Centenary College in Shreveport. His family has been connected with this excellent liberal arts school since the 1820s. Charles is a past president of the college’s board of visitors. He then earned a master’s degree in geology from Louisiana State University and joined the Bayou State Oil Company (family owned). His son now runs the company, but Charles still goes to work every day. His 26

daughter and son-in-law are both professors at Tulane University. A grandson is a Marine Corps major scheduled for assignment at the American Embassy in Bejing in 2018.

He is presently taking a one-year course in the Chinese language.

I received an email from honorary Brother Rat Tommy Smith ’98. He reported that his father, our Brother Rat Dr. Howard Smith, retired from his position at the VA in 2008 and was doing well. He was still flying his Moony until recently. I had to Google this.

A Moony is an airplane, not a drone. Also, Howard is still driving his 1959 TR3A. Tommy further reported that his parents will celebrate their 55th wedding anniversary in June. They have two sons and five grandchildren. I remember Howard from VMI. We sometimes got together on organic chemistry homework. I had dinner with both Tommy and Howard at the 60th Reunion.

On behalf of VMI, thanks to all brother and sister rats who recently made contributions.

1949A

James Harrington

There were not very many of us when we entered VMI in early 1945, and time and tide have taken their toll. Few remain, but among that severely diminished group, Harrison Whitten survives. Here’s a note from him: “Most brother rats may not remember me, since I went into the service after the first semester. Upon completing my service obligation, I attended and graduated from RPI, now Virginia Commonwealth University. After college, I worked for my father in his auto dealership from 1950-96. The dealerships are currently run by my grandchildren, creating four generations of Whittens in business for 97 years.

My time now is divided between the Chesapeake Bay and Florida.”

Allen Penniman, thankfully, helps fill up our report with the following: “I received your note requesting my comments for our

class, and I will do the very best I can. I figured that I have been out of VMI 71 years, and this is a long, long time. Naturally, one slows down in that period of time. This is exactly what has happened to me.

“With all of the confusion and other problems coming out of Washington, D.C., it is hard for me to believe that this year is going to be a very good one for our country and for its citizens like me. Therefore, I am not going to worry about this but instead will focus on the good things that are happening in the Penniman family during 2017. It is much better for me to do this, because I have no control over ... our government.

“First of all, Joanie and I have two weddings to look forward to this year. The first grandson, William Coutret, will be married in May of this year. He has been graduated from college, spent some time in the military and works for the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He has a beautiful wife and all of us will look forward to their wedding bells. The second marriage will take place in April. This is the wedding of my granddaughter, Alyce Frances Penniman, and I have written about her before because of her difficulty with cerebral palsy. This makes her special to me, and she is a very remarkable young woman. She has participated in Paralympics and has had constant therapy from almost the time of her birth. The result of this is that she is an active young woman, a college graduate and is presently employed by the Diocese of West Virginia. She specializes in adult education and is a most qualified and professional teacher. When I think about what this young woman has overcome in her lifetime, I am so thankful and totally amazed.

Joanie and I will attend this wedding in Charleston, West Virginia, and I rejoice in the fact that it is happening to this lovely young woman.

“Often times, our ever-able class agent, Jim Harrington, has questioned me about Carol Ray. In fact, he has attributed some of my messages to her, which is not altogether the truth. Carol has been with me for 26 years and serves as my assistant and is one of the most important people in my life. She is always interested in 1949A and is concerned about hearing from my classmates. If our VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes numbers get too small, I think Carol would be a good addition to our roster. Having a female in our class might set some kind of record! It wasn’t possible, but it is now.

“Poor Baton Rouge had another catastrophe last week. A tornado formed Tuesday morning and touched down in nine different locations around Baton Rouge. While we are barely getting over the disastrous floods of last year, we are now hit with a class 4 tornado. Once again, my families were spared, but the devastation north and east of Baton Rouge was terrible. Homes were literally destroyed, and once again, the state faces the problem of how to help these people. Either one of these natural disasters is bad enough, but two of them are almost more than we can handle.

“There was a rare celebration in my neighborhood this week, as Mrs. Julia Hawkins reached the ripe old age of 101 years. She is one of the cutest ‘old ladies’ that I have ever known, and she is quite remarkable.

She has participated in the Olympics as a runner and is also a bicycle enthusiastic.

Word is that she has ridden 40,000 miles, and she tells us this is what keeps her in such good shape. At the party yesterday, she gave me a big kiss, and I told her I was keeping notes on her. She is ahead of me in the life race by 11 years! Will I ever equal her age? I have my doubts, but she has done it and done it so well. How about a bike, anyone? Happy birthday, Julia.

“Joanie and I are in the process of setting up our visitation calendar for this year. We have had requests from four of the grandchildren, and we have two more who are trying to work out a trip. I thought it might be nice to invite my brother rats for a visit, and I am so doing. We have nice accommodations, an excellent cook and the room rates are nonexistent. Just pack your bags and come visit the Pennimans. What a nice thing that would be for you and for us, as well.

“Joanie and I remain in good health, a blessing, and we send our love and best wishes to every member of our class.”

Bill May doesn’t do email, so I called him. Twice. Each time I heard, “The number is not in service.” Concerned, I searched for Brandermill Woods, where he was last heard from. The nice lady at the 2017-Issue 2

office there would not give me Bill’s phone number but said she would give him a message to call me. He finally did – his phone number had been changed. He was just back from a trip to the beach with his children and grandchildren (and one expected great-grandchild). He told me all about his family and said he was very comfortable at his two-bedroom unit at Brandermill, with great food service, a lot of entertainment and many people his age. He said there were a lot of ladies his age, but most of them had small dogs, and he was afraid he would step on them. He said he had room for visitors if any of us could come. We had a really nice visit on the phone, and he’d appreciate hearing from other VMI brothers.

Here’s his new phone number: 704-7445409. Give him a call.

Herb Johnston checked in: “I wish I could start my note by saying everything is looking great at our house. Unfortunately, things are just about the same with Jeanne and me. The good news is we are still living in our own house and getting along well. Someone I was visiting recently was really surprised that I was still driving. I’m not sure we would like it if I could not get out for shopping, medical visits and a host of other things. Just this week, we started to rehearse for our 75th spring music show.

The music looks good, and we had about 150 at our first meeting. This is my 56th year and no misses. We have been happy about our weather in Columbus this winter. We have had less than 5 inches of snow and lots of days above freezing. Today it was around 50. In closing, I hope you and your family are well and that you have had a good winter. I hope you get lots of notes and that I will have more interesting news next time.”

Not much to tell about our Harrington experiences. Although our island is supposedly “semitropical,” the vegetation doesn’t grow much in the winter and the swimming pool is closed, so in deference to the weather, we don’t get much outdoor work done. Nor, at our age, much indoor work, either. I took a day off from this dull activity pattern in January to watch the presidential inauguration. As the event unfolded and the president made his inaugural

address, I had the feeling that the country might finally be getting onto the right track.

The operable word being “right.” I even watched the parade to its finale, and it was a wonderful and fitting end to an impressive day to watch the massed battalions of the Corps pass in review! I ended up with two thoughts: First, I remembered that cold day in January 1949 when I was a part of that parade, and second, a proud thanks for VMI and all it has meant to me and how those traditions continue in a time when, at so many of our institutions of higher learning, the students and faculty have devolved into political correctness and dissolute behavior. “God bless our team and VMI.”

1949B Dan Smaw

These notes cover the period from Nov. 1, 2016, to early February 2017.

It is my sad duty to report the death of our Sister Rat Ardis Morriss Nov. 16, 2016. She is survived by her three children, Jim, Tom and Kristin, and seven grandchildren. She and her husband, Ben, had been living off and on in Florida since Ben retired in 1993. Ardis went to work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1950 where she met and married Ben, who was a student at MIT. We send our sincere condolences to the family on their great loss.

Jim and Hester Morgan completed their move from Delaware to Pennsylvania in December. The move was to be closer to their daughter. The new address is 544 Greentree Drive, New Hope, PA 18938. Phone: 267941-5180. Ding Patton talked with crew chief and found they were up to their eyeballs in boxes that needed unpacking.

Hotz Lardon has moved to be close to his son, Michael, who is a doctor. His new address is 930 Via Mil Cumbres, Unit 94, Solano Beach, CA 92075. Phone: 858-847-2015.

Leo Soucek’s family was advised that Leo had been approved for induction into the Army Aviation Hall of Fame in April 27

Class Notes 2017. This is quite an honor, and I am sure all ’49Bs are proud of Leo’s accomplishments as an Army aviator.

Louise and I received Christmas cards with short notes from John and Paul Hayes, Pearl Mead, Beth Myers, and Helen Casey. All are greatly appreciated now that I realize how hard it is to write, stamp, and mail letters and cards.

Felice Benedict wrote that Risqué is having back pains that injections don’t seem to help. I can relate to that, as I have trouble myself. They had not taken any trips during the year but have had visits from several children and grandchildren. Felice talks with Barbara Jeffries off and on, which she enjoys.

Harv and Barbara Bradley did some traveling for weddings and reunions. They have acquired another dog, a Chihuahua, that was headed for the pound until Barbara decided he should not go there. Their golden retriever has accepted him, so all are happy together.

Joe and Shirley Spitler haven’t been out of the state this year and cannot remember the last time they were on an airplane.

In February, they had to put their beagle down, and that is as hard as anything any animal lover has to do.

Charlie Hurt wrote that, as he begins his 90th year, he feels fortunate to be running a real estate development company, playing tennis three or four times a week and dining with four of his five children once a week. He has fun remembering times at VMI and the BRs. I spoke with Izzy Maxwell late in January, and she had recently come home from three weeks in the hospital. She was taking it easy recuperating and getting her strength back. She had a visit from Tommy and Pam Bowers a few days before Christmas; they had a great time recalling things over drinks.

I talked with Helen Casey in early February. Her whole retirement community was put on quarantine due to the stomach virus that has been going around. She was sick but recovered nicely and is now OK. Helen sent a picture of several BRs at a reunion at The Dunes in Las Vegas in October 1990. She included a video of the 1939 28

movie, “Brother Rat.” Thanks, Helen.

Our Brother Rat Charlie Upshaw died Feb. 3, 2017, at the Lenbrook Health Care Center in Atlanta surrounded by his family members. He had been in poor health for some time. Charlie practiced medicine in Atlanta for 44 years, mainly at Piedmont Hospital. He retired in 2005. He was a member of several medical associations and taught classes at Grady Memorial Hospital for a number of years. He is survived by six children and 14 grandchildren, including grandson Andrew ’06. Our sincere condolences go out to the family for their great loss.

Lon and Doris Walter recently celebrated their 65th anniversary and were joined by their daughters, Terri and Beverly, and their husbands. They were picked up in a stretch limo and taken to a hotel for a wonderful meal. They are doing OK but, as usual, are a little short of rain. Doris is hoping for rain before her plants and flowers die.

Thanks to all who have contributed to annual giving.

1949C

Haywood France

Editor’s Note: Notes are no longer being submitted for the Class of 1949C. Haywood France remains the contact for the class.

1950A Bill Moore

Everyone in ’50A seems to be surviving the doldrums of winter without serious side effects. This is the time between Christmas furlough and exams that when we were cadets, we called the Dark Ages. It was tough to get motivated. Still is, in some respects, for yours truly. Getting in touch with my brother rats and their widows is a welcome event

anytime, but especially at this time of year.

A few days ago, I did something I’ve been wanting to do for months. I awoke to a beautiful and clear 65-degree day. It was a wonderful day for any time, but for the middle of February, it was phenomenal. I said, “This is the day I’m going to visit Judy and Ralph Mooney and spend some quality time with them.” As you remember, they live on top of a mountain in Amherst County with beautiful views in all directions. They’re not very far from me here on the south bank of the James east of Lynchburg as the gun shoots or the crow flies. But, as the auto travels, it’s a trip west toward Lexington then northeast toward the mountains and finally northwest up a steep gravel road to the ridge of Ralph and Judy’s “Crest of the Pedlar” home. We had a great two-hour visit, and the weather was nice enough for the three of us to sit out on their balcony with the beautiful views.

Ralph has had a series of health setbacks over the years, but like all of us, he’s a very tough old bird. He’s still having some aftereffects with his speech, but that is improving, and Judy is looking for a speech therapist to bring him along even further.

Kenny Stagg and I had a nice phone visit.

He and B.J. are doing well with, as Kenny says, “minor aches and pains” (Kenny, not B.J.). B.J. is fit as the proverbial fiddle and is still a workaholic Realtor. Business is good in Richmond. Kenny and B.J. would like to get a smaller place with fewer trees. They have a lovely place in west Richmond with a lot of beautiful trees, but Kenny said multiple levels and copious leaves are getting to be more and more of a problem. He didn’t indicate any specific plans as of yet.

We did make some semi-specific plans to get together in Lexington this fall for a football game.

Nancy and Elliott Hudgins are still doing well down in New Bern, North Carolina.

Nancy told me that Elliott is doing extremely well for his age. After all, he is one of our three BRs in their 90s – the others being Gene Witcher and Syd Stealey. Elliott takes good care of himself and knows his limitations but is still able to socialize with their friends and family. Of course, he has the ultimate helpmate and love in Nan. Nan, as I’ve told you before, “Thanks so much.”

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Their son, Reed Hudgins ’90, is finishing out his career in the Army by working with the reserve. A granddaughter is at American University, and all of their family members are well. Our other Nancy, Nancy (Hank) McWane, is also doing well and still taking care of her beautiful family farm in Forest, just west of Lynchburg.

Mary (Joe) Ripley will be glad when our hot then cold and then hot winter is finally over. She has a lot of gardening and outside work she’d like to tend to. She’s doing well and said she has no news, which, for us, is usually good. Of course, Mary is considerably younger than the rest of us. She sounds great over the phone, and that is usually a good sign that all is well. Barbara (Hugh) Barnes reported that she is still volunteering four hours several days a week at a hospital.

Grandchildren are growing up, and Sarah, her oldest, is having her 21st birthday soon.

She keeps going, although she says she gets tired more easily these days. Don’t we all?

Gene Witcher moved to an independent/ assisted living apartment not very far from his old Houston home that burned and is very satisfied with it. His new address is: Carriage Inn, 2805 Lake Rd, Apartment 204, Huntsville, TX 77340. Phone: (832) 592-3990. His heart valve replacement was done is September, and he is responding fine.

His doctor says he’s good for another 8-10 years. Sounds as if we might get in that Key West trip after all!

Beverly and Syd Stealey are very content at their independent living quarters in Fairbanks. Neither Syd nor I – nor most of us – can do the full range of physical activities that we were able to do in the recent past, but we are thankful for what we can still do. After all, Syd is one of three of us who have reached the 90-year mark.

With the loss of T.J. Barr, I’m the “baby” of our class at three weeks short of my 88th birthday. We’ve had a remarkable run and have accomplished many notable things for such a small class of 43 matriculants, 24 graduates and the non-graduates who finished at other schools but never forgot their time at VMI. Walt Dresser and Dick Mandt composed the “VMI Tribute;” Bobby Tauss and Bill Collier were responsible for our kangaroo mascot (initially a real 2017-Issue 2

one – mean as hell!); and Jennings Bunch, Kenny Stagg, Jim Duke and yours truly initiated the traditional House Mountain climbs back in 1948.

Charlotte (Harold) Logsdon emails me that she is well and stays busy mostly with bridge, reading, watching TV and eating out. Too bad we’re not closer. Anne and I used to like to play bridge with her folks and some of the couples with us on the seismic crew years ago. Seems like nobody around here plays bridge anymore – at least not the conversational variety. There are still some old timers around here that play duplicate bridge, but that’s too serious for me. Anyway, Charlotte tells me that her grandson, J.D., and his wife, Miranda, have been visiting her before going to Mons, Belgium, for a three-year tour of duty with the Army.

J.D. will be with the Supreme Allied Command Counter Intelligence, and Miranda will be with the Supreme Allied Command – all with NATO. Debra and I headed to the beach Feb. 15 for a little R&R. She had her right hip replaced Dec. 6 and is doing extremely well.

We got in a little dancing last weekend, so now we’re ready to tackle the jive and shag joints at the beach. I was scheduled to have my right knee replaced Jan. 10, but my surgeon broke his hip in a bicycle accident two days before my operation. So now, it’ll be May or June for me. The knee doesn’t give me much pain; it’s just worn-out and become unstable. I’m not one to fool around with shots and pills. I’ve had excellent results with a left knee and hip replacement, so I’m going to get the right one done while I’m in good shape and health.

I’ll do my best, but I may not be able to get out a May 15 issue of the news. We’ll just have to see.

1950B

Joseph B. Kohen Jr.

Time passes quickly, and like leaves falling off the tree, a few of our classmates

have fallen: Tom Kelly, Bill Scanlon, Lee Lewane and Red Bragg.

Bob Lynd wrote how he and Lee Lewane were close and how Lee introduced him to his wife. Bob was also planning a visit to Cuba in late November.

Tommy Kirk was the keynote speaker at the 14th Annual Patriotic Luncheon hosted by the Veterans Medical Leadership Council at the Arizona Biltmore Resort Nov. 16, 2016. Ralph Warren’s daughter wrote that her mother, Marilyn, moved to Country Meadows in Frederick, Maryland.

I had a nice visit with Jim Flippen on Founders Day. Jim also has family attending Washington and Lee University.

Robin White informed me in a telephone conversation that he is in good health.

Jones Felvey reported his health has much improved, and he hopes to be back playing tennis when the weather gets warmer.

Randolph Trappy’s son called and informed he was stationed nearby in California. His father told him of the time my wife and I lived in Lafayette, Louisiana, while I was completing my OB-GYN residency at Charity Hospital.

I would like to hear from more of you, so please write or call. Let’s make a big entry in the Alumni Review.

1951

John Ross

This note covers the period Oct. 28, 2016, to Dec. 29, 2017, and is basically in sequential order.

I am glad to start with the good news that Bob Nolley called from Richmond to report he is recovering at home after cancer surgery.

Peggy and Willard Hays are doing well in Lexington.

Roger Little sent Paul Shrader and me happy birthday wishes Nov. 10, the Marine Corps’ birthday. Sadly, there are only two of us left who were commissioned in the Marine Corps at graduation. Rob reported he is scheduled for a heart valve replacement in the near future.

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Class Notes I received an email from Hob Richey reporting he had successful heart surgery and requesting that I inform VMI on the correct spelling of his name.

I checked on Randy Thompson, who is a neighbor in Fairfax County, and learned that his wife is not doing well.

At the beginning of December, Rog Little called to report that his heart surgery was successful but left him quite bruised.

On Dec. 5, Marie and I received our first Christmas card from Dick Cole and Louise.

It included a newsy letter and a picture of them.

I immediately got busy and, with help from Marie, posted 97 Christmas cards to the class.

Marie and I received, in return, numerous cards and letters wishing us well and merry Christmas and, at the same time, providing a wealth of news. For example, Fred and Marilyn Watson in Weatherford, Texas, reported on a trip to Great Smoky National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Sheila and Rav Marshall in an attractive card titled, “Three Times a Day,” depicting VMI from Marshall Arch down to the mess hall, wished us a merry Christmas and noted they were staying at home and resting from travel.

Rose Marie Anson reports she is “doing OK.” Phil Barton and Joan sent us greetings from Garden Grove, California, and thanking us for “keeping Class of ’51 informed.”

Paul and Jean Robinson wished us the joys of Christmas from Neenah, Wisconsin.

Anna and Joe Stump wished us a merry Christmas from Knoxville, Tennessee, while hoping to be in Florida until the middle of February.

Robbin Jordan in Virginia Beach gave “thanks for keeping in touch” and hoped to see all her children over the holidays.

Beverly Beazlie from Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, wished us joy and a “great holiday.”

Marie Ambrose, my Fairfax, Virginia, neighbor, wished Marie a continued recovery and thanked me for my calls.

Roger and Betty Little wished us a happy holiday season and included a newsy and informative letter, which was dated one day before his one-month anniversary of heart valve surgery.

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Sam Scott finally sent us a card that he did not inherit from Bob Raeburn; I wonder how much he spent, as it was made in China. He signed it, “Love you – both – maybe Marie a little more.”

Glennie Brown sent us a card with a picture of the Iona Abbey in Scotland, which he had recently visited. She thanked us for keeping her in the VMI loop: “You two do a great job for the brother rats.”

Renate Higby in Bonita Springs, Florida, wished us a merry Christmas.

We had a newsy card from Pat Parker Gray reporting on a dinner with Jack and Nancy Hill. She reported she had a good visit with Peggy Hays on the phone, and she and the Hills intend to take Peggy to lunch in Lexington.

Gibson and Marilyn Gray sent, “Peace to us in this holy season of hope.” Gib, ever the optimist, wrote, “I will see you at our 70th.”

Lee Duval from Lewisville, Texas, wrote, “May your Christmas season be filled with joy and peace.”

Eddy and John Phillips from Richmond, Virginia, sent a card with family pictures while wishing us a merry Christmas and a happy new year.

The Lowdens in Williamsburg, Virginia, sent season’s greetings and reported that Barbara had a knee replacement in November and is still doing therapy. “For a week or 10 days, Jack was a wonderful nurse, good

Class of 1951: Dick and Louise Cole during Christmas 2016.

housekeeper and a not-so-great cook. But we’re back to normal,” Barbara wrote.

Ann Penner has moved to a retirement community in Houston, Texas, to be near her son and daughter, who she now sees regularly. She wishes us good health and happiness.

Jimmy and Joyce Gonzales in Kenner, Louisiana, wished us peace, love and joy. He reported that he had skin cancer removed from the top of his head and replaced with his skin graft from his shoulder. The prognosis looks good, but healing will be slow.

Bob and Jeannie Nolley sent holiday greetings from Richmond, Virginia, while Steve Meader wished us to be blessed with love and Christmas peace.

My card to Mrs. Jonathan L. Minear in Little Elm, Texas, was returned, as she had moved without leaving a forwarding address.

As was noted last year by Marie Ambrose, “Love – that’s what Christmas is all about.” This year Mary Ellen Connolly, Pete Philp, Jack and Nancy Hill, Anita Chaplin, and Jo Jac Lazzell all connected love with Christmas.

Lest I forget, we received a beautiful Christmas card and very informative letter from Dorothy and Harry Bailey in Orlando, Florida. Unfortunately, Harry has suffered a number of setbacks in his recovery from a laminectomy and remains in a health facility.

We also received attractive and thoughtful cards from Pat Holloway, Marion Carozza and Bonney Schowalter.

Finally, we received a very much appreciated card from Jake Whamsley in which he thanked Marie and me for all we do for the class.

Now back to the normal chronology. On Dec. 22, I had nice telephone visit with Pinkie Wornham in La Jolla, California. She is doing well.

Pat Holloway, on a call with Marie, said that she was to be attending a family gathering.

On Dec. 27, I reached Jigger Baxley with belated birthday and Christmas greetings. He celebrated both before Dec. 25 with his family. He reported that Ursula and he are doing well but was saddened by the loss of his last roommate, Johnny Leddy, in October.

Shortly before the end of December, John Phillips called from Richmond to let me VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes known he was leaving for his Florida home.

Incidentally, John has two grandsons at VMI. On Dec. 29, George Cohen checked in from Hilton Head to report that he and Marty are both doing well.

Before closing, I would like, as in previous years, to remember our brother rats who left us in 2016. Sadly, the inexorable toll continues and accelerates – 12 more in 2016: Straud J. Davis (Jan. 3, 2016); Gerald Eggleston (Feb. 8, 2016); Desmond C. Wray (Feb. 14, 2016); David B. Sebree Jr. (March 2, 2016); Rufus Lazzell (March 12, 2016); James Marshall (June 5, 2016); Leslie Spellings (Aug. 7, 2016); Thomas V.A. Wornham (Aug. 23, 2016); George M. Maxwell (Aug. 28, 2016); Johnny Leddy (Oct. 8, 2016); Willard M. Hays (Dec. 6, 2016); and Lain Peck (Sept. 29, 2016).

May they rest in peace, and may loving memories of them sustain their survivors.

Marie and I wish to thank all of you who so kindly remembered us during the past year and to wish everyone a happy, healthy and prosperous 2017.

Semper Fi, Jack Jan. 27, 2017

1952

James M. Mecredy

As I start my class notes for winter, I become aware of the need to report more about brother rats and widows leaving this world for the next. As we are now all in our 80s, we are inclined to think about the few years ahead instead of the next 20 years. Just now, I heard from Lou Gerdetz that Ann Hutchinson died in the last week of October. Also, I called John Greenwood in honor of his birthday and learned that his son, Joel, died after a kidney stone operation. Something went wrong, and he died two days after the operation.

I received an email from Warren Koontz ’53 asking about David White. He had read my class notes for ’52 in the last Alumni Review concerning David White. Warren and 2017-Issue 2

David went to high school in Lynchburg and lived just four doors apart. They were great friends and double dated the Lynchburg girls. He last saw David in Raleigh while Mary Kee was still alive. I sent him David Jr.’s telephone number so he could speak with him regarding his dad. Warren wrote to thank me for the phone number. He and his wife, Win, are living in Cedarfield, a continuing care community in Richmond. Jim and Carol Wiley also have an apartment there.

Warren and Win hosted a VMI cocktail party at their cottage for about 20 alumni, spouses and widows who live at Cedarfield.

I called Charley Hansrote for his birthday.

Charley has been in hospice care at home for more than a year. I talked to his wife, Melva. Charley is too weak to talk by phone.

He does feed himself and refuses to use his walker or wheelchair, coming to the table to eat. He keeps his humor up, but he sleeps a lot and is too weak to stay up.

I called Andy Dickinson for his birthday, and he called me back a couple of days later.

Andy and Mary are well and expecting to be at our 65th. Andy’s news is that a granddaughter is a swimming champion, getting as far as the Olympic trials for the 200-meter backstroke. Andy has four children, and I have forgotten how many grandchildren.

Andy keeps in touch with Walt Ames, Gary Pittman, Cecil Welsh, Jim Wiley and a few others.

Bill Shunk called to thank me for his birthday card and bring me up to date on his life.

Class of 1952: Betty Lambert returned to Richmond in 2016.

He has three daughters: A retired school teacher, a retired medical technician and a retired nurse whose husband flies for Delta on international flights. Bill’s wife died two years ago, and Bill now has housekeepers cleaning and cooking for him. He has a chronic kidney disease which slows him down but doesn’t disable him. He told me an old story I had not heard about Root Hopkins and Fish Harrington finding a snake in the Nile Valley behind the north side of barracks. They brought the snake back to barracks and kept it in their room until it had a litter, which scared the barracks cleaning crew.

Walt Ames told me his health is improving. He has been losing strength in his joints, and his doctor is helping him recover. He does very well until it rains, and he has pain in his joints. I gave Walt updates on several brother rats he was wondering about, including Ray Gilchrist of whom Walt had lost track. Ray died last March.

Walt told me of the VMI Hampton Roads dinner held Dec. 9. Also, Walt learned that Sandy O’Connor died in August. She was living with her sister in Texas.

Cecil Welsh and I had a long conversation about VMI and brother rats with whom he is able to keep in touch. Cecil and I both have sons in the Class of ’78, so that is another connection. I had lost Cecil’s phone number, which I requested when sending him a birthday card. Cecil recently attended the Founders Day dinner and was seated next to Gen. Jeffrey Smith ’79, dean of the faculty and deputy superintendent for academics, and mentioned the infamous step-off of 1951 in which Col. Pancake ’38 marched us up to White’s Farm in the middle of the night.

General Smith had only heard the rumor.

Apparently step-offs are no longer practiced.

Gee, think of the fun (!?) current cadets miss.

Charlie McRae and his wife, Glo, are as well as one can expect at age 86. Charlie says he has the best of everything, except a pot of gold. He does very well without the things you can’t have. Charlie has had a couple of fender benders; however, after the last one, they transported him six blocks to the hospital to check him. They found nothing wrong, but he got a bill for $1,100. No more fender benders if he can help it.

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Class Notes I guess you doctors from ’52 know about the Doc Carroll memorial that is to be dedicated at the time of our reunion next April.

Doctor Charles Hayes ’58 wrote about the latest news. The bust has been taken to the foundry and scheduled for presentation during reunion weekend in April. Doc Carroll had established the biology department as one of the most prestigious undergraduate programs not only at graduate schools in the Southeast but in Pennsylvania and other northeastern states as well. Apparently, if you look very carefully at the model, you will see that there is an expression on Doc’s face that was familiar to all in biology classes. It was the look that you got just before he said, “You don’t really think that I am buying that load of BS, do you?” If you have not donated yet, it is not too late. This is a joint project with the Carroll Fund, and the fund needs all the help we can give it. The Carroll Fund is the ongoing legacy that the bust personifies.

Bob Perkins and his wife live in a condo in Richmond and are both happy and healthy.

Bob had not heard about the memorial for Doc Carroll, so I brought him up to date based on Jim Wiley’s email message.

Martha Allen returned my call for her birthday. She is doing well, though she says she is slowing down. Along with a number of us, Martha recently had cataract surgery, and she is due to get new glasses which hopefully will allow her to see even better than before. Both Lucette and I had cataract surgery a few years ago, and we both see even better than before.

Betty Lambert has returned to Richmond to live for the first time since she and Bob lived there many moons ago! She is living in an apartment at Bickford Assisted Living and Memory Care, which is 15 minutes from her children and close to some of her cousins, brother Johnny, granddaughter Sarah and friends. The people are very friendly, and there are always structured activities. A preacher comes every Sunday. There’s nail and hair care and indoor sports such as volleyball and bowling. The socialization has really been a wonderful change, though never a replacement for the love and memories of her longtime friends or family. Her piano was also moved, so she’s tickling the ivories again. She’s still playing by ear, and folks compliment her. She said this is a beautiful, 32

upbeat and caring place to be. Her photo is included.

Hugh Ruhsam sent me a photo of several at in-flight training at Bartow Air Base, Florida.

On a T-6 trainer, from left to right, were Bill Couper, Myles Hutchenson, Ted Ball, Pat Berry, Hugh (waving) and Charley Badgett.

Jim Wiley sent me the following article.

“Don’t know if you get Facebook notices from the newspaper at the Institute or not.

In any case, the one I received today puzzled me. It involved a ‘tradition’ in which, when you receive your combat ring, you ‘––– on McCormick’s statue.’ What is the combat ring, and I assume McCormick’s statue is in the garden below the parapet? Boy, how things have changed. I have a problem with the everyday talk of the younger generation.

It’s tough getting old. VMI ain’t what it used to be (and probably never was).”

Later, I learned McCormick’s statue is on the Washington and Lee University campus, and cadets caught are boned. The combat ring is a steel VMI ring that is similar to the class ring.

Cecil Puckette is OK except for bad knees and ankles. He has to watch his heartrate, which may beat too fast. His wife had a stroke two years ago which prompted them to move into a retirement community. She is well now. So maybe they will make it to our reunion.

Bob Yore claims to be well and comfortable with their first frost in Maryland. They were planning a trip south after the first of the year to visit family in Tennessee and Alabama. He does not know how close they will come to Augusta, Georgia, but promised to give me a call if they do pass through our area.

In December, Russ McCarthy wrote that, since last Christmas, he has walked 1,156 miles and done 1,280 flights of stairs. As a result, he feels better and has more stamina.

This must be what gave him the stamina to tour the new Cowboys stadium and tour the aircraft factory where the new F-35 fighter is being built. Now, he is looking forward to our 65th Reunion and his 70th Daytona Beach High School class reunion.

I called Rem Simpson at his home in Maryland to learn that the call was automatically forwarded to Sarasota, Florida, where he and his wife spent the winter. Rem said he is still

in fairly good health, except his back does not hold up for long walking or standing, so he looks for a chair whenever he enters a room.

I have received a number of Christmas cards from many of you, often with notes.

Clark Britton writes that he lost his wife, Pauline, in July. He chose to move into an apartment in Wichita. The move was difficult, but he is glad he made it. His artwork has been mounted in the Wichita Art Museum. Gary and Sandra Pittman traveled to London and Prague. They missed a second cruise due to a dishwasher leak that left them without a functioning kitchen, which required installing new floors. Mary Shoaf stays busy with the Atlantic Classical Orchestra, and a local charitable organization plus keeping up with her children. She is planning to attend our 65th Reunion. Eva Tuck became a great-grandmother in September and got to see a grandson receive his Doctor of Pharmacy degree.

My Christmas card to Bill Ruffin was returned, so I called Bill and confirmed that the address was correct. I guess it is amazing that the P.O. does as well as they do. I am sending Bill another Christmas card. We will see if it gets through. Bill asked about golf arrangements during our reunion. I told him Zeke is arranging golf.

I received a delayed Christmas card from Dick and Nancy Falwell. Dick is recovering from kidney problems.

Our lines continue to get thinner. Jim Wiley just let me know that Bill Gilley died Oct. 4, 2016. He had been in a nursing home.

Class of 1952: On a T-6 trainer were, from left, Bill Couper, Myles Hutchenson, Ted Ball, Pat Berry, Hugh Ruhsam (waving) and Charley Badgett.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Bill was a retired U.S. Army colonel, Vietnam veteran, and recipient of the Bronze Star and Legion of Merit. He is survived by his wife, Anne Gilley; son, David Gilley; daughter, Lynne Larabee; and five grandsons. He will be buried in the Arlington National Cemetery.

Charlie Hogge and I had a long conversation about his activities, especially how hymns he had memorized were helpful to mitigate pain during surgery to have teeth implants. Also Charlie visits a nursing home weekly and is asked to pray for residents. Charlie sent me a message thanking me for his birthday card, adding that he celebrated in a strange way.

Things became a bit shaky Monday morning following his birthday at 5:00 when he discovered severe colon bleeding. It was much too much like the occurrence he suffered in Venice, Italy, in summer 2007 which put him in the hospital for 10 days. Both times, he had taken an over-the-counter medicine for cold that contained a strong dose of aspirin. In this latest case, he had also been on Ibuprofen for about two weeks except for Saturday and Sunday when he was again taking the prescription mentioned earlier. He said he should have learned his lesson in 2007! Never again! A nuclear X-ray yesterday morning showed that the bleeding had stopped, so he was told that he would not need any surgery if his hemoglobin stabilized following a single-unit transfusion of blood. It not only stabilized, it continued to increase each time it was measured every six hours – in spite of the blood removed for testing! His stay at Texas Health Systems (Presbyterian) in north-west Plano could hardly have been better, considering the circumstances. To a person, the staff members were both caring and competent, and he told the house doctor and let many of the staff know how much he appreciated them. His wife, Joan, posted a request for prayer on Facebook, as well as to members of their Sunday school class, their Connection Bible study group and their church’s prayer team. He really appreciated the visit by their associate pastor, Allison Jean. Charlie and Joan also kept family members updated.

The response was wonderful and such a blessing! Moreover, so many joined in celebrating his birthday! Charley added: “I am truly blessed! Thank you, God!” 2017-Issue 2

Pat Barry is doing well in spite of the fact that his vision is limited to seeing dark shadows. His wife, Raynell, died in May 2016. He recounted his training at Bartow Air Base, Florida. He and Tommy Birge flew together in much of their time both in training and in Vietnam. Pat remembers the day Bob Hanes was killed. Bob was landing in a strong crosswind and the plane flipped, killing him. Apparently, Bob’s radio wasn’t functioning, and he did not know of the strength of the crosswinds.

Henry Nanninga called to get an updated address. He recently talked to David White’s son to learn that David is still hanging in there. Henry sent David a Christmas card, and David’s son told him that David enjoyed the card.

Lou Delisio sent me an article about Martha Leighty, who died Dec. 18. She was the wife of our Brother Rat Bob Leighty, who died in 2005. Martha led a full life. As a youth, she was a star athlete in basketball, later playing semi-professional basketball.

She was also an artist who worked in ceramics, having her own shop where she produced numerous pieces for family, friends and retail sale. Her family included three sons, two of whom were doctors, and seven grandchildren. Sally Birge, Lou Delisio and Brett Leighty sent notes informing me of Martha Leighty’s passing just before Christmas. She had not overcome a stroke she had in the summer. Lou also told me his health could be better, but he expects to be at our reunion in April. Sally, Carole Clingempeel, and Lou and Ella attended the memorial service for Martha. Martha will be interned in Arlington in the spring.

Wilson Gaillard called to reminisce. He just learned that the VMI Corps would be in the inauguration parade. He remembers that we rode to Washington, D.C., on a train that we boarded in Lexington. Also, he learned that the VMI band would be in Mardi Gras again this year. Wilson would like to attend our 65th, but it would be a long trip from Mobile, and he is concerned that they might put him back in the Rat Line.

I got word from Andy Dickinson that Jackie Janney died from an intractable heart condition in a retirement home in Fredericksburg. Doug Janney died a number of years

ago. Andy talked to son Doug, and the funeral will be private with family only. Andy was in their wedding but lost touch with Jackie in recent years. Both sons live in Fredericksburg with children and grandchildren. Doug and Andy roomed with Austin Bridgforth and Jack Gladstone. What a great guy was Doug! We all still miss him.

Melissa Hopkins wrote that her father, John Root Hopkins, died the morning of Nov. 11, 2016. He died peacefully in his sleep after a long battle with dementia. She had moved him from his cottage on her property to the main house about a year-and-half ago so he would be surrounded by family. Melissa wrote: “I miss him greatly, as he was my hero, my friend, my mentor and the best father a person could ever ask for.” They plan to have a memorial service this spring and scatter his ashes over the Chesapeake Bay, as he wished.

That is all for this time. We will see you at our 65th Reunion April 24-25, 2017.

Jim

1953

William C. Noell Jr.

In December, we lost our BR Austin “Tee” Morgan in South Carolina. He has been in poor health for right many years, and when Judy and I visited with him in Greenville years ago, he stated he would not be coming to reunions, as he did not want to be that far away from his doctors.

Tee and I were friends in high school in Alexandria and had planned to room together at VMI, along with Art Williams and Tommy Harrison from our high school. However, I arrived later (in the afternoon) than the others, and wound up rooming with Pete Cox, and that never changed. There was a Saturday evening when a group of us went to Sweet Briar College for a dance, and somehow, Tee had a car for the occasion.

On the way back to barracks, we were on a tight schedule to make it back by midnight, and we found out after leaving Madison Heights that we did not have enough gas to get back to Lexington. Tee pulled into this 33

Class Notes mom/pop service station/store where the at Baldwin Park for a couple of years, and have held the April ’53 “Richmond and owners lived above the store and appeared she liked it very much, also. Frank also came Beyond” lunch gathering April 27, 2017, to be asleep. This place was by itself in the over for the VMI versus The Citadel basket- at noon, at the Country Club of Virginia in middle of nowhere, it seemed, in Agracola ball game. It was a great, fast moving, excit- Richmond. A specific email was sent out to on Route 130. We banged on the door, woke ing game, and VMI prevailed this time, scor- BRs in January, and I also noted it in the last up the owners and were able to obtain some ing 101 points. After the game, I had a very class notes so all would be aware of this date. gas – just making it back before the Maybe some could consider makstick check. Any BR that knew Tee ing plans to come back to Virginia well at VMI will have some great to attend this ’53 lunch gathering. tales to tell about experiences with It was also noted in the last class him. And, of course, you rememnotes that this will be the last one ber that he roomed with Judge before our 65th Reunion in 2018. I Jim Wools when Jim descended was very pleased that the Alumni out his window on the third stoop Review published my entire writeand put our class on pledge. In up last quarter on Col. William high school, I gave him the nickJack Buchanan ’50B (in After name of “O-- O-- Morgan” after Taps), along with the photograph he proudly showed us the results of 1st Capt. “Buck” (in ’50B secof his operation in a Mason jar in tion) that I also submitted. I cerformaldehyde beside his bed. tainly thanked the editor, Jordan In October, Fred Hauser sudMoore.

The news from you all this quardenly lost his wife unexpectedly. ter was slightly scarce, making She had an aneurism over the past your notes kind of brief, but I year then starting having some Class of 1953: At the Berlin Wall in summer 2016 were, from have made up for that with my pains, so she went to the hospileft, Cadet Will Woodward Jr. ’18, Catherine Woodward, Leslie longer inauguration trivia for tal to have a checkup. During the Woodward, Betty Woodward and Woody Woodward ’92. these notes. checkup, the membrane around The photographs in these notes the aneurism broke, and as Fred were sent in by Betty Woodward said, “That was it.” They were able to keep her alive for about when the family was in Germany an hour with machines, so Fred last year on a family tour. Betty did get to talk to her before she said they had a great time on died. Plans are to have Uschi’s the trip, but as usual, they all reashes spread over the Blue Ridge ally missed Mickey, as he always Mountains, per her request, when loved to travel. her family comes to the United Wes Gray said that they are States this year from Germany. A still staying in Sarasota seven memorial service was held in Harmonths of the year, and from risonburg. mid-May to mid-October, they At a Saturday basketball game at are in Maryland. the end of January, I visited with Walt Sanders said he and EmFrank Spencer and his daughter, ily really would like to come to the Richmond lunch, but transSandy Morgan, before Frank reportation has become a problem. turned to Staunton. Frank recently moved into a retirement/assisted Class of 1953: At the Allied Museum in Berlin in summer 2016 were, Their children do not want them from left, Cadet Will Woodward Jr. ’18, Betty Woodward, Catherine driving anymore on long trips living quarters in Staunton called Woodward, Leslie Woodward and Woody Woodward ’92. without a driver. They do plan to Baldwin Park. He said he really likes being there, has a great room and the nice visit with Mark Prentice ’74 of Wil- obtain a driver for the 65th.

An email from Art Williams concerning food is very good. After the game, he was liamsburg at Moody Hall. Mark was in my in a hurry to get back because of a party C-130 unit at Andrews back years ago when our high school BR “Tee” Morgan noted at Baldwin Park that night, so he did not I was the deputy commander of the wing. I that Tommy Harrison, also a high school come up to Moody Hall for the after game had not seen Mark in several years.

BR, lived close to Art, and they used to get social gathering. Years ago, my mother was By the time you read these notes, we will together a few times before his death. Art 34

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes has a grandson in South Korea, so they are different in those days was that we carried The Corps of 1,500 plus looked great at anxious about news of that area. They are our rifles without federal government pre- President Trump’s inaugural parade in regstill living in the house in south Richmond inspection, removal of bolts or any per- imental mass, in the red cape overcoats, as that they retired in 22 years ago. He said sonal checks into our security status, nor was the case in our day, but they marched wearing any approval tags. We were VMI with fixed bayonets at the end of the pahappy new year to all brother rats.

Bob Cheatham noted at Christmas that cadets, and that was sufficient. Not enough rade; quality finished the parade. he took a trip to Lima Peru in June with in these days. Our bayonets, however, refriends and family and 20 teenagers. It was mained in barracks, and the reviewing an educational trip put together for high stand was such that we did eyes right, not school students, and Bob really enjoyed the left, as was done this year. For our return, J.M. Perry Archer experience. He drove to Roanoke in Octo- we were allowed to board on a bus as soon ber for Bebe’s 65th high school reunion, as the parade was over or continue to board where he is always included, and he gets until the last bus left at midnight, with first to see a lot of people he grew up with in check on return being supper roll call – no Greetings and Salutations, Roanoke. Bob says he definitely plans to be private return was authorized. VMI placed Good (well, great) news from Jack Tilat our 65th, but stop by and see him if you third in the parade for marching units, with first and second going to state police units, ler, following up from last report. Jack has come his way. been under a Sword of DamoPresidential inauguration parade cles for some time with cancer. trivia: In December, he learned that he I am sure you all remember our is cancer-free. Not only that, afmarch, in battalion mass, in the ter more heart stents having reEisenhower inauguration back cently been added, he is no lonon a very cold Tuesday, Jan. 20, ger required to be on the blood 1953 – 64 years ago – for the 34th thinner Plavix. All’s well. president. Although the whole Don Howard died Nov. 9, Corps marched in President 2016. Don had been saddled Trump’s inaugural parade, as we with medical problems for some did, it was somewhat different time. As we know, he was an from in our time for several reaaccomplished and, one might sons. One thing, we were in the say, unique artist. He began his middle of exams, left on a slew career in art after retiring from of buses (34) at 2:15 a.m. (first management consultant work.

B) and 2:30 a.m. (second B) from Don attended and graduated barracks for Washington, D.C., stopped for breakfast roll call in Class of 1953: Originally pictured in The Washington Post, The from Harvard Business School Arlington about 9 a.m. and as- Corps of Cadets marched in the presidential inauguration for following a two-year stint in the Eisenhower Jan. 20, 1953. The Corps placed behind two state poU.S. Army and became quite sembled for the parade at 1300 lice units and ahead of West Point and the Naval Academy. successful in his business proin the capitol area, after changing into parade uniform, with a scheduled and yes, West Point and the Naval Acad- fession. Don was born in Houston. A few march off at 1330, which did not finally emy were there in full strength. The Corps years ago, he came down to Houston from happen until about 1500. One of main had to return to barracks, by the buses, as his home in Marblehead, Massachusetts. things I remember is the long wait around soon as the parade was complete. They did Roy Alexander and I had lunch with him the capitol grounds and being very cold not leave that morning for D.C. until about one day, three of Dillard’s English majors and tired of holding on to the M-1. It was 8 a.m. on the 20th; they had the interstates together one more time. Don leaves his about 5 p.m. when we finally passed in re- for travel, not US 11, thus we had to de- wife, Bonnie; daughter, Laurence; son-inview, with the parade constantly stopping part barracks in the middle of the night. On law, Timothy; and grandson, Benjamin. and starting. It is still the longest inaugural the lighter side, a group of us went to Tee Don and Bonnie traveled widely in his parade in history – four-and-a-half hours. Morgan’s house in Alexandria after the pa- business. He was a teacher of export marOne BR commented that it was kind of dif- rade for a party; however, no civvies were keting for the Organization of American ficult to stay in step while marching, as he authorized on the trip. Most of us at Tee’s States while working for Harbridge House, and others in the center had to march on just made it to the last midnight bus back to a management consulting firm in Boston. the slippery steel street car tracks down the barracks, but the evening definitely helped Much of his work was in South American middle of Pennsylvania Avenue. One thing us thaw out after that long, cold day in D.C. nations. At the time of his retirement, Don

1954

2017-Issue 2

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Class Notes was a principal with the consulting firm They have been blessed with seven grand- At the time of this writing, I have incomplete information concerning Bill’s life. of Grey, Judson and Howard. He wrote a children.

Don Colwell died Nov. 28, 2016, in Mount Dick Trumbo was pictured along with sons book on consulting in the securities industry. After all that, Don entered the Museum Raleigh Trumbo ’93 and Hunter Trumbo Vernon, Illinois. We remember Don as a School of the Boston Museum of Art and ’90, nephew Richard Meredith ’78, nephew star basketball player at VMI. He attended received a diploma following four years of Peter Meredith ’74 and friend Rolf Wil- the Institute on a basketball scholarship. He work, winning a fifth-year traveling scholar- liams of William & Mary, when they got served in the Air Force as a pilot and officer. ship and enabling him to exhibit at the Bos- together for a Trumbo family gathering in Later, he earned a teaching certificate from Norfolk. Occasionally, when Dick was class Southern Illinois University, after which he ton Museum of Art. taught at Webber Township High I heard from Bob MacGregor, School for 49 years, served as who attended the Institute only head basketball coach for 10 years for 4th Class year. As with so and drove the high school bus for many who came for that year and 32 years. He was inducted into then moved on, the experience the Illinois Basketball Coaches was formative in a very positive Hall of Fame. Don held many way for him. Bob is an emeritus other memberships in disparate co-chairman of the Caux Round organizations and was a devout Table, which promotes moral Christian. Don leaves his wife, and ethical global leadership. The Norma; two sons; grandsons; and CRT is concerned with capitalism numerous others. being practiced in a moral/ethiWe previously have mentioned cal way – economic self-interest that “Boots” Harmon died. He guided by moral rules. He travels died shortly after his and wife and lectures internationally. He Helen’s 57th wedding anniverwill be lecturing this year again in sary had been celebrated. Helen Lebanon. The CRT was founded Class of 1954: Christmas card painted by Wendle Snapp. survived him by a mere 37 days. in Switzerland, where the Caux Both suffered from cancer and Conference Center is located. forwent treatment, remaining at Polo Meyer called to report the home. On Dec. 5, 2016, Boots passing of Paul Kuhne. Paul died and Helen were buried together Nov. 23, 2016, in Spring Hill, in Arlington National Cemetery.

Florida. I received a nice letter Their daughters, Hilary Harmon from his wife, Ramona. Paul had Ryall and Adrien Harmon Burbeen suffering with illness for at ney, attended, along with Hilary’s least a year. He and Ramona have husband, Michael Ryall. three daughters, sons-in-law, three Boots had a long and distingrandchildren and three greatguished military career, which grandchildren. They were marwe will summarize. After VMI, ried for over 61 years. Paul was a he served as rifle platoon leader pilot in the Air Force for a time. in Germany, followed by a stint After his discharge, he worked for there as a heavy weapons platoon 37 years with General Electric as Class of 1954: Dick Trumbo, center, seated, pictured at a recent a quality control engineer. family gathering. From left, standing, were his sons, Raleigh leader. By 1956, he had become Next, John Wolfe died in Or- ’93 and Hunter ’90; and nephew, Richard Meredith ’78. Seated: a company commander in an Armored Infantry Battalion. In mond Beach, Florida, Dec. 5, nephew Peter Meredith ’74 and Rolf Williams.

1956, he became aide-de-camp 2016. He served four years in the Air Force and was a graduate of the Medi- agent, Roy Alexander and I would give him to U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Joseph W. Stillwell cal College of Virginia, where he earned his a telephone call. Peggy, Dick’s wife, sent this Jr. in Frankfurt, Germany. He met Helen in Germany, where she was with the CIA, Doctor of Dental Surgery degree. He prac- great photo.

Another passage. Bill Guy died May 16, and they married upon his return to the ticed in Charlottesville for a few years and returned to MCV to specialize in orthodon- 2016. Helen Guy, his wife, sent a card giving United States in 1958. Boots transferred to tics. He and wife Joan had three children: us the news. Bill and Helen were living in the Adjutant General Corps in 1959 and Charlotte, Annie and John, known as “J.C.” Jackson, Alabama, at the time of his death. graduated from and instructed with the 36

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Adjutant General School. He was then assigned to Korea and in 1963 was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. He became assistant chief of staff of the 82nd Airborne Division Headquarters. When the 82nd was deployed to the Dominican Republic in 1965, Boots participated in its planning and deployment, winning the Bronze Star after becoming chief of staff of the 82nd Airborne Division (Rear). He was selected to attend graduate school at American University and earned a Master of Business Administration degree in 1967.

Back to Germany then until 1970, when he was sent to Vietnam as adjutant general of the 1st Aviation Brigade. He and one other officer planned U.S. Army support for the invasion of Laos in 1971, and he earned a second Bronze Star.

From 1971-75, Boots was assigned U.S. Army Personnel Information Systems Command and became its chief, winning the Legion of Merit and a spot at the National War College. In 1975, he was, for a time, deputy director of Army Club Management, and in 1978, he went back to Germany to supervise and improve the lives of military families in Europe.

Boots retired in 1980 from active duty and worked with the U.S. Army Emergency Relief Organization as deputy for Army Emergency Relief until 1996.

Boots and Helen moved to Reno, Nevada, where they lived happily starting on their next journey; the next life.

Receiving news of and writing about the passing parade of brother rats moves me to reflect upon Antoine de St. Exupery, French author of “The Little Price,” who was an early Andean airmail pilot and later a pilot in both the Spanish Civil War and in World War II. In his book entitled, “Wind, Sand and Stars,” he wrote about a comrade in 1930s Spain at the end of life.

On to other news.

Wendle Snapp sent a Christmas card with another of his excellent painted scenes. Last year, he visited Turkey and Greece with his daughter and his church group. While they were gone, Columbia, South Carolina, got hit with the 1,000-year storm and everything was flooded. Wife Ann, home alone, was 2017-Issue 2

fortunately on high ground. Things are now back to a semblance of normalcy for them.

Tom Wallace sent a letter expressing joy that our championship-type, undefeated lacrosse team of 1953 finally got recognized.

He mentioned that he heard from Bill Almy, our goalie on that team, that Bill received a new heart valve and will soon be ready to tend goal again. Bill and Sue moved to Annapolis and reside in the Ginger Cove Retirement community. Bill said Johnny Knapp has a sister who resides there, too.

Tom made a correction about our Rat Bible – its color was actually yellow, and he knows, because he found the Rat Bible belonging to Jock Wheeler in Tom’s stuff.

Jock and Bonnie still live in Virginia Beach.

Tom visited them in September and Bonnie gave a party that included Lou Drake and Edith; Connie Wentz Booker; Johnny St. George ’57; Jack Trant ’57, Tom’s dyke; and others. Tom and Robin visited with “Honus” Wagner and Betty in Williamsburg. Tom and Robin now live in Minneapolis, having moved more than a year ago to be near family. Tom joked that it wasn’t cold enough in Annapolis.

Otto Naumann sent a nice Christmas card. He moved from Yorktown to Williamsburg. Ed Garbee also wrote, sending a card. Another 1953 lacrosse stalwart. Ed lives in Chattanooga and has some very serious physical ills (cancer and heart disease) stemming from his service as a Marine and encounters with Agent Orange. (Boots also had sequelae from Agent Orange.) Ed lived for 47 years in Talbott but decided, like Tom, to move to be close to family.

Let’s close with something again from Pastor Dr. Bill Ralph.

A preacher was riding his bike and came across a little boy trying to sell a lawn mower. The preacher asked him how much he wanted for the lawn mower, and he said he was just trying to get enough money to buy a bike. The preacher said he needed a lawn mower and why didn’t they just trade his bike for the boy’s mower.

The boy agreed, and the preacher asked the boy how to start the mower. The boy said, “You just pull the rope and cuss!”

The preacher said he had been in the ministry so long, he didn’t known if he could

think of a cuss word. The boy said, “Just keep pulling on that rope, and one will come to you.”

Oh, a follow-up to the bit in the last Review about Balfour’s messing up my replacement class ring by having the top of the ring read “Virginia Polytechnic Institute.” Len Wagner just called and said, “Hey, Perry, it was probably a Hokie working at Balfour who had that mistake made!”

Well, that does make sense now, doesn’t it?

1955

Read Hanmer

Greetings from Falls Church, Virginia.

As of this writing (mid-February), we have been having a cold winter, made bearable by a minimum of snow and ice. Hopefully, by the time this column is published in the spring 2017 Alumni Review (2017-Issue 2) in May, everything will be in bloom, the baseball season will have begun and we all find ourselves in (relatively) good health.

For my part, I continue working on my Parkinson’s disease, which seems to be under control.

Speaking of control, how about them Keydets at the inaugural parade! The Corps was magnificent, far outclassing the other academies and capturing the admiration of the president. The lines were straight, rifles at the proper slope and the “eyes left” was executed perfectly. Casey Jones said he was sorry he could not attend the parade, but noted he was reminded of the 1953 inaugural parade for President Eisenhower. There were several pauses in the parade, which enabled Casey and some others to slip into a small bar, have a beer and then slip back into the ranks. Casey noted that some of us were skilled in escape and evasion even then.

(Tut, tut, Casey, you’re boned, 10- 2-10.)

Another event about which we all can be proud was the induction of Brother Rat Mich Pettyjohn into the VMI Sports Hall of Fame. Barney Lawless told me that he, Ron Bryan and Bill Davidson were able to attend the affair to cheer Mich on.

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Class Notes Bill Poffenbarger’s son, John ’79, brought me up to speed on the Poffenbargers. Bill is still living in the Charlotte Hall veteran’s home and is holding steady. He had a mild stroke just before our 60th Reunion in 2015 and was unable to attend the reunion. He recovered enough to attend his grandson’s graduation, Ryan ’16, from VMI in May 2016. Ryan was commissioned as a second lieutenant and is currently serving in the Army Medical Services Corps, stationed at Fort Meade, Maryland. If you would like to contact Bill, here’s his address: Bill Poffenbarger, Charlotte Hall Veterans’ Home, #B212, 29449 Charlotte Hall Road, Charlotte Hall, MD 20622. Phone: 301-8848181, Ext. 205.

Joe Brenner reported on an American Legion Post meeting in Norwalk, Connecticut.

The highlight of the evening was an appearance by the VMI Commanders, under the direction of Col. John Brodie (Hon.). Joe said that there were many VMI alumni there, including an early 40s veteran. All were totally entertained by the Commanders. (Class agent note: I played with the VMI Commanders under the direction of Col. “Dodo” Dillard in 1954-55. Fond memories.)

Larry Price said he spent two weeks in Florida and Biloxi, Mississippi. In Biloxi, Larry made contact with Eddie Davis’ daughter, Alice, who is a top executive (director) of the Beau Rivage Resort. Larry said he had seen Eddie some years ago when he was a blackjack dealer at Casino Magic in Bay St. Louis, Missouri.

I received a nice update from Tom Williamson, which I reproduce here: “This has been an amazing year. At the first of the year, I moved to a continuing care retirement center, Arbor Acres, in Winston-Salem. I moved into a small room – I called it a motel room – but was on the top of the list for a house.

When one became available, it was completely renovated to my wishes – new roof, new siding, new wiring and plumbing, walls moved, new appliances and fixtures, and the addition of a screened back porch, which is my pride and joy. I have been in the house since July and am completely happy. I have met many good friends here and have been kept busy with an active cultural and social life. Life is good! However, in November 38

I fell on uneven pavement while walking briskly. There was a break in the femur in my left leg, and I now have a metal ball in my left hip. Recovery has gone remarkably well, and I am now walking without aid and almost back to full motion. After a short stay in the hospital, I moved into a nursing care unit at Arbor Acres for about two weeks before returning to independent living.

It has been a wonderful year, and I have been truly blessed and give thanks to God daily for the move and family. My wish to all my friends is to have the peace of God, which passes all understanding.” Thanks for the update, Tom. Now to the hard part, departures: Emmett Robert Langley died in November 2016. Emmett left VMI in 1952 to join the Army. He received a Purple Heart as a Ranger in Korea. Upon his discharge, he attended and graduated from the General Motors Institute in Flint, Michigan. While attending GMI, he met his wife, Joyce (née Waller), who was working at GMI. They were married in 1956 in Flint, Michigan, and moved to Jacksonville, Florida, where they remained for over 60 years.

Please see the tribute to Sam Marshall in the Taps section of the February Alumni Review (2017-Issue 1).

1956

Richard M. Smith

Motsy Foster wrote that several marriages and engagements have taken place for her granddaughters and grandson in the past year. Also, there are more University of Virginia graduates in the family as well as Hokie grads. Her health is holding well enough to still enjoy bridge and church choir. She hopes to sell her home in Buena Vista soon but will miss lots of friends there.

Sandra McDonald wrote that she and Ken have slowed down quite a lot this year. She is still active in the American Rhododendron Society and attends some committee meetings. She signed up with Heartland Hospice in the fall to get nursing and nighttime help

for Ken, who needs help getting in and out of bed and moving around. He can still use a walker but only for short distance. They get lots of family support.

Larry Miller wrote that he and Betty spent an enjoyable week in February in Hawaii.

They didn’t enjoy the traffic on the islands.

They had a most interesting month of August following the progress of daughter Diane, who hiked 500 miles up the Pacific

Class of 1956: Bob Brickner participated in several marathons in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He is pictured at the “Escape from Turkey Mountain” event with his first place medal for all runners in the age group of 75 and older.

Class of 1956: Pictured are various medals from Brickner’s runs in 2016.

In each of the seven races, he placed first in the age group of 75 and older.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Crest Trail alone across the state of Washington. Betty was surprised for her 80th birthday when son Brian flew in from New York. He is a partner in a new tiki-style cocktail lounge in Manhattan. They are looking forward to being at the grand opening in Times Square next summer. Betty had a bout with vertigo which is still a problem and caused loss of hearing in one ear. They have an upcoming trip planned to cruise through the Panama Canal to San Diego over the Christmas holidays.

The Hesleps had a busy year going to Paris, Monaco and Nice with dinner at the Eiffel Tower. Their contributions to Mary Washington University continue with the dedication of Heslep Amphitheater. Jo joined some of her friends on a tour of the International Atomic Energy Agency. There were several graduations in the family from high school and college.

Jimmie Thurmond wrote a nice letter recalling his experience at our Ring Figure weekend. He remembered that it snowed, and on the way to the dance, he heard the music of Claude Thornhill’s band playing “Snowfall.” He escorted a beautiful girl from San Antonio who shared the romantic experience with him.

Jon Roach wrote that he has been blessed with good health, except he has to go into the room twice to remember what he came for. He reminds us that it has been 64 years since we met at VMI. He had two sons graduate from the Institute who have done well.

I received a beautiful Christmas card and note from John Harold “Rocky” Stone in Bassett, Virginia. Along with it, he sent a copy of the prayer he gave on Veteran’s Day for the Korean War Memorial Service Nov. 11, 2016. It is a beautiful tribute to those who fought and died during this horrific conflict.

I never knew Rocky was assigned to the U.S. Army Medical Service Corps, 15th Medical Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, Korea. His work for the Gideons continues to benefit many people.

I had a phone conversation with Scottie Boland and Ardis. They invited me to come stay with them when I come down to Florida in March. Scottie was concerned because he couldn’t reach his old BR Jim Stephens and asked me to check on him. I called Bill 2017-Issue 2

Nelson, who lives nearby, and he informed me that he had talked with Jim recently, but he hadn’t been well lately. He has a problem with his speech since his heart attack some time ago. Bill gave me Jim’s number to pass on to Scottie and said his live-in nurse friend, Diane, would most likely answer the phone.

Scottie had talked with John Kirshmier recently and said he was doing better since he was with his old friend, Jeanie, in Raleigh.

He can get around with the help of a walker.

I received information from Bob Brickner that Walter Donovan had a stroke and was in the hospital. After talking with the Roaches and Manns, I learned he fell in the night and his wife, Charlotte, found him in the morning. He is improving and has been sent to a rehabilitation hospital in Mechanicsville, Virginia, near their home. I sent him an arrangement of flowers from the VMI Class of ’56.

I learned from talking with Fred Farthing that our BR Ken McDonald died Jan. 31 after being under hospice care for several months. He and his wife ran a very prominent nursery in tidewater which his father started many years ago.

I’m sorry I don’t have any mug shots to include this time, but maybe we will get some as springtime arrives.

Yours in the spirit, Dick

recorded time;” not too bad for a couple of civils.

Unfortunately, the 2017-Issue 1 Alumni Review contained no class notes of the Class of ’57 because of one simple fact. That being, George and Howard did not even know we were to be the new class agents until after the deadline for inclusion of the notes in the issue had passed. So, no notice, no notes.

But ever pressing onward, here we are. As your new class agents, we begin by recognizing and thanking Dixie and Dawn Thomas for their long and valuable service to our class and the Institute. Their dedicated contributions have become visually clear as we work to learn the ropes of our class agent duties and responsibilities. In a recent phone conversation, Dixie and Dawn were generous, as always, with their guidance and advice. They were ready to pass the baton and take a break, so the gratitude of us all go out to them.

Drummond Ayers has taken on the heavy lifting of producing the 60th Reunion booklet, which is our most used and valued source of information about our classmates; many thanks to Drummond.

First, let us start with our thanks for your overwhelming response to the Balance the Books Campaign last year. Your generous donations not only balanced the books, eliminating a revenue deficit from our 55th Reunion, but added a nice cushion to help our 60th Reunion Committee plan with

1957

George Sydnor Jr. Howard Lawrence

These Class of ’57 notes are our first stab at becoming news gatherers on reporting the goings on of our brother rats as we continue moving down the path of life. As the bard Shakespeare once wrote: “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow creeps in this petty pace from day to day, to the last syllable of

Class of 1957: Carole and John Whittle at the Greenbrier.

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Class Notes confidence for our 60th this April. During the campaign, we had calls from Clint Glover, Ed Powell, Martin Andersen, Jim Snead and Bill Moore; they all seem to be doing well and plan on attending our 60th. Bill continues to chair our Class Bereavement Committee along with able assistance from Dick Collier, Jay Musser and Tom Vaughan; thanks for doing a great job, guys.

The Class of ’57 continues to be an active bunch, and we will do our best to keep you posted. Sad to say, our ranks continue to diminish. 2016 was a rough year for ’57, and since Dixie’s last notes in 2016-Issue 3, we have lost Francis Shield, Carl Schladitz and just recently, we learned of the death of Bob Alexander Jan. 15. The details of his obituary are listed in the Taps section of this issue, and we wrote to his widow, Virginia, to express our sincere sympathy.

Whenever a BR “crosses over the river to rest under the shade of the trees,” we are sure his widow would appreciate hearing from those of you who knew him well and were close friends during and after our barracks days. Garland Sullivan just emailed that he received a nice note from Anne Holmes. She said she was recovering slowly from a year of bereavement following Frank’s death with the kind help from her family and was sorry to miss the Class of ’57 notes in the last issue of the Alumni Review. She was concerned about Dixie.

Writing these notes in early February, we are pleased to have heard from quite a few of you.

And so we report: Bill and Betty Huffcut were enjoying their fireplace on a cold Florida Sunday when we talked recently. Bill, thankfully, is doing well and fully recovered after having survived two strokes last year.

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Class of 1957: Howard Lawrence and Frank Gilmore in Oxford, Mississippi, Feb. 4, 2017.

Class of 1957: At Taylor Grocery in Oxford, Mississippi, where the specialty is catfish, were Ann Gilmore, daughter Kristin Gilmore Newman and Frank Gilmore.

Class of 1957: Sarah and Maj. Gen. Dick Collier at a Collier family wedding.

He is living by the book and following doctor’s orders carefully.

Feeling fine, he reports; these old Leathernecks are just tough characters.

Dick and Sarah Collier sent a beautiful Christmas card including a picture of Dick and Sarah in full-dress with their “E Companysized” and handsome family taken at a recent family wedding. It is always good to see Dick sitting at Alumni Field with his cadet grandson at VMI football games.

Another fine card came from Ed Powell, including a Christmas greeting and annual picture of his close family. We always enjoy hearing from Ed and seeing his growing family. We hope to see you, Ed, at our big 60th Reunion coming in April – the 23rd to the 26th, to be exact.

Thanks to Carolyn and Al Baumgartner writing from Powder Springs, Georgia, for their interesting Christmas card, note and pictures. Pictures of Al bring back our memories of him from barracks days (not much is changed).

Al continues to teach adult Sunday school classes and works to keep them interesting with his ongoing sense of humor. Carolyn and Al’s travels last year took them to New Orleans twice, and then to the UP (Upper Peninsula of Michigan), all being accompanied with members of their family. Al came home with a difficult-to-heal kidney infection.

He is making progress but asks for our prayers in his behalf.

We received a “note of encouragement” from Bob Fiske thanking us for taking on the class agent tasks. Much appreciated vote of confidence from a former ’57 class agent. We suspect that Bob, following in Harry Warner’s footsteps, is worried whether or not two old civil engineers are literate enough to handle the class agent job. We find it interesting how the passage VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes of time may have changed perceptions. Recall that back in barracks days, we “enguneers” thought you LAs looked up to us for being the smart ones, as you guys could not even read the letters/numbers embellished on our slide rules!

Good news from Chris Pendleton (Mrs. Nat Pendleton), from Fort Meyers, Florida.

Chris and daughter Hillary are doing well.

Chris runs a big museum there (EdisonFirestone-Ford), and she plans to retire as the museum’s chief executive officer in a few months. Her museum is rated among top 10 in the U.S. for their Christmas light show. Her other important news announces she and her friend, Richard Starostecki, are engaged to be married. Last October, Richard and Chris traveled to Annapolis, where he attended his 50th reunion at the U.S. Naval Academy.

Great going, Chris, and keep us posted. We are pleased you remain attracted to “the military types.”

It was good to hear from SR (Mrs. Bill) Mickey Galvin, who received our Christmas card and added it to her collection, which she displays each Christmas season. Thanks for your best wishes. Howard has many fond memories of VMI and Air Force days with Bill. On several occasions while stationed in Alaska in 1958-59, Bill and Howard would commiserate on the Air Force inter-base telephone line. Bill was at a very remote base on the northwest coast of Alaska, which was far from nowhere! Howard was stationed at Olson Mountain Air Force Base near Homer, Alaska. Homer, located on the Gulf of Alaska, is considered by Alaskans to be in the state’s “Banana Belt.” We were not having much fun up there at the time but were thankful no one was shooting at us – though the Russians probably had us in their sights. Bill and Howard had both attended AFROTC summer camp at Ellington Field, Texas, in 1956.

Our Christmas card to Larry Armstrong, addressed to a Cincinnati location, was returned “undeliverable.” Where is Larry? And where are BRs Dick Hunt and Sid Perry?

Has anyone heard from them since that June day in 1957 when we all scattered to the four winds?

Randy Pendleton wrote from Charlottesville that he has retired from his newspaper 2017-Issue 2

reporting career in Florida. We are pleased to have a copy of a “Randy’s Memoir” describing his career contacts with VMI alums, (including interviewing Bill Huffcut), during Randy’s Florida newspaper career. We will be forwarding “Randy’s Memoir” to you by email soon and feel that you will find it very interesting. If any of you have produced a memoir about your careers or other special experiences, please share it with us for distribution.

Pat and Howard Lawrence enjoyed seeing and sitting with Don and Priscilla Jamison and Jay and Sonja Musser at The Citadel versus VMI football game on a cold afternoon last fall in Lexington. The Keydets were up against an undefeated Citadel team. After a hard fought game, The Citadel went home, still undefeated.

Howard flew to Memphis, Tennessee, in early February for a long planned visit with roommate Frank Gilmore and Ann at their winter home in Oxford, Mississippi. Frank, who is the retired chancellor of Montana Tech, spends summers at their home near Wise River, Montana. That is big sky country, and the summer breezes give welcomed relief from the hot humidity, a la Mississippi. Frank has been fighting health issues for several years but, as is his trademark, takes on the challenges as part of everyday life’s

trials and tribulations.

Frank mentioned that Bill Gay has been very thoughtful, kind and helpful with his medical advice and has provided valuable connections with other highly skilled medical professionals. Bill’s kind assistance has also benefited other BRs, and Bill, to you we say thanks for “being at our backs.” Look forward to seeing you and Frances at our 60th in April.

We email communicate regularly with Milton Hargrave, Garland Sullivan, Paul Phillips and Ben Elmore. These guys offer a wide spectrum of educational materials via their emails. You should get on board; they make life more interesting, to say the least.

Garland has chaired and set up the ’57 PBR Golf Tournament at Lexington Golf and Country Club for the Monday morning of our April reunion. But, we were sorry to learn that his better half, Sally, has decided attending our reunion is too big of a challenge for her physical handicaps. Sally, it won’t be the same without you with us.

We (Sydnors and Lawrences) enjoyed a visit and fine dinner in Roanoke with Drewry Fox last summer on his annual pilgrimage to Virginia. He had the opportunity to spend a couple of days with Bill and Alice Elmore and reported that all is well with them. Drew just had a replacement knee replacement in

Class of 1957: Lynn and Suzanne Avis, Joe and Ann Spivey, Harry and Sis Warner, Kirk and Kitty Hubbard, Robert Bolling and longtime companion Lea Whitbeck, John and Carole Whittle, and Howard and Pat Lawrence at the Greenbrier Hotel for a weekend.

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Class Notes January and reported the procedure went well, and he is recovering nicely.

While Drewry was in the Roanoke area, we also had a nice BR lunch at the Shenandoah Club in Roanoke with BRs G.E. Murray, Bob Newbill, Lynn Avis, Robert Bolling, Howard Lawrence, George Sydnor, John Whittle, class president Russ Davis, and honored guest Fox – “All present and accounted for.” Bob and Alice Newbill now live in Wirtz, just south of Roanoke. G.E. and Ro Murray are in the Bedford and Smith Mountain Lake areas. G.E. and Ro remain busy taking inventory and utmost guarded care of the class’ “Class 6 Supplies,” some of which have been subject to evaporation due to lack of use. G.E. advises that we will need to take care of that situation at the 60th.

We wrote Diantha McKeel (Mrs. Wally) a letter congratulating her for being elected chairwoman of the Albemarle Country (Charlottesville) board of supervisors. Diantha has been involved at the highest levels of government in the area for some time. We are very proud of her.

Class agent Sydnor has also “tested the waters” of the local government scene, having been elected to the Fincastle (Botetourt County) Town Council and vice-mayor positions in recent elections. George also wryly notes that he has retired twice and has failed twice. He no longer mentions the word “retirement” and continues his later life career in the business brokerage, consultancy, mergers and acquisitions fields with Transact Capital Partners headquartered in Richmond.

George also serves on the Vestry of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Fincastle, where he and Shirley “retired to” in 2006. They plan to be with us at the 60th.

On short notice recently, a local BR group including Lynn and Suzanne Avis, Joe and Ann Spivey, Harry and Sis Warner, Kirk and Kitty Hubbard, Robert Bolling and longtime companion Lea Whitbeck, John and Carole Whittle, and Howard and Pat Lawrence spent a weekend at The Greenbrier Hotel. In spite of the ravages of age, everyone survived and had a great time. We all agreed to have another of these outings soon, and this time, all of our classmates, with plenty of notice, will be included.

The Spiveys recently returned from several 42

days in Denver, (The Brown Hotel, no less), where Ann underwent tests by a highlyranked pulmonary clinic. They were awaiting test results when we visited last. We wish her a full recovery.

John and Carole Whittle dined recently at Myrtle Beach with old friends Ruthie (Mrs. Waller Wills) and her husband, Jimbo Smith ’60, and reported them doing well.

Jimbo dyked in the Howard Lawrence/ Frank Gilmore room our 1st Class year. He is a retired general surgeon from Lynchburg (originally from Birmingham, Alabama, which was Gilmore’s hometown, too), and is a Lynchburg-area associate of Jim Piggott, M.D. Jim and Toni Piggott are very much involved in the plans and arrangements for our dining events at our April reunion. Don’t miss the fun.

And so now is the time to make plans to attend our 60th coming up in April 23-26, 2017. John and Carole Whittle and their Reunion Committee have completed plans and arrangements for what will be our finest reunion yet.

You will be pleased by the enlarged size and excellence of the Corps (hope you saw the to-be-remembered inaugural parade and cadets in battalion mass) and the incredible improvements and additions to facilities and grounds on the post. We hope you won’t miss this one.

George Sydnor recently saw Lee McCown ’58 at the VMI versus The Citadel basketball game. Lee talked about the Class of 1958 Scholarship Fund that was initiated that morning at a ceremony in the football locker room. It was set up to honor the undefeated team of 1957. They had the iconic photo of Sam Woolwine ’58, Duke Johnston ’58 and Pete Johnson ’59 sweeping left end against the University of Richmond Spiders reproduced, framed and hung in the locker room as a gift from the Class of 1958. It was attended by Gen. J.H. Binford Peay III ’62, superintendent; Scott Wachenheim, head football coach; Col. Hutchings ’77, deputy athletic director and former commandant; and 10 of their ’58 BRs and wives, including Ron Swirk ’58, who actually played on the team.

Jim Moore ’58 gave the dedication address in his distinctive Deep South voice.

Lee expressed his appreciation to the classic Rat Line conducted by the 3rds (the venerable Class of 1957) that year and their attention to detail that instilled the character espoused by the excellent Class of 1958. Lee went on to say: “We would be happy to receive contributions from the great Class of 1957 should they so desire. Checks should be addressed to the Keydet Club with ‘Class of 1958 Football Scholarship Fund’ in the memo line.”

Now, most of us probably remember that Sam Woolwine ’58 matriculated to VMI in late January 1954 at midsemester our 4th Class year, having transferred from Georgia Tech. So technically, Sam is a brother rat of the great Class of 1957... our class. So those of us that would like to recognize him, please do so and send in your check.

The close, finally: Send us letters, phone calls, faxes or emails about what you are up to; we would like to see that every BR/SR is reported in this Class of ’57 news report. But, it goes without saying that your feedback will play a major role in the success of the class news gathering process. We ask you to pass on the news of yourselves and of our brother and sister rats, as only that way can we do a good job for you. To supplement this, we will be phoning and emailing you, too, and plan to initiate a regional network to help in this process. So far, “volunteers” for our recruiting process include: Bill Huffcut, Bob Fiske, Drewry Fox and Garland Sullivan.

We are investigating setting up a Class of ’57 website to facilitate our intra class communications. If you don’t use email, please let us encourage you to get onboard. It’s easy and quick.

Until we meet again, BRs, Godspeed to you all.

George and Howard

1958

Lee McCown

Who knew you could have a moving ceremony in a locker room? Of course, VMI would be expected to have one clean VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes

Class of 1958: Class Agent Lee McCown said of this photo, “The beautiful statue of Stonewall, in Charlottesville, on a horse the right size to represent Little Sorrell, and in motion.”

and neat enough to offer as a setting.

On Saturday, Feb. 11, BRs with close ties to or sentimental feelings about the undefeated 1957 football team gathered in the Clarkson-McKenna Hall football locker room for the unveiling of two things: 1) a large framed copy of the iconic photograph of Sam Woolwine, Duke Johnston and Pete Johnson ’59 sweeping left end in the Richmond game, and 2) the official announcement that our class has surpassed the $50,000 goal needed to establish a football scholarship in honor of that team.

The photograph, with “Stay Focused!” along with the scores of all the games that season on a plaque beneath it and the inscribed words, “A Gift of the Class of 1958,” was the brainstorm of Jim Moore, who displayed his usual eloquence in remarks after the unveiling.

Jim cited a scene from the 1997 movie, “The Edge,” starring Alec Baldwin and Anthony Hopkins, who have to fight off a bear in the Alaskan wilds. The Hopkins character is a student of history and declares, “What one man can do, another man can do.” Jim used this phrase in a vivid pep talk for future VMI football teams: “We did it in ’57, and we can do 2017-Issue 2

it again. Kill that bear!”

In attendance were Gen. Binnie Peay III ’62, superintendent; Dr. Dave Diles, director or intercollegiate athletics; Col. Eric Hutchings ’77, deputy athletic director; Scott Wachenheim, head football coach; Donnie Ross ’74, vice president of the Keydet Club; and the following BRs: Dave Camper and his wife, Barbara; Brooke Doggett; Moon Menefee; Jim Moore; Ron Swirk, who played on the team, and his son, Francis; Stuart Whitehurst; Stirling Williamson and his wife, Jane; and Laura and I. Lou Farmer, who was co-captain of the team, came later and was able to visit with Ron. Donnie Ross made inspiring remarks, too, telling us that, as a kid, he devoured the Bombs of his older brother Bobby Ross ’59. “I knew every team member’s name and the numbers on their uniforms.” Donnie himself has been a football coach at VMI, and his brother, Bobby, has renown I don’t have to describe. Donnie has been a superlative aide throughout the establishment of the scholarship.

Donnie told us that VMI is the only American military school that is required by law to charge out-of-state athletes outof-state tuition, putting us at a recruitment disadvantage and making private gifts essential. The Citadel also has the advantage of having a graduate school where athletes with remaining eligibility can play another year. Our scholarship funding will have to rise to $1 million to fully fund an out-of-state football player, the cost of which currently stands at $50,769 per year. An in-state scholarship is currently $26,460 per year. Scholarship funds are invested and 5 percent is taken out each year. We currently have $55,273 in the fund, which is giving $2,764 annually in aid to VMI athletes.

On behalf of the class, Stirling, Jim and I have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the VMI Keydet Club and VMI regarding the Class of 1958 Football Scholarship which reads in part: “This scholarship is established by the Class of 1958 and will serve to honor those brother rats who were members of the undefeated team of 1957, who provided outstanding

play and leadership. It is impossible to convey the pride that the Class of 1958 took in the accomplishments of this team and the positive effect it had on the morale of the entire Corps of Cadets.

“Just two years earlier, the VMI football team had won one game, beating The Citadel in Charleston. The entire Corps met the team bus when it arrived back on post at 3 a.m. A year later, the team won only three games but showed the spark that was to lead to the 9-0-1 season of 1957.

The Class of 1958 leaders of that team were: Sam Woolwine, co-captain; Lou Farmer, co-captain; Benny Day; Duke Johnston; Bobby Jordan; Dave Martin; Nick Evanusich Persin; Harry Shepherd; Ron Swirk; Roland Tharp, manager; and Bob King, trainer.

“This scholarship will forever be known as the Class of 1958 Football Scholarship at the Virginia Military Institute and will enable a young cadet of character and ability to contribute his talents to the success of the football team while availing himself of the excellent educational and personal growth opportunities at VMI. “The scholarship will be established through gifts made by brother rats and/ or friends of the Class of 1958. These contributions will constitute the corpus

Class of 1958: Frank Norvell and Martha Booker as servants in a haunted house.

Halloween on Hanover Avenue in Richmond made The Wall Street Journal.

Photo by Peggy Guy. 43

Class Notes specific sport and the Class of 1958 Scholarship Fund.

Those BRs who have contributed so far include: Bob Beale, Hal Bowen, Dave Camper, Alec Clarke, Hunter Clarke, Bill Corr, Jim Cowan, Jack Cunningham, Brooke Doggett, Bill Dunn, Ernie Edgar, Ken Godfrey, Bruce Haldeman, Frank Hancock, Bill Harshaw, Charlie Hayes, Guy Hence, Ted Henry, Onza Hyatt, Duke Johnston, Dave Martin, Gene Martin, Lee McCown, Moon Menefee, Jim Moore, Hull Negley, Don Class of 1958: Class Agent Lee McCown said of this photo, Norman, Frank Norvell, Pags “Barbara Camper, Stirling Williamson, Brooke Doggett, Dave Camper and Moon Menefee get the straight scoop from Coach Paganelli (officially ’57, but we Wachenheim about the VMI football program.” claim him, too), Anna Pai, Roy Palmer, Joe Parker, Jerry Paull, Jack Payne, Dave Pitkethly, Jim Poteet, Wes Roberts, Tom Saunders, Jack Sullivan, Drew Troxler, Stuart Whitehurst, Stirling Williamson, Sam Witt, Jan Woodman and Warren Yaun.

We have also received a generous gift from Jim Moore’s brother, retired Maj. Gen. William C. Moore ’51. Thanks to all who have contributed so far. We would really like to get 100 percent of you involved Class of 1958: Donnie Ross, Keydet Club vice president, thanked in this worthy class endeavor, so the class for their generosity in establishing a football scholar- if you haven’t already – break out ship. Ross followed the ’57 team as a child by reading brother that checkbook!

Bobby’s copies of The Bomb.

Following the events in the football locker room, BRs and wives in attendance decamped for the mess hall and had lunch courtesy of the Keydet Club. The food was OK, but we missed the cadet waiters.

Brooke Doggett made sure we were all alert by banging a glass on the table – but thankfully not tossing it. Jim Moore immediately threw up his hands and was ready in case the glass came his way.

Lunch was followed by a really great basketball game against The Citadel. We did a number on them – 101-78 – in large part thanks to a spectacular performance by Q.J. Peterson ’17, who scored 37 points, many Class of 1958: Celebrating the establishment of the ’58 football scholarship were Dave Campwith acrobatic shots. I trust you all got the er; Stuart Whitehurst; Moon Menefee; Brooke Doggett; Jim Moore; Ron Swirk; Lee McCown; colorful Roanoke Times story I sent out on Wachenheim, head football coach; Stirling Williamson; and Gen. Peay ’62, superintendent. the game, as well as the Keydet Club recap.

(or principal) of the fund to be invested as a part of the VMI Keydet Club endowment and administered in perpetuity according to the Keydet Club’s policies and practices. Future gifts to the scholarship will be added to the scholarship’s corpus unless directed otherwise by the donor.

Income earned by the scholarship will be used to provide financial assistance to one or more cadet-athletes through the VMI Keydet Club. Any income not used will be reinvested in the scholarship’s principal.”

Ways to contribute to our Class of 1958 Scholarship Fund were outlined in the letter and pledge form sent out last fall.

They include writing a check to the Keydet Club (P.O. Box 932, Neikirk Hall, VMI, Lexington, VA 24450) with “Class of 1958 Football Scholarship” on the memo line; a pledge to contribute a certain amount for x number of years; or a planned gift, e.g., a bequest, an estate gift, a trust or a life insurance policy, etc. If you have any questions, contact Donnie Ross at the Keydet Club (800-444-1839; dross@ vmiaa.org). Keydet Club members may split their annual gift 50-50 between operations for a

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VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes On another topic discussed that weekend, we learned that Jane Williamson is involved with an effort to keep the downtown Charlottesville statues of Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson in their current locations. On the way home, Laura and I decided to go see these statues for the first time in years and found that the Jackson statue in particular is magnificent; much more dynamic and, in terms of the size of Little Sorrell, much more accurate than the one on Monument Avenue in Richmond. Jane and Laura have both read the most recent Jackson biography, “Rebel Yell,” and say it is very good.

Lou Farmer called in December while he was in Richmond for a granddaughter’s performance at her school. He said that he missed deer season for the first time in many years due to knee replacement surgery. At that stage, he was using a cane most of the time.

I spoke with Joe Gray who had recently talked with Bill Kump. Bill reported that both he and Agnes are generally in good health. Having planned to move to West Virginia, they are reconsidering and may move to Richmond’s West End where both their son, Cyrus ’86, and daughter, Sterling, live.

The Institute Society Dinner drew this representation from ’58: Elizabeth and Ernie Edgar, Carolyn and Bill Harshaw, Becky and Onza Hyatt, Judy and Hull Negley, and Laura and I. We were joined by our delightful friend, Lee Camp, formerly of the VMI Board of Visitors and now on the board of the VMI Foundation.

At this time, our thoughts are with Ted Henry and his family. He is slowly improving, and I am sure is looking forward to seeing all of us at the 60th Reunion, April 23-24, 2018. We will look forward to seeing Ted and Becky there.

Brooke Doggett had a recent conversation with Jack Dunavant, who is in good health and living in Halifax County, Virginia. He told Brooke that he is engaged in preventing uranium mining from coming to the county and is also the representative for a group opposing a proposed pig farm.

Sounds like Jack is watching his legacy, too, as many of us are in our ninth decade.

Jack, come to our 60th Reunion and let us know how these efforts turned out.

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Brooke also spoke with Carolyn Woolwine, who was in Florida visiting one of her children and unable to attend our event honoring the ’57 football team of which Sam was a huge part.

Wes Roberts’ wife, Annemarie, reported that Wes is still in hospice and holding his own. All our best to one of the greatest class agent teams in VMI history.

Frank Norvell and Martha Booker made The Wall Street Journal in a feature about cities that celebrate Halloween the best. At the time the photo was taken, Frank was still living in the 1900 block of Hanover Avenue in Richmond, the epicenter of Halloween decorating that draws thousands of trick or treaters. Their costumes were hilarious, as you can see. They were the butler and maid in a haunted house, and Laura said they also looked like a bad night downstairs at Downton Abbey.

Alec Clarke is healthy and looks good. We regularly play catch up at a Cuban restaurant near me, and most recently, he reported that his wife, Xuguang, is very busy in her job with Amazon, traveling to Seattle twice a month where her work team is located. Son Vasa is a junior at the University of Virginia and doing well. Daughter Henrietta is thriving in her first year at Cornell University. Alec reported that he is so far keeping up with the incredibly high tuition there. Laura’s daughter, Alane, expressed strong interest in Cornell back in 1987, but Laura headed her to The College of William and Mary by letting her know the biggest selling poster in the Cornell bookstore was of the sun. Long winters up there.

Wishing all of you the best in the second half of 2017. Rah Virginia Mil! Lee

from the time she was diagnosed. A child passing before their parents is not the plan, but unfortunately it happens, and far too many times it has happened to our BRs. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Ingram family always.

Jim Edmunds had a nice lunch with Royall and Geri Geis last September when they were in the area visiting their daughter who lives in the Bay Area. Jim spent some time in San Antonio, Texas, where he visited his sister. He plans to travel “south of the border” to Mexico before the quarter is out.

Japan is on the radar screen but no specific dates yet.

I received a nice note from Tom and Jan Davis. Tom sees Bob Baillio occasionally and says he looks like he is getting younger every year. He saw Jimmy Johnson several years ago when Tom was in the hospital with bladder cancer. He has no idea how Jimmy found out he was there, but he appreciated his thoughtfulness. Tom retired from law practice 12 years ago when he had a trial and employment law firm. Jan has him traveling a lot, as evidenced by the fact that they were leaving for a grand trip to India the next day.

Ralph and Janice Rae Lawson have exhausted their bucket list of river cruises in Europe, having just completed their latest run on the Danube from Bucharest to Budapest. They were surprised at how

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Shep Shepard

John Martin and Max Blanchard informed me that Jim Ingram’s daughter died. I spoke with Ina who said her daughter, Carol, died from brain tumors. Ina said she did not suffer and died just 62 days

Class of 1959: Ralph and Janice Rae Lawson cruising through the Iron Gate Gorge in Serbia.

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Class Notes much damage from World War II and the snowbird in Siesta Key, Florida. Walt Fero- Florida and wish all BRs a bright new year.

Soviet Union occupation is still evident af- ny is slowing down a bit but reported that he Art and Ginny Brandriff enjoyed the holiter so many years. While in Transylvania, has no serious problems. Dick and Judith day season in Chesapeake where they had they did visit Dracula’s famous castle and Irons wrote that all is quiet in Palm Beach an awesome time visiting with friends and came out all in one piece. Ralph and Janice Gardens, Florida. Dick is about to stumble family. Cec and Gordon MacArthur love Rae have no trips abroad planned for the upon his 80th birthday soon, as he ex- hearing all the news about their friends coming year, but they will visit family and pects many of his classmates have already in the Class of ’59 from the class notes reached that milestone. Dick keeps saying each quarter. They are both enjoying life many friends in the good ole USA. Harry and Ann Ray checked in from that he is getting old but is having trouble in Conroe, Texas. John, Anne and Jack Charlotte, North Carolina, and all is well discovering exactly how to determine when Reed enjoyed their Christmas holiday in in the Ray family. Penn and Betty Whit- he gets there. Bill and Jenny Lee are enjoy- Fishersville, Virginia, where Jack is growescarver sent regards from Stuart, Florida, ing the cool weather in the panhandle of ing like a weed and gets more handsome every day. It seems that more and where they enjoyed a quiet but more, John sees himself in Jack comfortable holiday. Carl and but only wishes that he was as Phyllis Kasko are doing pretty smart as Jack is when he was his good in Mobile, Alabama. Phylage. Eddie and Carolyn Barnes lis is getting stronger. Her biggest think often about the great time problem now is balance, so she they had traveling last summer prefers to use a walker or a cane on the Rhone River with BRs when walking. Our prayers conand their wives; they thought it tinue to be with her as she fights was awesome and hope we do it this battle, but with her strength again soon. Bill and Mary Kesand determination, I have no sler write that all is well in Long doubt that she will prevail. Buzz Beach, California. Baldy and and Virginia Nowlin are holding Joanne Fall continue to enjoy life the fort in Hot Springs, Virginia, in Virginia Beach despite the ever and are as active as ever. They atClass of 1959: Larry and Nancy Wood spent a quiet Christmas increasing traffic congestions. Al tend as many activities at VMI as at home in Las Vegas. and Peggy Smith Colville wish they can. The results of Margo all BRs good health and happiness for the Cotton’s most recent bone and CT scans coming year. Larry and Nancy Wood celwere good, and she is feeling much better. ebrated a quiet Christmas at home in Las Prayers do work. Dick and Linda Phillippi Vegas but hopes everyone else had a rockchecked in from the great metropolis of ing holiday season. Bruce Mackenzie has Wytheville, Virginia, and reported that all been in and out of the hospital during the is well. John and Chris Patane are planentire month of December. Hopefully he ning to attend the VMI function in The is on the mend. The good thing was that Villages, Florida, in March. Lou and Dihe lost 58 pounds but does not recomane Gontrum send regards to all BRs from mend that as the approved solution diet.

Longs, South Carolina, and wish all health Norma’s mental health continues to be on and happiness. Bill and Yvonne Traylor the decline due to Alzheimer’s; she can spent a quiet but wonderful Christmas in remember things that happened 30 years Winter Park, Florida. George and Marie ago but not 10 seconds ago. They love livO’Neill are savoring life in the beautiful ing in Florida and especially their home in city of Kingsport, Tennessee. Bill and SuAston Gardens. Heard from Bob and Anne sie Kirkland are hanging in there in LouBaillio over in Houston, and they seem to isville, Kentucky, although they are unable be doing OK. Grandchildren continue to to travel due to Susie’s feeding tube. They be their primary focus and the apples of have their two boys who live nearby, and their eyes. Got a nice card from Jeff, Casthe girls come as often as they can. It was sidy, Mason and Sarah Strunk up in Eustis, not yet Christmas, and John and Teddi Class of 1959: Pete McWane at the northMaine, and all seems to be well with the Martin were already fed up with the cold ern point of Norway, 71 degrees north Strunks. weather in Virginia and looking forward to and 19 degrees south of the North Pole.

Betty Sellers called to let me know that March when they planned to once again 46

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Bill Huffcut ’57 suffered two small strokes while visiting his daughter in Montgomery, Alabama, last December. Bill’s wife, Betty, called it an unscheduled family reunion.

I immediately called Bill, and he said he passed out at a restaurant, but his daughter and Betty got right to it and performed CPR, which saved his life. Bill was feeling great and has had no adverse side affects.

Betty Sellers says as long as she stays busy she’s OK, but the “game of the week” is waiting to see what is going to need Phil to fix it. Last week, it was the golf cart; this week, the garage door. Thankfully, she has had many good years of on-the-job training whenever Phil was deployed. Charlie and Agnes Carter had a wonderful Christmas in White Stone, Virginia, with all of Agnes’ and Tommy’s four kids and 12 grandkids showing up for the celebration. As you know, all of Agnes’ and Tommy’s boys graduated from VMI; Tom ’89, George ’91 and Wallace ’94. The Inge legend lives on.

Charlie is looking and feeling much better and is very much improved from the illness he has been suffering from this past year.

Judy MacWillie is doing well considering she just celebrated her first Christmas without Don. She attributes her survival over the past year to the kindness, love and support she received from her family and friends. The kids have been great and seem

to have embraced the reversed role of taking care of mom. Don is resting peacefully in a beautiful place overlooking the airfield at Fort Hood. All the kids are employed and in good health. Better yet, they all live in Texas, so she can visit them whenever she chooses.

John and Pat Van Kesteren packed up the presents and moved the Christmas tree from Albuquerque, New Mexico, to Charlottesville, Virginia. It’s a good thing their daughter has a large house, because they were joined by more family from Australia. They feel blessed to have yet another year together and to share the times and memories with their children and grandchildren. They feel their greatest gift is to watch with pride as their grandchildren reach maturity and excel in their life’s adventures.

They are proud great-grandparents. Bonnie Pomponio is well and healthy and keeps her girlish figure by ferrying her grandsons from one activity to another. Both are doing great in Tae Kwando, where they are progressing up the belt ladder. They are such a source of joy for Bonnie. For the past four years, Bonnie has spent much of her time volunteering at a low-budget school tutoring the little ones. She finds working with the young kids so rewarding. Bonnie keeps in touch with her old friend, Walt Ferony, and reported that he is doing well. His kids

Class of 1959: Mel Anderson celebrated his 80th birthday with a surprise birthday party at the Hofbrauhaus in St. Petersburg, Florida. Pictured were, from left, Bob Haines, Connie Nebraska, Ann and Shep Shepard, Monique Hanretty, Mel and Jean Anderson, and Bill Nebraska.

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are trying to get him out of the big house and into something a little more manageable. Harry and Terry McGregor look back on the year past and are ever thankful for all He has provided for their family. Harry started the year by participating in a mission to Papua New Guinea with a group from their church. They helped construct a school that will double as a church meeting facility. In July, Harry had knee replacement surgery and has recovered nicely thanks to faithfully following the physical therapist’s directions. All of their six kids and 20 grandkids are doing great, graduating from noted universities with bachelor’s and master’s degrees. Life goes on as Harry and Terry continue to work in their church, the Gideon, jail ministry and working with poll officials during election season.

John and Betty Ann Tompson experience the usual aches and creaks, but the good news is that, after two years, Betty Ann’s cancer seems to be stable and not causing problems other than extreme fatigue. They plan to visit their son in Paris sometime in the spring. Rogers and Susan McCall checked in from Bristol, Virginia, and all is well. Rogers is still practicing elder law, wills, estates, disgruntled heirs, etc. In order to retain his humility, Rogers represents indigent people charged with crimes, who fortunately are all innocent. He spends his free time playing tennis and running a parks program for area youngsters at their new public tennis center. Kids are doing great. Taylor is about to take her orals for her Doctor of Philosophy degree in art history at Cambridge, and Laura retired from teaching art and is devoting full time to her new job with Cle Hahn. She just returned from her second trip to China with him.

As always, Brad Willard provides me with so many interesting historical vignettes concerning his family history, and this year was no exception. Brad’s great-grandfather, Henry Augustus Willard, founded the Willard Hotel in Washington, D.C., circa 1850 and sold it to his brother, Joseph C. Willard.

Joseph married the Confederate spy, Antonia Ford, and they had a son, Joseph E. Willard ’886. He inherited the Willard Hotel and rebuilt it as it stands today. His daughter, Belle Willard, married Kermit Roosevelt, the 47

Class Notes son of Teddy Roosevelt. Brad, as you recall, tried his hand at the hotel business with Willard’s of Saba, which had a short life from 1994-2009. From Brad’s viewpoint, it was a wonderful experience where he met many prominent guests including rock group Pearl Jam; Robert Crandell, chief executive officer of American Airlines; Barbara Bush Koch, President Bush’s sister; and many, many more important people, including Mike Brooks and Billy Walker. Jimmy and Linda Johnson feel blessed that their families are doing so well. Jimmy and Linda are staying close to Georgetown these days because the traffic in the big cities is awful. They recently drove to Houston for the deactivation ceremony of Jimmy’s U.S. Army Reserve hospital unit. Needless to say, it was not a pleasant experience, especially when he got the news of those who could not attend, but there were many, many good memories associated with those happy days when the hospital was active. Jimmy just turned 79, and with his pacemaker working 100 percent, he thinks his goal might be the century mark. Jim and Bet Vermillion have much to be thankful for; they were in a very serious automobile accident in Norfolk that put them both in the local trauma center. They were hit from behind and pushed into the back of a semitruck, totaling their car. Bet got the worst of it with some broken ribs, but they both are on the mend and were back in action before the end of the year. Thank goodness for Harlee Pate, who immediately came to their assistance. They do have good news, however; their grandson, Michael Christopher Newport, son of Chris Newport ’87, will be entering VMI next year in the Class of 2020. No sooner had I heard about Jim and Bet’s accident when I received a call from Ron Marley that Mary Alice had a severe fall while they were visiting their daughter in Kentucky. As Mary Alice was walking up a flight of stairs, the family dogs got wrapped around her legs, and she fell down the stairs, landing on her back on a pile of rocks. Since her daughter lives in a very small town, they immediately evacuated Mary Alice to Lexington, where she got an MRI that determined she had a compressed fracture of her C12. Ron and Mary Alice are home now, and Ron is waiting on her hand and foot, as 48

it should be. Mary Alice says she is feeling pretty good, albeit a little sore. They spent a very quiet Christmas and new year cuddled up in blankets in front of the fire place. Max and Lee Ann Blanchard have had a busy year visiting friends and family and attending grandchildren’s high school and college graduations. When Max reached the ripe old age of 80, his children decided it was time for the family to have a big reunion, so everyone came to Albuquerque for the big occasion. A few days after the celebration, Lee Ann had a shoulder replacement which went well, and she experienced very little pain. Max and Lee Ann continue to be very active in their community and church activities. Mike and Julie Vargosko have limited their travels this past year, with the highlight being their trip to New Orleans and a visit to the World War II Museum. You might recall the picture in the class notes a few months ago of Mike standing in front of a World War II tank. Thanksgiving was a happy time for them, because both boys came to visit. They are experiencing old age pains and a bout with pneumonia, but other than that, they are both in good health. Spence and Beverly Tucker are well and healthy in Lexington, where they have just completed the carriage house on their property so their daughter will have her own place to live. Spence is still writing with his eye on the prize of completing 63 books. Beverly continues to preserve history, paints and enjoys moving dirt in her garden. Mel and Jean Anderson have done their fair share of traveling this past year, most of which I’ve reported on in previous class notes. They went to the Southern Caribbean; Berlin, Germany, a cruise down the Elbe River; Prague and Salzburg; a few trips to Maryland and visiting friends in neighboring states. It’s been a great year for Mel and Jean, and their children and grandchildren continue to all do extremely well accomplishing achievements that they never would have imagined. Jean and her daughter, Bonnie, conspired to give Mel a surprise birthday party to celebrate his 80th. They reserved the Hofbrauhaus in St. Petersburg, Florida, and invited a few hundred of Mel’s former students, fellow professors and closest friends.

They were successful in keeping it a secret, and Mel was overwhelmed when he walked

in and saw the crowd. Several BRs showed up to show their support. Ann and I drove over from Melbourne to help Mel celebrate, as did Bob Haines and Monique Harnetty, who came up from Sarasota, as did Bill and Connie Nebraska, who drove down from Hernando, Florida. A great time was had by all with plenty of bratwurst, sauerkraut, wienerschnitzel, beer and good old German drinking songs.

Lee and Nancy Southard had a good year albeit consumed by renovating a fixer-upper.

Thank goodness for the tenacity and decorating skills of Nancy, who has pretty much taken over the projects and just asks Lee once in a while to go get her a cup of coffee.

There is light at the end of the tunnel, and they should be in the home by the spring. Big news for Lee was committing to complete the book, “To Know with Certainty,” and sending it to the editor for publication. He is also in the process of setting up a website of the same name. Basically, this project is an effort to prepare our young people for a life where they can intellectually defend their faith and satisfy their doubts. Both doing well.

Pete McWane had a trip scheduled along the coast of Norway in November, but in July, it was canceled. Not deterred, Pete got

Class of 1959: Ann and Shep Shepard visited the “crown jewel” of India, the Taj Mahal, during their recent trip to Nepal and India.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes the name of the Norwegian boat line and rescheduled it himself. Although Pete was the only American on the boat, it was a great trip that he would really like to take again in the summertime. He wanted to see the Northern Lights, as well as how dark it gets north of the Arctic Circle, and was able to accomplish both. Another reason for his trip was he had sent off his DNA to find his connection to Scotland, and it turns out that he is a “McQueen” but also Norwegian.

Jack and Joy Angolia spent the month of December traveling Europe visiting the many Christmas markets. They spent four days in Germany covering the Munich markets, then the obligatory trip to the two famous Ludwig castles which are always a treat. They boarded a Viking riverboat and traveled down the Danube River to Austria, Czech Republic and Hungary. Of all the markets they visited, the one in Budapest was the best. Jack’s latest book should have been ready for distribution in mid-January.

There are two more books awaiting release sometime this year. Jack will do a book addressing the short fall of U.S. national intelligence agencies. March will find them traveling from Rio to Lima, rounding the Cape and waving hello to “old friend” Antarctica.

With two more ocean trips lined up for this year, sometimes Jack feels he should have joined the Navy.

Bob and Lois Hobson spent December in Georgia. Their daughter and her husband have a beautiful 25-acre “ranch” near Athens with horses, dogs, ATVs and an apartment in the making for Bob and Lois. They plan to spend a couple of months out there each year.

Bud and Denyse Kramer celebrated Bud’s 80th birthday by bringing both families together in Orlando for an evening on the town. Bud gave a speech on his life from birth in a room over the Pontoon Theater in Richmond, Virginia, through his education and military assignments. Bud feels it is good that we old folks remind our younger generations how life was in the black and white days; no air conditioning, no television, no FM radios, no cruise control, no cell phones, computers, etc. Bud is doing well, albeit he has an imbalance problem, so he walks with a cane. Thank goodness for the cane he got 2017-Issue 2

at the 50th Reunion. As long as he takes his pills and insulin daily, the old body seems to chug along.

Ann and I have literally just returned from a three week trip to Nepal and India, and what a trip it was. Naturally, the Taj Mahal was the central attraction, but there was so much more to this interesting country. Nepal is still recovering from the devastating earthquake of 2015, and it will be many years before they show signs of progress. India has the most hospitable people in the world.

With all the traffic on the roads and constant traffic jams, I did not see one incident of road rage. The poverty in that part of the world is heartbreaking, and one can understand why Saint Teresa headquartered in Calcutta. We spent a week in Kathmandu, a week in New Dehli, Jaipur and Ranthambore; boarded a riverboat at Agra and spent the final week on the Ganges River, visiting small villages up and down the river. We traveled the country by motor coach, train, airplanes, rickshaw, elephant, tuk-tuk and riverboat, and as much as we enjoyed it, it was good to get home.

Keep those cards and letters and emails coming in.

Yours in the spirit, Shep

up and reinstall a lot of the work we had done. We evacuated to Atlanta, so we are safe. Everything else can be replaced and we have a positive attitude. Probably about four to five months before everything is redone since contractors are so busy here.

Hope you all made it OK.” Our thoughts and hopes are with Ray and Terri Zinn. On Nov. 2, I called Jay Jarrett in Huntington Beach, California, for his birthday but only got a recording. We exchanged emails, so there is every indication that he is well.

We wish him more birthdays. On Nov. 5, I called Fred Murrill and left a birthday message. Fred called me two days later, and we had a wonderful conversation. Fred has quite a VMI legacy. His grandfather graduated from VMI in 1882. His father graduated from VMI in 1913 and went on to the U.S. Military Academy at West Pont, graduating in 1918. His health is good, having just completed a five-hour physical. He and Dave Maddox get together for lunch usually once a year, as they live close to one another. We wish Fred well and many more birthdays. We don’t have an email address for Fred, as he says he doesn’t use one.

I received a hand written note from Gene Grayson ’58 in inquiring about Bill Cressall.

1960

James A. Smith III

Greetings from St. James Plantation this beautiful day. I’m afraid I’ve some bad news to begin these notes. Ray Crickenberger wrote about his terrible experience with Hurricane Matthew. He wrote, “Thought I should tell you that Matthew did quite a number on Hilton Head and our home we moved into in January. We had finished renovation Jan. 3 of the home and were within three days of finishing the master bedroom and bath. Matthew put a tree through our roof, plus the 19 inches of rain in 24 hours flooded our neighborhood and house. We are completely rebuilding the entire interior after 10 inches of water flooded everything. Have to rip

Class of 1960: Fred Murrill on a cruise.

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Class Notes They served together over the years and was very complimentary of “Elrod” as a gunship helicopter pilot in Vietnam. It’s always good to hear about our brother rats. On Nov. 7, one day after Fudd Caldwell’s birthday, I caught up with him. Fudd had left his house before 8 o’clock and was headed to the oil fields. It was a joy to speak with him. Fudd feels like he’s having two birthdays a year, as they come so fast. Don’t we all! No question he is a hard worker. Fudd says he is still in the early 20th century, as neither he nor his wife, Speer, use email. Fudd’s granddaughter is his secretary and keeps him up to current.

Again, it was a joy to catch up with him.

I caught up with Bob “Railroad” Hamilton on his birthday, Nov. 8. Railroad was in route to his house on Saginaw Bay, Michigan. He was feeling well, having just completed a five-hour physical exam. He is well. He said he would send us information about himself to bring us up to date. On Nov. 8, we elected a new president. Despite the controversy surrounding the election, we are reminded of the privilege we have to be able to vote. We have been made well aware of the challenges and hopes of living together peacefully. We

are reminded that each one of us has an opportunity to go forward with kindness and tolerance. Veteran’s Day celebrations have again reminded us of the gift we have of living in this country. We are grateful to those folks, especially the many of our own brother rats who have served our country to preserve our safety, liberty and freedom. Now, on to current events.

On Nov. 9, I had colon surgery for benign disease. I’m happy to report that I spent only five nights in the hospital and was discharged on my fifth post-op day. Modern technology is wonderful, for back in my days of operating on my condition, the procedure was much more morbid and convalescence and recovery prolonged. I’ve had wonderful doctors, nurses and, of course, the blessing of Ruth now that I’m home. I’m grateful for the well wishes of my brother rats. On Nov. 9, George Coulbourn celebrated his latest birthday. I spoke with George from the hospital a couple of days after the event. He reported having had a good day and looks forward to more birthdays. We discussed, sadly, the passing of Phil Hamric, George’s roommate, and vice president of our class.

Class of 1960: Class Agent Jimbo Smith said of this photo, “Members of the class at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, summer camp preparing to defend our nation.”

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Phil died in Boise, Idaho, Nov. 11, after a prolonged illness. I have received emails from Phil’s wife, Carol, expressing gratitude for those well wishes she received from our classmates. Phil was interred in the Idaho State Veteran’s Cemetery in Boise Nov. 30.

Phil, sadly, joins an increasing list of brother rats we have lost. We are reminded of our need to join together as often as we can and hope to do so May 16-19, 2017, at The Olde Mill Resort in Laurel Fork, Virginia.

I received a report that Peanuts Elliott, G.G. Phillips, Jack Horgan, Henry Brown, Howard Moss, Tom Daniels and Herb Vaughan were at either the Institute Society Dinner Nov. 11 or at The Citadel ballgame on the following Saturday. Jim O’Dell was on his way but was waylaid by bronchitis, only to head back home to get well. I recently finished reading the book “Best Regrets,” an entertaining and informative account of “VMI’s John McKenna and The Lost Age of College Football.” It covers Coach McKenna’s tenure at VMI from 1953-65. Many of the players in the Corps during our time at VMI are chronicled, specifically Sam Horner, Howard Moss, Jon Quinn, Tom Daniel, Jim O’Dell and Joe Morabit from our class. It’s a great read and brought back many wonderful memories of our great football teams while we were in school.

John Olsen, Richmond, Virginia, date of birth June 28, 1938, called me out of the blue to catch up. He promised me an email with recent events in his life. He is well. I’m waiting for my email, John.

On Nov. 16, 1937, both Jim Gibson and Jim Schaaf were born. I could only send Jim Gibson an email birthday wish. We hope he is well. I spoke at length with Jim Schaaf, who has been in Huntsville, Alabama, for years. He retired from Northrup Grumman.

He is currently assisting an after school program for children – all ages and classes. It’s again an example of our brother rats continuing to be of service after retirement. Jim also promised to send me an email describing his activities. His health is good.

On Nov. 24, we all celebrated Thanksgiving with our thoughts and prayers of gratitude for the blessings the Almighty has bestowed on us all. On Nov. 27, Henry Brown celebrated his birthday with a breakfast to VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Moss at dinner just “shooting the include his family. I wished him breeze.” He reported that Dave a happy birthday and many more Bissett is about to finish a book he of the same. I also spoke with Sam is writing. I tried to call Ed “RobHorner, who was convalescing bie” Robertson but only got an well from some work done on his answering machine. We wish him knees. He was in route to his fitwell and many more birthdays. ness facility when I caught up with I tried to speak to Art Grafton him. On Dec. 1, after a phone call Dec. 30 for his birthday message to Jim French on his birthday, I but also only got an answering got an email message from him. machine. I hope he is well. I have Jim is trying to stay busy withneglected to mention Christmas out too much of the physical. He 2016. It has come and gone. Ruth continues to take weekly drives and I are very grateful for the many in his Model A auto, adding to Christmas cards and messages we his landscape photos of western Virginia. He is having the engine Class of 1960: From left, Bill Elliott, Phil Hamric, Taz Thompson received. I confess many of your notes about the goings on in your in his 1928 Tudor rebuilt, hoping and George Coulbourn. lives were wonderful to hear and his son can enjoy it as much as he only wish I was able to pass them on. Only has. George Miller, Dec. 1, and Judy are because there were so many, time doesn’t perstill in San Clemente, California, and don’t mit. Perhaps my multitasking will improve. get back east much. His birthday wish is for Please know I love hearing from and about more birthdays. They have a grandson living you, your triumphs, tragedies and journeys with them while he finishes his senior year through the “back nine” of our lives. Please in college. They hope to move to Mesquite¸ keep the notes and emails coming. Also, Nevada, where they spend seven months a please know I wish for each of you and your year. George is as healthy as the rest of us families, wives and significant others, good with the usual complaints of a septuagenarhealth, safety and reasonable happiness in ian. He has been catching up on VMI in the 2017. Please continue to stay in touch.

Civil War. We will miss Judy and him at our My birthday calls in 2017 thus far have reunion in May. been a “day late” call to Hap Miller Jan. 2.

Bill Toker’s birthday, Dec. 12, resulted in Not a good beginning of 2017! He was kind a phone call/email message. All is well. On in his reply to my voicemail and email. I did Dec. 14, I spoke with my roommate, G.G. catch up with him, and I’m happy to report Phillips, who was back home in Bath County he will be at our reunion in Olde Mill Resort and planned to enjoy his birthday in his new Class of 1960: George Coulbourn, left, in May. On Jan. 3, I spoke to Bill and Eileen home built on his farmland, Wendy Cove and Phil Hamric.

Giles early in the day, who were enjoying Farm. He is well. Also, he and Frances are themselves. They are coming to our reunion. enjoying their grandchildren. He also plans I left a voicemail message for Jim Bagby to come to our reunion in May. On Dec. 21, I Jan. 5 but did catch up with Tom Kurkoski spoke with Bo Bowles who was still working later that day. Tom had a big Christmas with hard in his law office. He is still convalescing family and is currently enjoying good and from his extensive cardiac and aortic surgery stable health. No snow that day in Endiin July but is definitely on the mend. He also cott, New York. I hope Tom and Anna is planning to make it to our reunion.

Marie can come in May to our reunion.

On Dec. 29, I was able to catch up with On Jan. 6, I spoke to Nick Hester, who Tommy Leary on his birthday. He was in was doing well on his birthday. I tried to Costco, as he had lost his class ring the day get to Rev. Ed Davis but only an answerbefore, but as a birthday present, he found it. ing machine was available. I wished him a Tommy reported that he lost 80 pounds as happy birthday. I got a note from Ed saydirected and managed by his doctor. His diaing he has been dealing with health issues betes has come under control. He said that, Class of 1960: George Coulbourn, left, but that they are stable. I was in the Dominitwo weeks before, he had spent some time and Phil Hamric. can Republic from Jan. 7-19. Poor phone with Dave Bissett and Howard and Susan 2017-Issue 2

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Class Notes service, so birthday wishes were by email.

Chris Fleet, Jan. 9; Ashby Chamberlin and Jerry Lawson, Jan. 12; Dave Bissett and Pete McGue, Jan. 14; Bob Gianella, Tom Daniel and Ray Crickenberger, Jan. 16; Ed Tolley, Jan. 17; and Troy Williams, Jan. 19. I got emails from Chris, Ray and Ed. All are well and looking forward to more birthdays.

As of Jan. 19, Ruth and I have been in St. Martin, French West Indies, the French side, and will be here until March 9. Many croissants and crepes. I’ve not been able to keep up with birthday phone calls, so emails have had to suffice. I received a detailed note from Jim Schaaf about his life since graduation. Jim wrote: “It’s been awhile since you called on my birthday – I appreciated that.

Here, finally, are some notes you requested.

I haven’t been back to VMI since we graduated, and the only brother rat I’ve seen since is my old roomie, George Ax, when I was on extended TDY to the Washington area. After 20-plus years of Army and 30 years in the defense contractor arena, I retired in December 2010. But then I started helping a friend with his startup defense contracting small business – now I’m part-time, helping only when he’s working a proposal – that keeps me up to speed on changes in the Army. Tutoring first- through fifth-graders after school in a project housing area keeps me busy twice a week; I really enjoy that. You can see that I and the other volunteers make a difference in their understanding and grades (and in some cases, behavior). Saturday, for the first time, I was a judge in a high school robot contest – the kids impressed me! They’re into college level technology, and most teams briefed me better than some engineers I’ve worked with.

The Army moved me around a bit and provided more adventure and excitement than I could want. Becky and I started off in the Panama Canal Zone, then Vietnam, Kwajalein Missile Range (half way between Hawaii and New Guinea), Vietnam again, and finally Iran (in time for the Shah’s regime collapse). Vietnam provided unwanted thrills you’d expect in a combat zone. The thrill on the missile range was watching a launch, noticing a malfunction when the separated booster caused me to turn and see it directly overhead instead of out over the ocean where it should have been – and then I lost it in the 52

sun and could only hear it coming back down – like a jet overhead – as it landed less than a hundred yards away. The Shah’s last days were no fun either – my HAWK field office team hid out in a safe house for a week until Khoemini decided to kick us all out – there was no law and order during that time. Thirty years as a defense contractor (mostly ballistic missile defense systems) was very satisfying and fun. I spent some time in Egypt reverse engineering a Russian missile system for the Egyptian Ministry of Defense, and thoroughly enjoyed all the pyramid tour time.

(The Egyptians had a lot of holidays and vacations so we had a bit of time off on each trip.) Every now and then, I notice an article along the lines of ‘what VMI did for me,’ and I think about that. For me, it was time management. We’ll move to a retirement community in another year or two, and have started downsizing – getting rid of a lot of sentimental stuff – I recently read through my 20 years of military files and then chucked them. Almost all of my efficiency reports had positive comments related to time management and getting things done.

I appreciate all the time you spend on Class of ’60 things and read all the VMI literature.

I was proud of our response to integrating the ladies compared to The Citadel’s mess.

I was on staff and faculty of the Ordnance Missile School during the Army’s integration, and it wasn’t easy then, but it became successful.” Jim is active in service work. It is good to hear from and about him.

John Olson also sent an update on his life.

John wrote: “My first retirement was with Honeywell after 30-plus years. I decided I enjoyed my work so much I started my own company, Leadership Solutions Inc. I provided Six Sigma training to companies to improve their work processes, certify green and yellow belts, and train them in the use of tools to accomplish these goals. So now, after 15 years, I am retiring from LSI. Fran and I have three grandchildren with whom we are heavily involved. Retirement will give me more time to participate in their activities. Also, I have shot skeet all my life. Needless to say, you can never practice enough.

My scores at 78 are not quite what they were at 28 or 38! Retirement will give me a little more range time. As a side note, I was with

the 3rd Armored Cavalry in Germany on the east German border. As a member of my rod and gun club, I got some good practice when we were not on border duty. The government provided my skeet shells. Life was good. Thanks again for your thoughtful birthday messages. They are appreciated.

Happy new year.” Thank you, John, for your update.

On Jan. 25, the day after George Ax’s birthday, I sent an email greeting. I bet I’ll hear from George. Buddy Frith, Jan. 27; Denny Zay, Jan. 29; Al Smith, Feb. 28 (no contact information); Howard Moss Feb. 3; Joe Morabit, Feb. 10; Ed Martin, Feb. 12; Jon Parnell, Jan. 12; Jeep Goodwillie, Feb. 15; and Bill Keens, Feb. 15, all got email birthday wishes as no good phone service available. I, and others, wish them all many more birthdays.

This brings this session of our notes to a close. Please continue to stay in touch as I, and others, want to hear from and about you. I thank you for those who sent pictures, some published in these notes. Keep those notes and pictures coming! By the time these notes are published, our “midterm” reunion at The Olde Mill Resort will have taken place, May 16-19. I look forward to those of you who can come. Remember The Paul Bayliss Class of 1960 Scholarship in your VMI donations. Stay safe, healthy and in touch. God bless you all.

In the spirit, Jimbo

1961

Sal Vitale Jr.

I enjoyed reading all the Christmas and get well cards. There was a consistent theme in the comments, which was brother rat strength and resolve. Recently, I came across a quotation by Adm. William F. Halsey, which, in my view, relates to our brother rats. “There aren’t many great men. There are just great challenges that ordinary men like you and me are forced by circumstances to meet.” Thank you for being there for all of us.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes

Class of 1961: At the Waypoint Grill in Williamsburg, Virginia, Feb. 8, 2017, were, from left, seated, Jerri Wetsel, Geraldine Nicholas Moore, Connie Nelms Sylvia Woodcock, Blair Bickford, Sue Vitale, and Sandra and Ashby Taylor. Row 2: Oscar Mabry, Sal Vitale, Ken Patrick, Joann Respess, Barbara Jean LeFon, Pris Shuba, Sue Patrick, Joyce Gibbings, Caroline Mabry, Lou Shuba and Ray Hanlein. Back row, as heads appear: Larry Wetsel, Bill Nelms, Kenny Legum, Bev Scott, Bill Gibbings, Jim Bickford, Larry Williams, Willard Hoskins, Stu Woodcock, Dick Youngblood, Larry Respess, Bill Daniels, Russell Stone, John “J.C.” Tharrington and Irv Wells.

My first trip after surgery was on Election Day when Sue and I drove to Annapolis, Maryland, to witness our daughter, Cathy, secure her position for the next 15 years as an Anne Arundel County Circuit Court judge.

The next day, we drove back to Virginia Beach, packed a bag, along with a tuxedo and cocktail dress, picked up Bill and Joyce Gibbings, and headed for VMI and the Founders Day activities, including the Institute Society Dinner. We had a good turnout from the class. Those in attendance were as follows: Gates and Margaret Richards, Carl and Becky Hirsch, Sal and Sue Vitale, Harrison and Terry Fridley, Hugh Gouldthorpe, John “J.C.” Tharrington, Bob and Suellen Reitz, Ben and Dianne Lynch, Ed and Phyllis Hollowell, Dave and Charlotte Harbach, Bud and Peggy Alligood, John “J.C.” Miller, Rhett and Jan Clarkson, Don and Elaine Wilkinson, Stu and Sylvia Woodcock, Bill and Joyce Gibbings, Larry and Jerri Wetsel, and Ken Ayala. The VMI Campaign update presentation by Brother Rat Don Wilkinson was excellent, and the money raised to date exceeded all expectations. Thanksgiving we were back in Maryland and enjoyed an international Thanksgiving Day with our daughter, Lynn, and the NIH employees she works with. At any one time, guests were speaking at least three foreign languages.

They all prepared a specialty dish from their 2017-Issue 2

country, and the food was outstanding. We made our annual trip to Hubs Peanuts with Bill and Joyce Gibbings and now have an adequate supply for the year. We attended the VMI Christmas party at the Norfolk Yacht Club. Three BRs from our class attended: Gibbings, Vitale and Ben Lynch. The principal speaker was the commandant, and he did an outstanding job in bringing us up to date on the VMI experience. Every few months, members of the Class of 1963 meet at the Hampton Yacht Club for lunch. Several from our class decided to crash the party, and we had a great time. See the photo for those attending. I was absolutely thrilled to see Mike Curley ’63 doing so well. Christmas week was soon upon us, and Skip McDannald

and his son, Hunt, arrived for their annual crab and oyster purchases. Skip is back at work trying to save a local hospital from bankruptcy. Sue and I spent Christmas in Maryland with the family and had an outstanding time. Our grandson, Mark Muckelbauer, received early acceptance to VMI for the Class of 2021. His graduation year is the same as our 60th Reunion, and I’m planning to be at both activities. Jim Ring’s grandson, Kirk, was also accepted to VMI for 2021.

Maybe our grandsons will be brother rats?

After Christmas, we met with the cardiologist, and I entered the hospital for some tests and remained there until my bypass surgery and valve replacement Jan. 3, 2017. Watching the ball drop from a hospital bed was very depressing, especially when I thought about the good time Larry and Joann Respess, Bill and Joyce Gibbings, Larry and Jerri Wetsel, Dave and Charlotte Harbach, and my Sue were having at the Gibbings’ house. On Inauguration Day, I was in the heart surgeon’s office at 11:30 a.m. and refused to go in and see the PA until I heard Mr. Trump take the oath. Later that day, I was home and glued to the television set so I could see VMI pass in review. What a sight it was with 1,500 cadets passing in review. I must admit that I had tears in my eyes watching them and thinking about 1961 when we stood on the side streets along Pennsylvania Avenue waiting for our turn to pass in review. I remember very clearly the snow, ice and cold water entering my low quarter shoes, since we were not allowed to wear boots. I don’t remember exactly where I saw this memo from Gen. Peay ’62 to the Corps of Cadets, which summarizes my own

Class of 1961: At a Class of 1963 gathering at the Hampton Yacht Club Dec. 14, 2016, were, from left, back row, Vitale, Patrick, Gil Minor ’63, Beau Walker ’63, Bob Earle ’63, Randy Williams ’63, Billy Bell ’63 and Bill Gibbings. Front row: Charlie Amory ’63, John Mills ’63, Bob Powell ’63, Bob Walton ’63 and Mike Curley ’63.

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Class Notes feelings. “Your performance and professionalism at the inaugural parade Friday, Jan. 20, 2017, was unsurpassed. You were the finale and, in retrospect, for good reason. Your lines were correct; your bearing and dress with overcoats, distinctive red capes, cross dykes and weapons immaculate. The sheer size of the Corps marching in battalion mass was stunning.

This was a long day with myriad operational details accomplished by the Corps. I thought you were the most impressive unit in the parade. You made the Institute family so very proud.” Amen! Cardiac rehab was started, and I hope to be back in shape in a couple of months. I tire easily but managed to stay alert for the second annual 1961 lunch at the Waypoint Grill in Williamsburg. In attendance were: Bev Scott; Stu and Sylvia Woodcock; Irv Wells and his son, Mitch Wells ’94; Ken and Sue Patrick; Sal and Sue Vitale; Larry and Jerri Wetsel; Willard Hoskins; Bill and Connie Nelms; Jim and Blair Bickford; Dick Youngblood; Ray Hanlein; Barbara Jean LeFon; Russell Stone; Kenny Legum; Larry Williams; Bill and Joyce Gibbings; Oscar and Caroline Mabry; Ashby and Sandra Taylor; Geraldine Nicholas Moore; John “J.C.” Tharrington; Bill Daniels; Larry and Joann Respess; and Lou and Pris Shuba. Jim Bickford said grace, and the prayer was inspiring. Sylvia Woodcock created the beautiful table flowers. After lunch, several of us visited the grave of Denis Nicholas, who is buried in the cemetery in Williamsburg.

Clayton Smith has been working very hard organizing the Amelia Island golf outing. Clayton conferred with Dickey Stone at Mr. P’s restaurant in Southport to insure that the little details were taken care of. Unfortunately, we will have to wait for the next Review to 54

Class of 1961: At the Institute Society Dinner in the Center for Leadership and Ethics Nov. 11, 2016, were, from left, first row, Richards, Hirsch, Vitale and Fridley. Row 2: Gouldthorpe. Row 3: Tharrington, Reitz, Lynch and Ed Hollowell. Row 4: Harbach.

Row 5: Alligood, J.C. Miller and Clarkson. Row 6: Wilkinson, Woodcock. Row 7: Gibbings, Wetsel and Ayala.

Class of 1961: Golfing in Southport, Mississippi, Jan. 24, 2017, were, from left, Rhett Clarkson, Don Wilkinson, J.C. Miller and Bob Polk.

see who came and what went on.

Same for the Key West gathering and class cruise. Hopefully, someone will take pictures.

Tom and Faye Bradshaw are downsizing. Tom sold his store building on Main Street, a commercial building and two houses.

Next, Tom hopes to sell the cabin where we had our 35th Reunion lunch and the renovated caboose.

Anyone interested should contact Tom. The city of Lexington will have an official town clock donated by Tom, enthusiastic collector of antique clocks and watches, and Faye. The clock is a large, two-dial Howard Post Clock set atop a 9-foot, 8-inch base, for a total height of about 15-and-a-half feet. The clock, made by the Electric Time Co. in Medford, Massachusetts, will be painted black and designed in an 1890 style to match the restored downtown. The clock will have two faces and be powered by a solar panel. The approved location is at 218 South Main Street.

This is not the first time Tom and Faye helped the city look better.

They were responsible for installing flower baskets on light poles.

The ’61 Villages brother rats always have something going on, and on Thanksgiving, they gathered together to share time with fellow BR Jim Harrison, and then had cocktails at the Copenhavers’ followed by dinner at the Arnold Palmer Country Club. Those attending were Dude and Kathy Copenhaver, Lee and Betsey Badgett, George and Edna Henning, Stu and Lee Crow, and Jim Harrison, along with Jim’s brother, Richard, and a friend, Mary.

Doug Popp said the snow is blowing like a banshee and the roads are totally covered. The local “nuts” are out showing everyone their total disregard for their ability to read highway signs and follow speed limit directions. The “local VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes constabulary” is having a ball issuing speed- Mississippi. Howard’s six grandchildren are are in need of help for PTSD or traumatic ing tickets and calling for wrecker trucks for leaving their nests and are scattered from brain injury. Bob is using a new program those who’ve rolled into ditches. Winter has California to New York City. Howard hopes called BBS. After a couple of hours in a pub arrived in Wisconsin! While Doug is making Goldie gets well real soon so he can play ten- drinking beer, the vet usually opens up and talks about “it.” Bob did shoot a bear that snow balls, Don Wilkinson, John J.C. Mill- nis with him again.

Does anyone remember Jep Housley? 1958 was eating his all-terrain vehicle, but Suellen er, Rhett Clarkson and Bob Polk were playing golf in Southport, Mississippi. Bill Hala is was a long time ago, but he hopes someone refuses to cook the bear meat. Frankie Ring’s ministry is to reach out to females in prison. heading south. Bill plans to show his friend, would remember him (575) 538-2546.

Bill Maurer kicked off the holiday season In February, Frankie and her team went to Irene, the Institute and then meet up with the Phlegars in Charlotte for lunch. Bill will be in with all eight people in his family attend- the Goochland, Virginia, Correctional CenThe Villages for three months. To get in the ing the Radio City Music Hall Christmas ter for Women and hope it was a successful mood for the class cruise in March, Tom and Spectacular (the Rockettes) on Thanksgiv- and rewarding visit. Frankie and Jimmy are Barbara Phlegar took a short cruise out of ing. What makes this newsworthy? Dur- now settled in Virginia Beach. Don Rishell’s ing Bill’s tenure as a as a park ranger at the son, Len, is responsible for disposing of all Tampa to Key West and Cozumel.

I was very happy to learn from Richard Statue of Liberty, the only day off for rangers excess government property by either selling Lindquist that Kim passed her PET scan was Christmas. Bill puts in untold hours of it, giving it away or destroying it. His title is with flying colors. Now, Dick has resumed research at the Livingston Masonic Library clearance officer DCMA-AQBPE and dad is real proud of him. (Any spare tanks his research on the status of the for sale?) brother rats who matriculated Will George VanOrden’s death with us. Dick has uncovered ever be adjudicated? It is almost four many of them and sends them years since George died, and the deletters to confirm his findings. fendant was brought to trial many This is truly a labor of love. times. According to Marina, they The VMI men’s and women’s were more shenanigans, and lawtrack and field teams both deyers, co-counsels and primary lawfeated The Citadel in the first yers kept changing with the excuse ever competition in VMI’s Corps of “ineffective counsel.” So the dePhysical Training Facility, which fendant now has a court-appointed houses VMI’s new indoor track.

That is a nice way to dedicate the Class of 1961: At a monthly meeting at Joe’s In and Out restau- lawyer whom he theoretically can’t rant Feb. 9, 2017, were, from left, front to back, Wyatt Durrette, building. Barry Orndorff’s grand- Bill Nelms, Bill Phillips and Dick Jarvis. Right row: Roy White- fire and who will be ready to go next time. son is a star football player on his house, Dick Youngblood, Russell Stone and Bill Daniels.

Harbert Alexander has a lot to be Blacksburg team, who won the 3A State Championship, and his grandson for his projects. Bill completed another ar- thankful for. His son’s wife had triplets! Harwas selected First Team All-State as middle ticle for the winter edition of The Philalethes bert had lunch with John McDougal at the linebacker/defensive end. Dick and Judy Magazine. During wife Shawn’s operation McDougal hunting lodge owned by John’s Youngblood enjoyed Thanksgiving with 35 and rehab, Bill was a great caregiver. Kenner company. John is a golfer and spends his time or more folks at Wrightsville, North Caroli- C. Rice, Ph.D, received the 2016 Mentorship between his houses and Michigan, Florida na. They have attended this annual gathering Award of the College on Problems of Drug and Tennessee. Harbert has two books in the for many years. In January 2017, the Young- Dependence (CPDD.org). The CPDD is the works. Gaylia Hudgins still volunteers with bloods ventured from Richmond, drove oldest and largest organization in the U.S. Operation Smile. This year, the team was in through the Hampton Roads Tunnel and at- dedicated to advancing a scientific approach Managua, Nicaragua, where they performed tended Friday night beer and cookies at the to substance use and addictive disorders. Ken- 135 surgeries and over 205 procedures. EvGibbings’ house. The Friday night event has ner presently serves as the chief of the Drug eryone deserves a smile.

Dave and Judith Elliot will be taking a fourbeen fun and a chance to be with brother rats. Design and Synthesis Section of the National Breakfast at Joe’s Inn and Out Restaurant Institute on Drug Abuse. Charlotte Harbach and-a-half month cruise around the world in now has a new member: Roy Whitehouse. is back at the real estate game having just December 2017. Paul Johnson’s trip to AlasThe Whitehouse family moved from Black- listed a house in Great Falls for over $1 mil- ka exceeded his expectations. Dick Hartman stone, Virginia, to Midlothian. Welcoming lion. David and Charlotte spent a wonderful squeezed a gallon of maple syrup from his Roy were Wyatt Durrette, Bill Nelms, Bill few days at the Tides on the Chesapeake with trees in Pennsylvania and also put deer meat Phillips, Dick Jarvis, Dick Youngblood, Andy and Kathy Colyer ’64. Bob Reitz has in the freezer. You may have heard about the Russell Stone and Bill Daniels. The entire been busy helping wounded warriors in his Badgett home in Colorado that was sinking.

Dyer family spent Christmas in Jackson, American Legion Post who are homeless or Well, after placing 55 helical that were driven 2017-Issue 2

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Class Notes to bedrock, the house is stable. Now comes the fixing of walls, floors and landscaping.

Ed Hollowell was honored in 2016 when Queen Elizabeth II appointed him a “serving brother” in the Nobel Order Hospital of Saint John in Jerusalem. Mitch and Jennifer Kot spent January in Austria skiing and then on to Vietnam for a follow-up with the Vietnam businessmen.

We hope to have a Lynchburg luncheon for the four widows there. Lou Kiger has volunteered to set it up. Stay tuned.

Dave and Edwina Thomas enjoyed their Rhine River Cruise. I did not know that Dave’s father and Mr. Gialanella ’36, who climbed to the top of the guard house at our 55th, were brother rats. Troy and June Jones are doing OK and are enjoying their granddaughter, Ella, competing in ice skating. I never knew the Raine Gilbert was a “biker.”

He rides a small Suzuki at Cape Cod and a big Harley in Washington, D.C. Lou and Pris Shuba had a busy year. They traveled to Hawaii; Germany; Island of Gurney; France; Amsterdam; Glacier National Park; and Victoria, British Columbia. Wow! Ann Woodfin is doing OK. Her granddaughter, now a 3rd Class cadet, is doing great. Thank goodness for strong women.

Doug Popp finally got around to correcting a broken heel problem. Three screws into the right heel and lots of painkillers have made life more tolerable. Dave McGee had his right knee replaced, and all was well, until he was walking and passed out. Back in the hospital, they found out that Dave had a blood clot in each lung. He was very lucky that they got it in time. Bill Redd said that Danya had gotten to the point where she could not get upstairs, so they relocated to their daughter’s house, which has a first-floor master bedroom.

Danya also underwent gallbladder surgery, and Bill has his rotator cuff surgery planned for March. George Ward’s wife, Laura, was in the hospital with a hard to describe heart issue. This was difficult for George to understand, since Laura walked or swam every day and devoured only healthy food. Her high blood pressure was determined to be an electrical blockage. The past month-anda-half, we saw several of our brother rats afflicted with serious illnesses. Hugh Gouldthorpe was rushed to Roper Hospital, where 56

he remained for 29 days. At one time, Hugh had 19 attachments and/or tubes coming out of him. The therapists know that one of Goldie’s priorities is getting him back on the tennis courts ASAP. So the therapy team tried using the video game Wii tennis. Hugh said he was too old to understand those game controls, so the next day, the team used badminton rackets and a balloon, and it was acceptable and more fun. Sylvia and Stu Woodcock were in Charleston to see their grandson and son and daughter-in-law, so it was off the hospital to feed Hugh his first taste of food from outside of the hospital! Hugh is now home and has home health care for about three to four weeks or so. His goal is to be back on the tennis courts by May and have a match with Dyer! Just when I thought things were settling down, my phone rang, and this time it was Bobbie Burks. Bob Burks was admitted to the hospital for a possible stroke, but as it turned out, the neurologist said it was a complicated problem with veins to the brain but can be corrected by medication. Bob was on vacation in Orlando and was supposed to be heading toward Key West to visit George and Edna Henning. Changing their plans and immediately and going back to Atlanta saved his life, as he wouldn’t have made it much longer. Then Bob got a call from Roanoke that his mother had just died. The doctor advised that he is really not well enough to take the trip. Bob is now home, and when I talked to him, he sounded strong but still had balance issues. Again, I was catching my breath when I received a call from Hershel Murray that Bob Polk is in bad shape. A few days before, Bob had played golf with Miller, Clarkson and Wilkinson, and when I called them to see what they knew, they were shocked to hear Bob was in the hospital. Bronnie Polk told me that Bob was in the hospital because of a severe attack of kidney stones. However, when the hospital did a CT scan to for the gallstones, they noticed that his aorta had an aneurysm and required immediate surgery.

A stent to both legs was inserted laparoscopically. The doctors told Bobby he was lucky to be alive since the aorta was ready to burst, and he would’ve bled internally. A few days later, he was back in the hospital, where they blasted his gallstones. Bob is at his Florida home, which is 1315 Pelican Creek Crossing

Saint Petersburg, FL 33707. He will be playing golf very soon.

I am sorry to inform you that Bob von Hellens died Nov. 27, 2016. There was a celebration of life in his honor Jan. 28, 2017, at his home in Phoenix. The ’61 brother rat flower arrangement adorned the buffet table. The service was just what Bob would have wanted with family, many friends and clients in attendance expressing thoughtful words about him. I knew Bob had cancer but did not know how quickly it would consume him.

I do not know how many of you knew Bob flew gliders and, at one time, was a 126 national champion. Bob was a real mover and keen competitor in SSA and ASA and will be sorely missed. One story about Bob was as follows: “I can remember the days back when I was a hang glider pilot and a fellow hang glider pilot, Kevin (called Fish by his friends), was crewing for Bob, and every few weeks was bubbling over with excitement over Bob’s latest escapade in his new LS-3 that had such incredible performance.” It was always a tradition that the Arizona Soaring Association held their annual Christmas party and annual meeting at Bob’s home in Paradise Valley.

Bob loved gliding. There will be a ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery sometime in the spring, and I will let you know the details.

Sue and I will be at Arlington and most likely a few other BRs. We lost another person who was part of our 1961 class history. Colonel (aka Capt.)

Lewane ’50B died Jan. 7, 2017. I don’t think there is a brother rat in our class who did not know him.

I want to thank all of the following brother rats and widows who took the time to remember Sue and me at Christmas and my getting well. They are as follows: Alligood, Maria Anjier, Badgett, Bell, Bella, Carol Berger, Bickford, Birindelli, Bissell, Carolyn Brown, Bryant, Burks, John Butler, Callander, Coen, Coltrane, Copenhaver, Curtis, Daniels, Drescher, Durrette, Gerry Eubank, Fridley, Gabbert, Gangemi, Gibbings, Gilbert, Goldman, Gouldthorpe, Nina Grazulis, Hanlein, Harbach, Harrison, Hartford, Haslam, Henning, Hirsch, Ed Hollowell, Willard Hoskins, Huneycutt, Jarvis, Paul Johnston, Tom Jones, “L.T.” Jones, Keech, Kiger, Kressierer, Lisiecki, VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Magee, Maurer, Barbara Jean LeFon, McNemar, Mary Kay Martin, David Martin, Miner, Moore, H. Murray, Myruski, Nelms, Geraldine Nicholas Moore, Oliver, Orndorff, Nancy Phillips. Bill Phillips, Phlegar, Puette, Redd, Reitz, Respess, Rice, Ring, Rishell, Mary Jane Roberts, Tom Rutledge, Beverley Scott, Shuba, Clayton Smith, Fred Stephenson, Dick Stone, Tarrall, Thomas, Wash, Weede, Wells, Wetsel, Whalen, Whitehouse, Williamson, Elfriede Winiker, Kim Wise, Woodcock, Youngblood, Bill Eubank, Taylor, Mabry, Popp, Ann McCormick, Browning, Kot, Hala, Hartman, Holmes Smith, Mowery, Donna Tyler, Bill Hill, Anker Madison ’64, Pat Webb, Suiter, Virginia Dabney, Rod Hudgins, Elliott, Lee King, Ayers, Needham, Will Hoskins and Jep Housley.

That is all for now. Stay well, and call a brother rat who you have not seen in a long time. You never know what you will learn.

God bless all of you, our troops and VMI.

1962

Tony Curtis Jerry Burnett

Tony Curtis: “Once again, many thanks to BR Ed Howe, who stopped by to help stick, stuff and seal our class’ 300 Christmas cards! Thanksgiving was spent with friends and family in the Blue Ridge mountains in Ellijay, Georgia, followed by an anniversary celebration in New Orleans for a week! Judy continues to recover from her chemotherapy, and my new knee gets better every day. Recovery golf lessons soon! We sure hope a lot of you came to The Villages March 16-18 for the VMI golf tournament, dinner with Binnie and a swell chance to tour around ‘Adult Disneyland!’”

Jim Wood: “My days are pretty much wellstructured where various days are designated for specific activities. There are also ‘wild 2017-Issue 2

cards,’ those being doctor’s appointments (six currently) and visits by my daughter. I am active (see the link to erincraft.net) and comfortable. My best to all BRs.” Cal Seybold: “I plan on seeing everyone April 23-25, 2017. My eldest daughter, Calina (my rocket scientist), is still working at Joint Propulsion Laboratory supporting the National Aeronautics and Space Administration projects. Calina still resides in California. The son, Clinton (my warrior), is now in his second year as a HQDA selected battalion commander for the United States Army Pacific, American Samoa Detachment in Pago Pago, American Samoa. Clint has been asked by his commanding general to extend his command tour for one more year. Clint is under consideration for promotion to full colonel. Clint and his wife, Wendy, still reside in Pago Pago, American Samoa. The Seybold clan hopes/plans to visit them each year. Besides, I like to visit American Samoa in the dead of winter. The youngest daughter, Celisa (my author), is still writing young adult books; she has published her sixth book in her “Keys to Adventure” series. In June 2016, the wife and I attended the Special Forces Association 2016 International Conference in Jacksonville, Florida. The conference also served as a mini reunion for the 1st Battalion, (Detachment A-361), 3rd Mobile Strike Force Command (3rd Corps MIKE Force; B-36) from my second tour in Vietnam (1968-69). We lost a retired Special Forces command sergeant major, who was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross from one of his many tours in Vietnam. A small group of the MIKE Force retirees went to the retired CSM’s funeral at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors.

In early December 2016, Roxanna, Calina and I went on an eight-day ‘bucket list’ river Christmas Market cruise along the Rhine River. The cruise went north, from Basel, Switzerland, to Cologne, Germany, with stops in Riquewihr and Strasbourg, France; and Baden-Baden, Heidelberg, Rudesheim, Aachen and Cologne, Germany, along the way. I had no idea how culturally significant Christmas Markets were to that part of the world. It was a bucket list event that was well worth taking.”

Wayne Pacine: “I am looking forward to

Class of 1962: Hugh Burton and stepson Scott Beasley ’16.

Class of 1962: Mott Robinson and his son, Tom.

Class of 1962: Bill and Christa Harris.

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Class Notes retiring from the Federal Reserve Board in early 2017. In the meantime, it continues to be a very challenging place to work.”

Walter Hylton: “After VMI, I graduated in 1965 from the University of Virginia Law School, but VMI has always come first with me. In December 2013, I had a hemorrhagic stroke, followed by another worse one in July 2014. The resulting brain damage left me functioning OK but without my usual energy. My recovery continues, but I’m not in a position to travel or handle large social events. But I’d still like to get the details of our 55th Reunion.”

Ed Strickler: “I had a great trip to Africa in November. I was in bush camps in Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe plus visiting Victoria Falls and Cape Town. I saw enough wildlife to last a lifetime. I had close encounters with lions, leopards, elephants and hyenas, to name a few. A zoo will never be the same! By the way: Warthog tastes better than beef! Attached are a couple of pictures.

Hope to see everyone in April.”

Hugh Burton: “I have attached a photo of my step-son, Scott Beasley ’16, and me in Alabama. Scott is the class president of the VMI Class of 2016 and is now stationed at Fort Rucker learning to fly Apaches. He and our BR Tom Murphree have become

friends and will do some hunting and fishing together while Scott is stationed there.

We were able to have dinner with Tom and Susan while visiting Scott. Scott and Tom’s son, Andy, were able to join us.”

Eldridge Blanton: “A quick report on Joe Gedro’s service Dec. 22, 2016, at Vincent’s Funeral Home in West Point, Virginia.

There were five BRs in attendance: Danny Kiser, Sam Clement, Bowles and Patsy Pender, Don and Sandy Kane, and me. Additionally, there was Mark Gedro ’76, one of Joe’s nephews. It was a military service, conducted by a Navy chaplain with an Air Force honor guard. I think Alice was truly moved to know that Joe’s BRs were there to show their support and solidarity. We also had a chance to talk with Stephen Gedro, Joe and Alice’s only child. He’s a teacher in Virginia Beach. It was a sad occasion but also a good one in that five of us had a chance to catch up. I urge all BRs to attend these funerals.

Someday they will play Taps for us.”

Bill Harris: “Christa and I enjoyed a 14day Caribbean cruise with fantastic weather in December then we had to return to freezing weather in Missouri!”

Tito Gorbea: “Received a call Jan. 4 from Colonel John Brodie (Hon.), VMI’s band director. He and his wife were in Puerto Rico

Class of 1962: Pictured at the VMI versus Furman University game were, from left, Buck Bradley, Doug Marechal, Ware Smith, Dave Plageman, Columbus Cartwright, Mott Robertson, Howard Cobb, Dave Wagner, Randy Campbell, Paul Rhodes, and Gen. Peay. Present but not pictured were Lewis Graybill and Bob Mitchell.

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for the holidays and called to say hello after spending a week or so enjoying the Caribbean sunshine.”

Bill White: “Two pictures: Second tour Republic of Vietnam and Ranger training with my Infantry Command (Blue Tigers) in RVN. I plan to be at the reunion April 23-25. Been very busy between Pensacola rehabbing our sailboat and Waterford, Virginia, helping my daughter and three young grandkids at our Blue Ridge country home.

Nancy and I are supposed to be retired but are working harder than before with church and grandkids. Loved the VMI parade video and pictures.”

Monty Williams: “I spent a nice afternoon with my roomie, Bill Mizell, yesterday at the celebration of life for my sister, Toni Utter.

Toni’s children, two girls, were glad to meet him. All of my children who are local (three girls and one boy), along with their children, were there. There were several other VMI grads in attendance (Ollie Creekmore ’66 and Jim Baker ’69).”

Bill Fisher: “We had a busy summer with a four week trip to Hawaii. Spent two weeks on Kauai and two weeks on Maui. As this was our first trip to Maui, we drove almost 1,000 miles exploring the island. We spent a few days in historic French Lick, Indiana, attending a 90th birthday celebration for Donna’s uncle. The town has undergone major restorations and has re-established itself as a major resort and casino town. They held the lighting of the Christmas tree at the French Lick Resort Hotel while we were there. Only got rooms because Donna’s cousin works there.”

Dan Prall: “Dan will be seeing his fifth total solar eclipse since 1991 from somewhere in Nebraska Aug. 21; first one on a road trip, after flying for earlier ones in Baja, California; Curacao; and two out of Istanbul. You can see photos from the latest one at http://www.diverdan.name/Eclipse. html. For more info, dan@diverdan.name.”

Marcus Muth: “Your notes often include health issues, so I had a kidney stone attack that would have curled your eyebrows. First, I thought I’d try it out on this lady I know, but when I started to mention it she said, ‘Oh, no! Kidney stone attacks are terrible!

I had one when I was going into labor!’ So VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes now I just agree stones are painful if the sub- in a small city call Tangub. That city is the and Molokai for some golf, relaxation and Christmas Symbols Capital of Asia, and in exploring for a couple of weeks. In March, ject is ever brought up in the first place.”

John Shelhorse: “I talked with Pete Tatter- December, they feature lighted structures that we are headed to the desert until May. It is sall over the weekend, and he said he’s defi- are bigger then houses and quite impressive. snowing as I write this note, and I am sure nitely coming to the reunion. He doesn’t do The state of Hawaii contributed to the cre- you understand at our age ‘warm bones’ are email but his phone number and address in ation of a ‘lighthouse,’ and the United States preferable to cold ones! Hence, migration New Orleans are in the great Vacation Visit and Canada jointly had a structure built that is desirable until civilized weather returns incorporated a version of the Niagara Falls. to Spokane! Regretfully, being so far from Guide you provided.”

Ran Hamner: “I am just back from 10 They also have awesome fireworks shows VMI limits our interaction with brother days of high adventure sailing in the Virgin at the beginning and end of the monthlong rats and VMI grads. Therefore, the reunion Islands. Tony Bueschen, our brother rat who Christmas show. On a mountain near the has a special meaning, and I am looking forleft for University of Virginia medical school city, my girlfriend and I rode together on the ward to our time together in April. Here is to your good health, safe travels and cherished after our 2nd Class year, invited me to join longest and highest zip line in Asia.”

Rob Sheldon: “Terry and I retired from the friendships.” him and three of his sailor friends for this Mott Robertson: “Diane and I have had trip. We chartered a 50-foot yacht, which North Coast to the southern border in 2013, was gorgeous. Tony and two of the crew and life is good in Las Cruces, where I don’t a busy fall and early winter schedule, behad sailed these waters for 30 years. Among need a snow shovel or a lawn mower. We ginning with Thanksgiving, when we were us we had two doctors (urologists, no less), both still enjoy very good health and wel- joined by three of our five children and famian attorney, a minister and me. I winched come visitors. I am very active in the Rotary lies and eight of our 14 grandchildren. Early December found Diane involved my butt off and did the dishes. with the annual Christmas Homes Learned so much about sailing.

Tour in Williamsburg as orgaTony was the best teacher, like nized by her garden club. Then the his days in the operating room, following week, Diane was much I’m sure. I have been home for a involved with a fundraising gala week, and the floors have stopped for Latisha’s House Foundation, rocking and I have stopped duckwhich is an organization that is ing going through doors. What an a rescue group for young women adventure!” trying to escape from the forced Bill Ritchie: “I can’t make the sex trafficking trade. We have also reunion since I’ll be in the middle been able to get together with Nell of final exams at the college here. and Howard Cobb and Patsy and Spanish I and II at St. Petersburg Bowles Pender for occasional dinCollege here in St. Pete. Been there since 1990. Got out of the Class of 1962: Ed Strickler at the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. ners. The weekend of Jan. 7, we were in Montgomery, Alabama, insurance business in 2000 after an MI, and now it’s all I do except teach bible Club, the New Mexico Watercolor Society, visiting with our family there whom we had at church and keep track of 14 grandkids and I still teach volunteer firefighter recruits not seen in several months. This was a spearound the U.S. Happy news that I’m going to and do planning for the county fire depart- cial weekend, as I was able to celebrate my Cabo San Lucas to see our first granddaugh- ment. I officially retired from my career as a 77th on the 7th with family we do not get ter married this summer, so maybe there’ll be consulting engineer at the end of 2016. We to visit that often. The 28th of January was some greats coming in the near future. I’m still summer at our family cottage in Ohio, Burns Night, as the Saint Andrew’s Society sailboat-less for the moment, but hopefully where we annually get to gather the whole of Williamsburg had our annual celebration commemorating the birth date of the great that will change. Terry is still painting, and family together for a while.”

Skip Davis: “Looking forward to our re- Robert Burns Jan. 25, 1759. This is always a I’m still teaching at the college. Been blessed with good health and energy. We have the union. Sharon and I just returned from a fun night, and I was tasked with giving ‘The good Lord to thank for that. Glad we, Terry great trip to New Zealand. What a great Immortal Memory’ at our event. I am the and I, can be pushing toward 80. Boy, when I country with spectacular scenery and very incoming president of our society this year, friendly people. In this chaotic time here so much to do in that regard. I have attached wrote that number, it was a shock!”

Syd Bradbury: “My knee replacement a in the U.S., it was a needed respite to be a picture of me and my son Tom (Davidson year ago eventually allowed me to play soft- among people who live more simply, seem ’96) at the Burns Night event.”

Walt Perrin: “Am still involved with the ball again and even hit for extra bases. In more satisfied with their lifestyle and are November, I made a trip to the Philippines to very proud of their country. Continuing capital campaign. It continues until the end spend time with my girlfriend and her family our winter escape plans, we are off to Maui of this fiscal year. Alumni support continues 2017-Issue 2

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Class Notes to be beyond belief. I feel very fortunate to have been involved. We are going to the Gaspirella Inn, where we will be there with Joyce and John Allen! Off to New York City, as our son, Catesby, and his wife, Jenny, who just returned from over two years in San Francisco!

Great to have them back on the East Coast.

We look forward to seeing everyone at our April reunion! If you have not seen the VMI post in five years, be ready for a big surprise!

What has occurred is amazing!”

Cal Seybold: “Concerning the coming total solar eclipses in Aug. 21, 2017, and April 8, 2024: My family has made reservations to be at the point of greatest duration near the little town of Makanda, Illinois, for the 2017 eclipse. I don’t know if we will make it for the 2024 eclipse. According to the experts, nobody anywhere in Illinois will witness even one total solar eclipse again until 2099.”

Doug Fielder: “Our son, who married at age 42 in 2014, will be having his first child in August. We are very pleased to announce that we will be grandparents now. We went to California in November for my brotherin-law’s wedding and are going on a short Caribbean cruise in April. We are looking forward to the reunion.”

Bill White: “My first unit of assignment out of Fort Benning was the Big Red One at Fort Riley, Kansas. As a second lieutenant, I had great respect and admiration for the soldiers still in service as Korean and World War II veterans. At that time, I did not know I would marry a daughter of a World War II and Korean infantry veteran who was command sergeant major at Fort Belvoir.

When I learned that he was the lead infantry unit at the Salerno landing in Italy and was wounded by a German 88 that put him in the field hospital, I questioned my dad (VMI ’33) [who was] commander of the field hospital in Bari, Italy, whether he was in his hospital. Turns out there were two field hospitals, and he wasn’t. He was an inspiration to me, as was Nancy’s mother. Nancy’s dad and brother were in RVN at the same time as me on my second tour. My uncle and cousin to my dad was a bombardier on the Memphis Belle. My dad’s older brother (VMI ’31) was in the Navy during World War II. My uncle, who married my mother’s sister, was a World War II infantryman in the Battle of the Bulge, 60

and my mother’s older brother was a radar operator in the Army Air Corps in the Pacific Theater. Every one great people to know and very successful. It runs in the family.”

Rosser Bobbitt: “We see Cathy and Alex Raney almost every Sunday at Galilee Episcopal Church, where Kate is an associate.

We see Bill Mizel once in a blue moon. I’ll be spending time in July at Fort Campbell where the Army will be testing its Beretta replacement, the Sig Sauer Modular Handgun. So, obviously, I’m still working – but part time.

Kate, the children and I are all in good health and enjoying life, though son Max in Brussels is job hunting. Our 50th anniversary is coming up in December, and we’re taking the kids on a cruise.”

Nick Nicholson: “I’m unfortunately unable to participate in the reunion, yet hold many fond memories of ’62. I recently spent time with BR Darden (and Jackie) Nelms at their home in Gainesville, Georgia, and they’re doing well – enjoying the good life. Interestingly, I often see George Mayforth ’82, J.P. Pesare ’99, Hunt Ozmer ’76 and Judge Nottingham ’74 from time to time. Duke Addison ’82 recently hosted a delightful annual alumni party at his home, and also in attendance were BR George (and Betsy) Robbins.

I remain in the business of real estate brokerage and spend a great deal of my time with the Judy Nicholson Kidney Cancer Foundation, which is loosely affiliated with Mayo Clinic Jacksonville.”

Joe Roberts: “Thanks for the reunion update. I’m looking forward to it and plan to be there. Not much for the class notes except to say that Len Collins and I attended the funeral of Jim Hogler ’65 a couple of months ago.

Jim was Len’s dyke. Len looks pretty good considering all he has been through. I tried then to convince him that our 55th Reunion was a must-be-there and to plan accordingly.”

John Anthony wrote that he is still on crutches but stronger and more ambulatory by the day. He continues to lead delegations of American leaders to Arabia and the Gulf, on average, nine times a year. Among the ones he regards as the most important are those with U.S. Central Command offices.

These are selected by the commanding general for him to serve as their scholar escort to Oman and areas around the strategically

vital Hormuz Strait. John reports further that he remains a member of the Department of State’s international Economic Advisory Committee and the committee’s subcommittee on sanctions, with special reference to Iran. He added that in the transition period from the Obama administration to the Trump administration, he was asked by a team of eight foreign service officers and intelligence analysts to spend half a day briefing them in preparation for then-secretary of state-designate Rex Tillerson’s hearings before the U.S. Senate for the approval of his nomination. While riding an exercise bicycle and looking up at the television screen during Tillerson’s testimony, he recalled the pleasant surprise and having to stifle a chuckle when he saw and heard verbatim words he had provided the team of preparers being spoken

by Tillerson before the Senate committee members. John said he provided similar services twice when requested by senior staffers for Vice President Pence’s National Security Council team. All of which adds up to John’s bipartisan service in these capacities to Democratic and Republican administrations alike since the early 1970s straight through to the present. From Thanksgiving Day until Christmas Eve, John spent one week each in four Gulf Cooperation Council countries as an official guest in each, including again being the only American invited to attend the GCC’s ministerial and heads of state summits, for which the most recent was held in Bahrain. He reports further that Gen. David Petraeus has joined the International Advisory Council of the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations, which John founded in 1983 and continues to head as its president and chief executive officer. He closed by noting his pleasure at working with Doug Marechal and John Mott Robertson on matters pertaining to our class reunion and how much he was looking forward to speaking with Randy Campbell about similar and related matters in preparation for our coming time together, which he and Cynthia are looking forward to attending!

Bruce Ballard: “I’ve been waiting responding regarding the reunion until the latest date. Cynthia and I both work during the tax season for H&R Block just to keep busy and to earn a few bucks for beer. This year is VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes no different. We’ve looked at our schedules, and even though the normal tax season ends for filers, it doesn’t end for block employees.

Cynthia is an enrolled agent with the IRS and is qualified to represent anyone in an audit.

I’ve worked during tax season since 2000 for Block doing many things but not as a preparer. During last year’s tax season, Block entered into an agreement with the TSA to screen folks for the TSA pre-check for air travel as well as truckers wanting to have access to military bases and freight terminals on what is called Transportation Workers Identification Certification. I’ve been hired as a TSA-trusted agent to provide that screening.

Over the past three to four years, we’ve been traveling to Europe to take both cruises to the Mediterranean, as well as a river cruise from Amsterdam to Vienna a couple of years ago.

We so much enjoyed that river cruise that we’ve booked another this July from Switzerland to Belgium. When we last river cruised, we saw several VMI flags flying from other river cruise boats. Thankfully, Cynthia and I are in good health and enjoying life to its fullest. I sincerely am sorry to miss the reunion, but know that I’ll be there in the spirit.”

Howard Cobb: “Nell and I are planning on being at the reunion. Last September, we took a trip to Boston and to Martha’s Vineyard; Nantucket; and Newport, Rhode Island. Traveled to VMI Feb. 11, 2017, to see the Keydets beat The Citadel 101-78. I traveled with Dave Wagner and David Plageman. Also saw Doug and Signe Marechal, Joe Weakley and John Traynham. See you in April!”

Tony Curtis: “Thanks to all of you who helped make these class notes as great as they have been!”

1963

Michael J. Curley

A new year begins. I’m healthy and back in the saddle trying to locate my “inner writer” that has lain dormant for the last six to nine months. First, let’s have an Old Yell for Mike Smither and Beau Walker for stepping in 2017-Issue 2

to write the notes that appeared in the last two issues, 2016-Issue 4 and 2017-Issue 1. (mjc: Do you like the new Alumni Review format?) Thank you both greatly, and nice job, too! Thanks to everyone for your cards, good wishes and prayers, without which I am sure that the outcome may have been very different.

Our Brother Rat Claude A. Abernathy of Richmond, formerly of Alberta, Virginia, died after a well-fought battle with cancer Friday, Nov. 11, 2016. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Betty Gayle, and daughter, Susan Gayle Abernathy. He is survived by his wife, Joan Abernathy; son, C. Ashley Abernathy Jr. ’87 (Mary Sam); and several grandchildren. He served two years in the U.S. Army and 20 years in the Virginia Army National Guard, retiring as a lieutenant colonel. A graveside ceremony was held at 11 a.m. Monday, Nov. 14, 2016, at Kenbridge Heights Cemetery in Kenbridge, Virginia. As with our other departed brother rats, we will miss Claude greatly. Rest in peace, brother rat!

Thanks to those of you who supported the annual new year’s toast Dec. 31, 2016, in remembrance of our departed brother rats; we urge the remainder of you to join us at 6 p.m. on New Year’s Eve 2017 to raise your glass in honor of those who preceded us to the Grand CCQ in the sky and make this another proud ’63 tradition! Sadly, as I was preparing to send out the 2016 end-of-year “annual toast” email to the class, I received notice from Dennis Dupras ’90 (mjc: Thanks, Dennis!) that John Cloe’s death was announced on Facebook. OK, that’s weird, first time for everything; weirder still is that minutes earlier, I had just finished reading the 2016 Christmas letter from John and Susan Cloe in which he described a very active year and the publication of his third and latest book, “Mission to the Kurils,” the story of World War II in the North Pacific as it involved American war planes attacking the Japanese-held Kuril Islands north of Japan! John’s writing brought attention to those largely forgotten areas of the world that played a crucial role in the Allied victory in the Pacific. He was a 40-year plus employee of the U.S. Air Force at Elmendorf Air Base and recognized as an expert in Alaska’s military history. May

he rest in peace! For a full obituary: http:// www.legacy.com/obituaries/adn/obituary. aspx?pid=183270561.

VMI lost one of its finest Jan. 7 in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina: Col. Leonard Lewane ’50B. I received numerous emails from our classmates remembering him both fondly and respectfully. I enjoyed Si Bunting’s response: “What a character! Remember the step-off? Later I got to know him quite well, and I liked him very well. Always positive; always enthusiastic. What Jews call a Mensch.

Loosely (translated), a good guy; straight, upright unself-conscious gent; a VMI guy. Say hi to Colonel Johns ’31 up there.”

Others reacted similarly. Will Crisp, however, offered what I believe to be the most proper tribute: “As I’ve written earlier, on about the second day of our Rat Line in September 1959, then-Captain Lewane ’50B, tactical officer of cadet Foxtrot Company, assembled all the F Company rats on the Parade Ground.

‘Take a knee,’ he directed. Then he said, directly, ‘When you get knocked down on the deck, you get up.’ Not if you get knocked down, but when. Realism and an expectation of resilience and perseverance. Captain Lewane also dealt fairly with F Company 1st Class privates, renowned in the Corps as ‘grubs.’ He took them aside, spelled out his expectations, e.g., spit-shined shoes not required but cleanly polished shoes a must and present a clean rifle. He outlined other

Class of 1963: Cliff Weddington ’96, son of the late Chuck Weddington, accompanied Chuck’s wife to the Institute Society Dinner in November 2016.

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Class Notes guidelines, and to my knowledge, no 1st Class private was ever given demerits at inspections. Captain Lewane organized a VMI ranger platoon in autumn 1959. For some unknown reason, I joined up – one of the few, if not only, rats in the platoon. The platoon leaders were some of the best 1st and 2nd Classmen in the Corps – many of whom later distinguished themselves in ’Nam. Captain Lewane pushed us hard. Once, we ran up the hill behind the Parade Ground with web gear and M1s, then Captain Lewane turned us around, ran us back down the hill and up again. I staggered into the Rat Line at Jackson Arch. Some non-ranger 3rd yelled at me for the supper menu. I had no idea, a sending-up offense.

One of the upperclassmen rangers intervened: ‘Hey, we’ve been up and down the hill with rifles twice, leave him alone, and the supper’s meatloaf, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, peach pie.’

“Captain Lewane taught us to calibrate the fickle PRC 10 radio.

In ’Nam one very hot morning with the 1st Cav., it was my job to secure a hilltop LZ for incoming choppers. My PRC 25 radioman fell behind, and I didn’t have enough foresight to drag him to the top of the ridge. There were some ARVN’s around with – guess what – old PRC 10s. Sweat running in my eyes, I remembered how to calibrate the thing. (Captain Lewane: ‘Listen to the downbeat; first there’s a WA-WA sound, then as you calibrate you should get a steady WUUUUU beat.’) I got the right frequency and radioed an all-clear to our impatient battalion commander overhead in a chopper. On that hilltop in Bong Song province, years after the VMI ranger platoon experience, I uttered, ‘Thank you, Captain Lewane.’

And that’s what we all can say.

‘Thank you, ranger. Thank you, 62

Class of 1963: At the RVA rats’ January 2017 bimonthly lunch in Richmond, Virginia, were, from left, Buddy Cato, Mike Curley, Dick Warren, Bob Gregory, Bill Moore, Bill Jones, John Mills, Art Phaup and Bob Earle.

Class of 1963: From left, Mike Curley, Bob Earle and Christine and Jim Hoge with Jim’s son, John, at lunch at Wegman’s in Richmond during a visit to the Holy City in October 2016.

Class of 1963: Class Agent Mike Curley said of this photo, “The late Col. Lenny Lewane ’50B reunited with his favorite ’63 F Troop charges at our 50th Reunion in May 2013.”

man of VMI.’ We are all the stronger and better for your guidance.

May God bless you always.”

Finally, Jim Hoge contributed: “I’m very sorry to hear the news about Colonel Lewane. As you know, he was F Company’s tactical officer. He was very respected by every one of us in F Company for his tough but fair treatment.

Mike Smither and some others arranged for ​Colonel Lewane’s attendance at the 50th Reunion in 2013. It was great to see him again and to chat with him for a while after 50 years.” A photo accompanies this article from the reunion of Col. Lewane and some of his F Company rats. He was one of the greatest.

The Corps looked terrific in the 2017 inaugural parade – made us all puff out our chests a bit, didn’t it? God knows, I received enough emails and heads-up on Facebook on the subject to fill a book. Mike Smither commented on “...our own inaugural parade 56 years ago – cold and miserable! I believe we won parade lines that year. And the stories from that trip: Changing uniforms in the buses, snow covering portions of the parade route, BR Bob Heath’s rubbers coming out of his shoes because the rat behind him kept stepping on his heels. But we won parade lines, as I remember. All good.” (mjc: Trivia question: Why was there so much slush on the parade route in 1961?

Answer: The U.S. Army melted the snow on the pavement with flamethrowers ... talk about a classic case of Army overkill and inefficiency; the U.S. Air Force could have eliminated both snow and the resulting slush by using afterburners; think about that!)

Your Christmas cards and letter this year were kinda neat – seems some of us are running loosely about the world and others are simply sitting on their arse. (mjc: VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes You may number me among the latter.) The Cloes (God rest his soul!) made it to Palm Desert, California; Seward, Alaska; Morro Bay, California; New Bern, North Carolina; and Juneau, Alaska, in 2016. Kirke and Darcy White traveled to Honolulu for his last marathon (mjc: Feigning envy ... not!) and are planning to be in Richmond for his 50th MCV reunion in April 2017. (mjc: They won the most beautiful Christmas Card Award for 2016, in case you were wondering.)

My dear Brother Rat Pat Kelly and Gwen wrote, “We are planning to be in Ireland for the month of August plus a few days extra on each end,” and kindly extended an invitation to Peg and me to join them. In addition, the Kellys graciously enrolled me as a member of the Knock Shrine Friends Association, a Marian Shrine in County Mayo, Ireland, which entitles me to be remembered in two masses daily for the coming year. Thank you, Pat and Gwen; I’m sure that ranks right up there with chemo for its curative value but certainly won’t be so uncomfortable! Missy Ogle is everywhere! Between her and Dan’s family, she traveled to Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with her students; a 40th college reunion; saw “Something Rotten” in NYC with an old friend from her days in community theater; the beach in Bermuda (mjc: Ah, sunshine!); and finally her family in Virginia for Thanksgiving 2016.

Randy and Maureen Williams vacationed in Bermuda (mjc: well, at least Maureen did); attended a high school reunion in Wisconsin; visited Nashville, Tennessee, with “former” (“not old” she says) neighbors; and hosted their annual family gathering at Cape May, New Jersey. One serious note: Maureen writes, “Randy is doing well after treatment for bladder cancer. We still go to Florida for his annual prostate cancer checkup.” (mjc: Let’s hang in there together, BR Randy!) Sharon and Gary Eifried may qualify for the maximum number of miles traveled during trips between their home in Virginia; Argentina; Brazil; South Carolina; Blacksburg; Florida; a 10-day cruise on Germany’s Elba River; Lexington (Quote: “Watching VMI squeak out a loss to The Citadel”); Asheville, North Carolina; and to Rockville, Maryland, for Christmas with the 2017-Issue 2

family. (mjc: Any challengers out there?)

Harry and Sally Jones wrote from New Bern, North Carolina: “Hard to believe it’s that time of year again. As someone said, as the years pass by, it’s like a roll of toilet paper ... the closer you come to the end, the faster it comes off the roll. Anyway, enough morbid humor. I won’t bore you with detailed family events this year, just a brief snapshot.” (mjc: And with that said, I declare Harry winner of the funniest Christmas Card Award for 2016!)

I may have to reconsider that award, though ... forgot about Bunny Reynolds’ missive that reads like a lab report summarizing each family members’ activities in no more than two lines. Bunny summarized his own 2016 activities in only one line: “Bunny ~ Tennis, bowling, motorcycling, sailing, eclectic reading and VMI.” “Road trips: East Coast to Florida, Maine, west of Park City to California, north to Canadian Rockies! Celebrate life!” Sounds as if Don and Karin Hargy spent most of 2016 establishing their new summer home in Washington, North Carolina, and running back and forth to New Hampshire. While reading George and Rita Blood’s Christmas letter, I was caught up in a magical spell and found myself transported to the beautiful Eastern Shore of Maryland. I could easily see why people live in that exciting area.

They traveled mostly on the East Coast following Rita’s quilting interests and, of course, family visits. (mjc: Sounds like a pretty nice year, guys.) Dennis (or “Crow: as he likes to be called) and Linda Crowley are most fortunate in that they have kids living in some

very interesting places like New Zealand, where they visited the Glow Worm Caves, Doubtful Sounds and other exciting points of interest. I noticed that they took a “Road Scholar” journey (mjc: Formerly known as “Elderhostel”) to Cambodia and Vietnam (mjc: that’s on the Curleys’ bucket list), along with Ireland. (mjc: Pictures were absolutely beautiful. Crow!)

Mike and Betty Smither skied last year in Italy and plan to ski Utah this winter, yet they also talked about some postgraduate “CE lab” convened this past summer at Sleepy Moore’s place in southwest Virginia with five other VMI ’63 civil engineers. I can’t believe that didn’t upstage all the skiing, Mike! The Smithers prepared a nice Christmas letter with many photos of their beautiful family, but sadly I couldn’t share with you ... not enough pixels! Jan Lacy managed to muster a Christmas email that, though less than colorful, was quite enjoyable. Jan wrote that in her opinion that “the world has gone crazy. I spent Thanksgiving with friends, no mention of the election ... didn’t want to leave ... I’d found my ‘safe place.’” She added after a brief discussion of her health and the wonderful relief from a bit of back pain experienced with acupuncture treatment, “I have resumed two of my favorite activities, pole dancing (hoping to supplement my Social Security income) and leaping tall buildings.” (mjc: Nice to see that the Lacy family cynicism and sarcasm didn’t depart with Mell, Jan!) “Christmas greetings from the Glantz family.” Meant to be a simple Christmas newsletter, Mary Ann Glantz has spent way

Class of 1963: At the monthly lunch meeting at the Hampton Yacht Club for the swamp rats in December 2016 were, from left, seated, Charlie Amory, John Mills, Bob Powell, Bob Walton and Mike Curley. Standing: Gil Minor, Beau Walker, Bob Earle, Randy Williams and Bill Bell. Class Agent Mike Curley said of this photo, “Great fun!”

63

Class Notes too many years communicating with Dave Glantz. I have found, over the years, that to receive full benefit of the information contained in this “Christmas letter,” it must be read a minimum of three times, especially if it’s being interpreted by a low-ranking electrical engineer like me, for instance! It’s also amazing how many different topics can be covered in one page, to name a few: Snowblowing, harvesting zucchini (mjc: ‘replaced them with squash ... as David tends to kill zucchini’), team volleyball, attempting to write “with Mary Ann’s keen editorial assistance and cat Rudy’s acquiescence” a short six-chapter book (about 35-40 pages per chapter) that has now morphed for various reason of discovery into five rather large separate volumes (about 450 pages per book).

More topics are covered like travel, kids and grandkids, jobs, soft-coal pollution, pets, ad infinitum ... and, of course, golf! “Mary Ann writes: “As counterpoint to his work, David continued his struggle with golf with some discomfort and a great deal of humility, reducing his stroke count per 18 holes from the mid-120s down to a more reasonable 110.

He rationalizes these painful efforts as being great exercise.” (mjc: Truth be told, I look forward to receiving the “Glantz” Christmas newsletter every year because it is most interesting to read, always varied and challenging, and never dull, but most of all, I am afforded the opportunity of getting to know David as I would never have while at VMI, for we traveled in way-different intellectual circles.

Being a class agent has its perks, you know.)

From Jim Hoge: “Catherine and I really enjoyed seeing you and Bob the other day at lunch. And we are so glad that you are well on the way to a full recovery. What great news! Catherine says that next year we must do the seafood place you mentioned. And thank you once again for the cataract surgery advice – really made a difference in my lens thickness, didn’t it? We’re in Florida now and are looking forward to beginning the Panama Canal cruise Tuesday.”

From Bunny Reynolds: “The latest (June 30, 2016) update on the ’63 Scholarship Fund shows a balance of $155,415, down a tad from the previous fiscal year end. Funds available to a cadet for this year amount to about $6,900. I can’t help but note that four 64

years at VMI and a new car at graduation cost me less than that – times change. Many thanks to all who support the class scholarship fund.”

From Bob Mathews: “Dear friends, I took these pics in the stark back-country about eight miles from my home on a 4WD road – about the roughest I could tolerate. Passable for only a few months (summer and fall) and definitely never after rain (until it dries out).

I am amazed at how tough our predecessors must have been to live in places like this.”

From George Lanahan: “Congrats! Always remember that ‘God is great! Beer is good! And people are crazy!’”

From David Dibbs: “I’m so happy to hear the great news about your health. It’s wonderful to have you back. I’ve just finished dealing with bladder cancer surgery and chemo myself, and I know that cancer treatment can be both physically and mentally exhausting.”

Hey, folks! Give me your attention in barracks! We have a 55th Reunion rapidly approaching. Save the date: April 23-24, 2018.

To be clear, that’s Monday and Tuesday.

The Reunion Committee has formed, met and set a tentative agenda. So far, we have golf Monday during the day, a VMIAA dinner Monday evening, movie and parade Tuesday, and breakfast at Possum Hollow Wednesday morning (the Riethmillers).

There will be no soliciting for money! We need your ideas and input; what would you like to do? You will be contacted by email, phone and letter as plans develop. Look forward to seeing many of you there. Your committee is committed to keeping the cost as low as possible.

Please remember and pray for our brother rats on the gim and our MIAs. Curleyrat

1964

John R. Cavedo

I’ve taken the liberty of extracting information from the many Christmas letters accompanying the nice cards this year.

Gary Thrasher: “As some of you may

know, Mary and I have canceled our plans to relocate from Illinois to Midlothian, Virginia. Since early October, I have been having severe heart issues that have resulted in my pacemaker/defibrillator shocking my heart back into rhythm numerous times. I have undergone three heart ablation procedures in which the doctors cauterized scar tissue inside and outside of the heart to help prevent the short circuits that throw it into an extremely rapid rhythm, which initiates the painful shocks. I also had a new, improved pacemaker/defibrillator implanted that added more wires into the heart chambers. As a result of all this, I have very little energy, cannot lift heavy objects and have not been able to drive. Therefore, we made the decision to stay in Illinois in order to eliminate any stress associated with the physical requirements of moving.

“We are comfortable in our current home and plan to stay here as long as possible. I am also regaining some strength, and I expect to be able to drive soon. I am under the watchful eye of the doctors at Loyola University Medical Center in Chicago and plan to continue treatment at this facility, which is known for their excellent cardiac care and research.”

Bailey Rathbone: “Like a lot of seniors, we’re trying to keep active, physically and mentally. Our daughter, her husband and two grandchildren live nearby. Our two sons are out of state, and we can’t get together very often.”

Butch and Joan Nunnally reported that, in addition to keeping two homes (Richmond and Winter Park, Florida), they traveled quite a bit and spent lots of time with their children and grandchildren. Both are staying active in various programs.

Bob and Cathy Warren continue to divide their time between New Hampshire farm life and the sunny climes of Florida. Their daughter is engaged to a Marine pilot with the marriage scheduled for June. Their son is an active drummer in a band in Key West.

Bob and Cathy also always manage to spend time in the tidewater area – original home to both of them.

Tom Davis: “Greetings, from Lexington, where we’re getting our home here ready to put on the real estate market late this winter or early spring. We’re getting settled into our VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes retirement community in Newport News, close to our two young grandsons living in nearby Chesapeake.

“I had a very enjoyable lunch with Bill Taylor several days ago; he knows the Norfolk area so well.”

Bud and Mary Duryea reported the birth of their sixth grandchild.

Their children are faring well. Bud had a couple of surgeries (heart, hernia and hips). Plus they have two Labrador Retrievers. So, all in all, they stay busy.

Frank and Marci Parker had a busy Christmas; Frank riding a float in the local Christmas parade while Marci doing volunteer work.

They traveled to Korea, where Frank saw the area and bridge where his father served during the war. A bridge of the Imjin River was dedicated to his father. They also spent time in the Maritime Provinces of Canada as well as a trip to the Gulf Shores to be with kids and grandkids.

Sherrel and I got in a van with our Florida son and his family and drove two days to spend Christmas in Michigan to visit our other son and his family. No snow, but plenty of cold to last us for 100 years. A great visit. Not sure how many more will involve the entire family.

Richard Beatty had hip surgery but says he’s recovering nicely.

He stays active with the local Elks Club and teaching for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. He’s had several of his photos appear in the Elk National magazine.

Ed and Janice Seager also stay busy with their families and travel.

In addition to their usual monthplus in Barbados, they attended the mini reunion at the Carsons’ in Florida, plus spent time in Athens and aboard a Greek island cruise ship. They finished up their European tour with a few days in Rome.

2017-Issue 2

Class of 1964: Bill Bandy and Mary Jo Jordan with their grandchildren in September 2016.

Class of 1964: Kerry and Marianne Hines pictured at their family reunion in 2016.

Class of 1964: At the eighth annual mini reunion in Jupiter, Florida, in February 2017 were David Ayers, Bob Warren, Tom Sebrell, Bill Tornabene, Don Carson, Tom Myers, John Cavedo, Dan DeForrest and Butch Nunnally.

Jake and Deborah Kleinschuster have struggled with what many of us are doing – downsizing. Additionally, after years with glaucoma, Jake had trebeculectomy surgery.

They attended the VMI Founders Day dinner. It’s been reported that the Class of ’64 made a good showing at the dinner this year.

The nine-hour drive from Hilton Head was a lot for Sherrel and me, but 14-and-a-half hours from Florida is just too much.

Bill and Millie McVey are lucky to have one daughter and her son living nearby in Austin. Bill continues to play tennis and sail, and Millie is involved in lots of activities associated with their church. As in virtually every year, they spend a month or so on the East Coast visiting friends and relatives. Plus, Bill continues to attend reunions of his Navy squadron, this year in Reno.

Jack and Judy Trossbach also continue to enjoy visiting family and traveling – this year to South America on a cruise ship. Weather forced the ship to skip rounding the horn, but they report it was still spectacular viewing.

King VonSchilling, “I have finally retired... My four-star general, who also sat on the Joint Chiefs, drove back from Missouri to host my ceremony. I had mentored him since he was a captain and answered his calls for help from around the world. He told a few stories and then opened the floor for comments. Many folks got up, and all said nice or funny things to make it an enjoyable gathering. Evan the chaplain prayed my rifle always shot straight and my fishing line never broke! Five other generals were in attendance.

Three spoke, and one presented an award. I had mentored all of them – mostly from lieutenant on up. In addition to the usual end of service awards, I got a 50 service pin and a certificate for 52 years’ service 65

Class Notes – didn’t know they even had those. I hosted a happy hour for the attendees at an Irish pub afterward for two hours. It was a suitable ending to a long and enjoyable career.

“Since then, I have been hunting a lot and took a brigadier general from the Class of ’85 out and got him his first deer ever – a very nice six-point buck! We have taken six deer so far this season. We share with all and donated one to the homeless. I have been catching up on my sleep and working on the honey-do list that never ends. We will stay here a while to settle in and look for a place to retire. We welcome all suggestions/recommendations.”

King also reported on Doug Walker’s memorial service: “Charlie Cole; John Thornton; David Ayers and his wife, Nancy; and I represented our class. Doug had requested an informal service, and they complied. They wore none of their formal regalia, and the service was short and heartfelt on the part of the members. The ladies of the lodge prepared a very nice spread for the affair, which would have fed many more folks. David laid out a very nice photo spread of Doug that went back to our rat years. It was short and sweet, and we told some stories about Doug.

“The BRs looked good. John lamenting he had twisted a knee while quail hunting in Pennsylvania. Charlie relating how much fun his 14-year-old twin boys are (and what a handful). David and his wife about wanting a smaller place, and I told them more about the CNMLA. It was very good to see them doing so well.”

Don Carson: “My band, Deja Vu, played to an overflow crowd at Harry and the Natives restaurant Jan. 13. They had to turn away people who wanted to eat, because the crowd was so large. We are an oldies band – both the music and most of the band members. Attached is a photo of our son, Don Jr., and me during the show. It sure is great to be almost 75 and still playing and singing rock and roll. Life is good, and you never are too old to have fun!”

Joe Compaisal notified me that the new supreme commanding general for the Royal Thai Armed Forces is Surapon SuwanaAdth ’79.

Tom Sebrell: “This past September, I repeated our ranch trip to Vista Verde Ranch in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. We did a lot of 66

riding and cattle work. This is a great place; the food was fantastic, and so were the staff and wranglers. Penny and I went to Nashville for the Christmas season, and I flew to Bozeman to spend the holiday with my youngest son, Andy, and his family for Christmas and then back to Nashville. Coming from 70 degrees to Bozeman’s 10 was quite a shock to the system, but I adjusted. Looking forward to the mini in Florida in February. So far, no plans for this summer.”

Mike Murphy sent an article from a newspaper of the Military District of Washington about “Surefire,” the retired caisson horse from The Old Guard who is now retired at Danton with Mike and Marisa Murphy. I’ve posted the photo on our Facebook page.

Ted Gammon: “I am still working in my one-man industrial chemical business about 50 percent of the time. For the last five years, it’s been pretty successful, as well as interesting and sometimes challenging. Since my Sherrill is still working (microbiologist), it’s no issue there. She has about two years to go.

“We are heading to Maui Saturday (Jan. 16) for a 10-day anniversary winter break, even though there has been no winter in Georgia. Our main objective is to get in some good whale sightings and hopefully some pictures. The whales from Alaska travel to Hawaii to mate and have their young there so more chances of them breeching and coming out of the water! We are both OK physically in general, but some of those old sports

injuries are having the effect of slowing (me, especially) down some.”

Floyd Duncan notified me of the death Lee Lewane ’50B, our old TAC officer. Sherrel and I sat with him and his wife at our 45th Reunion dinner.

Bob O’Hara: “I saw the inaugural parade.

As per tradition, VMI was ‘heard from.’

They looked great; a lump to my throat. It made me sit erect in the recliner. Memories came back of the 1961 JFK inaugural. Long, early morning bus ride that cold, snowy January day and lunch in a paper sack: Two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, an apple and hard candy, each embedded in each other, but there were no leftovers. The long wait in several inches of snow and ice wearing low quarter shoes. The even longer ride back to Lexington. I wonder if others remember it as I do. Guess we were a small part of history.

Just my reflections.”

Bob went on to mention, “Marilyn and I are still in Emporia, Virginia, just off I-95, 18 miles north of the North Carolina border.

Hunting and fishing, running small pack of deerhounds, keeping small herd of beef cattle and holding court a couple of days a week.

Visiting grandkids in Richmond when we can. We’d be a good rest stop for classmates traveling I-95.”

Jan Rudinoff just got a pacemaker that has made it easier to keep up with Paula. Future plans include seeing actor Sarah in “Well” at the Seattle Rep. followed by time in Italy,

Class of 1964: Warren and Courtenay Budd celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary at St. Simon’s Island, Georgia, in July 2016.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes

Class of 1964: John Cavedo, second from left, and Sherrel Cavedo, second from right, pictured at their family reunion in Harrison Township, Michigan, Christmas Day 2016.

Rome, the Hill Country, Venice and a month with friends in France. “We had fully expected to return home having an apartment to share with guests, but son Jeffry and wife Sara Jo and their three dogs have moved in ‘temporarily.’ They moved from Oahu for Jeff to work with his brother, Joshua, and our good friend, Bill Allen.”

Jim Brittingham: “Laura and I escorted a potential future cadet to the Institute in November 2016. He spent the time with several potential rats accompanied by a current rat, while Laura and I escorted his mother around the campus and listened to a half day of briefings from General Peay ’62 and the staff. This orientation was well-planned, and the presentations were excellent. The program was designed to give potential cadets and their families an accurate view of life at VMI. I will admit that there was a ‘no BS’ approach taken by all of the presenters – even General Peay. I was impressed.

“I had a nice phone conversation with Bill Taylor and his wife, Betsy, this past week.

First, Betsy is going in the hospital Feb. 1 for a second heart procedure to correct the first operation and then properly correct her existing heart problem. Bill said he has been in touch with Tom Davis and taken him to lunch and had Tom and Helen to lunch. The Davis family is doing well and is enjoying their move to Newport News to be closer to their son (and grandkids).”

Kerry Hines: “While Marianne and I are both overall generally healthy, we seem, like 2017-Issue 2

a piece of old machinery, to experience a progressive increase of ‘squeaks and leaks.’ We just got back from 10 days skiing in AspenSnowmass, Colorado, which started out under of storm Jupiter and ended with fantastic weather and snow conditions. This was the first serious traveling we had done since making the same trip last January. While dealing with a variety of daily tribulations this past summer and fall, we nevertheless enjoyed two noteworthy celebrations – our 50th wedding anniversary and a milestone birthday for Marianne.”

Wally Hawkins: “I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes back in April 2016. Lost about 15 pounds, but I have adjusted my diet, and things are going smoothly now. Am still able to play tennis three times a week, indoors at the Washington and Lee courts. I occasionally spot Buzz Birzenieks hitting on another court with his foursome.”

Andy Colyer: “Kathy and I spent the best part of last week with Dave Harbach ’61 and his wife, Charlotte, in Charlottesville. We had lunch at the Trump Vineyard tasting room and saw the inauguration on their TV. It was a very pro-Trump crowd full of bonhomie and plenty of good Trump wine. We saw the present Corps march at the end of the inauguration parade; they were nothing short of superb!”

Tom Hill: “I am still doing some consulting basically in the areas of regulatory compliance with the Clean Water Act. Also play tennis three to four times a week. My two

grandkids are in Boulder, Colorado, and I go there often to see them.

“At the banquet at our 50th, I found myself at the Richmond table with Bill Welsh and his wife, the Atkinsons, and Bob O’Hara.

There were various Richmond Keydet stories going around, including some John Cavedo episodes. After the weekend, I drove to Norfolk to see relatives and got ‘caught’ in a Virginia speed trap. I wondered later if that was Judge O’Hara’s jurisdiction.

“My VMI roommate, Dick Atkison, also graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary and years ago had a church in a small town in Nebraska. Dick told me he also had a part-time job working on a ranch. I liked that connection - a cowboy who was from New Jersey.

“The other roomie is Jim Shumaker, who lives in the Pittsburgh area. There was never a dull moment with Shu around. I just called him to see if he was revved up for the Patriots versus Steelers game, but it went to voicemail.

“At the reunion, I was trying to explain to Bill and Dyan Crone that my Norfolk family had connections to a Portsmouth museum. I think that is cool, being a Yankee Keydet. It is the Hill House Museum at 221 N. Street, Portsmouth, VA 23704.

“One other bit of excitement: A couple of years ago, my high school in Ypsilanti, Michigan, inducted me into their sports hall of fame. Very humbling, as there are some terrific athletes who went there. I had a rather serious football injury at the start of my junior year but was still able to participate in wrestling. The amusing photo moment was that I worked out with the high school crosscountry team before wrestling started; they were good and finished third in state. The funny part was me, the middle linebacker, shot putter and heavyweight wrestler ‘trying’ to run cross-country. The brother rats who are runners will get a laugh out of that.”

Buzz Birzenieks, as most of you know by now, has been elected to be the president of the Keydet Club. A really important recognition of the many years of service he’s provided. “As president, I also serve on the new Alumni Development Board and on the search committee for the Alumni Agencies’ chief executive officer. Lois Watson Bouis, the sister of Bobby Watson, my roommate, 67

Class Notes is also on the search committee. She is now married to Paul Bouis ’67, who is my dyke.

How cool is that?”

1965

Mickey Finn

A much welcomed, mild winter is here in Wilmington as these notes are pulled together. I had planned to have another day to work on them, but the passing of Mrs. Gladys Pickle Dean, mother-in-law of my oldest son, Greg, in Marion, Virginia, calls us away from the regular pace of our life to remember a very special and gracious woman.

Dave Thompson’s life keeps him busy. His latest report is, “I had hernia surgery Feb. 8.

What was supposed to be surgery for a small, simple hernia turned out to be surgery for a small, ‘almost double’ hernia. Opioids and Miralax are my new best friends, and if you don’t understand the connection, you haven’t had the experience. Duane Conques posted on Facebook that I was ‘tough’ and to ‘hang in there.’ I think I’d rather repeat our lengthy Rat Line experience than have this kind of surgery again. I keep reminding myself that ‘this too shall pass.’ Can’t pass soon enough.

“John Yeager is supposed to be in this area visiting his in-laws. If I correctly recall our conversation, he said February. Of course, in my current mental and physical state, I could be wrong. Anyway, I told him to call me and we’d get together.

Working on another, longer poetry collection. This one may take a while, as I have a rather ambitious agenda. Hope you guys are doing well. Remember this advice: If you can’t be good, be careful. And, if you can’t be good, be good at it. (At my age, the first is easier to achieve). Thanks for all you do.”

(Class agent note: Perhaps another book of short stories is in the offering?)

Ron Petitte has published “the second and final book in the ‘Civilization at Risk’ series, released by Cambridge Scholars Publishing, in England: ‘Civilization at Risk: Seeds of War.’ On March 30, I will be returning to VMI to give the dean’s hour lecture on the 68

subject of human trafficking, based on the research for this series. And before the start of the fall 2016 semester, I was promoted to dean of the Honors Institute, which encompasses the Centers for Leadership & Justice and Undergraduate Research. I still teach and will be writing two more books for Cambridge Scholars beginning in fall 2017.

Should any of our classmates want copies of the ‘Civilization at Risk’ series, have them contact me directly, as I take nothing from the sales or royalties from these books. All my proceeds go to combating human trafficking; a fund is set up at Bryan College for this purpose. Unfortunately, if books are ordered from the publisher or Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or other sellers, the proceeds go back to the publisher after the seller takes a cut. Eventually, small royalties work their way back to the fund at Bryan College, but most monies do not come back to combat the scourge of trafficking.” (Class agent note: These English majors (Dave and Ron) are practicing the art they learned and as printed on their diploma – the ability to write well!)

Joe Bush sent a picture that was taken before The Citadel game in November 2016.

“We were there to celebrate the 1981 football team – last winning VMI team – beat Army and Virginia Tech. The former VMI coaches there were right to left: Joe Bush ’65, Dick Harmison, Bobby Ross ’59, Bill Tornabene ’64, Donny White ’65 and Santa (?).” (The photo lacked the required size to be included with these notes.)

Charlie Russell reported: “Barbara and I are ‘hibernating’ here in Naples, Florida, for a few months. I’m getting in some golf but am losing golf balls at a rate that I may need to take out a loan. The weather has been wonderful, though it hasn’t been too cold back home (Fredericksburg). Got my call from a 2nd Class woman last evening reminding me to contribute. She advised that the Rat Line got out a few days ago! (what’s this Institute coming to?) I will try to send a picture along as a separate item.

“Dees Stallings and I are still pursuing a few opportunities together, seeking to build our respective businesses in a profitable way.

I will add another credential to my skill set in a few months, more along a certification as a ‘practitioner’ (thought I was one). Too bad I’ll

miss the gathering for The Citadel basketball game.”

Danny Hogan has expanded his coverage by ... well, he explains: “I thought I would share with you and our brother rats a couple of things. One, I’ve purchased a house in Roanoke, and now I am back and forth between Roanoke and California, generally, month-to-month. I’m providing this information, because I expect I’ll now be able to reconnect with more BRs other than just at our reunions. Two, I’ve been working on a book that would include information about all the named buildings and facilities at VMI and will include a brief bio about the persons for whom the buildings and facilities are named. I got this idea walking around VMI at our 50th Reunion, realizing I knew very little about this. My research has been so interesting, learning for example that the first Smith Hall was built in what is now the courtyard of Old Barracks and was demolished when Scott Shipp Hall was built. The first Jackson Memorial Hall was built as a part of Old Barracks left of Jackson Arch, and then demolished, and there is so much more interesting history. Also, it has been very interesting learning about the remarkable persons for whom the buildings and facilities were named. I’m not sure when I’ll finish this book, but I’ve made good progress with significant help from Col. Keith Gibson ’77 and Diane Jacob, and hope to finish the book by our 55th Reunion. I think lots of alumni, present cadets and visitors will enjoy this information. Best wishes to all.”

Wayne Chiles attended his first basketball mini reunion of the class and was glad he did! “Brother rats, on our trip home yesterday, Ann asked why we hadn’t attended this event before. I stumbled mightily with an answer. I’ve thought about it; sometimes we’ve had schedule conflicts, and I wasn’t sure if she would go. Certainly none of these explanations/excuses rise to level of acceptable.

Suffice it to say, other than schedule conflicts, I won’t make that mistake again. As I continue to ripen, I realize that every opportunity to gather as a band of brothers and sisters is precious. Some who walked that path with us cannot do so now. We must treasure every opportunity.

“To those who inspired this gathering, VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Larry Egan and Carr Hyatt, thank you. To Donny White and Carr, thank you for making this weekend such a special, pleasant experience. We really liked the Robert E. Lee facilities and service, and the Southern Inn continues its fine tradition of service to the community. The tour of the fitness center was terrific. Captain Slone is justly proud of the gem in his hands, and it really set the ‘I’ on a special platform.

“Frankly, I wasn’t expecting much from the game; someone had said both teams are near the bottom of the SoCon. The Keydets were impressive, I thought, especially dealing with Duggar’s trademark full court pressure and aggressive play. The coaches made some nice adjustments, and the team’s poise and patience paid off nicely. Bottom line: Thanks to all who made this happen. Thanks to all who attended. A memorable weekend with friends of many years. May we all gather again soon.”

Here is Carr Hyatt’s review of the weekend: “A good time was had this past Friday evening at dinner at the Southern Inn. Several of us stayed at the Robert E. Lee Hotel (newly remodeled) and met in the bar/restaurant at the hotel for an hour or so before going across the street for dinner. There were 23 BRs and 14 wives present. Lots of good stories told and lots of laughs. The Keydets played a very good game and beat The Citadel. Donny White arranged a tour of the new Corps indoor exercise facility. What an amazing facility with a state-of-the-art track large enough to house a football field. My best to all of you!”

I received a letter from Ellen Porterfield with an update on Jim “Moon” Porterfield’s grandson. It is such a tribute to VMI that I thought it should be included this month.

“Dear Mickey Finn, as things here in Aldie, Virginia, have settled down after much sickness in my family since early December, I can now write about the amazing experiences my grandson has had at VMI. During the summer, Andrew Collins, who is the step-grandson of Jim “Moon” Porterfield, was able to again take part in some important research headed by Colonel Jim Turner in the biology lab at VMI. Andrew will turn 13 this February. He learned so much about the effects of chemicals on the larvae of zebrafish in the 2017-Issue 2

study of Parkinson’s disease, Jim invited Andrew’s class to come for a field trip when possible. In December, after much conversation between the professors, the students from Ideaventions Academy in Reston, Virginia, were able to head south! I was lucky enough to be a chaperone. Bob Wilkinson hooked us up with Irwin McCumber, who graciously accepted to give the kids a tour. After visiting the Jackson House, Irwin directed the group around the post. It was a chilly day, but the kids enjoyed every minute of it.

“In the afternoon, they got the thrill of sitting in a college lecture with Doctor Turner!

The students were taking notes like crazy and answering his questions. They were able to look through the high-powered microscopes to view zebrafish and make some observations. Since it was Ring Figure weekend, the students wanted to watch the dress parade before leaving. It was worth the wait in the cold breezes that blew that day! Andrew insisted that we walk over to Macado’s for dinner before our long trip back to northern Virginia. It was a nice treat for the kids, as the Lexington Christmas parade streamed right past the restaurant!

“Andrew has been invited again to study with Jim Turner this coming summer, and I plan to help Andrew get to Lexington for such a worthwhile adventure. Jim and Ryan Heitz, founder of Ideaventions Academy, will most likely plan future fieldtrips to the biology and physics departments at VMI. Only students with IQs of 130 or better are accepted into the academy. Let’s hope they choose VMI! “As the widow of Jim Porterfield, I cannot stress how wonderful his brother rats have been to me and my family since his passing. Jim was very passionate about his love for me, my family and VMI. I miss him terribly, as I know his brother rats do. Thank you all for your continued kindness to us. We sincerely appreciate everything and all your friendships. Fondly, Ellen Porterfield.”

Jane and I keep you all in our hearts, thoughts and prayers and send our best wishes for the year. Please make an extra effort to keep the class informed about yourself by email or snail mail, and I will follow VMI65 on Facebook because Joe Straub told me to! All together: ’65! ’65! ’65!

1966

Nick Hoskot

Welcome, brother rats of the incredible VMI Class of ’66, to the winter solstice version of our class notes for the spring edition of the Alumni Review. Thanks to all of you for your inputs over the past couple of months, since you are the only “sources” for the information which appears in this column. Reminder: You are all welcome to send tidbits to me via letter, text or email to the address/cellphone/email listed above.

“Alt fact” news not accepted.

Hugh “Sleepy” Adams noted that he, Ken Petrie, John Walters, and Joe “Gnome” Dictor attended services for John Beck this past November. As Hugh noted, afterward they “had a great time talking to his sister and his two lovely daughters.” Ken wrote that the “...gals ... had brought a photo album with them. They seemed to want to share their memories of their dad with us ... the six of us spoke for more than a halfhour following the service, the girls doing most of the talking, with us being (I hope) good listeners and enjoying their stories – some of which were hilarious. If we served a purpose by giving John’s daughters an audience and a connection with their dad’s early days, then that alone made it worth being there.” After the ladies left, the aforementioned BRs continued to talk and swap stories. Since Ken feels his navigation skills are poor, and Hugh is ‘always resourceful,’ he made the decision to follow Hugh out of the cemetery, which resulted in a lengthy and amusing ‘tour,’ to include driving over a concrete island!”

Clark Reifsnider wrote that the trustees of the VMI Foundation honored our class’ participation percentage and record setting donation amount with a resolution Nov. 12, 2016. Representing our class at the reading/presentation were John Jumper, Rich Hines, Tom Slater, Dick Goodall and our class officers.

Tom Evans, peak climber extraordinaire 69

Class Notes and cruise aficionado, reported he completed two cruises recently: A 10-day Mexico cruise followed, after a brief stop in Los Angeles, with a 15-day trip over to Hawaii and back! After recovering from those two obviously strenuous trips at the end of 2016, he indulged himself in an early 2017 payback at the Phoenix Open with “a skybox on the 16th hole for a day,” which he likened to “having a wrestling crowd at a golf tourney!

Lots of cheering and booing – no Cobras there! Free everything.”

Spence Wilkinson and his wife, Dorcas, moved from Marietta, Georgia, to Maitland, Florida, after attending the Institute Society Dinner Nov. 11, 2016. With this relocation, most of his contact information has changed and is available from either Spence or me for those who would like it.

Reyn Young provided a nice email from Jane Connor, following her trip to Lexington in mid-November, where she stayed with Paul and Joanne Robblee, visited with Al and Gale Carr, and had lunch with Clark and Marion Reifsnider, the Robblees, and Bill Gregory. They all attended the parade Saturday along with Frank and Carey Louthan.

In the small world category: Jim Upton and Larry Sonstein bumped in to each other in Cartagena, Columbia, when their separate cruise ships made port calls there at the same time.

Thomas “Snookie” Foster sent in a great photograph of a distinguished looking group of BRs who represented the class at the 2015 Goodpastor Award luncheon: Jay Adams, Rich Atlee, Snookie, John Jumper, Reyn Young, Chuck Johnson and Lee Beech. .

Bill McClure provided a scan of a slide from a crab fest he and Wyckie hosted July 4, 1968, in Fredericksburg, where Bill and Wyckie were residing temporarily in her parents’ basement. Present for the festivity was a very young looking group including: Jim Williams, Bernie Halloran, Wayne Gray, Woody Sadler, Walt Walsh, Lloyd Leech, Nick Hoskot and Bill.

Historical footnote: How much do you recall about our Ring Figure? Well, according to Woody Sadler and Rich Hines, ’66 became the first class to build (fall 1964) 70

and pass through a redesigned VMI ring in 1964. The change to a standard VMI side of the ring and a “class” side necessitated the building of the newer ring to be used at Ring Figure dances. Si Zentner and his orchestra played that evening. Speaking of Woody Sadler, he and Lori vacationed south of Cancun, Mexico, during January and early February, came home briefly to refresh, and then headed off to India for a visit with a fellow Rotarian, an Indian gentleman who has been instrumental in the effort to eradicate polio in that country.

Hugh Adams has been promoted from “cub” reporter to “senior” ’66 news reporter covering a wide swath of Virginia from Lexington to Richmond and eastward to the Atlantic. He and his wife attended the VMI versus The Citadel basketball game, won

by VMI by 23 points! Also attending were Cliff Martin, Ray Melton, the Robblees, the Randolph Williamses, the Phlegars, Cliff Crittsinger, “The” Eddie Wills, and Pete Sensabaugh. Sleepy noted that “if we’d been organized, we could have had a mini.” Another news flash was about the swearing-in of John Rowe as the mayor of Portsmouth, Virginia. John was sworn in and took office Jan. 2, 2017. John emailed to say: “It is both humbling and a high honor to have been selected by the Portsmouth citizens to be mayor of my hometown.” Congratulations, John! Also attending were Ronnie and Sue Ayers, Ollie and Nancy Creekmore, and Warren and Gayle Channel. Ronnie, thanks for providing this update.

Hugh attended memorial services for Carol Smith Dec. 30, 2016, and noted that ’66 was well-represented by the attendance of BRs Dick Goodall, Jim Upton, Joe Dictor, Julius Volgyi, Guthrie Smith, Herb Chittum, John Jumper, Jim Whitehurst, John McEwen and Cliff Martin. Some were accompanied by their wives.

Howie Lloyd wrote in that he and his wife are enjoying retired life outside of Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and that they were on Oahu for the 75th anniversary of Pearl Harbor day. While there, they toured a World War II submarine, the USS Bowfin, which prompted his observation that there was “a bit more room than inside an M-48 tank turret, but not by much.”

“Parky” Parkman wrote in that while he and Mary Fran were on their annual trip to New Hampshire in January having lunch in Jackson, New Hampshire, he heard a lady ask “if the owner of a vehicle with license plate North Carolina 66-VMI was in the restaurant. I responded, and the lady came over and said her husband was Mike Smither ’63.” She invited them home for drinks that night, and the two couples had dinner together later in the week. The Parkmans left Feb. 25, 2017, of this year for “a trip to Peru (Machu Picchu), Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands,” for their first adventure to South America.

John “Magnifico” Walters, former class agent, provided: “Do you remember when, as cadets, our lives were essentially run according to ‘the Army way?’ For example, drill and ceremonies came straight out of FM 22-5. Or when it was time to leave woolies for ducks, we took our cue from First Army’s change over from winter to summer uniform (which, of course, was before the last of the Lexington cold snaps). Or, when it was time to leave ducks for woolies, we took our cue from First Army’s change over from summer to winter uniform (which was before the last vestige of the Lexington heat waves). One has to wonder, then, now that the Army has updated those pesky and repressive grooming standards to allow dreadlocks, whether VMI will also march to the Army’s drum beat.”

Finally, did you watch the inaugural parade? If not, you missed a superb pass in review by the Corps of Cadets, who, although marching as the final parade unit at the end of a very long day, provided a magnificent example of citizen-soldiers doing their duty.

Take care, God bless and have a wonderful spring.

1967

Jan Abernathy

My best guess is that these notes will arrive just a few days after our 50th is over. Just about everyone should be basking in the glow VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes of renewed friendships from our youth. Who did you see who you have had no communication with for 50 years? Did you hear a new tall tale or just the same ones all over again?

At the end of the weekend, one of you came up to me and said, “Gosh, what a wonderful time I had.” Was it you?

I started these notes after the last set was submitted before Thanksgiving and just after I sent an email about turkey C-rations many experienced in Vietnam.

Wayne Marshall: “Had our Thanksgiving meal with some Vietnam buddies. They got a kick out of your Thanksgiving loaf C-ration meal post. We have snow on the ground for a little over a week at this point with more intermittently predicted. The ground is bare down at the foot of the hill, but up here on top, we are in a different world. Coming up the road is sort of like going through a science fiction worm hole to another planet, and I am perfectly happy with that.”

Trips to Lexington last fall in October for Bob Green’s retirement and also for the Institute Society Dinner brought together several BRs for the first time in years.

The photo I sent last month of BRs at the dinner was not good enough to include in these notes (too dark in the room). I learned that Bob Flynn and Ted Mervosh were 4th Class year roommates and that Jim Wilson had been a substitute cadet waiter. Jim Wilson, Jim Phlegar, Randy Blanks, Ed Poe, Bob Flynn, Tom Richardson, Bob Kyle, Bob Green, John Pasco, Chip Brooke, Ted Mervosh, Jim Joyner and I enjoyed our time together. There were too many BRs at Bob and Carol’s reception and dinner to name everyone, but a special memory was seeing how much Chuck Shorter enjoyed his time with us that evening. He was really looking forward to the reunion. I will always miss his enthusiasm and his bow ties.

During that weekend, someone told me Bob Hess had become a helicopter pilot at Fort Drucker back in the day and set two ‘firsts’ in his class: First to solo and first to crash his bird – a minor mishap, apparently.

His record improved after that hard landing.

I also learned that Bootsie Rogers keeps bees at the Rogers household – who knew?

It is always fun to visit with cadets and hear what is going on with the Corps or trending 2017-Issue 2

in barracks. I spoke with more than a dozen cadets about their political thoughts, and all said they were looking for a strong candidate who supported the military, even though several do not plan to commission. I learned that there is a full color guard for each class with supernumeraries in case of an illness or other cause. Not certain why so many are needed, and I still have no idea why sentinels carry M-1s on guard duty as cadets still seem to have no idea. Rats are not released from their misery when the football team wins a game.

There is a ‘formal’ group of 3rd Class cadets who supervise the Cadre corporal 3rds from going too far in their zeal to teach rats. I am still trying to figure this one out.

Ray Gosney sent me a couple of photos of himself as the first rat sentinel in our class. He was not covered in shaving cream or wrapped in toilet paper or anything. The photos are too big (pixel count) to use so far, but I suggested to him that his oldest granddaughter could help. I look forward to sharing them soon. Jim Cain missed the 50th Reunion because the Cains were in France. How much fun could that have been, considering what they missed in Lexington? Many commented on the Corps in the president’s parade. Several said they and their wives cheered at the TV screen when the Corps came into view and the combined Regimental Band and Pipe Band started playing “Shenandoah.” It put a lump in my throat, also. I do not wish to point out the name of the BR who asked “Where’s Waldo?” when I emailed a photo of nearly all 1,500 cadets in a mass formation. Many non VMI people commented to me how they were impressed by the VMI performance. Even Joan’s 88-year-old auntie sent us a congratulations message and told us how impressive they looked!

John Lee continues to look for “lost graves” of New Market cadets. Since he retired, he has the time and energy to go researching names and then tromping around Virginia fields and old graveyards near Bedford. He has discovered family plots with the names of relatives and sometimes stones with no names. It is not unusual to find such unmarked stones, as the times often left families with little cash to pay stonemasons who themselves may have been away in the Army. I have a great-uncle in a secluded

Class of 1967: See the notes for this stone placed by John Lee on this previously unmarked New Market grave.

Class of 1967: John and Peggy Shea in Temecula, California, at a vineyard tasting room the day before taking long flights to New Zealand and Australia.

Class of 1967: Andy Carter on a dive excursion looking for World War II shipwrecks in the Pacific Ocean.

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Class Notes it for his funeral and ask the funeral difamily site in the woods in Brunswick County, Virginia. We know he rector to split it up the back so the front is there, as it is noted in an old family would look perfect in an open casket. bible, but there is no mark on the plain Wiley McIlrath said he would love it if field stone we believe is his. John adds: it was a 55L with a “redneck beer belly “A memorial stone was placed by me cut.” For those without email, you for Stephen Trigg Mitchell [’867] in missed the announcement in January his family’s graveyard at ‘Wheatley,’ that Wiley suffered a massive heart located on Wheatland Road, Bedattack. His daughters (at least one is an RN) and Bambi are supervising ford County, Virginia. Also buried “Poppa Gator” during his recovery. As there are his father, Robert Crump I write this, he is recovering well and is Mitchell; his grandfather (maternal), planning to be at the 50th.

Dr. Samuel Phillips; his sister, Sallie Class of 1967: Peggy and Bob Flynn and Carole and Ted Mervosh Tom Hancock: “I walked the French Mitchell Strother; possibly his uncle, at the Institute Society Dinner. Bob and Ted were roommates route (of the historic Pilgrim’s highHarvey Mitchell (Michel), who was in their 4th Class year. the employ of Mr. Lincoln; and possiway) with a couple of friends from St. bly Harvey’s second wife, Jane Johnston Mitchell, directors for the National D-Day Memorial Jean to Burgos in 2014. Later that year, Ann Marie and I completed that route by coach on a Tauck sister of Confederate States Army General Joseph Foundation.”

This is the second stone John has twice ordered parador tour of Spain. This year, my friends and E. Johnston. Most of the headstones here are field I walked a section of the Portuguese route from stones. GPS: N 37-19-05.0 W 079-35-28.5. I am and paid for to place for the unmarked graves of New Market men he has located.

Valencia, Portugal, to Santiago and then on to still doing research on this historically interAndy Carter: “I will admit that this is the first Finisterre.” esting family. Note that this graveyard is just Neil Schlussel: “Since you mentioned that some a couple of miles from the Crenshaw family time I have sent you an email, at least as far as I gravesite, which also intrigues me. Crenshaw can remember. I usually just crawl out of the water information on grandchildren is OK, I thought I once every five years or so for the reunions. But would let you know that my oldest, Zachary Jawas the great grand uncle of Mr. Gordon Eulife goes on, thankfully, and I have a new email cobs, just signed a full basketball scholarship to bank Jr. ’65. Mr. Eubank is on the board of which will soon be the only email I have since James Madison University. He will be a starter Time Warner will shut down the old account, as next fall. He had 12 official offers from schools I am no longer paying them! Since I took up scuba up and down the East Coast and the Air Force diving a few years ago, I have been getting deeper Academy. VMI did look at him but did not offer in the sport, no pun intended. While I am still doanything.” ing some consulting on building design around the The Gioias’ oldest daughter, Victoria, was accountry, I am still actively teaching people to scuba cepted to UCLA next fall, and our granddaughter, dive and indulging my interest in history by prowlAshley Abernathy, will begin college at George ing all over the central Pacific looking for sunken Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. Anyone ships, which turn out to be mostly Japanese. I just else have a grandchild to brag on and share with returned from my third trip to Chuuk, formerly the class? known as Truk, which was a major Japanese naMost of you know that Wayne McDermott was val base until bombed and cut off from resupply not at our reunion, as he was in the Mayo Clinic by the U.S. Navy in early 1944. I have attached a in Jacksonville. “Well the sixth chemo/immunofew photos. Because you are an armor type, that therapy was not successful. I applied for a Phase underwater lump you are looking at is a coral- I clinical trial at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, encrusted Japanese tank which sits on the deck of Florida. This trial is specifically designed for the the San Francisco Maru at a depth of 165 feet.” chromosome problem I have that makes my mulRichard Stanard checks in often from the Caribtiple myeloma aggressive. I was accepted, and I bean while he is on regular multiweek cruises on have to be down there March 9 for a minimum his Lakota sailing cruiser with jaw-dropping sunof 10 weeks, unless my system reacts negatively to rise or sunset photos. Ken Chun still sends mouththe treatment meds. The doctor told me that the watering photos of meals he and Monica enjoy all meds showed promise in the lab rats. I told the over the Hawaiian Islands. doctor that I was a rat at VMI and I have lots Class of 1967: Ennis and Lane Kelly visitI wonder if Bob Nablo was able to find a new of brother rats pulling for me, so I am expecting the Science Museum of Virginia in home for his VMI blazer. My favorite suggestion ing to tolerate the meds – hey, I survived the September. Photo by Billy Seargeant ’68. was from Gene Potter, who said he should save Rat Line. Obviously, 10 weeks takes me well

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VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes past the reunion dates. Please give my best to all attend. V/R Wayne.” John Goode has a current business project in Jacksonville and goes to see Wayne as he has time when in town.

Susan Groseclose responded to my request about platelets needed for a friend who works with Joan and me as a volunteer with the Atlanta Symphony. “Were you aware Skip was an active Apheresis donor at the time of his passing? He donated every two weeks ... religiously (job permitting), and sometimes on his overnights if a Red Cross was near his hotel. Each donation is approximately a 90-minute process, and you can donate 24 times a year ... he had donated 150 times before he passed. This is just a little FYI about your brother rat.”

Perry Ritenour: “I am writing to inform you that Lee and I will be unable to attend the 50th Reunion this spring, as we originally planned. My cancer condition has become worse, forcing me into an intensive weekly, all-day chemotherapy infusion for the next five months. Therefore, I am unable to travel. I did, however, send in my personal financial contribution to the reunion late last fall. Please extend my best wishes to all our BRs at the reunion. I hope everyone enjoys this opportunity to renew the bonds of VMI one more time as we all pass into old age.”

We are aging and beginning to experience many of the ills and infirmities we watched our parents go through. Not counting the really serious challenges many have already battled through, I have lost count of the replacements of hips, knees and assorted other joints – serious enough for those who had the replacements but not generally life threatening. Not all among us want to share their health challenges, but many say they get a serious boost from hearing from brother rats with encouragements. I only share names and your situations with your permission, but I do share the need for prayers with BRs who maintain prayer lists even if you do not want to be identified.

I always try to include news that comes in Christmas greetings, and cards brought some good BR news. Tom Gillette really liked the House Mountain photo. Email cards are trending more and more this year, but I am always glad to hear from you in any format. Chuck and Mya Krebs have bought a house near Charlotte after a year-and-ahalf on the road in the 27-and-a-half foot RV travel trailer touring the states. This move puts them near the daughters and six grandchildren. Mya brags on all of them but is especially proud of grandson

2017-Issue 2

Corey, a Marine, who graduated from boot camp last year. Ann and Will Plentl were among many who were really looking forward to the reunion.

Leslie and John Forsyth had a truly busy year that included “two house sales, two moves, several trips and four surgeries.” They now live in Castle Rock, Colorado, not too far from downtown Colorado Springs. Repaired was John’s back (again), Leslie’s knee (again), and some other ulna and carpal tunnel repair, but healing is going well. Trips included Israel, Virginia Beach and a destination wedding in Puerto Vallarta. Leslie’s dad was interred at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Janice and Jim Clarke say grandson Zeke spent 10 days in the hospital last fall with a severe lung infection due to a diminished immune system resulting from his Down syndrome. Terry and Beth Moore report her knee replacement went well, and Terry stays busy with his genealogy research with some time off spent on running down who brother rats roomed with back in the 60s. It seems some memories have dimmed, plus some among us changed roomies as often as we changed socks. Karen Wells had a hip replaced, and two months later, they went on an Alaskan cruise. Pete had a unit reunion with Vietnam friends in Pennsylvania. Ski and Carol Ann Waskiewicz’s Polish Star News related a lot of family doings, and all are well. Bruce and Hollace Weiner had trips for golf, skiing and scuba diving in Cozumel. They spent Christmas bicycling in Vietnam and Cambodia. Bruce said, “I’m still working a couple of days a week when I am in town.” Tom and Lucy Gritzmacher now have all three grandchildren living with them. They are providing a safe and loving home for those youngsters, which is a blessing and a true act of loving kindness. Tom and Shirley Mustard say their youngest daughter will graduate from her doctoral program, and the timing will conflict with our reunion. A great-grandson, Harvey, was born on Tom’s birthday. (I think this is a first for ’67 – a great-grandchild) In any case, they get the prize for the most photos in a Christmas letter. Lianee and Phil Gioia’s card was a family photo with the girls, along with Bandit the dog and Fremont the cat. They all look great! Terryann and Max Toch’s card was especially handsome with everyone in red sweaters. Leo, Charlie and Maria had solid school years, and Terryann took a cruise with an old school friend to Antarctica and Argentina.

One of my favorite cards this year is from Taras Galysh. “Jan, Received your card today. Stephanie wants to know who Jennifer is? Taras,” I sent

an email to him saying I did not know, but I was sorry to have opened a can of worms; maybe I just lost my mind during those two weeks while Joan and I were signing and writing personal notes on the 305 ’67 cards.

Once again, I am at the end of the allotted space for our notes in the Alumni Review. Our reunion is just over, and I know we all had a great time. We all owe a big thank you to the reunion volunteers and the campaign that Jim Rogers and his team organized for our campaign. We broke the record – except for those upstarts from 1966 – and I thank you all for supporting the class effort.

Keep in touch and share your best reunion photos with Joan and me, as we plan to do a compilation of all photos from all reunions to share with all by publishing and mailing a disc to you.

1968

Tom Hickey

Larry Ryan (Crete): “I enjoyed two wonderful years in the Pacific Northwest on Whidbey Island working at the large Naval air station there. Whidbey was about as nice as you can get – pleasant views, mild weather, less rain that Seattle and easy access to two great cities – Seattle to the south and Vancouver to the north. I was thinking that this would be a good retirement location. I did connect with Pete Farmer (Edmonds, Washington) who runs the Pacific Northwest VMI chapter; we worked a college night together, and Pete organized a great get-together around New Market Day that was attended by Larry Stetson (Tacoma, Washington) and his charming wife. Pete’s son, Kyle Farmer ’13, was there as well – a fine looking recent grad and proudly serving with a Stryker battalion at Fort Lewis. There were a few Class of ’66 folks as well and they had recently returned from their 50th, so it was good to catch up on some of their BRs. “I carefully considered retirement for about two minutes and decided I was up for another tour in Europe. Just after I returned from a great trip to northern Greece last March, I saw a job posting for Crete. I applied and last month packed my rucksack for a two-year tour here in Crete. I live outside the very pleasant

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Class Notes community of Chania on the northwest coast of Crete. Weather is great, work is interesting and, despite what we read about the political dysfunction of Greece (not that we have much room to throw stones), life is good here. The Greeks are gregarious, family-oriented and know how to enjoy life. They work to live, not like our obsession of living to work.

“I had planned to repeat my East Coast trip from last year – travel to Fort Belvoir to visit my daughter, Leigh, and her family. She has two sons, and they both have their VMI provisional appointments. That would have been a great trip combined with Founders Day, my birthday, visit with friends from Winchester and a stop at William & Mary, as well. But I’ll plan for that next year and for sure our 50th.

“I see Dave Gehr (Williamsburg, Virginia) has just moved to Williamsburg, and James Fleming (New Braunfels, Texas) keeps us apprised of his house construction in New Braunfels; he’s fortunate to have his neighbor to be Barry Archer (New Braunfels, Texas) down the street to keep watch on the construction.

“I’ve found a nice house with plenty of room.

So this is an open invitation to all our BRs to come visit. Flights to Chania on Ryan Air or Easy Jet connect with several hubs in Europe.

“I’ll be thinking of all our BRs tomorrow on Founders Day and giving thanks for one of the best decisions I ever made to attend VMI. It has certainly shaped my life, and I treasure the bonds with not only my BRs but all alumni.”

Wayne Fowler (Marion, Ohio): “Greetings from a ‘lost’ brother rat. Although proud of my years at VMI, I haven’t been keeping in touch since I transferred out after only two years and didn’t feel I could fairly claim to be a full member of the Class of ’68. I originally entered the Institute with visions of a military career but changed my aspirations when I realized that although dayto-day military life was OK, as a military officer I wouldn’t have control over ‘my life’ – for instance, being required to move when I was happily established in a community. However, I saw an old photo from ’68 in the latest issue of the Alumni Review and thought you might enjoy some of the photos I had from the old days. (Note: these were posted on the VMI68 Facebook page).

“For my part, after leaving VMI, I went on to graduate from Canisius College in Buffalo where I met my wife, Lori. An amusing aside about Canisius that might be appreciated by a Keydet:

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Shortly after my arrival they held an ROTC drill.

Canisius required all freshmen and sophomores to be in ROTC, but it was optional for juniors and seniors. Of course, all the officers were upperclassmen. This, especially during the Vietnam period, led to the gung-ho trying to lead the unwilling! Naturally, the drill was utter chaos, at least in the eyes of a former Keydet.

“We have two daughters (and a granddaughter), one of whom is a veterinarian while the other is a departmental business manager at the Ohio State University. I served two years in Air Force personnel with active duty at Andrews Air Force Base where I like to think I held the rank of scoutmaster (for one of the base’s two Boy Scout troops). That was followed by a 25-year career as an executive with the Boy Scouts of America and a 15-year stint with the Red Cross Blood Services. Lori and I are both retired and serve as docents at the Columbus Zoo where I’m sometimes mistaken for Jack Hanna or Dr. Sam Grant of Jurassic Park – probably thanks to wearing a broad brimmed hat all the time and being the ‘dinosaur guy.’”

Don Lynch (Virginia Beach, Virginia): “Wanted to mention that my wife and I recently took a river cruise in Normandy, which included a day trip to the Normandy invasion beaches, including the American Cemetery. It was an extraordinary experience, and it was something I had wanted to do since I was about 10 years old. Brother Rat Dave Gehr had done a similar cruise a couple of years ago, and he had steered me to the Alumni Association for the names of VMI alumni who were either killed on D-Day or died of injuries received there who were buried in that cemetery.

My wife and I each had the privilege of laying a rose on a headstone. I selected that of U.S. Army Captain Harold C. Steffey ’37 as his brother rat, Brigadier General Charles Phipps ’37, was my neighbor in my last year of high school and was very helpful in guiding me to select VMI as my college. My wife chose a North Carolina officer who was from this general area.

“Both Mary Carole and I are doing well and have so far been blessed with good health. I have continued to do some locum tenens hospital work in North Carolina, but now that I’ve turned 70, I may really retire except perhaps for some free clinic practice, some teaching, and some writing and editing projects. I get together for lunch about once a quarter with Lewis White (Virginia Beach, Virginia) and expect to see more of Dave Gehr now that he’s retired in

Williamsburg. I also see George Sanborn ’67 and recently toured the Petersburg battlefield with him in late summer.

“The only other news of note is that EVMS named me emeritus professor of urology earlier this year. My little grandson, Brody, recently got his provisional appointment and is studying drums and talks about following his granddad and great uncle into the Regimental Band.”

Steve Wilson (Mathews, Virginia): “It was great seeing so many of our BRs at the 50th Reunion Committee meeting Oct. 27-28. Linda and I attended the Institute Society Dinner Nov. 11 and enjoyed seeing a good representation of our class. Sat with Skip and Kay Roberts (Lexington, Virginia) and Dick and Letty Wood (Richmond, Virginia). We also attended the Williamsburg Chapter meeting Nov. 16; Keith Gibson ’77 was the guest speaker, and he gave one of the best presentations we’ve ever heard. Jim Henry (Williamsburg, Virginia), accompanied by his lovely wife, Susan, was the master of ceremonies. Dave and Bobbi Gehr and Dave’s brother, Bill Gehr ’66, were also in attendance. I am still enjoying retirement and stay active with volunteer activities. I also remain cancer-free one year after proton therapy treatment ended for prostate cancer.”

John English (Richmond, Virginia): “I’ve cut back on the software development consulting with hopes of easing into full retirement in another year or so. I’m finding a little time to devote to music again after a long spell of whatever would be the musical equivalent of writer’s block.

A couple of weeks ago, I caught up with Dave Law (Reston, Virginia) and his wife, Kate (who is a true saint for putting up with Dave’s buddies, as well as Dave himself.) Looking forward to the reunion.”

Dave Law: “My family and I really enjoyed joining my brother Bob Law ’65 and his family for a wonderful Thanksgiving in Lutherville, Maryland. We continue to keep in touch with John English and Jack Bagby (Richmond, Virginia) and hope to make our 50th at the Institute. As the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority safety and security manager for the Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project, I seriously look forward to finally retiring to the mountains this summer. My wife, Kate, and I will be relocating from Reston, Virginia, to the Deep Creek Lake area in western Maryland. All brother rats passing through are welcome to stop by for a cold beer, some good old music and maybe a little fly fishing.”

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Bruce McGlothlin (South Park, Pennsylva- won ‘first place’ Jan. 17. In addition, my team, Dakota roots to Pierre, the Corn Palace, Badlands, nia): “Judi and I are traveling a lot in Europe and with pro golfer Jerry Smith, won ‘second place’ Wall Drug, Rapid City, Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Custer State Park, Sturgis, Deadwood and other places, like San Diego and Hawaii. Going Jan. 18. My cups literally overflowed this year.”

Terry Bowers (Martinez, Georgia): “Joyce and Bismarck. We ate buffalo burgers and Indian tacos to Alaska next year. We hope to get to Japan and Australia and New Zealand soon. Having a ball I just returned from a wonderful weekend in Lex- and took in a Lakota Pow Wow. “Our church is the heart of our daily life after in retirement. Still doing a lot of running, biking, ington where we were awed Saturday by the new jigsaw puzzling, reading and just plain goofing Corps athletic facility. We watched both the men’s nearly two years of serving as pastor. I continue to around. I love being my own boss. Looking for- and women’s track teams defeat The Citadel. support the Veterans of Foreign Wars, American There are no better indoor track facilities in the Legion and other armed forces support groups. ward to our reunion!” country! I spent most of the meet in conversation My fullest efforts are with the Military Officers Mike Michelson (Jacksonville, Alabama): “I’ve been kind of leaving my life out there open to the with Skip Roberts. Afterward, Skip and I found Association of America. I have served these last world on Facebook, but here goes the best that I Paul Bouis ’67, a track teammate, and spoke with two years as president of our Portsmouth Area can. The first 120 days of the year were wonder- him awhile. Joyce and I then took in the basket- Chapter. Besides involvement in our church, I ful. On the 121st day, I lost Suzy, and the world ball game with Samford University; sat with Jim have continued to enjoy the Tidewater Concert has kind of sucked ever since. A large number Joyner ’67 and Billy Lowe, Air Force Academy Band as clarinet player, announcer, singer and curof BRs called or wrote with deep sympathy and ’67. Unfortunately, Samford eked out a win. rent president. I continue to sing around the state feeling, and it was greatly appreciated. I made a “By the way, did I tell you that I made the with our Virginia Baptist Male Chorale (now their pledge to run in the races that she had chaplain).” entered us in and kept that pledge endWayne Burton (Kingsland, Georing Dec. 3, 2016, by running in the St. gia): “Thank you so much for your Jude half-marathon. I wrote somewishes, prayers and love this summer.

Carole and I just celebrated our 47th times agonizing recaps of those races, anniversary. The events this summer and it was therapeutic for me. I got a have given a whole new meaning to lot of encouragement from the BRs, love and what is really important in and because of that, I am planning on life. We are so grateful for you in our combining those recaps with transition lives. Your encouragement sustained material to make them fit better into a us. Now take time to enjoy your family memoir which I am tentatively calling and friends this Christmas. God bless.”

‘Running for Suzy.’”

Jim Polley (Stafford, Virginia): “The Dixon McElwee (Boca Raton, Florhighlight of 2016 was our son’s reida): “Linda and I are living in Boca Raton, Florida. I just started the new Class of 1968: Don Lynch at the American Cemetery in Norman- turn from nine months in Iraq. He’s year by attending a memorial service dy. He is at the burial site of Capt. Harold Steffey ’37 who was a captain in the Air Force and a joint killed during the three-month Battle of Normandy. for Janice Davis who died Dec. 30. tactical air controller; basically, he’s the Janice had struggled with Parkinson’s for the last Wofford College football game in November, one to tell the pilots what to do and how to do it five to six years since Groovy’s passing. We will, of where my granddaughter, Hannah, insisted on when they attack ground targets. He was in Erbil course, continue to honor Groovy by attending the going to the concession stand at the half? That in northern Iraq advising the 82nd Airborne Diviannual WGD memorial golf/social gathering for was great, because behind me in line were Bob sion commander and leading a team of JTACs the Class of 1968. While in Winston/High Point, Schmaltzriedt (Wilmington, North Carolina) and in controlling attacks by multinational air assets I was able to visit with Kevin Henry (Winston Bob Crenshaw (Fletcher, North Carolina)! Would in the air campaign against ISIS. He came back Salem, North Carolina), our old standard-bearer, not have seen them if not for Hannah. Also, got to to Fort Bragg in February, and we drove down to and John and Susan Royster (Bermuda Run, talk with Charlie Ramsburg ’66, who I would not see him and his airmen safely home and let his North Carolina). My son, David, and I continue have known had he not have spoken to Schmaltzmother give him a big hug.” to own and operate a home health care agency in riedt. I had not seen Charlie since his graduation Dean Kershaw (Fairfield, Virginia): “I started the Tampa Bay area, Providence Home Care. It and have not seen his brother and our brother rat, my own company, Kershaw Global LLC, last keeps me engaged and out of trouble.”

John Ramsburg (Norton, Ohio), since ’66, either.” February ... and am chasing projects from D.C. Walt Jeffress (Fairfax, Virginia): “I have been to Botswana and Abu Dhabi. I am active in the From Christmas letters and cards (with some trying to win at this (Note: The event is the Mit- editing): Rockbridge County Community Emergency ReHal Hostetler (Portsmouth, Virginia): “My sponse Team supporting our local first respondsubishi Electric Golf Tournament ProAm on the big island of Hawaii and more information can be Cradock High gal, Brenda, and I are still doing ers. I have to stay busy. Nancylee is now a fullfound in the Alumni News section of the Review.) (almost everything) together after almost 49 years time nurse. After 30 years in architecture and ProAm event for eight years. My team with pro (plus seven years dating). We do have a couple of engineering, she decided it was time to give back golfer Vijay Singh and two other amateur partners interests, but not too many. We traveled though my to the community and went back to school to get

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Class Notes her RN. She’s working behavioral health now.

She practices it daily just being married to me.

Such is life!”

Dion Johnson (Humble, Texas): “Suzie and I continue to be blessed to enjoy retirement as half ’n halfers summering on Keuka Lake, New York, and wintering in Kingwood, Texas. After our March 30 anniversary trip to Hawaii and mid-May SOSS charity tennis tourney in Texas, we endured a 100-year flood followed by a 500year flood within a 30-day period. We lost some Adirondack chairs, but the flood made us realize how terrific our neighbors are. Early in the summer, Suzie and some friends traveled to England and enjoyed a hiking and spiritual retreat in the western U.K. Cotswold countryside. Up in New York, Suzie was constantly busy with tennis while I played ‘tool-guy’ all summer converting a boathouse into a pottery studio for our county arts center. We had lots of family and friends visiting us at the lake enjoying boating, wine country, gully hikes, badminton and campfires.

I also found time to rework some outboard motor displays at the Finger Lakes Boating Museum which is developing into a great tourist go-to.”

Keep your calendar clear for reunion next year.

The official dates are April 27-28, 2017, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there weren’t events before and/or after those days.

1969

Walter Judd

Greetings, BRs and Friends of the Great Class of 1969.

Leaves changed colors and then left. A foot of snow fell on us in eastern Virginia in January.

The daughter of our older father, Frank Easterly, reached 1 year of age Nov. 12, and basketball season is in full swing. Let’s see what happened this winter.

First, I must pass on that BR John D. Power died Jan. 19, 2017, near his home in O’Fallon, Illinois. John was a retired U.S. Air Force officer and a hospital administrator. I saw John several times through the years and, one time in particular, felt the impact of his chosen expertise. My wife had a baffling medical condition when we were stationed in Italy doing NATO duty, and we

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had to use the medical evacuation system to get to a hospital in the U.S. John was our contact in the process, and we owed him for his assistance in getting to the right place in a timely manner.

I learned he was the de facto expert on medevac operations for the Air Force, and his helping me was all part of his job. Later, I ran into him in a restaurant in northern Virginia, and pulled him from the bar and a new Tom Clancy book to eat dinner with me. He was a contractor then and still an expert on the medevac system. His obituary reads: “Retired U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel John D. Power, MSC, age 69, of O’Fallon, died at 6:40 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 19, 2017, at Cedar Ridge Nursing Home in Lebanon. John retired from the U.S. Air Force as a lieutenant colonel Medical Service Corps officer. Since retirement, he became a government contractor. He was a member of White House Military Aides Association, Rotary International (Paul Harris fellow), fellow in the American College of Health Care Executives, one of the founders of the O’Fallon High School hockey organization, former president of Mid-America Collegiate Hockey Association, and referee of football, basketball, softball and volleyball. He was a graduate of Virginia Military Institute, receiving master’s degrees from George Washington University and Webster University. Surviving are his wife, Kimberley Klein Power; sons, Jason and Marcus; grandchildren, Lillian and Jackson; one brother; and one sister. A memorial gathering will be held Jan. 25, 2017. His cremated remains will be buried in Arlington National Cemetery at a later date.” I will pass the word when John’s date comes up for his service at Arlington.

There was a pretty small ’69 crowd at the Furman University game in late October with Longs, Prughs, Walls and Catletts in attendance. The Keydets lost to Furman and saw a new VMI quarterback start his career. John Sebrell and Bunny Paulette went with Charlie Bryan to the University of Tennessee versus South Carolina game in Columbia, but Charlie was not pleased with the outcome!

On Founders Day, Nov. 11, several BRs gathered for the annual Institute Society Dinner at Marshall Hall and then hung around for the El Cid football game the next afternoon. At supper Friday night were Bob and Lush Heely, John DuBose, Charlie and Cammy Bryan, Dennis and Anne Witt, Fred and Claudia Downey,

Tom and Elizabeth Jones, Walter and Beverly Judd, Mike and Martha Santoro, V.J. and Margi Petrella, Courtenay and Ellen Welton, and Dave and Susan Prugh. We sat on the side nearer the stage this year. After years of sitting in the very back of the room, the sight lines were improved.

At the El Cid football game the next afternoon were T.O. Palmer, Chalk Hardy, Drew Brantley, John Sebrell, Tommy Catlett, Jim and Beth Long, Dave and Susan Prugh, Ron and Betsy Wall, Tom and Elizabeth Jones, Dennis and Anne Witt, Bruce Gregory, Bunny Paulette, Mike and Martha Santoro, Tom and Gail Morris, John and Jane Ishon, and Walt Judd. It was the largest crowd of BRs anyone could remember and a big crowd in general for the game.

I thank all who sent me Christmas cards this year: Chris Brothers, Peyton Brown, Tom Buckner, Spunky Butler, Bob Clingenpeel Alice DeWitt (widow of Bill), John Edenfield, Joe Flanz, Harold Fleischer, Tony Gentile, Mike Giles, Mike Harper, Webb Hatch, Bob Hixon, Sam Hoffman, Joe Howard, Jay Jennings, Tom Jones, Bill Kirkpatrick, Mike LaMar, Jim Long, Gary Mackey, Don Mercer, John Mitchell, Lloyd McGrady, Frank Novakowski, T.O. Palmer, Jim Puryear, Larry Riegner, John Scott, Rudy Segaar, Roy Dana Swatts, Geoff Taylor, Mrs. Roxane Wilson (widow of Mike McCrory) and Courtenay Welton. There were some great stories in the cards and pictures but none more telling than the family of Alice and Bill DeWitt surrounding her with love.

V.J. Petrella sent me an interesting story in early January. “My brother-in-law, David Hagy, loves the Civil War and relic hunts. He found this VMI vest button around Ashland, Virginia.

Class of 1969: Old VMI button found near Ashland, Virginia, by relic hunters.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Looks like it was made in England by Firmin one goes with the grad to war while the gold one huh? This happens once every 823 years.

I talked with Jim Long in mid-February and & Sons. He estimates this from the mid-1800s. stays home safe and happy.

On Thursday the 16th, Glenn White and I got a full report on the wonderful triumph of It was chosen by the Central Virginia Civil War Collectors Association as the ‘relic of the planned to head to the annual “VMI Meets the our basketball Keydets over the El Cid team coached by former VMI coach Duggar Baumonth.’” Later, V.J. added, “Wikipedia says, Virginia General Assembly” reception at the ‘Through the reigns of 16 British Monarchs, Library of Virginia in downtown Richmond. I com at the game Feb. 11. The gym was rockFirmin & Sons at the age of 355 years (in expected to see Charlie Bryan and likely others ing with over 3,300 fans having fun. Joining them were Jim and Beth Long, with Tom and 2011), can be said to be one of the 25 oldest at that party. I will give a full report on the recepNancy Catlett sitting nearby. Also there were established companies in the United Kingdom tion in our next set of notes due in mid-May. Peyton and Gail Brown, John Sebrell, Mary and is among the 500 oldest companies in the After golfing with Tom Morris of Wilworld.’” Our chief Virginia historian Charlie liamsburg in early February, he showed me a Alice Wright, Ron Wall, and maybe David Bryan just wanted the button to speak and tell Washington Post article on Justice Ruth Bader Bush. (Old eyes sometimes catch a glimpse us his story.

Ginsburg’s visit to VMI Feb. 1, 2016. Justice of someone who might be a BR but cannot You cannot hide from a VMI connection. T.O. Ginsburg was the featured speaker at a forum say for certain!) Jim reported the Keydet Club Palmer’s wife, Arlene, passed on that T.O.’s marking the 20th year of coeducation at VMI, members sent Bunny Paulette a get-well card. brother, Tip, saw Chunk Neale at a condo facil- and she was welcomed by a crowd of 3,800. She Later research discovered Bunny had spent a few days in the hospital the previity in Fort Myers, Florida, at his winous week and was on bed rest for ter retreat. If I lived in snowy midthe weekend.

America, I might want a warmer Jim also reported his Keydet Club retreat, as well! outing playing partner Art Bushey Got an email with picture in midhad spent his winter off the course February, saying “The Wattses and with thumb and Achilles tendon rethe Tottens braved the treacherous pairs. I checked with Art and heard waters of Charlotte Harbor and the “still messed up but getting betICW to lunch at Tarpon Lodge, Pine ter.” He better hurry. Great golfing Island, Florida.” Shown in the photo weather is just around the corner. were Jamie and Jody Totten and Bobby and Elizabeth Watts. Being in In the last two editions of my class Florida this week looks to be a very notes, I have told the stories of five of good thing, as it is wet and cool in our brother rats serving as Air Force Virginia.

Forward Air Controllers for a year in For the proud papa section, we the Republic of Vietnam in the early mention John Ishon’s daughter, Class of 1969: Jimmy “Maverick” Long getting ready for Christ- 1970s. Four (Paul Curs, Don Mermas in Salem, Virginia, in December 2016.

Jane Garnet Brown, is now part of cer, Tom Reynolds and Lee Swats) the Medical College of Virginia Foundation answered questions and spoke for 45 minutes were willing to tell their stories and honor the staff. Jane garnet holds two impressive master’s about her role in the Supreme Court decision memory of the fifth, Jack Kennedy. There was degrees: Master of Fundraising Management of 1996. The forum was sponsored by VMI and much more material included in the interviews and Master of Trust and Wealth Management. the Washington and Lee Law School. that will not be seen in print due to a variety of MCV grads should ask for her when being solicIn late January, I received a note from Rawls reasons: Both personal and political. Life continWilliams with the exclamation that he had seen ued for those four as they pursued careers in and ited for funds.

As these notes are being prepared, I see that our BR Rebel Good as the author of a tennis out of the military, but their memories are clear the last week approaching the deadline is a busy rules column in his favorite tennis magazine. today of those times in jeopardy. They felt they one. On Wednesday, Feb. 15, the senior VMI He told me to Google Rebel and see what he made an impact on operations in their areas of alumni met in Williamsburg for lunch. Bob does for the USTA. I know that Rebel has been activity and were glad to say they survived the Flowers, Drew Brantley, Tom Morris, Jim working as an official of the game at all levels experience. Each will also tell you the loss of BR Dan Gibson and I attended the meeting and for many years. Check out his story and love of Jack Kennedy Aug. 16, 1971, was both a memoenjoyed talking with other more senior alumni. the game. rable and sad day. Tom Reynolds was stationed We were introduced to the concept of a “comEver resourceful BR Bob Waldo sent this with Jack and flew with him often. His recall of factoid to share with you. Apparently we the days before, during and after is worth a few bat ring.” Seems members of the newer classes order two rings for Ring Figure: A gold one (at just survived another amazing feat: February moments of time in our class annals as we close around $1,800 per ring) and a similar one made 2017 has four Sundays, four Mondays, four this chapter. Tom recalled, “We had moved from silver with the VMI spider in place of a Tuesdays, four Wednesdays, four Thursdays, from Tam Ky to Chu Lai in early summer. My gem stone (at a fraction of the cost). The silver four Fridays and four Saturdays. Pretty neat, thought was that Chu Lai would make a great

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Class Notes beach resort, were it not for the war. Jack had joined the unit as Jake 23 (also flying the Cessna 02A). On many occasions, we would relieve each other on station. Once I was relieving Jack, and I asked for his 1020 (location). He relayed where he was, and I proceeded to rendezvous. We always would participate in a little dog fighting during the hand-offs. This day I climbed up to 5,000 feet (well above our normal operating altitude of 1,500 feet).

I called a tally, and Jack immediately performed a defensive break. He couldn’t see me, because I was well above (sort of the ‘Hun in the sun’). Every time Jack completed his break, I announced that I was still at his 6 o’clock. Jack continued to put on his best moves. I finally announced that I was at his 6 o’clock, high. Profanity filled the air waves.

(And laughter!)”

“On Aug. 16, Jack had the morning launch with me relieving him on the next go. I was walking to the aircraft when ‘control’ informed me that Jack had missed his check-in and wasn’t responding to their calls. Our normal operating procedure was to check in every 15 minutes with a status and location. Jack’s last check-in was, ‘Ops normal, Hiep Duc’ (his location). I quickly launched and proceeded to this last check-in location, calling out on guard for Jake 23. I arrived in the area but did not see any smoke or sign of a downed aircraft.

I contacted Crown to start a Search and Rescue effort. I conducted a grid search over an area that Jack could have traversed in 15 minutes. Soon, I was joined by other assets to help in the search.

I coordinated the SAR ops, assigning aircraft to different grid squares. I’m not certain exactly how long, but the official SAR ops lasted for a few days. I continued it until my DEROS (time to go home) in October. While on occasion we found small pieces of metal, there was no sign of Jake 23. This was the most difficult time in my Air Force career.”

The years passed by, and suddenly it was Aug. 2, 1996. It was time to complete the saga of Jack Kennedy and lay him to rest. For all those years between 1971-96, Jack’s family, VMI BRs and Air Force friends wondered what happened to Jack.

Jack’s dad died, but his mom, Sally, kept the faith and was cherished by the class. The Air Force kept searching and then finally one of their “recovery teams” found evidence of the crash of Jake 23 at one of many crash sites being investigated in RVN. Jack Kennedy was positively identified by DNA analysis of a bone fragment found at the site, and Aug. 2, 1996, the class and the United

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States military welcomed him home and to his final resting place at Arlington Cemetery. See the Fall 1996 Alumni Review for photos and words of inspiration. Five brave men served with valor and skill in the skies over Southeast Asia and at last all were home from the war.

In early February, I received my first communication from the Annual Giving office at VMI concerning our 50th Reunion planning. We saw our first of many status reports on the amount of money given to VMI by members or families of our class and the numbers of donors. As you are likely aware, VMI keeps records of annual donations and gives credit to the class claimed by the donor. We are off to a good start, with more than 57 percent of the persons with whom VMI has a record having made countable gifts to our 50th Reunion fund. We still need to hear from 109 BRs to get to our challenge goal of 100 percent participation. Don’t wait! Make a gift and ensure you are part of the effort.

When I read that first status message, I immediately started the mental process for planning our next reunion. We will need help from a lot of BRs and hope as many as possible will attend the reunion weekend in spring 2019. The 50th Reunion Class of 1967 will gather on the last weekend in April 2017 for their festivities, so we can plan on a similar time for ours in 2019.

I am receptive for ideas about what should and should not be part of the weekend festivities. Jim Long has volunteered to set up golf at the Lexington Golf and Country Club, and Chunk Neale has offered to take BRs hunting on land in Rockbridge County. Give me ideas on what other fun things you would like to do at that time. Shopping on Main Street and its small-town shopping area is always a treat. Visiting historical sites in the area is another adventure in the community. And another of my favorites is meeting local artisans and artists at their studios and show rooms. Who knew there was such talent and diversity in the area? We will need options and volunteers to make good things happen at that time.

Take care of yourselves, BRs. We have important things yet to do at VMI and we want a healthy crowd there for our 50th! If you have not given to VMI for a while, please consider doing so soon so your name is among the crowd already participating. Talk to others too, and get them to stand and be counted.

In the spirit, Walt

1970

Warren Grasty

As these notes cover events from mid-November 2016 up through mid-February 2016, I would like to start by thanking those of you who sent Christmas wishes to Liz and me. And to those of you who didn’t, let’s just say I’m making a list and checking it twice.

In November, Liz and I attended the Founders Day parade on post and the Institute Society Dinner that evening. Also in attendance were Rich and Kay Clary, Ralph and Marsha Costen, Ted and Barbara Durvin, Dave and Helen Miller, Paul Munch, Carl and Julie Strock, and Tom and Jan Zarges. Congratulations to Tom on his return as a trustee of the VMI Foundation after having served from 2007-15. Among his other responsibilities, Tom chaired the Corporate and Foundation Relations Subcommittee. We should all be grateful that we have so many brother rats who give so generously of their time and talents on behalf of VMI. The following day brought with it the VMI versus The Citadel football game, which was attended by more than 30 brother rats. Above and beyond the BRs who were at the Institute Society Dinner, those I saw were Herb and Susan Braun, Bobby Brown, Jud Collier, Don Crawford, Peel Dillard, Bill and Wysor Gearhart, Ned Haley, J. C. Hanks, Bill and Marilyn Huffman, Will Huntley, Dick and Penny Marshall, Bill O’Connor, Charlie and Peggy Perry, Russ Quay, Waite Rawls, tailgate hosts Lew and Judy Reynolds, Kent and Judy Schlussel, Cameron and Mary Seay, Ned Snead, Bob and Martha Spore, Steve Talley, Larry Thompson, Gary and Lynn Weishaar, Donnie and Bonnie Wheatley, and Chuck and Penny Wills. I hope I haven’t overlooked anyone. If I did, I owe you a beer, unless you are on the naughty list (see above).

Falling smack between Thanksgiving and Christmas was the diet-busting annual Peel Dillard oyster roast near Tappahannock. Joining me at this year’s festivities were John Bailey, Herb Braun, Bobby Brown, Jud Collier, Bill Huffman, Jim Mawyer, Andrew Deal ’12, Donnie Ross ’74 and Wirt Cross ’99 with his father. I

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes have never seen (nor eaten) so many oysters at one time in my life.

And now for some Bill Huffman trivia for you, as gleefully provided by Buck Talley. It seems that way back in their high school days in Staunton, Bill and his reportedly very good looking sister lived on the same street as Buck’s future wife, Emily. A classmate, Sandy Sproul, had a crush on Bill’s sister, but Emily had a crush on Sandy, and she remembers wishing with all her heart that the Huffmans would clear the heck out of town.

Which sounds to me like the basis for a Netflix miniseries.

Paul Edmunds sent in some very nice pictures of the November trip he and Julia took to Quebec City. We are pondering doing the same next fall.

Also in travel mode last year were Bob and Kathy Candido, who made it to Germany, the Panama Canal, Machu Picchu and Montana.

Not to be outdone, Joe and Patricia Girlando went to Australia early last year and took the 41-hour Indian/ Pacific train trip from Adelaide to Perth, from where they did day trips to Freemantle and Rottnest Island.

They said the highlight of the trip was Port Arthur, the former penal colony, I assume because it brought back memories of VMI. In October, they trekked to Scotland and the borderlands, where they took in Hadrian’s

Apalachiacola, Florida.

George Ritko checked in before his knee replacement surgery in January to say that he had a nice phone conversation with Al Kirk, who is back at work with Delta Airlines. Just when we are about to feel sorry for George, Jay Tice comes along and says he had both knees replaced last year. Son J.J., who is now 12, just completed his 10th quarter with all A’s and is involved with sports pretty much yearround. Jay and Liz are also co-Cub Scout den leaders. No wonder his knees wore out.

Class of 1970: At Carl and Julie Strock’s farm in January were I am glad to report that Tom Cooke Ralph Costen, Peel Dillard, Waite Rawls and Carl Strock. Photo is recovering nicely from his aortic

by Bill O’Connor. valve replacement surgery Jan. 30.

Unfortunately, the surgeon couldn’t do the procedure by going up the artery in his leg, so he was in the hospital for about 10 days. Who knows, maybe this will also take care of his slice. I also just received good news from Jim Mawyer, who had prostate surgery Feb. 14. The drugs are working fine, and he expected to be released later that day. They say he can even keep the various tubes and pipes they have attached to his person.

While we are talking body parts, it seems that Dave No. 1 Lawrence has Class of 1970: 2017 GOMBACS pictured in Myrtle Beach, South Caro- recently been channeling Dr. Feellina, were, from left, Bill Huffman, Bob Costigan, Herb Braun, Reed good, with trips to see former roomies Heddleston, Charlie Walker, Mike Snead, John Bailey, Jim Mawyer, Dave No. 2 Price, recovering from Gary Weishaar, Gray Chandler, A.C. Arnn and Warren Grasty. last February’s hip surgery in North Wall. (Aside: reportedly, more stones were used Carolina, and Bob Grossman, who was recovin this 73-mile long wall with its 80-mile castles ering from back surgery in Ventura, California. and lookouts than were used in the Egyptian Rumor has it Dave No. 3 Trenholm ain’t feeling pyramids. Aside No. 2: the Mexicans didn’t pay so good, either. During the year, Dave No. 1 and for it either.) Patricia wrapped up the year with Pam moved into the partially renovated farma visit to family and friends in Brussels and Lon- house in Tennessee that they have been working don. This year they hope to make it to Ilulissat, on for about a year. They also found time to take Greenland and Iceland. As I am sure you know, a trip to Israel.

Stix and Nancy Chandler vacationed in Costa Ilulissat, formerly Jakobshavn or Jacobshaven, is the third largest city in Greenland after Nuuk Rica in January, partaking in the obligatory hanging bridge and zip line adventures. Robert and Emand Sisimiut. Say what?

During the year, Phil and Carolyn Anderson ily Moore went to Costa Rica last year, as well as celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary to Europe for a river cruise, St. Lucia, Minnesota, and toured many Civil War battlefields in and Massachusetts and Walt Disney World in Florida Class of 1970: Gordon Williams with daugharound Vicksburg, Gettysburg and, drumroll with 3-year-old granddaughter, Alice. There is certer Liz and her husband, Phil Loughnane, please, Andersonville. For Carolyn’s 55th birth- tainly no moss gathering on the Moores. at their wedding Sept. 24, 2016.

Also visiting Walt Disney World with family day, they vacationed on St. George Island near

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Class Notes and friends to celebrate their 45th wedding anniversary were Mike and Jeannie Carruth. In August, they met up with Harry Bare for a twoweek tour of 10 National Parks (see previous class notes for pictorial evidence).

I have received numerous comments from brother rats about how impressive the Corps looked during the presidential inaugural parade Jan. 20. Unfortunately, we had to wait to see it on YouTube, because the local NBC station we were watching cut away from the parade just before the Corps passed the reviewing stand.

A few weeks ago, I was reading the newly released “Pickett’s Charge: A New Look at Gettysburg’s Final Attack” by Philip Thomas Tucker, which included a section on the 65 VMI men involved in the battle. Thirteen of the 15 regimental commanders that day were VMI educated, and Gen. James Lawson Kemper, one of Pickett’s brigade commanders, had served as president of the VMI Board of Visitors. I emailed around a scan of this seven-page section and received some interesting responses, as follows.

Phil Jornlin wrote in that his great-grandfather, Benjamin W.L. Philpott, also a relative of Bob Philpott ’68, was an officer in Gen. Lewis Addison Armistead’s 57th Virginia Infantry. He was one of the 57th Virginia that made it over the stone wall on the west side of Cemetery Ridge, where he was captured and Gen. Armistead was killed. Phil says that, after being captured, he was a guest of the Army of the Potomac for the duration of the war, which took him to Fort McHenry, Fort Delaware and Johnson’s Island in Lake Erie.

It turns out that Dick Knight also had relatives at Gettysburg. “I have long been familiar with the 7th Virginia Infantry (Col. Tazewell Patton ’855, commanding). On April 23, 1861, several of my kinsmen enlisted in Company A at Madison C.H. Two of them were my greatgrandmother’s brothers (my great-great-uncles, Catlett and Charles Conway), and both of them were wounded during the charge, taken prisoner, treated at a Union field hospital and shipped to the prisoner of war camp (Point Lookout) at the southern end of Maryland. A third brother, William Buchanan Conway ’865, was a member of the 4th Virginia Cavalry, which played an important rearguard role during the retreat from Gettysburg.” As mentioned in the book, Taz Patton was an ancestor of Gen. George S. Patton III ’907. He and two other of Pickett’s regimental

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commanders that day, Col. Lewis Burwell Williams (1st Virginia Infantry) and Col. Robert C. Allen (28th Virginia Infantry), had roomed together in room 13 (now 201) while at VMI and were lawyers before the war. All three died during the attack.”

Then there’s Steve Craddock. He contributed an aptly-described “interesting but useless little factoid,” to wit, “I have (purportedly) one of General William Mahone’s [’847] VMI coatee buttons found on the battlefield at Gettysburg.

Did a lot of research to validate the claim, and everything I came up with supported it, including the design and date. Why would there be a coatee button on the battlefield, you might ask?

Again, part of the research turned up that VMI used high quality buttons made in New England (Massachusetts) before the war. (During the war, they had to go to cheap, less quality buttons made in England since the north wasn’t cool about shipping buttons to the Confederacy.)

Anyway, Southern uniforms used so-so quality buttons, but they often broke apart. VMI graduates tended to reuse their better quality buttons from their coatees as replacements. Mine was found where his brigade (6th, 12th, 16th, 41st, 61st Virginia Infantry) was stationed the second day with Anderson’s Division of AP Hill’s Third Corps. They didn’t participate in the heavy fighting, and he got dinged for not coming to support Wright’s and Posey’s brigades in time, but what the heck, Wright was a GED and Posey went to the University of Virginia. Historians have often wondered being in Anderson’s Division of AP

Class of 1970: Pictured at the ’69/’70 Palm Desert Shoot Out in January 2017 were Bill Paulette ’69, Ralph Costen, Bill O’Connor and Jim Chapman ’69.

Hill’s Corps why Mahone’s Brigade didn’t participate in Pickett’s change (they should have). Apparently, they must have had a permit to excuse them from military duty that day.” According to the author, Mahone’s Virginia Brigade and Gen. Carnot Posey’s Mississippi Brigade were indeed supposed to support the charge and had been assigned from Gen. A.P. Hill’s 3rd Corps to Gen. Longstreet’s Corps for this purpose. However, not only did Longstreet disagree with Gen. Lee’s strategy, he and Hill disliked each other. So, when these support units were needed, Longstreet countermanded their orders to advance. And you thought the people on “The Apprentice” were catty.

While we are on a Steve thing, his and Sherrie’s

Class of 1970: Pictured at the VMI versus The Citadel football game in November 2016 were, from left, front row, Larry Thompson, Chuck Wills, Ned Haley, Charlie Perry, Jud Collier, Bobby Brown and Rich Clary. Back row: Steve Talley, Cameron Seay, Waite Rawls, Herb Braun, Warren Grasty, Bill O’Connor, Peel Dillard, Carl Strock, Kent Schlussel, Ralph Costen, Donnie Wheatley, Dick Marshall, Don Crawford, Lew Reynolds and Bill Huffman.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes daughter, Laurie, was married to Dennis Pope Dec. 19, 2016. And back on Sept. 24, Gordon and Kim Williams’ eldest daughter, Liz, was married to Phil Loughnane, whose uncle just happens to play lead trumpet for the band Chicago.

In other wedding news, Ned Haley wrote in that his son, Adam, will marry fiancée Sandi next October. Fricka’s son and daughter-in-law returned to the states after five years in Qatar and now live four houses down the street, where he is now a pilot with Atlas Cargo. Ned and Fricka will be vacationing along Florida’s Atlantic coast later this month and will be heading to St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands later this year for a destination wedding.

Speaking of St. John, while I was tooling though the local food mart in Coral Bay on the island in January, my neon yellow VMI hat attracted the attention of John Osborn ’89. It turns out that he was deployed immediately after his wedding way back then, so now that he is retired and their kids are in college, he and Debbie decided to take a belated honeymoon.

Since I have already reached my quota of five pictures, the picture of John and me may be in the Class of 1989 section, unless his class agent already has five pictures. So far, my yellow VMI hat is two for two on St. John (see last winter’s class notes, if you really care).

Howie DeWolf checked in to report that he, Barbara and three of their numerous grandsons trekked from northern Virginia to Lexington for the VMI versus the University of North Carolina – Greensboro basketball game Jan. 14. Howie said that although the Keydets made a strong finish, they couldn’t overcome the deficit from early in the game. They are already pondering the fall football schedule to see what games they can attend.

In late January, Ralph Costen and Bill O’Connor made the annual pilgrimage to Palm Desert, California, to once again try to get the best of Jim “Weasel” Chapman ’69 and Bill “Bunny” Paulette ’69 in golf. Not! But hey, they did win once in their 12 previous matches.

Rumor has it that the airplane ran out of bloody marys on their return flight.

Early February brought with it yet another installment of GOMBACS in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. This year’s gaggle of golfers included A.C. Arnn, John Bailey, trip meister Herb Braun, Gray Chandler, Bob Costigan, Reed Heddleston, Bill Huffman, Jim Mawyer, Mike Snead, Charlie Walker, Gary Weishaar

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and yours truly. This year’s theme was, “It can’t be any colder than it was last year. (Can it?)”

Luckily, it wasn’t, and a good time was had by all, with the possible exception of A.C., who came down with a cold during the week.

While the cats were away, so to speak, several of the wives drove to Bluffton, South Carolina, to spend a few days at the rental house owned by a friend of the Baileys. Making the trip with June and Liz were Nancy Chandler, Judy Mawyer and Lynn Weishaar. Similarly, Susan Braun took the opportunity to join Ralph and Marsha Costen, Peel Dillard, Bill and Paula O’Connor, and Waite and Malou Rawls for a weekend at Carl and Julie Strock’s restored 1840 plantation in Essex County. The weekend was filled with skeet shooting on Peel’s nearby farm and retelling war stories that seem to have a different ending every time. Since nobody can remember anything anymore, it doesn’t really matter.

As seems to happen every year, after GOMBACS, I schlepped from Myrtle Beach to Orange Park, Florida, with Stix to participate in the Chandler oyster roast. John Bailey followed behind, and Liz and June Bailey drove back from Bluffton with Nancy. Have party, will travel!

On a sad note, Ben Morris wrote that he not only had to deal with hip replacement surgery last year, he also lost both his sister, Gale, and daughter-in-law, Sidia Morris, to cancer. Hoping for a much better year in 2017, he and Valerie have planned a Mississippi River cruise from New Orleans this spring.

That’s about it. Be sure to check out the VMI’70 Facebook page for pictures and comments posted by our BRs. Also, if you are not on the brother rat email list, just send me an email at ClassAgent1970@aol.com so you can keep up with BR and Institute related news.

In the spirit!

1971

Jim Kelly

These notes will cover the period between Nov. 1, 2016, and Feb. 15, 2017.

Midwinter is upon us, but there is hope for better days ahead. The south side of the house

today is beautiful with sunshine, while the north side still lurks in the shadows that will not give way until well in to March. Our groundhog has once again spoken, and it will be six more weeks of some form of cold weather before you are reading these notes in May ... probably very near the 46th anniversary of our graduation from VMI. I suspect that, if not already then very soon, a new class will emerge from the Rat Line at VMI and the cycle that is the essence of VMI will be renewed.

I am saddened to report that our class has lost another brother rat. Chris Councill died Dec. 17, 2016. Chris matriculated to VMI from Franklin, Virginia, and was an electrical engineering major, Company B lieutenant and a participant in many cadet activities. Chris served in the U.S. Air Force then worked for IBM for 32 years before his retirement. He is survived by his wife, Jan, and four children. A memorial service was held Dec. 27, 2016, in Marietta, Georgia. The Class of 1971 extends its sincere condolences to the Councill family. (See full obituary in the Taps section of this issue).

The holidays were upon us shortly after the November notes deadline. Kathryn and I greatly appreciate the many cards, letters and kind greetings that we receive from so many of you every year. The list this past year included: Clary, Wadsworth, Czupryna, O’Donnell, Stallings, Sanetti, Truesdell, Kardian, Kennedy, Rush, Price, Gearhart, Strickland, Bryan, Good, Hyche, Turner, Adams, Hannum, Berkness, Golden, Neville, Rose, Friend, Ronayne, Kern, Lockridge, Coble and Zirkle. Unless you have requested not to receive any correspondence from VMI, I have about 270 brother rats on my mailing list. If you did not receive a card, be sure that you have kept your address up to date with me and/or the VMI Alumni Association.

I received a letter and picture from Bill Willis (just a few days late for the last notes) that showed him with his cousin Will Gregory ’16 on graduation day in May 2016 on the exact date of the 45th anniversary of our graduation.

Bill’s cousin is what we call in Pulaski “a big ole boy,” and he probably was not in the same company as Bill, but the class rings seemed to click together nicely.

Bill and Gail Stallings continue to enjoy a great retirement in Savannah, Georgia. Last fall, however, there was good news and bad news.

After searching for a while, the couple found a

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Class Notes yacht they really wanted and were successful strength back up is a little slower. Shortly after is interested in joining the group, contact John bidders on the vessel. It is named the Mystic the shoulder job for Lanny, Terry Sue had fusion Heisler at john@jaheisler.com for information. back surgery, spent a week in the hospital and is January had Heisler, Pearman, Clary, Kirby, Unicorn and is capable of cruising the Keys, Bahamas and the East Coast. As (bad) luck would the proud owner of eight pins in the back. T.S. is Patterson, Walton, Martenstein, Westbrook have it, shortly after getting everything arranged “slow,’ but improving. Doctor Bob and Maureen and Hanke in attendance.

The VMI basketball team has had its share of at the marina in Savannah, Hurricane Matthew Lockridge visited his old roomie. It turns out Bob became the first storm in 118 years to seriously and T.S. each had very similar back procedures. problems so far this year but have also had some Bob and Maureen made their annual trip to St. outstanding individual performances. Saturday, impact Savannah. After evacuating to Greensboro, North Carolina, they returned home to Martin in January and were getting prepared for Feb. 11, 2017, the Keydets played the Bulldogs find themselves among the fortunate who did a mission trip to Haiti. The Gaults and Mikulas from The Citadel. This particular weekend has were scheduled for a western Caribbean cruise become sort of a winter tradition for ’71 to not suffer a tremendous amount of damage. Bill gather in Lexington for the game. Steve Price, and Gail have extended an open invitation to the first week in March. Trickster and MRR RanMike Strickler and Tim Golden took the lead brother rats who might wish to visit with them dolph have also been doing some traveling and in Savannah. are heading soon to visit Vietnam, Cambodia in organizing this year’s gathering. Halftime of the game featured the introduction of eight new John Metzger is normally in Canada doing and other nearby countries. Word is that MRR serious hunting in November. He usually goes is the master planner and briefs Dickie when he members in to the VMI Sports Hall of Fame.

Scheduled to make the game day were: Gault, to get a ride to the airport (Reagan) from John needs to pack and be ready to go to the airport.

Wiese, Coleman, Yorgey, Littleton, Paton. This year’s trip was delayed Barkley, Strickler, Golden, Bryan, due to a certain election, which took Clary, Czupryna, Berglund, Acuff, place in early November, in hopes Ellington, Kennedy, Barkley, Kirby that his favorite candidate might win and Kerley. About 10 wives/dates and a celebration would be in order. were also on the list. The group had We know the outcome, and there a pregame warmup at a local Italian was indeed a party at the South Side restaurant (Salerno’s) and proceeded Restaurant in Old Town Alexandria over to Cameron Hall for a 1 p.m. tip which included Metzger, Paton, off. It was a great day on the court Fogleman, Piernick, Schelhorne, for our team, as they dominated The Biersack, Lindsey and other distinCitadel with a 101-78 win. An added guished guests. I don’t know how attraction was the reunion of the ’76many of these gentlemen attended ’77 basketball team that had the fairy the inaugural parade, but as most of you have seen or heard by now, the Class of 1971: Pictured at the 45th Reunion were, from left, tale run to the NCAA Elite Eight.

The Corps Physical Training FaVMI Corps of Cadets once again John Metzger, Tim Golden, Buz Booker, John Paton and Jim was arguably the best unit in the pa- Kelly. All were roommates at some point during their time at cility was dedicated at VMI Jan. 26, VMI. Photo courtesy Boone Bucher.

2017. This facility is one of very few rade – and the largest.

Speed Patterson has recently joined forces in the United States that features a hydraulically Buz and Jan Booker are proud new grandparents as of Jan. 27, 2017. Henry Thornton with the Salvation Army Boys and Girls Club in banked, six-lane, 200-meter track. Our track Booker is the son of Maj. David Booker and Richmond, Virginia, to lead a team which will teams were able to begin practice inside in Nohis wife, Caroline. David is currently under- develop a Center for Computer Excellence. The vember but recently held their first home meet in four years. Both our men’s and women’s teams going training and stationed at Fort Leaven- center will focus on encouraging youth to purworth, Kansas. The child was slightly earlier sue careers in the technology industry. Doctor earned victories over the visiting Citadel teams. than predicted, and there was a mad scramble If you follow professional football then you Mohamed Eltoweissy, VMI professor, is serving of grandparents heading to Kansas. I believe as an adviser to the group. Bob is also working may have seen information about two former coaches from VMI who made it to the big stage Henry and all of his family are doing well as on developing a software program that will enthis season in the press and on TV. Mike Tomof this writing. able individuals to organize and catalog essenI got a nice email from Lanny Gault and a detial documents. This work is targeted toward lin, Pittsburgh Steelers head coach, and Dan Quinn, Falcons head coach, both were unrescription of a nightmare winter for Lanny and multinationals in need of support with paperstricted earnings assistants under the late Bill T.S.; the house resembled a MASH unit. Lanny work. Speed spent “lobby day” over at the VirStewart during the 1995 season. The Falcons, as had a complete reverse shoulder replacement in ginia General Assembly and had the opportuNovember. He had put it off for as long as he nity to converse with Gov. Ralph Northam ’81. you know, lost in an amazing Super Bowl game Rick Pearman sent me a report of the Richcould, because the surgery is as bad as it sounds. to the New England Patriots.

He is now in physical therapy three times a mond ’71 lunch club, which meets every other VMI has released its football schedule for fall week. Range of motion is better, but building month at Extra Billy’s on Broad Street. If anyone 2017. For the first time in school history, the

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VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Keydets will play the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs Saturday, Sept. 2, 2017.

Coach Wachenheim, now in his third year at VMI, is a 1984 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy. Additionally, there will be five home games in Foster Stadium, two each in September and October and one in November. VMI will travel to Charleston, South Carolina, Oct. 28 to battle The Citadel.

Annual signing day for high school athletes to make their college commitments was conducted recently. VMI signed six linemen, a quarterback and 11 other players. We were clearly looking for some size in this year’s class.

The offensive line signees average 6 feet 5 inches and 258 pounds. One first team All-State tight end from Fort Chiswell (Wythe County) was the only signee from this part of Virginia.

Hopefully, with all of the home games on tap, we will see many of our friends in Lexington for a game or two.

Giving totals for the second quarter of Fiscal Year 2017 were released recently. Our class shows 69 donors (tied for first) and an alumni participation rate of 28.5 percent. Average percentage of alumni giving for the decade of the 70s stands at 21.73 percent – do the math. The Class of 1970 has been our nemesis for many moons and, as a class, has managed to squeak by us in the past; they have been and continue to be great supporters of VMI. I am pleased to announce that, as of today, this second quarter FY17 report shows the Class of 1971 is in sole possession of first place and nearly 2 percent points ahead of ’70. I am so proud of all of you who have answered the call to support VMI so far this fiscal year and encourage those who are still considering a gift to go ahead and get it done! It is the right thing to do in view of the fact that private dollars will be the mainstay for VMI in the future. Go out back and give an Old Yell for ’71.

Kathryn and I wish you a safe summer season. We hope that our grandchildren, Lauren and Ryan, now both middle schoolers, still have at least one more visit to the outback on their list and that we will have quality time with them at some point during their vacation.

That is pretty much it for now my friends.

Please take care of yourselves, and let VMI be heard from today.

In the bonds, Jim

2017-Issue 2

1972

Larry Houseworth

Brother and Sister Rats, Families, and Friends, These notes cover Thanksgiving to mid-February. Politics, coloring books and the weather leave us befuddled. Hopefully these notes find you and yours somewhat grounded amid the headshaking.

Holiday cards and letters included these tidbits: The Pools: Tristate sunny smiles and beaming grandchildren.

Buzz Chacey: Still “crazy busy” but hoping to shift to a slower pace (consulting) sometime soon.

The Henningers: Getting accustomed to Maine, but don’t speak the language yet; blessed with patient neighbors, and his VMI cap draws attention in Brunswick.

The McElroys: Bucking the trend and moving north to Allentown, Pennsylvania (appropriate), a “temperate climate” after years in the deep South and moving into a house after eight (?) years in an RV (?).

The Pagoneses: Obviously New York Rangers fans.

The Holsons: Chuck is “fully” retired after his second career – 18 years as an elementary school

teacher in the San Antonio area. I also received delightful notes from the Gorskis, Worrells, Coxes, Stranskys, Fojts and Grojeans.

Jim Pagones and I had a delightful catch-up phone conversation recently. The court’s docket prevents him and his bride from attending the reunion, but they’re counting the days until that’s no longer the case.

If there’s a God in heaven, the “faux news” mischaracterizations of VMI’s Behavioral Health Programs will be long dead by the time you read this. If not, see the memorandum by Gen. Peay ’62, forwarded by Walt Chalkley. Let me know if you haven’t seen it, and I’ll get it to you.

We were well-represented at the Institute Society Dinner in November.

A.J. Fojt is editor of the 2nd Infantry Division’s “2 ID – Second to None” Mid-Atlantic Branch newsletter; good news for our 2ID alumni (Phil Wilkerson, Dave Hall, Chris Jones, et al.).

Dave Condon sent along a beautiful picture of his and Ann’s front yard. He said, “The basement with two extra bedrooms, full bath, office, family room, storage and train room are now complete, so there are four bedrooms should any members of our class like to stay if coming to the area.”

Gracious of you guys. Thanks.

Bob Stransky sent a fiery take on the Army versus Navy game and the nation’s “new sheriff in town.” (fun read – let me know if you’d like to see it.)

Chris Arey: “Can pass along that effective the end of 2016, I retired from federal service and will

Class of 1972: Pictured at the Institute Society Dinner were Rick Jones, Rick Hack, Butch Winstead, Tom Williamson, Bill Collier, Jack Fick, Gale Sommers, Pete Ramsey, Tom Moncure and Rich Flowers.

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Class Notes enter the land of the retired and gently in summer 2014. This is our first impoverished. Was pleased that Tom tour in Europe (I’m a Department Moncure and Butch Winstead were of the Army civilian), and we’ve able to attend the retirement ceremony been taking full advantage of it.

– roommates, both. Have no definite Our children have been busy, too. follow on plans aside from some travel We have five grandsons and one and upping my fly fishing quotient for granddaughter spread from Virthe spring. Glad to see you’re happy ginia to New Jersey to Michigan. as a clam in RVA; the Jefferson Hotel “Thanks to the Alumni Review, looks like a worthy place to dawdle for I got in touch with one of my 1st an afternoon.” I definitely am; and it Class dykes, Ward Carr ’69, soon certainly is, Chris. A salute to you for after my arrival and have hung out your distinguished service, BR. on several occasions. I also reconBill and Dianne Dunlap: “Dave and nected with my 1st Class dyke, Sue Hall stopped by (on their way Brant Collins ’75, who just retired from Texas to visit family in Virginia) as a judge in New Jersey and has to visit us in Oak Island, North Caro- Class of 1972: Dave and Sue Hall had a mini reunion with Bill and kept incredibly active biking, canoeDianne Dunlap. ing and sailing. He’s my role model lina. Attached is a photo of the mini once we check out and settle down reunion. Any BRs finding themselves in Monterey, California. Let me in the southeastern corner of North know if you’ve heard anything from Carolina and in need of a meal, drink my roommates, Geoff Straughn and and/or bed are encouraged to drop in.

Kevin Smith.” OK, BRs Straughn The only other ’72er we’ve caught up and Smith ... there you go. with here, so far, is Greg (and Emily) I slipped that little jab in there for a Griffith. Stop by if you need some reason, BRs. Hopefully, by the time sand in your shorts and salt water on you read these notes, you will have your toes!” Mighty inviting, guys. been contacted by one of us about Roger and Randy Lodi – “Finally sitthe reunion. The committee is makting down to catch up with you. Sadly, ing a concerted effort to personally when the initial reunion dates were contact every one of us to say, “It announced, Randy and I blocked that won’t be the same without you.” weekend. Unfortunately, the new dates I can honestly say it’s true; we all conflict with a planned trip to London bring something unique to our comfor our 25th wedding anniversary.

Class of 1972: Tom Moncure and Butch Winstead at Chris Arey’s mon bond.

Guess we’ll have to wait five more. retirement ceremony at the Pentagon.

With that, it’s little toot.

As an update, the Lodis continue doIn the bonds, and Rah Virginia Mil! “I know that the reunion will come off grandly ing everything, family-wise, 20 years later than Larry our BRs! Our son, Joshua, is in the second of a in ’72 fashion! When I read your updates, I althree-semester Master of Business Administration ways think that I should reach out to this BR or Program at Bentley University (having graduated that BR right here in New Jersey, but everyone is from Bentley last May). He also has an internship so busy with their own lives that it never seems for this summer with Ernst & Young, which will to happen. Hope that you and your family are Mike Kelly hopefully lead to employment. Our daughter, Ra- well. I will try to stay in closer contact.” It’s a treat to hear from you, BR. chel, is studying interior design at the University of Bob Ward: “I always feel guilty that I haven’t kept New Haven. She is a junior. Beyond studies, she is in touch when I get my Alumni Review, so I figured consumed with an internship completing real projHello, Brother Rats! ects for real clients. She hopes to find an internship I’d send a quick note as soon as I received the latest Pat and I were at VMI the past couple of days copy. I hope all is well with you, and I’m pleased this summer in New York City.

“Randy and I work (to pay off college) and to see that you’re in preretirement mode. I hope attending the Alumni Association Board of Ditravel. We anticipate retiring in 2020. This to be following your example at the end of 2019. rectors meeting. On Friday, it was 28 degrees and April, we will travel to Israel on a family tour. “After 17 years in the Washington, D.C., area, snow-flakes in some areas. Then it warmed up, During the summer, we remain closer to home, my wife, Mayumi, and I – finally empty-nesters and suddenly we have record setting temperaas the children are home.

– accepted a position in Wiesbaden, Germany, tures today here in Raleigh! Crazy weather.

1973

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VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes I hope everyone had a great Christmas and new year’s and are off to a big start for the year.

We were busy during the last couple of months of 2016. We attended the society dinner and Founders Day celebration along with Garland and Ann Gray, Bill and Judy Boland, and John and Michelle Sykes, and we attended the Citadel football game. That is always a nice weekend at VMI! We also ran into Doug Payne and Larry and Debbie Mays over the weekend. Then we hosted an exchange student from Germany during Thanksgiving and provided her with an authentic American Thanksgiving experience, which was a lot of fun. During the first weekend of December we went to Washington, D.C., with our friends and neighbors for a visit. The city is always so pretty during the holidays. At Christmas, we pretty much stayed around home and all the kids and grandkids came over during the holidays. Of course, we had to hand out VMI apparel to all the kids! And we handed out two VMI “baby cheerleader” outfits for the first time-- both daughters are expecting girls in March. We are all really excited about that.

As I mentioned earlier, Pat and I just returned from the BOD meeting at VMI. We had a great time visiting with Larry and Debbie Mays over the weekend, and we got to see R.B. and Becky Newman who came up for the event. The Class of ’73 had its own dinner table Friday night!

John Kearney Jr. ’00 is a board representative from the Washington, D.C., region, and his dad, BR John Kearney, stopped by Friday on the way home from Florida. With John Sr. was his new fiancée, Helen Carney. It was great to meet Helen and to see John.

Also attending the meeting was Walt Chalkley ’72, who is the regional director from The Villages in Florida. Blake Thomas recently retired from Southwest Airlines, and he and his wife, Sandy, have moved to The Villages. Walt successfully recruited Blake to be the new alumni chapter president! Walt said Blake built an airplane hangar close by and now has his planes almost in his backyard! I think that between VMI and his personal planes, Blake will keep busy.

Since my last set of notes, two of our brother rats have lost their mothers. Dave Northcraft’s mother died peacefully at home in bed Nov. 28.

M.B. Adelson’s mother died Jan. 29 in Dallas, Texas. Mark Camper lost his brother, Phil ’77, in January. Phil was a brother rat and roommate of my brother, Steve. Please keep Mark’s, Dave’s

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and M.B.’s families in your thoughts and prayers.

It is always nice to do notes after Christmas, as I normally hear from a lot of you during the holidays. A couple of notes I received referenced the Christmas cards I sent out with House Mountain in the background. Rob Bowman stated that the picture and snow reminded him of those cold mornings forming on the bricks! Rob and his wife, Carolyn, live in Blackstone, Virginia. Jim Wrenn said the snow-covered mountain brought back a lot of memories, and he again marveled at the powerful scenery that surrounded our VMI experience. Mark Skupien, Hugh White, Scott Lingamfelter, Dave Schwab, Pete Walters, Ray Burton and a lot of other BRs posted holiday wishes on our Facebook page. There are also lots of pictures of our BRs, families and activities. Ray posted a picture of him in his kilt at the Central Virginia Celtic Festival and Highland Games. Larry Mays posted a picture of him and Debbie with Art and Phyllis Pendleton and Matt and Beth Tignor after new year’s when they got together for a “roommate” celebration in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. And Paul Jalbert posted a picture of himself and Emily Dickson Nov. 26 when they got married and rode off on Paul’s motorcycle! Congratulations, Paul! If you aren’t on our class Facebook page, you are missing some good stuff! We currently have 69 BRs on the site.

John and Janet Benson said they were settling down in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, after retiring and moving there last fall. Two of their sons and three of the grandkids live nearby. They traveled to Hawaii and Jamaica last year and are headed to Cancun this year with his sister as they celebrate her retirement. Sounds like you are having a lot of fun, John! Stay in touch.

Mac Kirkpatrick finished some of his bike excursions for the time being after Christmas. His son, Chris ’15, who has been teaching in China, came home with his wife, Yoli, and visited VMI then they all headed south to Florida for a BMW rally near Jacksonville. Mac went back home, but Chris, Yoli and one of his BRs headed across country on their motorcycles. They landed in San Diego and then headed into Mexico for a tour of the southern half of North America. Safe travels, all!

Tom Jennings has been talking about retiring for a couple of years and finally did it last fall after 42 years with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. He is spending his time

restoring and demonstrating old antique farm engines, and he and his wife, Lois, have done some hikes on the Maryland Heights in Harpers Ferry.

In October, he checked off one of his bucket list items – he and his daughter, Cameron, celebrated their birthdays by doing a tandem parachute jump from 14,200 feet. They had a blast! Congratulations on your retirement, Tom, and best of luck with your bucket list!

I mentioned that I heard from Blake Thomas about his retirement. He has talked about it for a while, as well, but finally took the plunge last August. He had 10 family members and friends on his final flight into Orlando and then had a birthday party to celebrate his retirement and 65th birthday. Their Christmas letter was loaded with pictures of his final flight with Southwest Airlines.

Jim and Susan Ackley said all went well with their daughter’s June wedding. In November, their son and his wife, James and Emily, blessed them with their first grandchild, a big healthy boy named Oliver Douglas Ackley. Looks like Jim’s family had a growth spurt last year! Grandkids are great, Jim. Hope you enjoy your new family members.

A.J. and Ruth Kendrick enjoyed their vacations last year, visiting a number of the national parks including the Grand Canyon and Yosemite, and they toured the Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline Drive. They have been to Canada, Niagara Falls and out to California, where they attended their son’s graduation from the University of California-Irvington master’s program. A.J. said he is now spending a lot of his time hunting and fishing.

Doug Huthwaite and his wife, Pat, were in Lexington visiting with his mentor, Ron McManus ’57, last fall. They did some traveling last year but seem to be settling down somewhat now.

We still plan to get down to visit with them in Kure Beach, North Carolina, but it seems like our schedules haven’t meshed for the past year or so! Glad to hear you are doing well.

Tom and Bonnie Clark enjoyed their trip to Scotland last year and have been visiting with family in Minneapolis, including Bonnie’s “French” sister. They are going to Tucson in March with their travel trailer to visit with some of their camping buddies down there. They both stay busy with their church activities and volunteer work and attend VMI functions in the Denver area.

Hopefully by the time this set of notes comes

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Class Notes out in Issue 2 of the Review, Roland Tiso will be home for good! He told me he hopes to finish up in Iraq in mid-May to early June. He had a wonderful couple of weeks with his wife and daughters over Christmas and is anxious to get home. Judie retired from teaching at the end of December and had shoulder surgery, so she needs some recovery time and has a good “honey-do” list for Roland!

Ro said he had talked to a couple of folks about some local security positions but isn’t in a hurry to get back to work; he wants to spend some time with his family and get back to competing in the body building contests!

Go, Ro! Hurry home.

M.B. Adelson sent me a note after his mother’s funeral. They were fortunate to have a lot of the family come in for the service in Jacksonville. She was buried in a cemetery with her parents and a long line of family.

M.B. said he had not seen a lot of the family in many years, and the service was really an uplifting event. He feels certain his mother is at rest and never gone, as she is well remembered. In their Christmas letter, M.B. said Mary was enjoying her retirement and was active in the things she really enjoys – piano, gardening, lunch with friends and she got involved with the LeMoyne holiday lighting project once again. M.B. said he wants to work a couple more years before retiring but recently closed his office downtown and moved it into their “Garten Haus” behind their home.

Mike and Mary Burke are still active in St. Louis. Mike said he wants to keep teaching until perhaps age 70; Mary works part-time with the dental hygiene program at the community college but spends a lot of time traveling as the delegate for the Missouri American Dental Association. Their daughter, Emilie, is on track to graduate this spring from Missouri State University with a degree in geology.

Mike continues to be active in new cadet recruiting in the St. Louis area.

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Class of 1973: During the holidays, the Kellys made a trip to Washington with their friends and neighbors. Pictured were, from left, Pam and Tom Elks and Mike and Pat Kelly. Class Agent Mike Kelly said of this photo, “The city is especially beautiful during Christmas!”

Class of 1973: Tom Jennings recently retired and went skydiving with his daughter, Cameron, in October to celebrate their birthdays and his retirement.

Class of 1973: Members of the class pictured at the 2016 Institute Society Dinner were, from left, Carol and John Leon, Ann and Garland Gray, Mike and Pat Kelly, and Bill and Judy Boland.

I received a nice letter and card from Dave and Susan Northcraft.

Dave said they buried his mother’s ashes next to his father in the veteran’s cemetery in Maryland. They spent some time with Susan’s family in Virginia and stopped by VMI for a visit on their way home. The family got together for Christmas, and they really enjoyed being with the grandkids! Dave also sent me a picture of him and Susan with the grandkids all dressed up for Halloween; you are looking a little scary there, BR! Glad you have the princess and bat-children there to keep you straight!

Dave Sutherland sent me a note to say Dave and Susan stopped by to see them on their way to Maryland and the services for Dave’s mother.

He said he had also run into Matt Tignor, Art Pendleton and Sandy McNamara at a football game in October. As he was leaving the stadium, Dave ran into Yerry Kenneally and Dale Kitchen, so the Class of ’73 was well represented that day! Dave said one of his biggest accomplishments last year was to hike down (and back up) the Grand Canyon’s Bright Angel Trail while it was 106 degrees in the shade! For some reason, he said it took a little longer and seemed a little harder than when he did it in 1976. On his way out of the canyon, he passed some folks who pointed to his VMI hat and said, “Great school!”

Milt Salter said he had been up to visit family in Maryland during the holidays then rode the Amtrak Auto Train to Sanford, Florida, to spend Christmas with his sister and brotherin-law in The Villages. Milt said he was still traveling out of Mobile along the Gulf Coast as a financial adviser and has his sights set on February of next year to retire. He wishes everyone personal and professional success this year! He said to come and visit if you are traveling the I-10 corridor.

Terry and Nina Howlett had a “dream come true” vacation last year, as they spent six weeks traveling into

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Canada and Alaska, staying on military bases and on a cruise ship, then traveled cross country to Virginia for a visit. Terry stays busy with the civil Air Patrol and has responsibility as a counterdrug mission director for Texas and Homeland Security. Nina stays busy with church and teaching at the Christian Heritage School. They plan to visit Finland in March as leaders for the U.S. Air Force Academy cadets going on a trip to meet their counterparts in Finland.

I had a nice Christmas letter from Rick Gribling. He is still working as an associate professor at the Joint Forces Staff College in Norfolk and had planned to teach a course in Germany in September. Then he and his wife, Rebekah, were going to spend their 33rd anniversary in Ireland. However, due to some health issues with Rebekah, they postponed their plans but did get to meet with their daughter and son-in-law in Edinburgh, Scotland, during Thanksgiving. Their daughter, Rachel, enjoys her work in Scotland as the assistant communications director for the Scottish Bible Society. Rachel’s husband, James, works for the Hyman Robertson Financial Group as an actuary. Thanks for the note, Rick, and we hope for a speedy recovery for Rebekah.

Jim Davidson shared a somewhat scary but also uplifting story with me about his recent health experience. Jim indicated that he has made regular annual visits to a dermatologist for check-ups. He went last May and pointed out a spot on his ear. The doctor did not feel it was of significance; however, over the next few months, Jim’s wife, Kathy, noticed it seemed to grow.

After finding a doctor he could get in to see, it was determined that the mole was a metastatic melanoma cancer and needed to be removed as soon as possible. During surgery in January, Jim also had to have lymphatic nodes removed, as well as part of his ear. Fortunately, he said the quick observation by Kathy and the removal of the cancer provided him with another chance at life. Melanoma cancer is one of the most curable types of cancer if caught and treated early, but it is also one of the most severe if not treated.

Jim said he has changed the way he looks at life events and encourages each of us to be vigilant and observant. Thanks for sharing, Jim, and we are so very thankful for you and Kathy!

Ralph and Becky Littreal continue to enjoy their retirement. They travel around the country from California to Virginia and have enjoyed baseball games in California and spring training

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in Arizona. Ralph is trying to see how many of the different NASCAR races and racetracks he can get to, and Becky enjoys her craft hobbies and reading books.

I also had cards and notes from Doug Murheid and Claudia Russel from San Diego; Neil and Jennie Carlson, Shreveport, Louisiana; George and Renee Goodwin; Tom Burke, Bartlett, Illinois; Bill and Mary Stoner, Roanoke, Texas; “Willie” Wells and “Stu” the cat, Gloucester, Virginia; Malon and Barbara Updike, Charlottesville, Virginia; Tom and Suzi Napier Midlothian, Virginia; Klaus and Sue Worrell, North Chesterfield, Virginia; R.B. and Becky Newman Richmond, Virginia; John and Michaela Sykes, Bluffton, South Carolina; Corey and Gale Regelin, Columbia, Maryland; John and Kathy Riding, Glen Allen, Virginia; Bob and Sandy Poynor, Deatsville, Alabama; Scott McCarthy, Bethesda, Maryland; Bob and Sharon Bushnell, Collinsville, Virginia; Danny and Brenda Crance, Stuarts Draft, Virginia; and Tim and Ruth Hassell, Springfield, Virginia. Thanks for all the nice cards, notes and pictures!

Mary and Joe Duffy sent a nice note and card to say that while Joe has not been able to get a lot of physical therapy lately, he does have some exercise equipment at home and continues to work out there. They wanted to be sure I passed along their profound thanks to all our brother rats for your continued support, thoughts and prayers.

Overall, they seem to be doing OK. As I close out this set of notes, I want to remind everyone that if you move, change email addresses, etc., please let me know and go online to the VMI Ranks and update your profile. And if you are not on my regular email list, please let me know.

I hope that you got to see the Corps of Cadets in the inaugural parade; that was surreal! How do so many folks march like that and in such a formation? Incredible! Fantastic! And I’ve been quick to show off my 1973 picture of President Nixon’s parade! The Corps is now over 1,700 and it is anticipated that 506 new cadets will matriculate in August. I am very proud of all that has and is happening at the Institute. I will also remind you that even though the commonwealth has been very gracious to VMI for major building projects, money for general operational needs is now around 14 percent state funded. VMI relies heavily on its contributions from alumni and friends. June 30 is the end of the fiscal year for

VMI, and I encourage you to provide support to the Institute. And thanks to all of you that contribute generously and routinely!

Take care; have a great summer, and be careful out there.

In the bonds, Mike

1974

Snookie Parker

Greetings Brother Rats, Family and Friends of the Class of 1974!

I have more news than my five-page limit will allow, so my notes will be very cryptic. Highlights for this set of notes: News in Christmas cards and a February mini reunion for BR Roland Lazenby’s special recognition by the VMI Sports Hall of Fame.

I’ll start with the mini reunion summary and finish with the Christmas news. VMI Class of 1974 mini reunion was held Feb. 10-11. Catalyst for the weekend gathering was the VMI Sports Hall of Fame’s recognition of BR Roland Lazenby at a dinner in the Hall of Valor, Marshall Hall on post. What a weekend! It began with a Friday night early bird informal dinner in the Best Western Plus Hospitality Suite. Fifty-plus BRs with spouses/significant others gathered for pizzas, subs and libations. Brother Rat Lazenby was

Class of 1974: Roland Lazenby, wife Karen, daughter Jenna and son Henry at the VMI Sports Hall of Fame dinner.

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Class Notes humbled by the recognition and mentioned that it was more meaningful coming from his BRs than the Institute. We did have a surplus of pizza and subs, so Class of 1974 napkins were placed in the pizza boxes, and the surplus was taken to barracks for the cadets. A stampede ensued at the announcement of free pizza/subs compliments of the Class of 1974. Talk about gone in 60 seconds. I’m not convinced anyone heard the “compliments of” portion of the announcement. On Saturday, the class had a reserved section of 60 seats for The Citadel versus VMI basketball game.

VMI won handily, cresting the century mark for the victory. The VMI NCAA basketball team members of 1976-78 were recognized at the half, along with the Hall of Fame inductees. Several BRs attended the game but not the dinner: Randy Gleason, Mike Morrissett, T.J. and Kerri Wilson, Bill and Linda Faistenhammer, and J.R. Welsh.

Lots of positive energy at the postgame celebration in Moody Hall. The class attendees arrived early for the Sports Hall of Fame dinner to secure tables, as it was first come/first serve seating for those other than the inductees. The Class of 1974 was by far the largest and loudest contingent in attendance (60-plus attendees) with no close second.

A hardy Old Yell for ’74, “Lazenby, Lazenby, Lazenby” was provided by BRs as Laz ended his acceptance speech. The evening was polished off in the hospitality suite. Attendees: Russ and Mary Stuart Harlow, Donnie and Barbara Ross, John and Suzanne Pate, Craig and Cathy Carlock, Mike and Lera Andriani, Pat and Sue Flynn, David and Susan Sheppard, Rich and Ann Forbes, Judge and Rhoda Nottingham, Chuck and Elaine Cayton, Charley and Debbie Banning, Bob and Vicki Benninger, Terrell and Sarah Williams, Ricky and Page Kastelberg, Tommy and Mollie Anderson, Mike and Sarah Fisher, Glenn and Grace Greene, Pete and Susan Shelley, Mel and Vicki Clark, Gene and Margo Williams, Bruce and Sue Jones, Henry and Peggy Moncure, Joe McCoskrie, Mark Levine, Chip Beaman, Steve Fisher, Mike Cole and Debbie Barry, Jim Pavlou and Marilyn, Thomas Walton, Bill Haught, Rod Beard, Tom Puskas, Mark Prentice, and of course, Roland and Karen Lazenby with daughter Jenna and son Henry. The weekend went so well, we are contemplating another mini reunion about the same time next year – stay tuned!

Now for Christmas notes: Gary and Alison Trinkle’s (Grafton, Virginia) highlight for the year was their cruise/train exploration of Norway trip

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to see the Northern Lights and Viking Museum and do a little dog sledding. They are already planning another cruise for late spring 2017: Lisbon to Barcelona. Do you need someone to carry your bags? Gary, now the proud owner of a restored Fiat Spider, received a unique license tag for his new boy toy from Alison for Christmas: TRNK74 with the VMI spider logo; way to go, Alison.

Bill and Judy Candler’s (Port Byron, Illinois) first grandchild arrived in November. Son Dan and wife Maggie had Aiden Beckham Candler, an 8 pound, 10 ounce baby boy. So, I figure he is VMI Class of 2038; is that about right? Bill plans to fully retire in 2017. He completed a 190-mile section of the Appalachian Trail in 2016 and plans to finish the trail in sections before his knees wear out.

Kent Wheeless, David Sheppard and I met BR Don Ferrell at the infamous Parker’s BBQ on one of Don’s delivery runs from his hog operation.

Enjoyed the opportunity to fellowship over sweet tea and Q. Don brought an example of a personalized, engraved bottle of Woodford Reserve (double barrel) for consideration of a commemorative class purchase for one of our reunions. Roughly speaking, it’s somewhere between $9,000-13,000 for a barrel, which produces 250 bottles. We would, as a class, have to commit to a barrel a couple of years out. We are exploring the idea and understand there is some interest – more to follow on that.

After checking the Great Loop off his bucket list, Bert Zinkand (Lakewood Ranch, Florida) sold his big boat and is back to racing catamarans after a 30-year hiatus. He now has a Nacra 20 named Lunacy, which somehow seems appropriate. What do you think, Jane?

Frank and Jeanee Richardson (Newport News, Virginia) are living the dream in the Tidewater area. Frank, after military retirement, continues to work in the financial services arena.

Mark Prentice (Williamsburg, Virginia) is fully retired now and routinely catches a round of golf/ beers with Mike Foley. Michelle, is there a handicap on beer?

Bruce and Sue Jones won first prize in a Halloween costume contest as Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. They rivaled Saturday Night Live!

Mike Dugan (Russellville, Alabama) took a stroll down memory lane in his note – rat boxing under the watchful eye of Coach King. Mike remembers having the opportunity to observe my style and mannerisms before we “squared off” against each other and noticed that I telegraphed my punch by

dropping my left hand. Obviously, the match did not go as well for me as it could have. Mike said he felt bad for having taken advantage of the insight without saying anything. Never too late to get a tip. Now I know, so I can adjust for my next boxing match. Great to hear from you, Mike. Keep those cards and letters coming.

Lane Toomey (Southern Pines, North Carolina), still supporting the Airborne at Fort Bragg, says wife Karin has threatened to retire in 2017.

We’ll see!

Ted Telle retired from his teaching position in June, and after 14 years in Germany, Ted and Susan are back in the USA. They have built a home in Crossville, Tennessee, and are looking forward to reconnecting with friends and family. I think there is a standing invitation to visit for any BR who happens to be close. Welcome back, Ted! The big news from Andy and Pat Young is that after 23 years living in Franklin, Massachusetts, they are moving to Wilmington, North Carolina.

They have purchased a home on a golf course that is 2 miles from Wrightsville Beach. Pat plans to move shortly after she retires in January 2017.

Andy is still working on his exit strategy. We hope to see you in North Carolina soon!

Hall and Brenda Brodie reported they are still working but are researching places to retire in a couple of years and are considering Raleigh/Chapel Hill as possibilities. A limping Hall is in the fifth month of recovery from a ruptured Achilles – getting there but slow going. Hope to see you in North Carolina down the road!

John and Tracey Crawley (Newport News, Virginia) sent their annual Crawley Christmas letter chock full of news, pictures and sites for videos created by John (great photography and music, I might add – a blossoming talent). John is still with Joint Staff J6 (requirements for the Global Command and Control System), and Tracey is a therapist at Genesis Counseling Center. My interest peaked regarding their Jobs for Life program experience in Newport News. Our adult Sunday school class here in Wilson, North Carolina, is about to support our third iteration of this faithbased jobs program for those in need. Tracey is the lead instructor and John has summarized the experience in a video. Well done, Crawleys!

Mike and Lera Andriani sent their best wishes from Alexandria, Virginia. Mike reported that his 18-month assignment as the Operations Center director for the NGA is slated to end in February 2017, so his next step is unclear at this writing.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Lera is working from home as a contract nurse reviewer for Medicare claims and enjoys the flexibility. Son 1st Lt. Mike III continues to soldier on in a logistics battalion at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, and was invested into the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem in October in the rank of knight. A white tie and tails dinner honoring the investees followed in the renowned Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C. Congrats to Mike III! John Smithey’s Christmas card included an update on his son, Andrew, who is a KC-135 pilot who completed a four-year tour of duty at Mildenhall Royal Air Force Base (living off post in Cambridge) and is now on a tour at McConnell Air Force Base in Wichita, Kansas. That will be a little different culturally, I suspect.

Russ and Cheryl Takata sent season’s greetings from Hawaii. Since they are now both retired, they have time to visit their daughter and grandson stateside.

Two exciting trips were described in the 2016 Terry family Christmas letter this year. Regarding the first trip, Ken and Betsy Terry (Williamsburg, Virginia) spent their 40th wedding anniversary aboard the Alruna, a brand-new Viking Longship traveling via river from Amsterdam to Basel, Switzerland. The second whirlwind overnight trip was Ken’s final/retirement flight (with family) with JetBlue to the destination of his (really Betsy’s) choice – Aruba! A fine choice, I might add. Now that Ken is home every night, grandparent duties have taken center stage, and Betsy continues to ask

Class of 1974: Pictured at the VMI Sports Hall of Fame dinner were, from left, front row: Henry Moncure, Rick Kastelberg, Tommy Anderson, Mike Cole, Glenn Greene, Judge Nottingham, Snookie Parker, Chip Beaman and Bruce Jones. Row 2: Thomas Walton, John Pate, Donnie Ross, Pat Flynn, Rich Forbes, Joe McCoskrie and David Sheppard. Row 3: Terrell Williams, Mel Clark, Lane Toomey, Steve Fisher, Chuck Cayton and Snap Carlock.

Row 4: Russ Harlow, Charley Banning, Pete Shelley, Rod Beard and Bob Benninger. VMI photo by H. Lockwood McLaughlin. Present but not pictured were Gene Williams and Roland Lazenby. if he has some place to go for a couple of days.

Love that well-written and entertaining Christmas letter – thanks!

Steve and Carol Weaver (Anchorage, Alaska) sent a unique Christmas card featuring a VMI ornament camped cleverly inside of the word “joy” on the cover, all in VMI colors along with a clever VMI “Making Spirits Bright” insert featuring pictures from our latest reunion. Very well done; impressive artistic talent!

Walt and Karen Wilson (Steilacoom, Washington) are loving life on the left coast. Walt is retired,

Class of 1974: Pictured at the VMI Sports Hall of Fame dinner were, from left, front row, Gene Williams, Tommy Anderson, Mike Cole, Glenn Greene, Snookie Parker, Chip Beaman, Bruce Jones and Roland Lazenby. Row 2: Thomas Walton, John Pate, Judge Nottingham, Rich Forbes and David Sheppard. Row 3: Mel Clark, Lane Toomey, Donnie Ross, Pat Flynn and Joe McCoskrie. Back row: Russ Harlow, Charley Banning, Pete Shelley, Chuck Cayton, Rod Beard, Bob Benninger and Snap Carlock.

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has his handicap in the teens and has taken up bowling until golf weather returns. Karen is in her 10th year with Columbia Bank. They did manage to travel to Portugal and Spain with Pat and Sue Flynn and spent some quality time in Oahu, Hawaii (Hale Koa, Pearl Harbor, Waikiki Beach). It’s a tough life!

Speaking of traveling, Pat and Sue Flynn (St. Augustine Beach, Florida) went to Portugal and Spain with Walt and Karen Wilson; to Hawaii with Roland and Karen Lazenby; visited Mike Cole and Debbie in Pennsylvania; evacuated to Sarasota, Florida, for Hurricane Matthew; traveled cross country to three weddings; visited his brother in Tennessee; hosted family for Thanksgiving; and visited New York City for Christmas. You would think he is retired! He says he is still working; it’s just hard to tell! I will say that Pat is (or is it Sue) one the best travel agents around – knows where to find and take advantage of incredibly good deals on a wide range of travel adventures. I did visit the Flynn beach resort – a business meeting to decide if we should keep our business operational. After some soul searching, we decided we were having too much fun and thought another year of fun would be reasonable. We shall see.

Joe McCoskrie just finished a book on the American Civil War in Missouri that should be in print by late spring. If all goes well, Joe has several other book plans. Other than that, Joe is working on keeping his golf game honed so that the team of McCoskrie, Mascot, Ernzen and Mahoney

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Class Notes can three-peat. Speaking of Tom and Patti Mas- empty nesters and on their retirement adventure: agent to publish his first novel.

Red (and Shelley) Undercoffer (parts unknown/ Celebrity concerts, exotic trips (Costa Rica, Blue cot (Litchfield Park, Arizona), Tom retired from Southwest Airlines after 48 years of flying (and Danube Cruise), new cars and cooking classes. Lexington, Virginia) sent Christmas greetings, I think at the moment, from somewhere in South150 nights per year in hotels) and is focused on Should we alert the media?

Bob and Pam Johnson (Washington, D.C.) ern Philippines. Red had a busy year at various golf and fishing. I suspect he, like Joe, is working on his golf game to three-peat at our next re- continue with their public service contributions hot spots around the globe, including West Africa, Turkey and Abu Dhabi. union. Note: I’m looking to recruit my own team to the nation. Bob serves with the Department of John Welsh (Alexandria, Virginia) of Jim Wood (the consummate golfer loves retirement. To quote J.R., “I was in our class), Steve Wolf (I understand born for this!” is a scratch golfer/no handicap) and Don and Barb Whitten’s (Manassas, Craig Smith (who is rumored to have Virginia) daughter, Christine, married no less than three, four or maybe even Jason this year while daughter, Jenny, five hole-in-ones). We’ll see about that gave numerous presentations at geolthree-peat. Tom says come visit sunny Arizona – just make sure it’s an Octoogy conferences.

I received a nice Christmas card and ber through May visit. letter for Sister Rat Anita “Magic” Bob and Jeanne Slupik are living as Moore. Magic is enjoying retirement large as one can in Canyon Lake, Texand doing a lot of traveling: Japan, as. Bob is now the proud owner of a North Carolina, Maryland, Virginia new Kubota tractor aka “Big Orange” and Pennsylvania. and is driving around the property Class of 1974: Roland Lazenby received the VMI Sports Hall of George and Anna Van Laethem sent looking for things to do with a tractor. Fame Special Citation. Pictured at the event were, from left, I want one! Bob is still the chairman of Gen. J.H. Binford Peay III ’62, superintendent; Roland Lazenby; Christmas greeting from Chesapeake, the Comal County Property Appraisal and Donnie White ’65. VMI photo by H. Lockwood McLaughlin. Virginia. George is semi-retired. Anna continues her work at Western Branch Review Board (comes with crew and High School, and they both have emmad money pay). Jeanne is the president of the Canyon Lake Republican braced grandparent duties, making Women, senior warden at St. Francis several trips to Charlotte, North Caroby the Lake Episcopal Church and the lina, to tend to their grandson, Tripp. executrix of a friend of the families’ Bruce and Peggy Pence (Salem, Virestate. That’s enough to keep you busy. ginia) reported their grandson, MavMike and Sarah Fisher (Uno, Virginerick (love the name), turned two in October. ia) are still in the hog business. They A Christmas note for the Mattocks sent a “hogs and kisses” Christmas family (Petersburg, Virginia) – Sam card – very clever. and Colleen enjoy grandparent duties Glenn and Grace Greene sent (four boys, four girls) in Ohio/CaliChristmas greetings from Mechanicsville, Virginia. I received a signed copy fornia and wine tasting excursions/ of Grace’s new novel, “The Happiness potluck dinners with neighbors. They in Between.” I am such a fan! Thanks, did report that son Ryan got married Class of 1974: Room 146 members pictured at the postgame Grace!

VMI victory celebration in Moody Hall were, from left, John in May 2016 in Charleston, South Missed Wilson and Anne Johnson Pate, Mike Morrissett, Snookie Parker and T.J. Wilson. Class Carolina, and is still assistant coach (Fredericksburg, Virginia) as they were Agent Snookie Parker said of this photo, “Minus Randy Glea- with Duggar Baucom at The Citadel. passing through Wilson, North Caro- son – boned 5-1-5 for ‘failure to appear.’ Morrissett to monitor By the way, we did witness VMI thrash Gleason’s penalty tours for missing the photo op.”

The Citadel in the Pit in February at lina, and Parker’s BBQ headed south to see their granddaughter, Evelyn, in Bluffton, Housing and Urban Development Office of In- the mini reunion – sweet!

Pete and Susan Shelley (Raleigh, North CaroSouth Carolina (parents Catherine and Mat). Son spector General, and Pam is with the Department Matthew wed Sarah July 16, and they are living in of State. Bob also writes and teaches. He has fin- lina) celebrated their 40th anniversary at the Grove Fredericksburg. Wilson plans to retire at the end of ished his third book for his Team Lion trilogy as Park Inn in Ashville, North Carolina – congrats!

2017; Anne says, we’ll see!

I was in Jacksonville, Florida, the first week of the entry to a “write-a-50,000-word-novel-in-aThis year’s Banning Christmas gazette was clas- month” writing contest (Bob finished three days February and had an opportunity to catch up with sic. Charley and Debbie (she who must be obeyed) early). Bob lamented, “The prize ... well, there BR Rob Bacon. Rob is fully retired but exploring Banning (Annandale, Virginia) are officially was no prize.” Bob is on the hunt for a literary the notion of going back to work; not to say he

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VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes is bored but is looking for something interesting to do. I think Joan would concur – sooner rather than later! We agreed to a round of golf on the next visit.

The medically retired airline pilot Andy Eason checked in Feb. 7. He and wife Marcie, a special education teacher, have survived a couple of recent Oklahoma tornado near misses – one within a couple of hundred yards. Beside Kiwanis Club president duties, Andy donates his paintings to the church, which sells the artwork and then provides the proceeds to his daughter’s (Jennifer) mission in the Congo. Son Chris has just returned from six months with Special Operations command in the Middle East and has been nominated for the Oklahoma Western District federal attorney general post. Son Chad is a successful Realtor in Philadelphia. The Tidewater breakfast club met Feb. 4 at Dennis Spaghetti and Steak House in Chesapeake. There were eight BRs in attendance: Paul Van Doren; Bill Pennypacker; Chip Beaman; Al Rasper; George Van Laethem; Henry Moncure; John Crawley; and Chuck Cayton, this meeting’s scribe. As usual, there was good conversation – some about the state of the Institute and some about the impressive performance of the Corps at the inauguration parade. All received a lesson in municipal planning from George’s experience on the Chesapeake Planning Commission.

Sam Turner received a pacemaker (weak heart) after a stroke in early January.

John Arthur ’79 joined the crew toward the end of breakfast and engaged the group in a discussion regarding the plans to restructure the leadership of the VMI Alumni Agencies.

I did receive Christmas cards sans news from the following BRs: Bob and Lisa Braren (Marco Island, Florida); Charlie and Tommie Toler (Gulf Breeze, Florida); Pete and Penny Meredith (Norfolk, Virginia); Russ and Mary Stuart Harlow (Lexington, Virginia); John and Suzanna Pate (Chesapeake, Virginia); Bert and Cherryl Graham (Berwyn, Pennsylvania); Ted Zajac (Avon Lake, Ohio); Randy and Martha Gleason (Salem, Virginia); Kevin and Cindy Nettrour (Mascoutah, Illinois); Ricky and Page Kastelberg (Richmond, Virginia); Steve and Pat Orr (Walkersville, Maryland); Mike Cole and Debbie Barry (Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania); Jim and Robin Garten (Oro Valley, Arizona); Drs. Ed and Jamie Blake (Kilmarnock, Virginia); Bruce and Sue Jones (Richmond, Virginia); Craig and Cathy Carlock (Lexington, Virginia); T.J. and

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Kerri Wilson (Harrisonburg, Virginia); and Don and Patti Kilcullen (Richmond, Virginia).

Sad news: John Pate’s mother, Deloris Willis Pate, affectionately known as “Red,” died Feb. 4, 2017, at the age of 85. Keep John and his family in your prayers.

Class agent plea! Don’t be caught without your class coin. If you need one, send $10 (cost of coin and postage). Please forward any news regarding births, deaths, illnesses, marriages and other significant events concerning your family and/or careers. Brother rats are interested and do care.

I know email addresses have a half-life of about six months. Keep us current. Send your updated email address to me snookieparker1974@earthlink.net, Charley Banning cbanning@cox.net or Kevin Nettrour (our webmaster) nettrour@accessus.net. Check out the website. Send me a note.

Yada, Yada, Yada and Yaba Daba Dooooo!

Warm regards, Snookie

1975

Robert Keller

The last time I sat down to put together these notes, it was right before the presidential election.

We are past that and the inauguration now, and we are getting settled into a new administration.

What a difference a couple of months makes, and by the time you read this, it will all be different again. I want to thank all of you that have sent me updates for the Review by email, letters and Christmas cards. It is much appreciated.

Ellett and Frances Smith spent the weekend of the Furman University game with Scott and Barbara Risser, and while the game was somewhat disappointing (we lost), they all had a great time.

While there, they ran into Kimo Wong, Ben Vanderberry, Tom Baur and Jelly Bear Taylor.

Ellett reports that Scott and Barbara are very gracious hosts, and it was nice to spend the weekend in Lexington. Ellett also let me know that his son, Jason, will be receiving his Ph.D. this May. He and Fran feel very blessed that all three of their children are employed and surviving this wicked economy. Scott and Barb stay busy doing volunteer work in the Lexington area and with their church in Waynesboro, where they serve on the

church’s site development ministry. They also continue to serve as a host family for three cadets. A 2nd from Michigan, a 3rd who’s a star on the women’s soccer team and a 4th from North Carolina who is a drummer in the band. Sounds like a great program.

Tad and Bev MacGowan had a most busy time this fall. They made a trip to Portland, Oregon, for the marriage of Bev’s youngest daughter, Brittni. This was Tad’s first trip to the Pacific Northwest, and while there, they were able to take in not only the wedding but also were able to visit the city of Portland, the Columbia Gorge and the Pacific Ocean. Daughter Ginny completed a six-country Asian tour taking in China and Bali, to name a few. She also visited Jamaica before moving to the West Coast to settle in San Diego. Her sister, Kathryn, was able to accompany Ginny for several legs of the trip. Daughter Calee is in Richmond, where she is applying for graduate studies and looking for full time employment.

Tad’s son, Kyle, is busy working and taking classes at NOVA but managed to find time to do several days on the Appalachian Trail. He found it a great experience, to even include being bitten by a Copperhead snake (not great). In February, he entered the Apprentice School in Newport News.

Not to be outdone on the adventure front, Tad took a sailing trip and got caught by a weather front that passed through the area. It ended up with man overboard and an at-sea rescue, but all ended well. He even made the news.

Ken Miller wrote to let me know about the Wreaths Across America program and how they were experiencing funding problems. If you remember, I sent this out to the class and several of our BRs responded, as they were as active in this program as Ken. Thanks, Ken, for bringing this to our attention, and thanks for your efforts to remember our veterans. John Young is another who is active in this program and has been involved in funding and placing wreaths at the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies in Pennsylvania where his wife, Joyce, is buried. He sent me a picture of the cemetery with the wreaths on the gravestones, and it is a very impressive sight. On a lighter note, John sent me a copy of the VMI coloring book circa 1971 that was available when we were there. This was in response to the great VMI coloring book scandal of 2016. I’ve got to tell you, the response to the letter I sent out regarding that was the most active of any to date.

Thanks, John, for keeping things in perspective.

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Class Notes Greg Stultz visited with David and Karen Lape in San Antonio over the Veteran’s Day weekend. Salvo reported that they attended a Founders Day lunch Thursday with about a dozen other alumni. He said the Class of ’75 was the senior class attending, and he and Greg showed their age. Evidently, Tony Scales ’93 was compelled to ask Greg and Salvo if the stoops were made of wood when they attended the ‘I.’ Ouch! Salvo said he had never heard that one before, but they did have a good time at the event. Greg added that there were some members from our ’78 dykes’ class, and it was nice to meet up with them. That Saturday, they attended the Notre Dame versus Army game along with Salvo’s brother and his wife, Gary and Lee Ann Lape ’74. Things did not go well for Army, but it was a great visit. Greg was really impressed with the San Antonio area that the Lape’s chose to retire to and said their new home is very nice.

Rich McFarland announced to the world that after 21 years with the DCS Corporation, he retired Nov. 30, 2016. Maco stated that so far, things are going fine, and he is getting used to hay-down all day. He says now all he needs is to do is find something constructive to do. His daughters threw a retirement party for him, and Paul Bernard and Vic Arthur were in attendance to help him in this transition. Good luck, Maco; we are all pulling for you.

Had a quick note from Bob Holby who lives in Melbourne, Florida. He has been there for more than three years while he finishes his career at Patrick Air Force Base with only a couple of years to go.

Bob O’Connor sent me a copy of his and Jan’s 2016 O’Connor chronicles. I will attempt to condense their several-page missive for obvious reasons. Bob begins with his current assessment of his relationship with the weather – specifically cold, snowy weather. He relates tales of he and

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Class of 1975: Scott Risser and Ellett Smith in front of Moody Hall during the Furman University football game weekend.

Class of 1975: Paul Bernard and Mona Hardinge celebrated their wedding in Hagerstown, Maryland, Jan. 1, 2017. Pictured were, from left, Michelle NcNaughton, Chris Bernard ’08, Mona Hardinge Bernard, Paul Bernard, Missy Hardinge and Tommy Hardinge ’05.

Class of 1975: Tad MacGowan and his family with Tad’s father, Ken, who turned 93 in April. Mr. MacGowan served on the VMI Parents Council during the Class of ’75’s cadetship.

his trusty Binford 5000 snow thrower with icicles hanging from his hardhat as he was visiting a dam sit on the Little Tennessee River and how his zest for “robustness” has been steadily diminishing over the years. Bob, on that point, I don’t think there is a dry eye in the house. Next there was a discussion on their trips to Hawaii to visit their daughter, Molly; son-in-law, Sam; and grandchildren, Lanie, Kate and Quinn.

Molly and Sam are stationed at Pearl Harbor where Sam is usually deployed on a submarine, or as Bob the engineer calls it, a steel tube. Bob relates how he has put his foot down on limiting the frequency of such excursions, as the trip is long and exhausting. That bold move seems to have caused a shorter than expected six-week delay in he and Jan’s trips. Bob goes on to talk about bathroom renovations and how the contractor walked off the job before finishing, which resulted in deliberations with the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing & Regulation.

This was followed by a camping trip with daughter Megan and friends, which resulted in slight medical issues like a visit with Mr. Montezuma. This was followed up with a small mishap on the way home with their brand-new automobile and then Bob decided it was time to attend his high school reunion, the first since he graduated. He reports that he had a great time (something about the cheerleaders). And finally, Bob relayed his experiences with old age; something we all are unfortunately facing. He talked about new relationships he and Jan are having with GERD and sleep apnea. Join the club, brother rat. Thanks, Bob and Jan, for a great update.

Received an update from Charlie Hoon, and it seems that the waterfowl hunting season in California is over for the year. This pastime Charlie and his dogs spend doing each Wednesday and Saturday during the season for many years has been a great joy for him, but Charlie relates that age is starting to catch up with him. But with

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Class Notes met up for their second New Year’s Eve afternoon Baur’s soon to be daughter-in-law is an instructor the end of one season comes the beginning of another, and he has the bass boat all outfitted with walk along Sunset Boulevard, but California’s in that department. Al also gave a description of a new electric trolling motor and fish finder. The unusually wet weather this year put a halt to that. the new Corps Physical Training Facility, which best part is that Sharon goes fishing with Charlie Randy and Art immediately put plan B into place features a 200-meter hydraulic track, overhead occasionally. He says that she fishes with a good and retreated to an appropriate place and shared a obstacles, a rock wall, a warmup track as well as book, but that’s OK by him, as that is less gear for wonderful New Year’s Eve lunch. Sigs said he and seats for 1,400 spectators and a parking garage for 126 vehicles. While he and Sandy were attending Randy had a great time. him to take care of. Charlie’s daughter is moving It seems that Dean Armstrong drew the short the various sporting events that weekend, they to Charlottesville, Virginia, and like a good dad, Charlie has volunteered to drive back to Virginia straws over the holidays, as he had flights on both had the opportunity to run into Tom and Judy with her. Not looking forward to five days in a Christmas and New Year’s Day; though it couldn’t Baur, Chip Louthan, Art Nunn, and Scott and car, but that’s what a dad does. His other daughter have been too bad, as the Christmas flight was to Barb Risser. In closing, Al said he was impressed Honolulu. But his schedule fell off after that, and on the outstanding performance from the corps moved to Alabama in January, so it looks as if he will be spending more time on the East Coast. He this has given Dino the opportunity to plan the in President Trump’s inaugural parade. I have to also is looking forward to getting back to Montana upcoming vacation trips for the year and catch say that I heard from many of you and saw tons but will wait until April, as the weather is still too up on projects around the house. In the works is of great comments on social media about how impressive the Corps’ presence was at the parade. a September trip to Normandy with several of cold, and there is too much snow for his liking.

Denise’s friends. Normandy is a favorite place for The Corps was definitely heard from that day.

In early January, I was able to get together with Uncle Dave Schuyler checked in Guy and Mary Conte, Bill and Delores and reported that all is well in RoaOverton, and Bill and Natasha Kobus for lunch in downtown St. Petersburg. noke. He is retired, but he still subIt was one of those three-hour lunches, stitute teaches in the county school and we had a really nice time catching system. He says that he actually did up with everybody. O.V. retired this last a preschool class, which took him sevyear, and he and Delores were able to eral days to recover from. He is also take one of the European river cruises now a proud member of the Medicare this past fall. They both are looking club, along with several others of us as forward to doing more travel in the fuwe all close in on that age. He enjoys taking in as many basketball games as ture. Bill and Natasha split their time he can and reports a good showing of between St. Petersburg and New York our BRs there. He was in touch with City, where he has business interest. his roommates Artie Nunn, Mike Guy and Mary were in town for the holidays visiting family. It was a great Class of 1975: Pictured at lunch in downtown St. Petersburg, Flor- Fleenor and Randy Frank on new ida, in early January 2017 were, from left, front row, Natasha and year’s as they wished each other the day all the way around.

Nat Hamner and the Hamner fam- Bill Kobus and Delores Overton. Back row: Guy and Mary Conte, best for the coming year.

Bob Keller, and Bill Overton.

Rick Henning sent a nice note and ily gathered at the Boonsboro Country Club in December to celebrate the 90th birthday Dino. Dino also filled me in on a piece of sports reported that he and Suzanne got to spend time trivia in that Dan Quinn and Mike Tomlin (Falwith their eldest son, his wife and the three grandof his father, H. Douglas Hamner Jr. ’48B. Nat tells me that Doug told several stories about the con’s and Steeler’s head coaches, respectively) children: Coltin, 9; Ashton, 5; and Ayden, now past to entertain the family, but he did not explain have a connection to VMI, as they both at one eight months old, over the Christmas holiday. Behow he came to name his third hunting dog, Mike, time were on the Keydet coaching staff. fore that, Rick, Suzanne and Sam spent time in after his old hunting buddy, Gen. Mike Irby ’39.

Allen Morgan had the opportunity to attend Oriental, North Carolina, with Suzanne’s brothNat further stated that the ’48B class agent re- several sporting events during the last weekend in er’s family taking in the “The Spirit of Christported last year a story of how the Minks stole a January and was extremely impressed with the mas” event, which has become a yearly tradition.

VMI cannon, which resulted in Doug’s company new venues for wrestling and indoor track. Al Also in December, Rick and grandson Coltin falling out from DRC and marching uptown to states that the Pit (Cormack Hall) has been transwere able to take in the Division 3A state football encourage the Washington and Lee University fra- formed into the new wrestling “Thunderdome” championship on the Wake Forrest University ternity to pull the cannon back to post and return with seating for 750 spectators. This comprises campus. January begins the eight-week basketit to its proper place in front of barracks. Evidently, about 40 percent of the building. The middle area ball officiating season for Rick, and this year, he the OD witnessed the cannon’s return with Doug has physical education classrooms and offices, wants to do three games every Saturday for the riding on top of the cannon all the way home to and the balance of the building is weightlifting Upward Basketball program. Rick loves his job Jackson Arch. Thanks, Nat, and a belated birth- and conditioning for the Corps as well as state- as a pizza delivery driver for Domino’s – especialof-the-art lab for VMI’s exercise science minor ly having a set schedule and having the weekends day wish to your dad.

Art Sigsbury reported that he and Randy Frank program. Al went on to say the Tom and Judy off. He is looking forward to the VMI versus the

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Class Notes University of North Carolina – Greensboro basketball game that he and Sam make every year.

He is also looking forward to the baseball season and wants to make several VMI games. Rick, Suzanne and Sam have been hosting international students that are attending North Carolina Wesleyan as their schedule permits and having a great time with that. In closing, Rick says the invite is always open to those BRs passing through to at least call and leave a message or call in advance, especially on a weekend, and possibly meet up at the Cracker Barrel.

Bill Kern relayed a funny story for us. Bill’s sister, Katherine, works at a thrift shop in Fort Myers and sent Bill an email about a VMI coatee that they had in the shop but was not selling. She wanted to know if he wanted it. Bill accepted the offer, as there was a place in his den (man cave) where it could be enshrined. When the coatee arrived, Bill was thrilled that it was for a private and had 1st Class stripes, just as he was in 1975. He tried it on, and it was a bit small and seemed to button on the wrong side. It also had a discreet seam along the front to each side of the uniform.

Slowly the light began to dawn for Bill and his wife, Liz, said, “Give it here,” and she tried it on. It fit her perfectly. When he made an inquiry to his sister, Katherine replied that they do have women there now. Bill said he thought that it was all a rumor. The coatee looks pretty good in its

new home, and he said VMI has good reason to be proud of all of her alumni. Thanks, Bill.

Mike Horan sent in an update and told me that he and Annie are still in Acworth, Georgia, and he loves the retired life. It has allowed him to focus on his hobbies, writing and their travel. They have been to England and Wales often and have visited many castles and cathedrals. They visited the one that King Edward I (the Braveheart king) built, and Mike said it is a massive fortress. They also visited the cathedral at York Minster, and the construction is just jaw-dropping and awe-inspiring. Mike and Annie also like to go to Lexington, as Annie is a photographer and loves taking pictures there. She took some portrait shots of some of the upperclassmen there recently, had them printed and returned to hand deliver them to the cadets. They stopped by the guardroom and had the cadets summoned, and Mike says that they arrived with a sense of anxiousness not knowing what was up. When they found out what was going on, they were most appreciative of Annie’s gesture. Mike says he remembers that anxious feeling and could feel their, “Whew.” Mike also has been online reviewing the Institute’s football signees and was impressed with this year’s recruits, especially Reece Udinski from North Wales, Pennsylvania. Mike says he looks like the next Roger Staubach. Great news.

Barry Hughes wrote to let me know he and

Class of 1975: H. Douglas Hamner Jr. ’48B of Lynchburg, Virginia, celebrated his 90th birthday in December 2016 at the Boonsboro Country Club. Pictured were, from left, front row, Betty and Doug Hamner ’48B. Row 2: Annie Hamner, Nat’s daughter; Hal Hamner ’84 with his daughter, Libbie, and wife, Cindy; Nancy and Nat Hamner; Michelle and Bill Hamner ’74; and Catherine, Nat’s daughter.

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Tigger have moved and are now living in Seattle, Washington. Barry retired in September of last year, and he and Tigger decided to relocate so that they could be closer to their youngest son, Cory, and his two sons, who now live across the street. He reports that retired life is good. They were able to meet up with Guy and Mary Conte in December when they were in town for the holidays and are looking forward to spending more time with them when they return to Seattle for the summer.

Rick Law says that he and Pario Lee are starting to get the hang of the retired lifestyle. They think Jacksonville, Florida, is a good place to work on this with the beach and fishing providing several good hobbies, though they are still learning to catch a few. They were able to have dinner with Ron and Kim Bongiovanni last August when Mike Hunter was in town to visit Bongo. Had a great time and looking forward to doing that more often. In October, they visited with Paul and Mary Blair and commented on how great it was to visit them. Finally, Dawg and Pario Lee are hoping to attend some football games next year and are especially happy that The Citadel game is in South Carolina with plans to attend.

He keeps in touch with Reggie Webb and his family and reports that they are doing well.

Ollie and Bonnie Way seem to stay very busy keeping up with their grandchildren both in Richmond and Terre Haute either in person or

by Skype. This past summer, they rented a house for several days at the Homestead in Hot Springs, Virginia, and were blessed to have their children and grandchildren with them. It was a real joy for them to see all of the cousins playing together.

They also made trips to California, Mexico and Europe, where they took a cruise down the Danube River. They are making plans for this next year to visit Mexico, England/Scotland, Italy/ Switzerland and, of course, Terre Haute. Obviously, they know how to stay busy and are enjoying life.

Rick and Stella Davison are also staying busy with many activities and love to travel. Rick retired this past June, and since then, they have spent a good deal of time on the road. In addition to cruises to Norway, New England and Canada, they were able to visit friends and family in other parts of the country. They were also able to work for a couple of weeks in the backcountry at Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico. They have been able to visit with their son, Stuart, who

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes is currently interning with a firm in Washington, D.C. After he completes his studies at Texas Tech, he is hoping to stay in D.C. pursuing his interest in political science. They were also able to visit their daughter, Harper, and her husband, Ben, in the Salt Lake area and are planning to visit with their son, Cory, in Oakland in the near future.

Received a nice note from Vern Conner, and he let me know that both he and his wife, Monica, retired the first part of 2016. They sold their house in Orlando and moved to a smaller house in a much smaller community, which they enjoy very much and are looking forward to spending time doing some traveling in their RV. Vern says he finally found something he is good at – retirement – and wishes he had discovered it years ago.

Bill Terpeluk wrote to say that 2016 brought another granddaughter to his life by his eldest daughter, Amy. Amy was born in April 1975, and since Bill graduated in 1974, he wanted to lay claim that Amy was the first official child of the Class of ’75. Thanks, Bill, for the update.

Well, my brothers, I am out of space and fortunately, the shoebox is empty. Thanks for all the emails, cards, letters, calls and support. I really appreciate it. Until next time.

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William Bhatta

Brother Rats, These notes were written Feb. 14, 2017. I just returned from my annual dermatology appointment. What a great way to celebrate Valentine’s Day: Standing in front of a bunch of female dermatologists, practically naked. I probably reminded them of Cupid.

Last November, Jim Mallon, along with his project team responsible for designing and building a new Dominion Resources office tower in downtown Richmond, Virginia, participated in a communications class presented by Stephen Allen. Jim said he enjoyed talking with him about VMI. Stephen (from Boston, Massachusetts) owns a company called Salient Point LLC. Jim said, “...They advise VIPs how to speak and make presentations in a concise and smart fashion. Also how to avoid falling into quicksand and so forth. Great job, and I learned a lot.”

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Jim Dittrich has settled down from the Cubs winning the World Series last year. “I went to game five in Chicago and watched them win. I have spent my life hoping that the Cubs would make it to the World Series, so I was truly blessed ... now what?” Jim retired from Leisure Arts after 17 years. He said he plans “...to write a book or two and teach at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway, Arkansas, [starting with] a course on the U.S. Transportation system.” Jim’s wife, Tish, remains busy working for a medical consortium of companies overseeing its finance and accounting operations. Jim said, “She is not one to sit much and is either in her garden, riding horses, working on fire department things ... crocheting or cooking, to name a few of her passions.”

Colonel Grigg Mullen will be retired from teaching at VMI by the time you read these notes. Grigg said, “It will be the end of 25 years in a VMI classroom. With any luck, there will be much travel with Cindy and, when home, workshop sawdust production in my near future. Lexington will very definitely remain our base, as this area really is home.” Looks like Cindy is winding down her bookkeeping business, too. Grigg said, “...We’re of the age that her clients are beginning to retire and/or close their business.” Grigg’s son, Andrew, married Melissa Falkenstern last May in Albuquerque, New Mexico. They bought a home there, so it looks like they will be there a while. Melissa is a staff psychologist at the local Veterans Affairs Hospital, and Andrew is an information technology specialist at one of the local elementary schools. Grigg III and his wife, Accacia, continue to work at VMI; Grigg is a physics department machinist, and Accacia is a research librarian.

Ted Mouras took a familiar life detour last year when he moved his parents into a nursing home.

Ted said, “After many years of driving back and forth to Green Valley, Arizona, and finally realizing my parents could no longer care for themselves in their home, we moved them both to the Life Care Center in Sierra Vista, Arizona. It simplified looking after their needs but keeps me busy with their bills and day-to-day care.” Last September, Ted went with his brother and nephew to Glacier National Park for a week. Ted said, “We had a fabulous time hiking and missed the first snowfall by days. We also missed Hurricane Newton, which dumped much rain in Arizona and led to an autumn of home repairs.” Ted and

his wife, Melanie, decided they needed a vacation last fall, so they went on a three week trip through the northern Mediterranean. Ted said, “We toured 10 countries, if you must count tiny little Vatican City as a country, and were totally captivated by the Dalmatian coast, despite a notable lack of Dalmatians.”

On the 12th day of Christmas, Razz Waff wrote to say he celebrated a “wonderfully dull and boring” 2016 with a couple of exceptions; one had to be his Army retirement Sept. 10, 2016! Razz’s wife, Kathleen, also retired last year after working 30 years as a professional health care chaplain. With retirement in the rearview mirror, look for Razz to move his family from Illinois to the Ashville-Hendersonville, North Carolina, area in the next two years. Last December, Razz assisted cadets at the AROTC battalion at Memphis State University with a Wreaths Across America wreath laying ceremony at the Memphis National Cemetery. “There was a personal tie in that I placed four wreaths: One for my parent’s grave, another for my paternal grandparents, another on the grave of my dad’s youngest brother and fourth on my dad’s next younger brother’s memorial marker, who was part of the Navy Armed Guard on a Merchant Marine tanker which was torpedoed by a German U-boat just after leaving New York harbor in December 1942.” Razz’s daughter, Meaghan, spent last year attending the London School of Economics and Political Science. When these notes are published, Meaghan will have graduated from Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee.

Hunt Ozmer checked in. He moved to Jacksonville, Florida, and lives in the Riverside area. He has a new job selling retail packaging for PARC Packaging. Hunt said, “We make fancy bags for clothing boutiques and gift stores. The owners are Christian, and I love working there – a very supportive environment.” Hunt received a wonderful Christmas present last December; his daughter, McNair, showed up on Christmas Day! Mack and Paula Curle stay busy with family and church responsibilities, but there is always time for reading and family research; Mack is addicted to Ancestry.com, like me. Mack’s son, Benjamin ’08, and his wife, Megan, are still living in Pennsylvania, although his job as a logistics consultant will move them to WinstonSalem, North Carolina, in the next couple of years. Benjamin completed his third year of

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Class Notes command with the 1067th Transportation Company, Pennsylvania Army National Guard. The company just reorganized from a medium truck company to a heavy composite truck company, and Benjamin will be rotating out of command to be the battalion operations officer. In February, Mack spent three days with Clyde Furr and Keith Dickson exploring the Richmond, Virginia, area.

Mack said, “We went target shooting the first day. The second day was all Civil War battlefields and forts – some of the more obscure locations in the greater Petersburg/Dinwiddie/Prince George area. We visited six forts and three battlefields. Lunch was at the barbecue buffet at Nanny’s in Prince George – highly recommended. Day three was the U.S. Marine Corps Museum at Quantico. We were joined

by Captain John Furr, Clyde’s oldest son and Keith’s son-in-law. John has been selected for major and for Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. After the museum, we met John Swain for supper at Firebirds. Good food and good company.” Keith is the professor of military studies and curriculum chair in theory and history at the Joint Advanced Warfighting School, part of the Joint Forces Staff College, in Norfolk, Virginia. He has been teaching military history and operational planning for more than 15 years now.

He will have a new book coming out in July titled, “No Surrender: Asymmetric Warfare in the Reconstruction South.”

While visiting my in-laws out in Monument, Colorado, last week, Ares Koumis and I linked-up for breakfast roll call. He hasn’t changed a bit; well, maybe his hair is a little shorter. Ares still works for the Air Force, but his real passion is the work he does as the executive director of the American ConFraternity of the Holy Shroud. ACHS was established by the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Colorado Springs in 2014. It’s a

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Class of 1976: Pictured at the 40th Reunion April 23, 2016, were, from left, Lee Godsey, Pete Friesen, the late Ben Weaver and Ray Pavlosky.

Class of 1976: Pictured at the U.S. Marine Corps Museum at Quantico in February 2017 were, from left, Mack Curle, Keith Dickson and Clyde Furr.

Class of 1976: Members of the class cruising on Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas in November 2016. Pictured were, from left, Charlie and Betsy Keen, Jim and Sharon Joustra, Mark and Libby Swank, and Teri and John Coleman.

fellowship of men and women dedicated to improving their faith through the study, understanding and inspiration of the Shroud of Turin. From the website: “The Confraternity is a sister to the Arch-Confraternity of the Most Holy Shroud which was established in 1597 by a decree of the Archbishop of Turin, Italy, and that has been in existence for more than 400 years. To this day, the Arch-Confraternity is the guardian and curator of the Shroud of Turin and is a model for ACHS.” Ares gave me a document describing the history and analysis of the Shroud – an interesting read.

Dave Bright sent a great update: After graduation, he served with the Air Force: 90 days of training, and 10 years of inactive reserve duty. Following training, he was hired by Westinghouse in Idaho Falls, Idaho, where he learned to operate nuclear reactors to train the Navy’s nuclear sailors. Dave said, “I started in the prototype for the Nautilus submarine (first nuclear sub built in the 1950s). I didn’t really want anything to do with the Navy but figured if someone will pay me while they teach me, what could be bad about that. Turns out I had a natural talent for that sort of work. I loved it.

So I spent from September 1976 until September 1994 in Idaho.” Dave became the plant manager at two of the nuclear plants – one was the prototype plant for the USS Enterprise aircraft carrier. Dave said, “It wasn’t a job I wanted but turned out to be the best job I ever had.” While he was in Idaho, Dave married and had four children (three daughters and a son).

He was transferred to Bettis Atomic Power Laboratory in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; spent two years there; and was transferred to Charleston, South Carolina, to the Moored Training Ship Site where he was the senior Westinghouse manager responsible for all technical direction for two converted nuclear submarines. Dave said, “What made the job so good was my civilian boss was in Pittsburgh, a long

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Class Notes ways off, and my local boss, the commanding officer, was just a great guy and personal friend.” After four years in South Carolina, Dave left the Naval Nuclear program and took a job with Bechtel in Idaho at the Idaho National Lab running the Radioactive Waste Management Complex. The job allowed him to be close to his kids and to watch them grow up through their high school and college years. During this period, Dave was given an opportunity to go to Chernobyl in the Ukraine for six months. He said, “It was fascinating.” Unfortunately, Bechtel lost the contract to run the Idaho National Lab, so Dave returned to Bettis Atomic Power Laboratory, where he currently runs several testing laboratories in support of the nuclear Navy. Dave said, “Took a huge cut in pay grade and position. I truly love the work and the people, but more importantly, I met the love of my life, Toni Lynn. She is, along with my children, without a doubt the best thing that ever happened to me. I wouldn’t tell you moving back was worth it financially, but intellectually, mentally and spiritually, it certainly was.” Dave said he is eligible for retirement but is still having fun at work. His girls are married to great guys, and he has one granddaughter. In his spare time, he rebuilds old cars: Two Corvettes (1963 and 1971) and the first car he ever owned, a 1964 Mercury.

I forgot Dave had three brothers graduate from VMI: Joseph Bright ’78, Thomas Bright ’79 and James Bright ’87. That has to be some kind of record! James is still on active duty and will retire this summer from the Marine Corps. Dave said, “I work with several VMI grads. From our dykes’ class, there is Bob Bookmiller ’79 and Ed Negro ’79. Bob just retired. He obviously made better financial decisions than I did.”

I will end these notes with sad news and a great story. The sad news: As many of you know, Ben Weaver died suddenly last December. Thank you to all the BRs who reached out to Ben and his family, especially when Ben was getting hospice care. The great story (from Rory Walsh): “My fondest memory of Ben was his wizardry with a towel and water balloons, which he used as a slingshot. His slingshot skills rivaled those of the biblical figure David. In 1974, as 3rd Class cadet, we were living in the New Barracks section. The 4th stoop was off limits to us, and some of the rats would verbally taunt us in safety. There was one particularly loud-mouthed, obnoxious rat.

One afternoon, he was in full form – just running his mouth at us. Ben happened to have his towel

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and a water balloon handy. Using the sound of the rat’s voice, Ben quietly positioned himself directly under him by the railing. We watched as Ben loaded the towel with a water balloon and started to build momentum with the towel. He launched balloon upward, and it burst against the railing where the rat stood, soaking him. The rat was livid as we cheered and laughed. While we watched the parade at our 40th Reunion this past April, I told this memory to Ben. He was slightly embarrassed. He laughed, shook his head and said, ‘It’s a shame it was a skill that wasn’t worth anything.’ On the contrary, brother rat, your skill created a memory that is priceless to those of us who witnessed it.”

1977

Steve Neas

Greetings, Brother Rats, February finds me suffering through my annual winter cold. Denise is under the weather, as well. A nice opportunity for us to share something in common! Winter is mild up to this point. I have peas in the ground in our greenhouse and seeds started for an early spring crop of kale, lettuce, spinach and the brassicas. There is always so much anticipation for a big garden this time of year. By the time you read this, I will probably have grown tired of pulling weeds and watering. So it goes.

I will start with sad news. I received an urgent email from Johnny Cutright: “Call me on my cellphone.” He informed me our BR Phil Camper died Dec. 28. Phil suffered from heart disease for several months before his passing.

Phil was very active as a Boy Scout leader.

Judging from the turnout at his memorial service, Phil was well loved and made an impact on the Buchanan community. He is survived by his wife, Dana, and a daughter and two sons.

There was a memorial service Jan. 8, and Super ’77 was out in force to pay respects to our BR and his family. Representing the class were Chuck Conner, Bob Atkinson, Mike Meise, Paul Seufer, Bill Cross, Johnny Cutright, Mike Parrish, Mark Bryant, Tim Snyder, Bob Houser and me.

More recently, I report the sad passing of

Steve Woodis. Steve died Feb. 15. He was suffering from both liver and brain cancer. His last days were spent in a Hospice facility in Atlanta. Both Chris Nash and Will Bynum gave of their time to be with Steve in his last hours. Randy Gates made a visit to Steve while he was in Hospice care. As Chris has said, our class notes are moving closer to the front, and this will happen more and more. I feel we are as tight now as we have ever been.

Phil and Steve, we hope you are enjoying your new journey. Save a place for us.

On to more uplifting news: Glenn Trimmer checked in with a comprehensive update. (I love those. I don’t have to make as much stuff up.) Glenn retired from the U.S. Air Force in 2002. He began his civilian career first with Boeing, then General Dynamics in Systems Engineering for the Boeing and Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense systems. Glenn has been fully retired since 2010. Choosing not to be sedentary, the first three years of his retirement was spent researching and raising money and land to build a new Civil War Historical Park in Stafford County, Virginia. Glenn raised over $2 million and proceeded with construction on land donated by the Stafford County and Fredericksburg City governments. The heavy construction of the park was covered entirely through donations and two Virginia Army National Guard and one Air Force National Guard combat engineer training exercises.

Leadership of the units providing the construction was from VMI men, including Lt. Col. David Baber ’02, Maj. Jessie Kopczynski ’07

Class of 1977: Larry Heim after his completion of the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C., Oct. 30, 2016.

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Class Notes and Capt. Matt Swanson ’92. The park is where two divisions of the Union 11th Corps encamped and built defensive fortifications during the winter of 1862-63 before and after to the Battle of Chancellorsville, leaving for good during June 1863 for the Gettysburg Campaign. The park contains many well-preserved camp hut site remains, rifle pits and defensive positions, including three large earthen gun batteries which now once again contain several full size Napoleon cannons and 3 inch ordnance rifled cannons like those that would have been here during the war.

Glenn and Becky have kept in contact with Tommy and Brenda Orrell, Tim and Pat Liles, and Randy and Sue Hartley. Just recently, Glenn was able to connect up again with Lee DeMeo, who lives in San Diego.

Glenn now spends most of his time working as a Stafford County Parks and Recreation volunteer and/or raising more money for improvements to the park. Last year, improvements included three more cannons and signs on Interstate 95 north and south exits 140 for the Civil War Park (Stafford), which are only a few miles from the park. Glenn invites any and all brother rats to visit the park, where he will be glad to show the park any time.

Heard from traveling Max Floyd.

As you should know by now, he will not be at the reunion. Shell Oil announced the sale of their 50 percent stake in the JV Max is working at in Saudi Arabia. So the job situation for Max and all other Shell employees in Saudi is very tenuous. The latest status is that he will have to leave approximately July 1 and spend reunion time packing up his house in preparation for moving back to Texas. Max, I hope to see you at the 45th or sooner.

We will expect a PowerPoint with photos of your exploits.

Larry Heim reported he has been competing in long distance endurance runs for some time. He sent a photo from the Marine Corps Marathon in

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Class of 1977: Mike Davis, Keith Gibson and Mark Hunt at the Williamsburg Alumni Chapter dinner in November at which Keith was the honored speaker.

Class of 1977: Class Agent Steve Neas said of this photo, “Steve Billingsley; Don Browder; Joe Molina; and Bob Hartzell, the commander of the tailgate.”

Class of 1977: Joe Arnold with Frank Boehling ’94 and their wives for the occasion of Benedictine High School naming their athletic field in honor of Joe.

Washington, D.C. In the competition were a couple of younger cadets and a few recent graduates. Larry remarked they were much faster than he. (That, I cannot understand; Larry is only 30plus years older.) Larry gives credit to Eric Hutchings for doing a fine job training them. (Ahh, that is how they beat Larry!) I know Tom Underhill competes or has competed in Iron Man competitions. Makes my back and knees hurt just thinking about it.

Larry finished 7,536th out of 25,000 starters. Significantly, 19,700 or so finished behind Larry. Not bad for an old man. (I would be on a gurney after the first couple of miles.) It was 80 degrees at the finish line, and many were falling out and taking IVs on the side lines. Larry ran three marathons in 2016, so he plans to take a break and go skiing – or maybe a knee replacement!

Don Browder had a great weekend Nov. 11-13 bringing his nephew to see VMI and staying at Jack McAteer’s plantation. (I wonder if the nephew needs some therapy after a weekend with the Fleetwood?) Part of the weekend was attending a tailgate provided by Bob Hartzell and crew.

I understand that Joe Molina, now The Citadel chaplain, stopped by the tailgate.

Don spent some time with Eric Hutchings and Kimber Latsha discussing VMI politics. Kimber has one more year on the Board of Visitors.

Continuing his rounds, Don met up with Keith Gibson and suggested his displaying Yai Kasemsant’s red dress uniform in the museum. Yai has one he said he will donate – could be a nice unveiling at the reunion and help with rebooting/rebuilding the VMIThai Army relationship disrupted since the coup. It will be nice to have something more contemporary and especially representing and boosting Super ’77 from the Thai at VMI. Mo Slagle sent a very precise and efficiently worded message; to wit: “1. Our first grandchild (girl) joined

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes the world Oct. 17 at 6:44 a.m. in Chicago. Parker Joyce Slagle arrived normally and is growing like a weed. 2. Life is good here in St. Louis. Looking forward to spring; golf clubs are calling my name. 3. Bretta and I have begun serious talk about retirement. She knows that’s a dangerous place for me; all that free time on my hands equals trouble.”

Another brother rat has become a Lexington resident. Richard Moore recently moved into a house on Randolph Street. Richard stopped by my office, and we had a very nice conversation.

I made a trip to Orlando the week before Christmas. The Roanoke airport is normally a 15 minute airport. Show up 15 minutes before your flight, breeze through TSA and hop onboard. The week before Christmas, as expected, the line for security was wrapped around the terminal. As I stood there nervously checking my watch, I spied Bland Massie in the line behind me. We would start a conversation, then as the line wound around, we would stop then pick it up again as we passed each other again. I did not realize it until I deplaned that Gary Roundy was on the same flight. We said hi, then raced on to our connections.

I got a nice Christmas letter from Louie Cuellar. According to the letter, Louie and his wife, Kathleen, recently relocated from Edmond, Oklahoma, to Dickinson, Texas. Louie works for Metlan Special Services – something about explosives.

Buzzy Northen sent me a copy of an article from Benedictine’s High School newsletter. The article announced the naming of their athletic field in honor of our BR Joe Arnold. The article went on to report on Joe’s influence as an English teacher and track coach. Frank Boehling ’94 donated money for the new field and was giving naming rights. Instead of naming the field in honor of his family, Frack chose to honor Joe, his teacher and coach. The article speaks of Joe’s profound influence of students passing through his classes since 1982 and of Joe’s humility. Another VMI ’77 rock star quietly doing his job, touching lives, making a difference in the world.

Finally, this is my last effort at class notes as your class agent. Thank you for accepting the typos, misspellings and the writings of a civil engineer. It has been an honor and privilege to serve in this capacity the last five years. It has allowed me to reconnect with many of you. It was my goal to enlarge the communication within

2017-Issue 2

the class by sending emails and arranging mini reunions. As we get older, we want to reconnect with our past. I hope I have made some movement toward that goal.

So, now, I pass the touch to one more qualified that I, Mark Bryant. Denise and I remain here in Lexington and hope you will give us a call as you pass through town.

Sincerely, your obedient servant, Steve

1978

Tom Brown

Brother Rats, I hope you are having a great spring after the rather diverse winter, depending on where you reside. It was very nice to receive Christmas greeting from so many of you. Thanks go out to Stan Walchock, Dac Colden, Ed Little, Terry Dorn, Bill Greg, Ron Dolan, Ken Krause, Len Logan, Ken Singleton and Alec Earle. Joe Tulskie also chimed in with a holiday email; thanks, Yo. Dac sends along that he is enjoying his grandchildren and being in the real estate business in Indianapolis. Alec and Sheila spent eight months on the road last year traveling through Canada and returning back to their almond farm California.

I got a chance to visit with Bruce Kay over the holiday. He sent along a funny story that happened. Bruce had a VMI bag as a carry-on for a trip to Houston for his nephew’s wedding. As he was getting on the plane, the woman processing passengers at the gate said, “Is that that a VMI spider?” She was Class of ’01, the first class to graduate women. We are everywhere!

Status check responses are next.

From across the pond, John Forsyth says he is good until June 30 this year. He plans to retire for the second time and move to Charlottesville.

Tom Sliwoski: “All present and accounted for, sir! All’s well in Staunton. Starting to think more about retirement, but then the dilemma is what to do. In addition to my fly fishing, I am starting to play tennis and playing more golf. Hope these will help fill the void.”

Leland Horn: “Lots of changes in my life. In November/December, I retired from The Boeing Company; accepted an engineering position with

the Northrup Grumman Corporation; moved from Garland, Texas, to Melbourne, Florida; nearly died from internal bleeding that no one knew I had; recovered and am back to work. It was an interesting Christmas season. Anyway, still settling down and getting ready to move into our new (and hopefully, last) home here in West Melbourne. Enjoying being near family and have a great job and good teammates, so life is good.

Still have to get together with the guys here; health just didn’t allow it for a few weeks, so I’ll look to change that soon.”

Mark McKissick: “Present!”

Bob Magnan: “Beginning to downsize from my house to something more suitable to a 60 and single. I love seeing deer in my yard, but mowing that sucker is getting old, and so am I! Bit by bit, my right knee (five operations, including knee replacement and re-replacement) is moving normally; scar tissue really does break down, it is simply a matter of willpower. As I get more mobile, I’ll be getting out to alumni activities more frequently. Frank Fountain must feel I’m avoiding him, as we’ve talked about having lunch or dinner in New York City for some time now, but I have not followed through.”

Rick Wolfe: “Liz and I are downsizing and selling the house in Short Hills and buying a co-op near my office in Summit, New Jersey. So my career goal of walking to work is coming true!”

Tom Tanner: “Still hanging in; should be in our new house at the lake by May.” Cliff Seibel: “Not much new going on here; hoping for an early spring, but getting more snow.

Still in Fairbanks with no plans to move any time soon. Slowly adjusting to retired life. Keeping busy with long-delayed home projects and assistant football coach at my son’s high school, helping manage the winter fitness program, some skills camps and planning for next year’s season.

It’s a small school, so most of our kids play both sides of the ball. My other activities have been riding snow machines and shoveling snow. Hoping to get out for some ice fishing before things start to thaw. Also planning some motorcycle trips with a few friends. We’ll see if that works out. Regards to all, and the door’s open if anyone gets up here to the Last Frontier.”

Bill Hardy: “All is good. I am continuing to give back to the community, and I have agreed to be the chair of the board of the Virginia Home for Boys and Girls in Richmond.”

Bob Fricke: “Not much new here.”

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Class Notes Mike McCarthy: “All right here at Fort Eustis. I am finishing up a project that has had me on the road most of the last 60 days. I left for Europe on Thanksgiving Day and then spent a week of winter camping in the Baltics followed by a week at Grafenwohr. After two weeks of leave in El Paso, I left at 0300 on New Year’s Day for nine days in Israel. The week after that, I had a quick trip back to Fort Bliss and then left there for a trip to the U.K. I finally got back here last Saturday. Now comes the writing phase. My guys put my office furniture on eBay but were unsuccessful getting the minimum bid.”

John Tucker: “All right in Columbus, Ohio!”

Paul Campbell: “Nothing new to report beyond my situation from the last check.”

Danny Thorton: “Had a great time in Lexington. The ’76-’77 basketball team was in town.

Had dinner with Dave Montgomery, Andre Gibson and Stan Walchoc. Spent time with BR Ron Carter, as well. Attended The Citadel game and sat with Jay Hutt and his wife, Paula.”

Nelson Curtis: “Reporting all right. Looking at the snow piling high in upstate New York.

Just finished my 35th year with NAPA Auto Parts, where I am responsible for training and development for the Northeast. Hoping to hear an all right from Lenny Logan, Glen Jones and Pete Dillon also Rick Wolfe.”

Jim Mackin: “Doing OK. Shrugged on my old Air Force uniform at my oldest daughter’s request for her December 2016 marriage to Brian Blincoe ’11; it was a close call, damn thing must have shrunk over the years since I retired in 2004.”

Jimmy Leech: “We’re all right here. No new news.”

Sad to report that Henry (Clint) Franklin III died Nov. 13, 2016, from complications due to pancreatic cancer. Sherry said, “He was very proud of VMI alum until the very end.” We will miss him.

As you read this, it will be a little less than a year until our 40th Reunion. No date as of yet; however, given the fact that this year’s will be late April, I expect ours to be, as well. Please consider helping out. I will need assistance planning the Friday and Saturday events, as well as someone to coordinate souvenirs/mementos. I greatly appreciate all the help from the 35th and look forward to an even better time next year. And as always, status check!

EZ Bear

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1979

Michael Ogden

Sad news, as Tom Baltazar’s father died. He writes, “I had the occasion to see a few BRs at my father’s interment at Arlington National Cemetery. A World War II survivor of the Bataan Death March, he also served in Korea and Vietnam. He died April 12, 2016, at the young age of 95, and we had to wait almost 10 months before he could be buried – an indicator of ‘The Greatest Generation’s waning days. Honoring my father was Rick Hall (all the way from California), Noel Harris and Mac Curtis. Although I didn’t spend as much time as I wanted with any of them, my family and I certainly appreciated their attendance.” So sorry for your loss, Zar. The Bataan Death March! A true American hero!

Bob Sievert keeps on traveling to work with other state government purchasing departments. He has been mostly working with Missouri and Ohio, but in the last six months, he started working with Nebraska; Oregon; Minnesota; and Santa Barbara, California. He is about to add Arkansas and possibly California at the state level. So no lack of “exciting work” for Bob! Angela is still working with her wildlife and anticipating a busy spring with orphan babies because of the mild winter.

She’s been on a few of Bob’s work trips, the latest being Santa Barbara. They made a weekend of it, and Bob said, “It was great!” Their sons, Matthew and Andrew, are doing great. Matt is still at Los Alamos Labs and Andrew is still in Denver.

Bill Albro writes in: “So all is well in southern Maryland; not too much going on except work and waiting for the spring to start cutting grass again. So far, we have avoided any snow accumulation, but it is southern Maryland, and we are not yet at the end of March. I hear that millions are objecting to Punxsutawney Phil’s decision (#notmygroundhog), but we had 70 degree days yesterday and today with snow predicted for tomorrow.

Got together with the northern Virginia BRs for breakfast; it was great seeing everyone and listening to Doug Doerr talk about the sights, sounds and smells of his P-51 adventure. Noel Harris and I commiserated like a couple of grumpy old codgers about the changing of the rates in the

commissary system. Not cost plus 5 percent (and $1.3 billion additional from joe taxpayer) anymore – now moving to be set about 20 percent below the prevailing market. Touched base with Sput Leadbetter; he survived the holidays OK and is starting to plan for the deployment and spring work on the Antipoison Neck estate. Sent Tom Baltazar a note apologizing for my not being able to make it to his dad’s funeral at Arlington; I was out of town on business. We agreed that we were to attempt to get together in the spring. Got an email from Dean Smith – same as with Zar – we vowed to get together in the spring. Same with an email exchange with Sam Murphy; he is at Mount Vernon, and we vowed to get together in the future.”

David Smith is still alive and kicking. He had opportunity to see some BRs for breakfast, but evidently his evil boss wanted him to work on Saturdays, so he missed the chance. Linda and Davis are still living in Ashburn, a “pretty quiet life.”

Steve Lyon pens: “My granddaughter, Jane, will turn 1 year old tomorrow! Beth and I will celebrate over at our daughter and son-in-law’s home tomorrow here in Charlotte. I can hardly believe that a full year has gone by since Jane came into the world and made us grandparents! She is full of curiosity, happiness and big smiles! Being a grandparent is one of life’s sweetest events, and my wife and I are enjoying it to the fullest! Can’t wait for the beach vacation this year at Hilton Head Island with Jane coming, too! Since our family has so many birthdays that stretch from Jan. 22 to Feb. 11, we are resurrecting the Lyon ‘birthday-rama!’

Four birthdays to toast and celebrate. Massive birthday cakes and presents! If my father-in-law was still alive, we would have a fifth birthday to celebrate, too. Lots of winter babies in our family.”

Thanks for the update, Steve!

Ben Bauman checks in: “Tracy and I had a wonderful vacation in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, last fall. It was nice to be totally out of it. No cellphone reception at our resort. My daughter, Alana, graduated from Defense Language Institute, where she was taught Mandarin Chinese. She is on to her next Air Force assignment now. My son, Ben, and his wife, Becky, delivered a beautiful little granddaughter last December soon after their move to North Carolina. Christina is doing well in Atlanta. I wish everyone well!”

Larry Adams wins the prize for longest notes submission this issue! “It’s all about the kids, sometimes. My son, David, is now a captain in the Air Force, finally at his first ‘real’ job, after being

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes trained for four years on one thing or another – then sent the band leader an email telling him the the VMI system works!’ It was a great time!” mainly how to fly a B-52! He reported to his first compliment Nash had given them. I guess that’s Tom Bright is taking his son, Thomas, a junior in operational Unit in Minot, North Dakota, in De- like an Old Corps story, because the video has high school, to one of the “open house registracember, after pilot training in Enid, Oklahoma, been out there since 2010, but all this just hap- tions.” Thomas is excited to follow in the footsteps and Barksdale Air Force Base in Shreveport, pened a few years ago. of four Brights (his father, ’79, and three uncles: Louisiana. ‘Why not Minot? Freezin’s the rea“Just had the big six zero birthday. We’re hav- ’76, ’77 and ’87). (VMI: It’s a family thing! –MSO) Jeff and Betsy Curtis will close on selling their son!’ So, once he actually gets in an operational ing a small party next weekend to commemorate unit B-52 (no, he’s not been in one as of Feb. the milestone. I really don’t feel a day over 59. house in early March. They are in the process of 11, 2017), I guess he’ll be a co-pilot for about a I think of all of you BRs more than you would moving to a rental unit in Sixty West just down the street which has a bunch of retired year. He already knows his unit gets VMI people in it. They will continue deployed about September. The wife looking for a home at Smith Mountain doesn’t like to think about that. B-52 Lake. Congrats on selling the home, trivia: The last B-52 made (H version) and best of luck in your search! was delivered in 1962 (55 years ago), John Kailey says, “The president yet the Air Force says ‘...Current engihasn’t elected to hire me, so I guess I neering analyses show the B-52’s life maintain the same mundane existence, span to extend beyond the year 2040.’ minus officiating lacrosse, which I And an engine just ‘fell off’ of one flyfrankly do not miss. In the throes of ing out of Minot around Christmas. physical therapy for my supposed (‘Oh, no! That dreaded emergency 7 good knee – still think I can hike the engine approach!” –MSO) David reAppalachian Trail this year. And yes, I assured his mother (my wife), with, Class of 1979: David Riedel and his youngest son, John, an incom‘No big deal! They’ve got seven other ing cadet, during a scholarship interview visit to VMI in February. have lost 12 pounds by dropping sugar and adopting a bit more discipline in engines on board!’ Perfect! When are my diet. It has been interesting figuring you going to be sitting in the pilot seat how to exercise without running. Unagain?

“Daughter Maggie is about six fortunately, after over 40 years, those months into her first ‘big girl’ job as days are over. Other than that, I am assistant to the chief executive officer three months older and perhaps a reqand day-to-day manager of Olivia uisite amount wiser.” Thanks, John, Management, an artist management and congrats on the weight loss! and consulting company in NashJim Elliott reports from Richmond: “Had a great time this past October ville, Tennessee. She loves it, is doing duck hunting in Cumberland and well and I get to read her musings on Buckingham with Brad Jones, Jim their blog! She finds free time every Harrington, Noel Harris and Eric now and then to sing with a couple Nost. Some of us shot better than of bands live and on recordings. I still most. I think Jones kept his eyes miss her live performances with Foxes closed the whole time in order to and Fossils, the best cover band of all give the birds a sporting chance, but time, in my humble opinion. Look he still managed to out-shoot us all. them up on YouTube, and let me Class of 1979: Pictured in Lexington for alumni meetings and know what you think! (Seems to be a the VMI 1976-77 basketball team’s 40th reunion were John Ar- Everyone had a good time catching up with each other while enjoying problem with YouTube right now for thur, Kelly Lombard, Harlan Niehaus and Jeryl Salmond. lots of barbecue with all the fixings the first time ever...) They have almost 260,000 views of their cover of Crosby, Stills & believe! Have fun, but be careful, too! Isn’t it time and ample amounts of brown water! Sorry, but no one thought to memorialize the event with a Nash’s ‘Suite Judy Blue Eyes,’ the first song they for a mini reunion in Atlanta yet?” ever performed in public, in 2010. They eventuJeryl Salmond writes in with, “The ’76 and ’77 photo. Perhaps next year! The subject of how old ally got an email from Graham Nash saying it basketball teams were honored this past week- we are all getting and the aches and pains we deal was the best cover of one of his songs ever! A few end (Feb. 11-12, 2017). It was awesome seeing with came up. Harris definitely takes better care months after getting that, an author interview- the guys again reminiscing about the good old of himself than any one of us do! Of the group, ing Graham asked him, ‘What’s the best cover days and catching up. We are amazed that we I think I was the first one to hit 60, but Jones you’ve ever heard of one of your songs?’ and he are now the Old Corps and are all doing well. was just a few days behind me with Jim, Noel responded with, ‘Foxes and Fossils.’ The author Kelly Lombard said, ‘We are living proof that and Eric breathing down his neck! Of course, as

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Class Notes usual, we talked about Steve Powers, Robby Patterson, Meade Spotts, Jeb Burton, Willy Hamlin, Bill Albro and many others. Believe me, guys, we weren’t very kind with our comments! All in all, a really good time!”

Doug Doerr writes in with a most interesting story! “On Veteran’s Day, one of my former scouts set me up to fly in a P-51D Mustang. It was a flight out of Manassas Airport and was the most exciting and thrilling fun I have had in memory. We did loops, aileron rolls, wingovers, etc. and a midfield break when we returned. I can say that I have flown in a B-17G and a P-51D. Next will have to be an F-4U or a P-47!” Doug adds, “We were fortunate to attend the wedding of Alex and Megan Smith, son of Parke and Debbie Smith. Alex and Megan were married in Omaha, Nebraska, Dec. 30, 2016. It was a wonderful event to share in the joy of Smith family and catch up with Parke and Debbie, as they were out of the country for a few years. Their children, Alex and Morgan, have been a part of our lives at many times through their lives, and we think of them as our nephew and niece. We are a close room, room 139!”

Recently one morning, I was passing through one of the gates at Naval Station Norfolk when the Navy petty officer manning my lane asked what year I went to VMI (those VMI MSO 79 license plates at work). I told him I was Class of ’79, and he said I might know his father, Moe “Milkshake” Belanger? In fact, I did; Moe was one of my rat roommates (and a fellow soccer team member) who had to leave following our rat year after getting his girlfriend in “the family way.” So I pulled over and we had a magnificent talk. Turns out Moe married said girlfriend, Sandy, and our petty officer gate guard (Ben) was in fact said child that led to Moe’s departure! Talk about small world! Made my day. Called Moe and had a great chat. Anyone got any similar stories, please share!

Mark your calendars. Our 40th Reunion is a mere two years away. It will be a spring reunion; probably in April. Renee and I started working on it during the ride home from the 35th Reunion.

Kid you not. Over the next year, we will be floating ideas to the class to try and nail down exactly what we would like to do a year from now. What we can commit to is driven by the VMIAA and when they finalize the spring reunion schedule for that year. More, much more, to follow.

Stay well.

–M

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1980

John Gibney Jr.

Hello, Brother Rats, These notes cover the period Nov. 1, 2016, through Feb. 15, 2017.

The period began with an email from John Stallings. John and Elisabeth relocated from the New York area to Greensboro, North Carolina, where John is on the faculty at the Center for Creative Leadership. Their son and two daughters still reside in New York City, so they return to visit. They attended the football game against The Citadel in Lexington in November. Elliott Wolffe also attended the game.

The football game versus The Citadel coincided with the Institute Society Dinner. Our BRs in attendance included Ken Baybutt, Hugh Fain, Pat Griffin, Frank Hilton, Jack Keane, Gene Scott and Wade Stinnette. Hugh is president of the VMI Foundation Board of Trustees.

Pat Griffin called and said that his son, John, was accepted and will enter VMI in the summer.

Pat also said that he saw Robby Jones while he was in Lexington for the Institute Society Dinner.

Dan Conn is retired from the Marine Corps. He often sends messages in an effort to fill open positions or to assist people looking for employment.

His message Nov. 10 included recognition of the birthday of the U.S. Marine Corps.

I spoke with Jay Melvin on his birthday. Jay and Trudy are doing very well with their businesses in Lexington. Their son, Jason, and his wife, Kelly, returned to Lexington from Denver. They are expecting their first child. Jason has joined the family business.

Walt Wood sent an email containing “Story No. 1.” Walt has written a series of stories and is redoing them for posterity. Anyone wishing a copy can send me an email message. I will be happy to forward those stories that have been redone.

I spoke with Steve Andrews on his birthday.

Steve and I were roommates for all four years of our cadetship. Steve, Cathy and their daughters, Virginia and Caroline, were spending Thanksgiving in Richmond. Virginia lives in Arkansas, where she works for Teach for America. Caroline attends Clemson University.

Dave Hageman sent a message noting that his wife, Diana, received her Ph.D. Dave’s youngest son, Caleb, graduated from high school. His oldest son, William, had his second child.

I spoke with Andy Ludlum on his birthday.

Andy still flies for Southwest, and he and Nicki spend as much time as possible with their five grandchildren. They recently saw Pat and Roni McCarthy. They also attended the football game versus Furman University. Andy said that he has not heard from Tuck Masker, but he believes Tuck has or is planning to relocate to Austin, Texas.

Gary and Karen Levenson brought their

Class of 1980: Jack Keane, Ken Baybutt, Pat Griffin, Wade Stinnette, Gene Scott and Frank Hilton at the Institute Society Dinner in November 2016.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes grandson, Tyler, to NYC for Thanksgiving. They stayed in our apartment, as we went to Vermont to visit Patti’s parents.

John and Anne Alerding share a wedding anniversary date with Patti and me. Each year, John sends a text or calls to wish us a happy anniversary.

November ended with an email from Jack Keane. As noted above, Jack attended the Institute Society Dinner. He also saw John Alerding, Tom Bersson and Bob White at parade. Jack and Massoud Tahamtani planned to spend a weekend at Smith Mountain Lake in December.

December began with an email from Mark Grubber. Mark saw a piece on Fox News reporting that VMI cadets were being offered coloring books to cope with stress. This story took on a life of its own and resulted in a formal response from VMI. Gary Levenson called and noted that Hal Snyder’s son, Connor, received his class ring.

Walt Wood sent a four-page Team Peru document containing photos and narrative about his and Mary Lynne’s work in Peru.

On Christmas Day, I spoke with John Alerding. John’s son, Johnny ’12, is a VMI graduate and a pilot in the Air Force. Johnny was home for the holidays.

I also spoke with Pat Griffin, who noted that Frank Bell is a grandfather.

Each year, class agents send Christmas cards to their BRs. I also receive cards from our BRs. Cards arrived from Pat and Beth Griffin, Gary and Karen Levenson, and Glenn and Peggy McCabe.

Cards with photos arrived from Paul and Ann Burkholder and their dog, Augie; Chris and Jen Dombalis and their daughters, Taylor and Alexis; David and Diana Hageman; Larry and Vera Hupertz; Phil and Kathy Munisteri and their children, Meg and Connor; Rob and Traci Robinson and their daughters, Caitlin and Mimosa; Wade and Lannie Stinnette

2017-Issue 2

Class of 1980: Massoud Tahamtani and Jack Keane at Smith Mountain Lake in December 2016.

Class of 1980: Pat Griffin, Bob White, John Alerding, Jack Keane and Tom Bersson on the Parade Ground in November 2016.

Class of 1980: Tom Kelly in Dublin celebrating the New Year with his daughter, Anne.

and their children, Langhorne, Walker, and Katie and son-in-law, Will; Terry and Kelly Stoneman and their extended family; and Elliott and Amy Wolffe and their extended family.

Cards with notes containing holiday greetings arrived from Steve and Cathy Andrews, Ed and Dianna Baker; Tom and Amy Bersson; Vince and Sheila Copenhaver; Pete, Kelli and Emily Peterman; Matthew and Tanya Keys; Tim and Becky Mecredy; and John and Elisabeth Stallings.

Mickey Cole wrote in his card that he and Dave Gleason attended the football game against The Citadel.

Mickey and Jo’s daughter, Lainie, is majoring in musical theatre at the American Music Dramatic Academy in NYC. Bert Schneider wrote that he and Becky were being joined for Christmas by their daughter, son and daughter-inlaw, and 16-month-old granddaughter.

Bert is working with the Norwegian Navy on a proposal for the U.S. Navy’s Over The Horizon Weapons System.

Bert is the lead engineer for the Naval Strike Missile.

Robby Wheeler wrote that things are going well in Dallas, where he is a pilot for American Airlines. Wheelz also wrote that he is working on his golf game in order to be ready to play at our 40th Reunion.

Bill and Patty Kelly sent a card with photos of their extended family and a letter that summed up 2016 in one word – change. Changes included marriage, a fourth grandchild, a new home, the publication of a book, a high school graduation and summer trips. They live in San Antonio, where Bill works as an energy efficiency manager. Patty directs the youth drama group at their church.

Mark and Darleen Sobota sent a letter outlining the events of their family during 2016 and a page of photos. The highlight was the birth of their third grandchild in December. They are expecting their fourth grandchild in 2017.

Travel included trips to California and

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Class Notes Alaska. They wrote in their card that they visited Long Island in September while returning from a trip to Israel. They live in Ohio, where Mark is retired from the Air Force. They also noted that Larry and Lynn Avery celebrated their anniversary by visiting NYC the week before Christmas (Darleen is Larry Avery’s sister).

Brian and Kim O’Neill sent a letter recapping their 2016. Enclosed were two photos (actual pictures): One of their grandchildren and one of Brian and Terry Stoneman with their daughters, Jaynell and Kelly. The girls attended James Madison University, met through their dads and became friends who participated in each other’s weddings. The O’Neills added to their family with the birth of two grandchildren. They live in Virginia Beach. Brian is a retired Navy captain who works as deputy director of Submarine Operations Atlantic Fleet.

Lastly, Tracy and Jennifer Wilson sent a card with a letter containing photos of their daughters and a summary of their good memories of 2016.

Sienna is 12 and in sixth grade. She plays the oboe and runs cross-country. Ellie is almost 10 and in fourth grade. She is in scouts and is learning the viola. Jennifer is still with the International Monetary Fund. Tracy continues to develop his successful consulting business.

December closed with Patti and me visiting friends in Boston. Pat and Beth Griffin hosted a dinner at their home. In attendance were Ed and Barbara Carter, Bruno and Janet Loefstedt, and Doug and Naureen Reddington.

On Jan. 1, Walt Wood sent an email containing “Story No. 2.” Walt wrote that he and Mary Lynne planned to spend 12 days in Virginia in January where they were looking forward to some colder weather than they have in Peru.

I exchanged email with Hugh Fain that discussed the early January snow that fell in Richmond.

Tom “Gunny” Kelly sent an email from Ireland where he was visiting his daughter, Anne, who works for Google in Dublin. Copied on the message was Rick Fowler. Tom was bar hopping and included photos taken of himself outside two pubs.

Hal and Kathy Snyder sent an email that included an invitation to stay at their house in Maryland if we needed a place to stay on a trip to VMI. Hal is dentist, retired from the Army.

Kathy runs the dental practice. Their email also contained 2016 family highlights.

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Walt Wood sent “Story No. 3.”

Rob Quarles called. He is retired from Buchman and purchased a business in Roanoke. He and Elizabeth are selling their house in Memphis and relocating. Their son, Fielding, is a rat who had a good first semester and was looking forward to Breakout.

I sent a text to Gary Levenson after watching the VMI Band at the Trump inauguration. Gary did not accompany the band to D.C. Dave Hageman sent a text asking for Matt Griffin’s contact information. Dave was traveling to New Orleans and wanted to connect with Matt.

No one reached out Jan. 28.

As January closed, I spoke with Chris Dombalis. Chris said that Jen and the girls are doing well.

Chris runs a not-for-profit and also works for a company that he started in 2006 and sold. We are trying to get together in 2017, as Chris lives in a New Jersey suburb of NYC. I also spoke with Dennis Maguire. Dennis is a contractor in Boston, and he reported that business is good. His daughter, Hannah, is a sophomore at Holy Cross who is planning to study in Rome later this year.

February brought communication with Pat Griffin and Doug Reddington following the Patriots Super Bowl victory.

In closing, congrats to Gene Scott, who was inducted into the VMI Sports Hall of Fame.

Thank you for your support. Please keep in touch.

1981

Jerry Manley

Brother Rats, My sincere appreciation goes out immediately to that elusive “BR” Jerry Manfield for stepping up to the plate and assisting with the class notes in the last Review. Cheers to the many BRs who attempted to reach out to Manfield, either directly or through me; however, as many of us know, Manfield is a bit reclusive and doesn’t like the limelight, so I will be happy to remain the conduit for communications. Regretfully, demands at work were a bit tough the first two months of 2017 (as I write this in mid-February), so my apologies to all if my write-up appears a

Class of 1981: Jim Hart’s daughter, Danielle Hart, far left, officially signed to the University of Wisconsin women’s volleyball team. Danielle is shown with three of her new Wisconsin Badger teammates. bit rushed – working hard to meet the submission deadline. If I make too many errors or oversights in this write up, we may very well have to borrow upon Manfield’s talents in the future! With that, here are some of the highlights from our BRs: Difficult as it always is to share, we had another loss in our extended class family. Ms. Jean Pierro, Ken Pierro’s step-mother and loving wife of Ken’s father, Angelo, died in January after suffering a major stroke. Jean and Angelo, both widows at the time, married in 1996. The loss of Jean came at a time when Ken was just beginning a new transition. Ken was working for the past year with Amazon at a fulfillment center in the Seattle area; however, he realized after much agonizing that it just was not a good retirement job – especially after the run-up to Christmas! As Ken put it, in typical Pierro-style, “After consulting with the human resources department, I happily agreed to a new position with the organization: Customer.” The excitement of the positive transition and plans to find a retirement home in the Pacific Northwest lasted only three days for our beloved BR, as he learned that Jean was placed in Hospice care in Florida. It was shortly after that Jean passed into the arms of our Lord.

Ken is now planning his move to central Florida, Ocala area, where he will be near his loving father. While it is not exactly what Ken was planning, he shared that he is sure he will get used to summer all year long! (Ken will find that he will be close to a number of BRs, as well!) On a more positive and exciting note, Ken’s son,

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Kenny, is applying to VMI as a transfer student and Bill “Wiener” King all took part with Grover as always! John and Patti remain happy and well into the Class of “1981+40.” Ken shared that in the ’81 golf outing on that rainy Friday morning on Gwynn’s Island! Patti is enjoying work at Grover Outland and John Cawthorne have been of the reunion. (And at this writing, I can’t recall Xenith Bank at Gloucester Point. John is havinvaluable in helping with the navigation through if I addressed all of this reunion news in the last ing a “wonderful and rewarding time” teachthe process and providing guidance Kenny need- edition ... Where the heck is Manfield when you ing science at Veritas Preparatory School in Williamsburg. He works for a couple of exceped to make this decision. (God love you and Di- need him?!)

Does the heart good to hear from John Dixon, tional women who, like John, were stellar U.S. ana, Ken, as you both move forward in this next chapter!)

Air Force officers. One of the young Moving on to BR Grover Outland, ladies John works with and mentors Grover had the opportunity to see was accepted to the University of VirScot and Susan Marsh at the Foundginia, and he is working with the VMI Admissions Office to accept a couple ers Day festivities last fall. As many of his other outstanding students. (On BRs are aware, Scot is our latest BR the latter, John, we hope to hear more to serve on the Board of Visitors. Groon your success!) John proudly shared ver’s oldest nephew, Matt Outland that Patti surprised him with a VMI ’17, is the dyke for Scot’s son, Ben iPhone cover, and John is just hoping ’20. (By the time this is in print, I am that he does not “drown it” off his sure Ben will have learned to hide his dock like he has done to two other cell food box when “Uncle Grover” is in barracks.) My “four-year roomie,” Class of 1981: Rick “Moose” McCue and Mike “Psycho” McLeod phones. John further reports that his two grandchildren, Analeigh Kaye Grover, also shared more accolades at Raleigh-Durham.

Dixon and Conor David Shuchart, over our last reunion. Grover underhave framed provisional appointscored that he and wife, Melissa, had a lot of good conversations with many. ments to VMI for the Classes of 2037 He also shared that at the start of the and 2038. (No pressure, kids!) reunion weekend, he and BR Chip Mike “Psycho” McLeod sent Johnson met with about 20 pre-law his greetings. Psycho and Ricky cadets and VMI’s pre-law adviser in “Moose” McCue had a chance to Scott Shipp Hall to discuss law school connect recently. Psycho had a free admissions and careers in the field afternoon on a layover at Raleighof law. Grover also shared that Chip Durham International Airport. RuJohnson, Vince “V” Wood, Bruce mor has it that since Kelly McCue Kitchen, Bruce “Repeat” Gitchell, was on a business trip and could not Mark “Brumie” Brumenschenkel, run a stick check on Moose, he was Dave “Opie” Openshaw, Jeff “Julio” able to oblige. Psycho is wrapping up Davies, Rich Bartholomew, Gary Class of 1981: Pictured at the November wedding of Maria Karalis to another model project. He is creating Won, Mark Kanter, Tom “Bro” Al- Mark Gonsalves in New York were Class of ’81 roommates, from left, a model of the EP-3E that collided bro and son Conor, Gary Morgan, Johann and Maureen Cooper, Jerry Manley and Valarie Solorzano, with the Chinese fighter and diverted Mark and Maria, Mike and Katherine Denton, and Robert Digby. to Hainan Island, PRC, for the Cold John Aulbach, Clarkson Meredith War Gallery, Navy Museum, on the Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. If you have not had the honor of seeing Psycho’s works, they are simply phenomenal and they receive high recognition from senior Navy officers and officials. On the current project, it appears that Adm. Harry Harris, commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, is planning to come the CWG to unveil this model and another he is about to build, an EC-121 Warning Star. (Hoping to see you on the yard, Psycho!)

Dan Gallagher reports that he decided to reClass of 1981: Pictured at the Chantilly breakfast formation were, from left, Joe Provenztire from financial planning and product sales ano, Jerry Manley, Ken Herbert, George Dipaoli, Gary Morgan, Grover Outland, Greg by the end of 2017 to focus on other work and White and Jeff Adler. Photo by Jerry Manfield. passions. Dan shared that Skyhorse Publishing

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Class Notes has him writing its personal financial have been a low-key event, there is planning book, “Secrets of Financial certainly no loss of excitement for Planning Success,” for its fall 2017 Danielle amongst the class ranks! list. Dan hopes to also work on a reviWe could not be more excited, and I sion of his 1998 novel, “The Pleistoam hoping we will be able to arrange cene Redemption,” which is retitled, some mini reunions around some of “Ancient of Genes.” When he is not Danielle’s future games!

Last, but certainly not least, I offer writing, Dan is teaching English partthis very special recognition of the time and trying to get his wood art November wedding between our be(CarolinaCustomMade.com) off the ground. Dan and Laura are planning loved, but often misunderstood, BR a get-together with Paul and Tammy Mark “Sloppy” Gonsalves to the very Boulden in Charlotte in 2017 and to beautiful and loving Maria Karalis. take a trip later in the fall to go bow Attending the wedding were Johann hunting for bear. (Because sometimes and Maureen Cooper, Mike and rocks and sticks are just not enough?!) Class of 1981: Trip Lloyd with his wife, Anne; daughter, Amanda; Katherine Denton, Rob Digby, and Dan shared that he may need a knee and son, Liam, enjoying New Year’s 2017.

Jerry Manley escorted by the lovely replacement this year (Yeah! EspeValerie Salorzano. The wedding serboth Trip and his bride, Anne, have been acting in cially if you are running away from a pissed off vice and reception were incredible events, and a local theater production and are getting ready for the common theme was “Sloppy, don’t screw this bear, Dan!) but invites any BRs and their families a Mediterranean cruise this summer. to join him for barbecue this summer. Contact up!” (Just kidding, Mark, you know we love you.

C.P. Davis is doing well. C.P. shared that he We just love Maria more.) After the wedding, Dan, and he will put you up! is staying busy and working a great deal in the Mark and Maria were blessed with a tremendous Many thanks to Paul Hartnett for chiming in.

Virginia area. He hopes to catch up with BRs in honeymoon that included travels to South AfriPaul shared that while he has not written often, he the northern Virginia, Richmond and Tidewater ca. I hope to have more details and pictures from does enjoy keeping track of everyone through the markets whenever the opportunity presents itself. Mark for the next Review.

Alumni Review updates. Paul was able to see all His daughter, Courtney, graduates from North of his four adult children over Christmas. He has That is all I have to report for now, BRs! Please Carolina State University this May. She will be continue to write and provide me inputs for fubeen in San Antonio for approximately 18 years working in Charlotte with Vanguard Investments. ture editions of the Review; nothing is too great and had his own civil/environmental business.

Received a quick note from Clarkson Meri- or too small to report – even a simple line to check He is now semi-retired. His oldest son works for deth.

Clarkson and Denise are doing well. a biotech company in Austin (and owns a softin will be greatly received by all! Until next time, Clarkson is staying busy with coaching high I pray we all remain happy and in good health! ware company on the side). His eldest daughter school lacrosse that started up this February. He is a third-year resident neurosurgeon in Tampa, In the bonds, is also planning to head back to Haiti again in Jerry and his youngest daughter is getting her doctorate April, the week before Easter, for his annual mis(Now where the heck did I put Manfield’s conthis spring in biology from Oklahoma University. sions trip. Clarkson and I are still threatening one tact information...)

His youngest son is getting a degree in computer another with getting together and sharing food, artificial intelligence in San Antonio. Paul shared beer or some quality bourbon. (We have to make with humor that he could not get any of his kids that happen, Clarkson!) to go to VMI, even though he threatened them Our BR Bill Grigg was honored on the field Will Council a few times! Paul was in Virginia in the Decemduring The Citadel game halftime with a large ber timeframe and saw Joe Rosenberger, who, as number of alum from the Classes of ’82, ’83, ’84 Paul put it, “does financial services and is still as and ’85; all of whom were on the fall ’81 team cynical as ever.” that beat Army, Virginia Tech and the College Class quick hitters: of William & Mary during VMI’s last winning Trip Lloyd chimed in and extended his thanks football season. Bill was the first to be introduced once again to the “greater team” who put the reIs it spring yet? I don’t know about you all up – rightfully so! Bill’s son, Garrett, is now a 4th north, but we have had a wonderfully warm winunion together last October. Trip shared that the Class cadet and, by all accounts, is doing well. ter here in Tennessee and the South. Just to be reunion afforded him the chance to reconnect Jim Hart shared that his loving and talented clear, we did celebrate Christmas, and with it I with his old roomie, Jorg Ronke, and two other daughter, Danielle, signed on to play volleyball got a few cards in the mail from some of you. members of the Glee Club quartet they sang with: for the University of Wisconsin! While Jim re- There were even two family letters that made me Dean Foster and Mike Plazcek. Trip and his famports himself to be a “dumb [mule]” for not tak- jealous of all the far-ranging activities you did last ily spent the Christmas and new year holidays ing pictures of her signing, even though it may year. I wish I had the energy to sit down and pull cruising in the southern Caribbean. Since then,

1982

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VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes all of that together into one letter with photos. Oh, wait ... that is what I am doing right now.

John and Debbie Meadows sent the first photo card with their daughter, Marie-Claire, but no accompanying letter saying where they had been.

Bummer. But it looked like they at least had a good time doing it.

George Mayforth is a better man than I am, because he at least got cards out with an actual note written in them. And his wishes for a warm, wonderful season did come true for us. Yes, just thinking about the blizzards in the north with 10 inches of snow does me proud to be a southern man.

Mike and Heather Albert included me in their Christmas card mailing list again. Although Mike says there is no change in the jobs or daily lives as husband and wife, their lives are going to get a makeover, as their oldest is expecting a child this spring and they will become grandparents for the first time! Congratulations, and I wish you the best in that monumental event.

I am still a long way away from any chance of seeing a wedding chapel, let alone the maternity wards.

Back in 2014, Paul Capozzolli and his wife downsized after 27 years in the Richmond area and moved to Charlottesville. While maintaining a condo in town, they purchased a little slice of heaven in Fluvanna County in late 2015 to keep Paul busy and out of trouble. Finally, last summer, he accepted a retirement package after over 30 years of working for various companies in an information technology role. So the country life is good, and Paul stays busy with the country place, volunteering, hitting the gym and bicycle riding.

Dave Kohler sent me his Christmas letter of all he did in 2016. I finished it feeling exhausted from just reading all the things he accomplished on a daily routine, as well as his world traveling experiences with family and friends.

I am curious about a Kohler family

2017-Issue 2

Class of 1982: Curtis Nichols, Steve Varga and Joe Poteralski attended the wake for Joel Bodnar, who passed away suddenly last year.

Class of 1982: Bob Louthan with Gary Bissell ’89 heading to see the 2017 inaugural parade and Corps of Cadets.

Class of 1982: Chuck and Hope Fanshaw with daughters Hailey and Mia.

favorite regarding tree bunny stew. I will have to ask for the recipe the next time I catch up with him.

Chuck and Hope Fanshaw also included me on their mailing list of their Christmas letter. (I am grateful to all who send me anything except junk mail, really.) Chuck has moved away from National Defense University to be a senior executive at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Benefits include a shorter commute and new job challenges. Hope is still at the Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery. Their three daughters are growing up, spreading wings and moving out. Oldest Kathlene is working at Georgetown University Hospital as a graduate medical education program coordinator. Hailey is a senior in high school and is exploring universities for the near future. Mia is in fifth grade and super busy with sports year-round and singing and dancing and ... you get the point. Soon to have her parents’ undivided attention.

Poppa Joe Poteralski must live in the Stone Age. How else can you explain that he actually wrote a letter to me and included a picture?! I guess I should be glad it was not a Polaroid instamatic. So who was in this picture, you ask? Curtis Nichols, Steve Varga and Joe, who attended the wake last year of Joel Bodnar. I missed the fact that Varga had attended the services in my class notes, so Joe was correcting my oversight. Steve drove up from New Jersey and back in the same day.

Thanks all of you for representing our class as roommates and friends. Joe’s letter arrived just before Thanksgiving and carried the news that he was expecting family to return for the holidays. Alexmarie is in her second year of law school, and Matt is enduring on the shores of Lake Ontario. As usual, Joe was able to attend a swim meet when VMI came to play Binghamton University New York. He really enjoyed meeting parents who traveled to see their Keydets perform and regaling the cadets with Old Corps

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Class Notes tales. Keep up the good work, Joe, and you may send me mail anyway you like!

Ron Mecredy will not be able to attend our reunion in the fall as work has him scheduled to be overseas. This has not stopped him from reaching out to us as classmates and offering himself as a unique resource. Ron has two great sons who are gay and have been “out” for more than 15 years.

Ron is willing to make himself available to talk or write about his experiences or perspective should any of us be going through this as parents. That is extraordinary. He may be reached through our social media Facebook class page or mecredy@ gmail.com.

Several of you made it to Washington, D.C., for the inauguration, but only one of you stepped up and sent in some notes – a little late, but still they arrived before the clock struck midnight. Bob and Kathy Louthan made the drive from Richmond and endured a six-hour wait, but apparently, it was well worth it. Bob said it was “...like watching the Roman Legions returning from conquest – just incredible.”

With one last Louthan in the Corps, Kathy and Bob have been at VMI a lot. Between Mason ’18 getting his ring in early December, football games, basketball games and Alumni Association meetings, the road to Lexington is wearing out from their driveway. Other alumni gatherings they have attended were the annual cook-off hosted

Class of 1982: Bob Louthan, president of the VMI Alumni Association, and wife Kathy at the 2017 presidential inaugural parade to see the cadets march.

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by Mark and Debbie Shifflette. Also in attendance were Chuck and Mary Anne Kause, Jim and Maureen Hickey, Scott and Christine Crumpler, and Emmett and Lynn Heltzel. Apparently, Chuck came in second this year to Christine, and to console himself had to drink lots of fine Willett bourbon while solving all the world’s problems around the fire pit late into the night; certain details have been deemed inappropriate for inclusion in the class notes. On a final note, the Louthans will be joining Jeff and Tara Modisett on a trip to Mexico in March. Cindy and Dave Warriner ’83 will be there, too. (My invite must have been lost in the mail.) After that, Blake Louthan ’14 is getting married in May to his high school sweetheart; that will bring a bunch of his BRs to town, so they are really looking forward to it.

From the Council homefront, just as several of you are retiring and moving to a quiet place in the mountains, I am stepping back into the workforce. This year, I have started working with the logistics department at VW as they are preparing for the new Atlas SUV start up. Pretty exciting stuff on the front end of the process getting the parts and systems in place. A nice perk is the uniform is blue jeans every day! That is, from the chief executive officer on down. My daughter, Dana, has started her dream career job of working for the Department of Justice in Knoxville. Son Hayden is in his last semester at the local community college hoping to end up at VW working on the robots and production line equipment. Susan continues with her beading jewelry shop, trying to grow it into a sustainable business. Still have some horse business going on, and for the first time, it is actually seeing more inflow than outflow. The secret is get rid of our horses and renting space for others in our barns and pastures.

Well, that is almost it. I feel like I am forgetting something. Oh, yeah! Our 35th Reunion is coming up Sept. 8-9, 2017. You should have received a letter from the Alumni Association with the hotel reservation information. The rooms went fast, but I am sure Keith Jarvis has room on his couch or in the garage. Please make the effort to call your former roommates and get them to show up. Sister Rat Lynn Heltzel and your class officers are working hard to make it one of the best ever. It’s guaranteed to be lots of fun, but more so if you come.

Sincerely, Will Council

1983

Hugh Daughtry

Brother Rats, These notes cover the period of November 2016 through mid-February 2017. By the time you read this, the Class of 2017 will be getting ready to graduate. Five sons of ’83 will have hopefully walked across the stage (have not heard of any five-year men), and there will be great celebration in the Laughon, Groseclose, Belliveau, Cornett and Outland households.

As I promised in the last Alumni Review, Robin and I were going to buckle on the boots and spurs and head to VMI for the game against The Citadel. This year, it fell Nov. 12, so there was much activity on post for Founders Day and the game. We rolled onto post in time for the Friday parade, and it quickly became evident that the Class of 1983 was going to be heard from that weekend.

We immediately ran into Steve Simonson and Mary Farnsworth. They were up from Colonial Heights, and Steve was being the perfect tour guide for Mary. Chris and Jill Eversmann were also on the Parade Ground for the Founders Day parade. They were up from Columbia, South Carolina, and were showing mixed allegiances, as their son, Grant, is at The Citadel.

They were a house divided Saturday.

For those of you who have not been back for a game in the last few years, you are missing out on one of the great tailgates in college football. Through hook and crook, Cal Murray, Scott Belliveau, Jay Williams and Dave Warriner manage quite a production. It starts with Cal’s famous warning order during the week that goes out via our Yahoo Group. Cal makes the commander’s intent known, and the work ensues. Though Jay has moved to a more strategic planning role at the Institute, his influence at Building and Grounds is still evident as our class has prime position for viewing the festivities.

We started our morning uptown at a coffee shop, where we ran into Bobby Edwards. He was in from the left coast and had sent Franklin Hudgins and Owen Dunlop forward to

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Patrick and Shannon are in college, post. If I remember correctly, there and Keri is married and her husband was some discussion of hitting Alis deploying to Afghanistan shortly. vin Dennis, as well. You will see They are standing by for grandchilfrom the picture that it appears that Franklin is no stranger to AD, as dren but none on the horizon. he sported some sharp monogram Todd has been battling some slacks. health issues this past year with Parking for games is at a premia nasty staph infection in his leg.

This led to a major heart attack that um, so crowds arrive early in Lexput him in intensive care for three ington. We were on post before 9 weeks. Sounds like Todd is a lucky a.m. and were lucky to find a place man and has a new lease on life! to park behind Mallory Hall. The Alan Toler continues to excel in highlight of the day was the honorClass of 1983: In December 2016, Steve and Mary Amato hosted the marksmanship arena. He sponing of the 1981 football team at halfa party in which several alumni attended. Pictured were, from time of the El Cid game. Our class left, Scott Horan, Tim Craul, Randy Blanks ’67, Steve, Gerry Bes- sored a two-man pistol team, cuswas well represented with the fol- sette ’85 and Mark Sykes. tomsightpicture.com. They competed at the Canton regional last July lowing: Cal Murray, Don Komara, Mark Pappas, Ben Cottrell, Dan – the largest regional match in the Martin, Teddy Gottwald, Malanation. They won all three events chi Mills, Jay Lasek, Barry Smith, and the aggregate. The next week, Alan co-sponsored a two-man team John Dodge and Steve Umberger. at the National Pistol Match at Also at the tailgate to help honor Camp Perry, Ohio, sponsored by our BRs were Keith Sawyer, Derek the National Rifle Association. The Patterson, Warren Groseclose, John team started slow: Third after the Preston, Ritchie Seymour, Mike 22cal match, second after the center Laughon, Richard Hewitt, Trey Adfire match, and first after the 45cal ams, Skip Goodwillie, Keith Hanmatch. The 45cal win was enough nabas, Steve Goddard, Steve Amato put the duo on the national stage to, Owen Peery and Ed Klukowski.

Class of 1983: Two trophies won by Alan Toler at the National bringing home two National Pistol A special guest for the day was Anne Pistol Match Championships in Camp Perry, Ohio, July 2016.

Match championship trophies.

Manley, Jack’s widow. Anne and Robin were classmates at Randy-Mac, and she came up from Richmond to see the class. She picked a very good day.

As you can imagine with that type of crowd, the stories were flying. The greatest challenge I had was recording the names of all the BRs in attendance. If I missed you, please accept my apologies. Hat’s off to our BRs who put this on every home game. They end up feeding a lot of our brother rats, numerous other alumni and many cadets. It was also fun to see faculty, as well, including Col. Floyd Duncan ’64, who stopped by.

Had a couple of updates come in just before the deadline. Todd Miles checked in from down the road in Charleston, South Carolina.

He has hung up his own shingle as an information technology consultant for seven years Class of 1983: Class Agent Hugh Daughtry said of this photo, “The Class of 1983 representand is loving it. He was previously a contracing on the Parade Ground Nov. 12, 2016.” Pictured were, from left, Teddy Gottwald, Ben Cottrell, John Dodge, Jay Lasek, Skip Goodwillie, Barry Smith, Franklin Hudgins, Steve tor to the military. His wife, Dawn, works as Goddard, Jay Williams, John Preston, Hugh Daughtry, Dave Warriner, Cal Murray, Bobby an events coordinator at a local church and the Edwards, Malachi Mills, Mark Pappas, Steve Simonson, Keith Sawyer and Scott Belliveau. kids are all grown up: 27, 25 and 23 years old.

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Class Notes

Class of 1983: Jay Lasek shows off a memento of the 1981 season with Skip Goodwillie in the background.

Alan’s son, Garrett, enlisted in the Army Reserve program and graduated from boot camp Dec. 1. He is now in Advanced Individual Training at Fort Eustis, Virginia. He will be a helicopter power plant specialist and is due to graduate this summer.

That is all for now. If you are able make a trip to Lexington, Robin and I snuck into the new Corps Physical Training Facility when we were there in November. It’s quite impressive, as is the remodel at Cocke Hall. Please remember the Institute in your giving.

That is all.

1984

Andy Protogyrou

Barry Coceano and the Cav took a trip to northern Virginia and visited Samantha Sullivan, Sully’s widow, and their son, Wade. It was Wade’s 18th birthday, and it was decided there was no better way to celebrate than to share old stories about Sully that could be told to Wade, now that he has reached the age of majority. Samantha shared news about their lives with us.

Wade is a senior in high school and is planning to attend Marshall University this fall to study forensic science. Samantha never remarried and has done a terrific job raising Wade on her own.

Many in our class took it upon themselves to send cards with memories written of Sully to

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Class of 1983: Members of VMI’s 1981 football team pictured were, from left, John Dodge, Ben Cottrell, Jay Lasek, Mark Pappas, Teddy Gottwald, Barry Smith, Cal Murray and Malachi Mills.

Wade for his birthday. My card told Wade about how Sully and I lived next door to one another and flamed rats for sport in sally port.

I received a nice note from Jerry Roscoe. Jerry has been a builder in the Lexington/Rockbridge County area since 1988. His oldest daughter is living with him and his wife, Loida. She has blessed them with three grandchildren. He says Tyler (14), Rylie (12) and Asher (6) make life in their household exciting, and they never have a dull moment. Jasmine, his youngest daughter, works in Staunton. He and Loida headed back to the Philippines for a few weeks in February, and he encouraged all of us to join his trip, as it is the best time to head over. He says he leaves when it is cold outside, construction is slow and no grass to cut. He returns when the heat and work crank up again. Jerry said he saw Bob Chapman last summer, and Bob looked really good. Bob let Jerry fix his “throne.” Jerry, I am going to want the family price from you when we enlarge our Lexington home.

Chris Caplice is still running the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. I know we are all proud of him. He had a rare sighting of Tim Stanley this past fall. In early December, he was in Washington on business and was able to negotiate a dinner with Tim and Shally. He says they are doing great and had a terrific meal with lots of stories that Shally had probably never heard and probably wishes she never had! Tim promised he will come out from the cold and may show at our next reunion. Clay and Andrea Goss stopped by Chris’ house on their way to do some cross country skiing in Waterville Valley. Chris says they

had a great time telling tall tales, drinking bourbon and eating fondue. Yes, brother rats, he wrote fondue. I know it’s not a certified statement, so next time, Chris, my advice as your counsel is just please write that you ate steaks!

Frank Kollmansperger sent a couple wonderful updates. I so appreciate your help, Frank! He said Alex Thompson hosted Jamie Shoemaker, Dave Pruitt and himself on a mid-January duck hunt.

Good food, great fun and all ducks that were flying at the beginning of the day were still flying at the end of the day. PETA thanks the three of you for your incompetent marksmanship. No one fell in the water, and no helicopter extraction was required. Frank sees Chris Bruch, Steve Hupp, Warren Groseclose, Kemper Wharton and Hank Selman almost every Tuesday at Bible study. Frank says he is “blessed” to see Hank almost every day, as they are next-door neighbors.

Frank, you are a good man!

Steve “Pocket Square” Reardon hosted another successful ’84 food fest at French Bistro, La Bob Evans. In attendance were Gene Sampey, Eric Jolly, Hank Sellman, Bill Janis (allegedly looking very svelte), Steve Barsamian, Andy Anderson, Pete Watling and Chris Park. Mike Locher and Hal Hamner were turned away, because they needed to practice with their wrists on using the fondue pot and not double dipping. Jeff Perkins and Lee Wimbish were not invited, because they did not know how to use fondue spikes! Caplice and Goss are happy to give lessons and discuss fondue etiquette. Frank thinks Hupp was there but believes Hupp will deny any association with the group. Frank

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes

Greetings, Gents, Families and Loved Ones, Your agent is endeavoring to achieve MONGA status: Make Our Notes Great Again! Send me your cool stories, information, data and images to help advance this effort: MONGA! MONGA! MONGA! First, I’d like to congratulate the intrepid VMI rats of 2016-17 for their newly minted status as the VMI Class of 2020. Being very close to this massturn-class, I will assure you all that what these cadets went through was every bit as difficult as what we endured back in ’81-82. Physically, emotionally and intellectually, today’s rats are duly challenged.

I won’t get all blubbering here; a simple, “Congratulations, 2020!” will suffice.

I received some mail, mostly in the form of photos and unprintable stories, from Hugh Hill and Steve Medeiros. Lots of stories about Moody Hall, many scurrying brother rats with beers on the Parade Ground and fuzzy recollections about some football game, moon-shooting in BRF Daniel’s Lexington pad-under-renovation, cadets marching, bagpipes, cannon blasts, people dressed up in colorful hotshot sashes (harrumph harrumph, hoi polloi), dress blues, shiny black shoes and bow ties. Lots of pictures; too bad BR Hill’s (no, not Bruce “Benny” Hill ... anybody seen him?) thumb was prominent in most of the photos, so only three were submitted. I am crossing my fingers hoping that all three make the print version of this story.

If I did not say it earlier, all of this was inspired by the Founders Day 2016 celebrations.

I had a chance to correspond with Kelley Dillenberger. We shared a couple of messages and finally connected. We talked about his family and mine. We talked about our careers and life in general. Kelley owns a consultancy called Celerian Consulting and lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I lost my notes, so my specifics are fuzzy; I must apologize. But putting fuzzy aside, I will report that he reached out to me out of the blue after a life-changing event for me and called to just say hello. I have always said that VMI forces us together in such a crucible that incredibly close linkages are bound to occur. This was an example of one of those linkages. I appreciated

that conversation; thanks, Kelley.

I was at a VMI lacrosse game (scrimmage) at Roanoke College in mid-February and ran into Cindy Irby (Joe’s better half). What a treat. Joe was out teaching people how to fish (I know, we are all jealous, and we mention it in this forum at almost every turn). Another treat, Cindy without Joe. (Agent: Grin). A few minutes into the game, who do I spy bounding up the Roanoke stands with limitless energy and the enthusiasm of an uncaged hound dog, but George Halages! George’s daughter, Alyssa, is a junior at Roanoke but obviously has a thick alliance to VMI. His confused emotional state showed clearly in his attire. George was bedecked with a VMI hat, a Roanoke College sweatshirt, a VMI belt and Roanoke socks. He tried to show me his underwear, which he told me was the tie-breaker. Does the bookstore sell VMI logoed tighty whities? Rose Ann Halages was right behind him, shaking her head at the Greek’s antics.

George and Rose Ann had just returned from St. Lucia, where they were making some big plans for future ceremonies. They both looked great; I mean really good, sporting tans and tan lines (reference George trying to show me his tiebreaker).

John Wranek sends that he had a visit with Norb “the Dunker” Jocz in mid-November.

Norb was in town speaking to an English rhetoric class hosted by his good friend and VMI instructor, Professor Mattie Smith. Mattie is an adjunct professor in the English department. Norb and

Class of 1985: “Congratulations, VMI Class of 2020.” Artwork by Matt Daniel.

Class of 1985: Hugh Hill, UPS pilot, with his bride, Alicia, at the 2016 Institute Society Dinner.

Class of 1985: Jim Spellman with his date, Jun Park, during the 2016 Institute Society Dinner.

was at VMI and watched the Keydets rock The Citadel in basketball. In attendance were the Cav, Barry Coceano, Steve Hupp, Bob Chapman and yours truly. Frank hung out some with Clint Hubbard ’86, Phil Howard ’86 and Grover Outland ’81. His chauffer for the day was Meade Spotts ’79. Frank will soon be at John Karafa’s annual quail hunt and shoot around.

He says John is a great host and very generous. I would like my generous invitation, Karafa!

It is a little crazy, but every year I see my BRs, I hug you a little harder and love you a little more!

1985

Matt Daniel

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Class Notes Mattie have known each other since attending Blacksburg High School together and graduating from BHS in 1981.

As offered by BR “No” Jocz, each semester, Prof. Smith tries to include a guest speaker for her classes; one who can discuss the importance of writing well throughout life, even life after VMI, or discuss an issue relevant to the syllabus and course outline for ERH-101 and ERH-102.

When she contacted Norb, he agreed to give four 50-minute presentations to her ERH-101 classes. Mattie said that Norb did a fantastic job demonstrating how writing well has benefited him throughout his varied career.

Some comments from Prof. Smith regarding Norb’s presentation: “A quotable quote from Norb is, ‘How well you write in life will mark you as an individual.

It shows your knowledge and ability to communicate. Writing well marks you out in a crowd.’

He also said, ‘The writing you do here at VMI is most important for the rest of your life. How well you write matters more than even the subject matter you are learning in your majors.’

He taught the cadets to 1. Understand context 2. Consider the audience 3. Recognize the message/information that must be conveyed and 4.

Realize that writing is essential for questioning, and how a writer frames questions constrains the results others will communicate to him/her.

In order to emphasize these points, Norb provided varied examples from both his military

Class of 1985: Brigadier Gen. Jim Begley and King Von Schilling ’64 knelt over their buck near Bluemont, Virginia, Nov. 19, 2016.

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and private sector professions – writing successes and writing failures.

Norb also emphasized three qualities of character which he gained at VMI, and he stated that these characteristics have directly contributed to his success: Discipline, perseverance and honor.

He strongly believes that strength of will and a sense of honor generate success, because they are the true qualities of leadership that people respect.

Finally, Norb also said to ‘focus on the mission, not the stress,’ in life, and he said that one should not be slothful in life. (Agent: taking this one to heart!)

Norb is living in northern Virginia and doing very well. He retired from the Army (Armor Branch) about five years ago and now works for SAP Software Solutions as a global accounts director. His office is in the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center on 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW in Washington, D.C. Norb’s primary client is the U.S. Army. Imagine that, and I am not even Joczing! (Agent: BR Wranek is responsible for that last joke ... er ... Jocz).

Jim Begley recently (opening day of deer season, Nov. 19, 2016) went hunting with King Von Schilling ’64 (recently retired Army and civil service-combined 51 years) near Bluemont, Virginia.

During the hunt, Jim said that King drove a deer towards him, giving Gen. Jim a perfect “quartering away” shot. The beast fell over, twitched a few times and then went still. Teamwork! Goal No. 85, assist No. 64! We always say that an assist is

better than a goal, because it makes two sets of parents happy! Way to go, men. For the detail oriented hunters: Jim shot this animal at 0710 after an 0700 sunrise; it was a cold morning. He used a .308 Winchester. Shot distance was approximately 70 yards.

Jim adds that the butcher took two days to process the animal, and the buck is now in the freezer. Party at the Jim Begley ranch! O-7 money! Who’s in!?

Andy “VMan” Valenzuela provided a little catch-up for us after seeing him briefly at “Mother I” for Founders Day ceremonies. “I am living in Evergreen, Colorado, at 7,800 feet, which gives my aging legs a one up when I go to sea level. Amy and I have been out here since being hired by United Airlines in 1995. We have six kids aged nine through 22. Gabrielle is graduating from North Dakota State University in Fargo, North Dakota, next December. Julianna is about halfway through Colorado School of Mines (currently on a figure life out sabbatical). Michael is graduating high school and had his admissions interview at VMI. Collette is a junior in high school, Elise is an eighth-grader and Gianna (Gigi) is in fourth grade. I am currently flying the 787 out of Houston doing international stuff and recently gave up my captain’s job on the Airbus to go back to the right seat for better seniority/ family life, etc. I rejoined the military after a 14year break in service in 2012 and am currently deputy CC of the 116th Air Support Operations

Class of 1985: At the ’85 tailgate during the 2016 Founders Day weekend were, from left, Hugh Hill, Mike Hulyo, Ralph Tremaglio, Dave Tingley, Andy Valenzuela, Tucker Maloney, Big Mike Wooten, Kerry “AC Stars” Kirk, Steve Medeiros, Paul Marsenison, Brent Hearn, Meade King and Jim Spellman. Photo by Mark DellaRocco.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes To wit: in 2016, the Chicago Cubs won the Squadron at Camp Murray, Washington. Call whose names escape me right now.” (Agent: great World Series, Donald Trump was elected presisign Husky 56. It is a Tactical Air Control Party letter, VMan.) And to close, I received phone calls, text mesdent of the United States, John Rapacki showed unit with joint tactical air controllers and air liaiup in person at VMI twice in one year, and Phil son officers. We coordinate/call in airstrikes for sages, personal visits and social media demonstrawhomever needs it on the ground. Mostly, it’s tions of support from several BRs and VMI friends Howard came to a VMI football game while Stewart Barnes was tailgating at Hampdenthe Army, but we work anyone that has the need after a recent Daniel family sad affair. Our famSydney. And finally, Jim Radle, Glen Ralston, from all branches including the SOF guys. Like an ily appreciated all the thoughts, prayers and supAir-Naval Gunfire Liaison Company, and I don’t port from these extended hands. Thank you all so Jim Urie, Roman Malavet, and Kenny Walpole all checked in with an update. OK, you caught much. know what you Marines call it. We are the bastard With this, I will yield my remaining column me; there were some major goings-on, but not step-children in the Air Force and are only tolerated because some general gets accolades when space to other classes and to the images submitted. crazy enough to include an update from Radle, Ralston, Urie, Malavet or Tadpole. To borrow we blow something up. Trying to keep up with the Be well, my brothers. MONGA! the famous cable sent to Admiral Halsey: “The RVM! young dudes is hard, but like we learned at VMI, World Wonders.”

Matt Daniel you never want to let your brother down, and I The Cubs wining the World Series over the work out like hell so I can lead from the front. A Cleveland Indians marked the first time since little over two years for a military retirement, and 1908 that the Cubs had won the championit won’t come soon enough. It’s definitely a young ship. All of the Chicago-area BRs were cheerman’s game. We are trying to figure out how to Clint Hubbard ing on the cubbies, including Matt Anderson, pay for VMI out-of-state if Michael decides to go, Karl Kuhrman, Jim Shanley and Greg Weddle. which might include a move back to Virginia and Stewart “Bandwagon” Barnes was cheering, me flying out of Dulles. The younger girls are in too; he apparently has a family connection to full-scale revolt, but I think finding a good fit for Those of you who are former denizens of Scott the Chicago area and came out of his hole to everyone might make it doable. We’ll see. Colorado is an outdoor lover’s dream, with hunting, Shipp Hall and/or scholars of history will parse be a Cubs fan when they made it to the World fly fishing (Agent: Joe “Beef ” Irby and the VMan the events of the latter half of 2016 and realize Series. That figures, right?

Donald J. Trump won the presidential elecwill be besties), skiing, mountain biking, soccer, that it was a seminal year in human history. Now, tion, and some spirited discussion lit up on solacrosse, football, etc., and we do them all. It’ll be I know that a sharp guy like Fred Scott underhard to leave that, but with so many Californians stood that sentence, but to translate for those cial media among our boys. If we were still in are moving here, the landscape is changing, and of you engineers, Marines and members of the barracks, a few “discussions” could have escadean’s ‘other’ list: some major junk went down! lated to a challenge to meet in the boxing room. it might be time. (Agent: snicker) Let’s just leave it at that. Let the of“Well, that’s enough rattletrap ficial record show that Clif Tinsley about me and my family. Thanks for made the call about 10 months out, taking the time to be our class agent too. Brother Rat Tinsley’s prescience for the past years. I read every edi(again, for the engineers and Marines tion, and your style of writing always – it means he saw accurately into the brings a smile. It’s like 1,000 mile axx future) and persistence led to a wagrabbing, and I love it. (Agent: Except ger with Jim Jenkins over the eleche didn’t say “axx.”) tion results, and BR Jenkins will be “I’m sorry you weren’t able to stay treating BR Tinsley to SRC at the for the weekend; it was memorable.

Southern Inn sometime when both Ask Porchie Mederios. On second are in Lexington. They half-way exthought, don’t, because I’m pretty tended an invite for other BRs to join sure the last thing he remembers is in, so when the event takes place, we the football game. Ha. It was nice should crowd the joint then alligatorcatching up with a lot of our BRs, and arm it when the bill comes to see if crashing the Keydet Club ’81 football we can pile onto BR Jenkins’ tab. game dinner at the Lexington CounHey, the dude was gone for nigh on try Club with Bill Weiners, Tucker Maloney, Brent Hearn and crew Class of 1986: At The Citadel game tailgate were, from left, Jeff to 30 years and is an empty-nester; was memorable, as well. Cav ’84 Smiley, Todd McCullough, Jim Jenkins, Roy Woolwine and Jim he’s got the dough.

Along with the presidential election gave us the nod, and it was great see- Taggart. Class Agent Clint Hubbard said of this photo, “Also presing guys like Anthony Agostonelli, ent but not pictured were Robert Nussey and Dave Reynolds, was President Trump’s inauguration who didn’t want to leave the cooler long enough for a photo.” in January 2017. The VMI Corps of Bruce Hauk, Kelly Raber and others

1986

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Class Notes Cadets marched and were the largest unit in the parade. They were also the final unit, and if you didn’t see it live, you need to Google it on YouTube and watch them. I promise it will make you stand a bit taller and stick out your chest. They were most impressive, and I heard the same comment from many folks around the country who don’t know much of anything about VMI but came away impressed with their pageantry and precision in the inaugural parade.

We need to give Robert Nussey and David Reynolds some credit for bringing home a wayward lamb. They’ve ridden John Rapacki like a rented mule, and not only did he show for the 30th Reunion back in April, BRs Nussey and Reynolds “convinced” him to attend the VMI versus The Citadel football game in November.

I also need to mention another member of former room 154 – Steve Hall. With a son in the Corps, BR Hall is a fixture at most football games.

Where Steve earned BR of the Year Award is that the above group had a Friday night rally point at Wintergreen, Virginia, and, as you can imagine, “chased the moon” most of the evening. Brother Rat Hall fought his way through the “aluminum mountain” and was out the door at 0600 Saturday morning in order to get to the Parade Ground in time to get a good tailgate spot. He was the point man for Reynolds and Nussey. Not sure why you need a prime tailgate spot for Reynolds and Nussey just to pound beers, but nevertheless, BR Steve Hall is the man! And in tow at the game was BR John Rapacki; the dude disappears for 30 years and then comes back twice within seven months. It is great to see BR Rapacki back in the loop. I am told that BR Nussey now has his sights on one, each, Albrecht, F.R. There were great plans for100 percent attendance from room 154, but somehow BR Albrecht spit the bit and went on a business trip to Russia. Robert’s logic (and it makes sense to me) is that anyone important enough to have to make a business trip to Russia should be high enough on the totem pole to schedule such a trip around a football weekend with his BRs. I’m down with that. As Dave Grimm might say, “I’m just sayin’...”

So while we had John Rapacki twice in the same year – almost like a lightning strike, right?

– we also had a major hiccup in the space-timeplace vortex when Stewart Barnes went to the football game at Hampden-Sydney College, and Phil Howard showed up at a VMI football game.

Hey, UVa football is so bad that even BR Howard

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doesn’t care about it anymore. And co-matriculant Barnes reports that Chip, Muffy and Biff say hello.

Having BR Rapacki return twice in one year after an absence of 25-30 years is no small event. It just goes to show BRs Urie, Malavet, Walpole, Radle and Ralston that their BRs are waiting for them to return, too. Your BRs are on their faces! Same thing goes for Greg Weddle, Marc Moquin and Steve Anderson.

Since many of you (other than Eddie Plucinski, Larry Watson and Ed Talbott) are getting past your prime and looking with hope toward the next generation, here is some news with hope for the future. There were three sons of ’86 who earned the VMI class ring this year; congratulations to Cadets Alex Hall, Cole Taggart and David Tyler. We all know how coveted is this achievement and marking point of one’s passage through the VMI system. This milestone was celebrated at some mild event in November.

Not sure what they called their little prom, as we all know that Ring Figure was in 1984. Hey, I’m sorry, but if you come away from the weekend without a police report, numerous expended fire extinguishers, a broken plate-glass window and sizable class debt, then it ain’t Ring Figure. If you want to run with the big dogs, then you got to get off the porch. Amateurs! Mama’s boys! To once again quote our boy, Papa G., “I’m just sayin’...”

In early December, Bob and Kirby Rainer hosted their annual BR Christmas party, which is always a blast. This year, it was the normal cast of BRs: Paul Burch, Wayne Fuller, Clint Hubbard, Jeff Morgan, Jon Moody, Gordon Poindexter and Tim Spivey. As we recounted the election and debated the social issues of the times, here’s a surprise: BR Spivey had an opinion on all of them and willingly shared his viewpoints. Actually, if this group of deplorables could have enacted the legislation as discussed, there would be glad tidings of great joy for all people. Well, most of us, anyway. Steve Pancham wasn’t there, but we almost got BR Fuller to do his Pancham impression, which is spot-on. This party is always a highlight of the holiday season – particularly with BR Rainer’s smoked salmon.

In a previous edition, we noted MillerFest, a recent party at Dave Miller’s house featuring the house band of ’83+3. Among the attendees were Dave “Papa G.” Grimm and one, each, Ralph Frye. Among the other accomplishments for the weekend is that Dave found out Ralph is a semiprofessional DJ with all the equipment for a firstrate show. One of Dave’s (Grimm) daughters happened to be getting married later in the fall, and BR Grimm hired BR Frye to handle the music for the reception. Papa G. tells me it was awesome, and Ralph put on a great show. Not only

Class of 1986: In Cameron Hall at the basketball game versus The Citadel were, from left, bottom row, Todd McCullough, Tim Keilty, Jamie Inman and Phil Howard. Top row: Dave Grimm, Stew Barnes and Clint Hubbard. Class Agent Clint Hubbard said of this photo, “Photographic evidence that Phil Howard was actually at VMI in person. Almost like spotting Sasquatch, or even Ben Walker or Jim Radle. Colonel Inman threatened to bone T.W. McCullough for ‘no shave.’”

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes that, but our favorite denizen of Beaver, Pennsylvania, (Ralph) also held court as a raconteur with the wedding group and had them in stitches with some of the VMI stories that may or may not have been embellished. Well done, boys. The only part missing was no word from BR Frye on whether or not he has recently run into Scott Harbula at their favorite greater-Pittsburgh area landmark – the Beaver Liquor Store – as I know both Harbula and Frye like to go down to that spot. In fact, a native of nearby Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, Eddie “Brow” Plucinski has been known to darken the door at the Beaver Liquor Store, too.

Speaking of Eddie Brow, his former cohort in crime (which one, right?) Scott Diehl has hung up his badge and wings and retired from the FBI – the real one, the Federal Bureau of Investigation. With his military service and tenure at the FBI, Ol’ BF gave Uncle Sam 30 years – well done, BR. The word on the street is that BR Diehl is embarking upon a second career with the outdoor retailer, Cabela’s, who will be opening a store in the Gainesville, Virginia, area sometime soon. No official word on his role there but can guess it will have something to do with fishing. It is noteworthy that BR Diehl separated from the FBI twice; this most recent retirement from the official Federal Bureau of Investigation and his separation by virtue of graduation in 1986 from the first FBI organization with whom he was affiliated. You may remember that former group who were referred to as the FBI – _______ Bunch of Idiots. All of you were members.

As another example of life coming full-circle, let’s talk about ’86 and Fishburne Military Academy. You will recall our late BR John Hairr was on the faculty at Fishburne and was, by all accounts, a much beloved faculty member there when he died suddenly in 2014. Another BR will take up his mantle there. Retired U.S. Navy Capt. Mark Black assumed the superintendence of Fishburne in fall 2016. BR Black retired after a lengthy career in Naval aviation and has set his tailhook/is dropping anchor in Waynesboro, Virginia. Now, Dave Miller, Gordon Poindexter and Richard Hill will have a place to hold meetings of the Waynesboro 1st Class Private’s Association. Brother Rat Black can use the three of them as good bad examples for the young cadets at Fishburne. Well done, Mark, and best wishes for a successful tenure.

Speaking of Eddie Talbott, he has entered the world of academia and is now Dr. Ed Talbott.

Here’s the presser: “Doctor Ed Talbott is an

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assistant professor of Pharmacy Practice at the Appalachian College of Pharmacy in Oakwood, Virginia. Doctor Talbott received his Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the Appalachian College of Pharmacy in 2009.

“Doctor Talbott is a native of Buchanan County and a graduate of Grundy High School. He attended (here’s the good part) the Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Virginia, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in physics. (The presser made no mention of amount of recyclable aluminum for which BR Talbott was personally responsible in the years 198286.) Doctor Talbott then served five years in the United States Navy as a submarine officer aboard the USS Simon Bolivar – SSBN 641. He made six patrols in the North Atlantic and spent over a year underwater during his time in the Navy.

(He also spent over a year underwater dodging a chick from Southern Sem back in the day, but that is another story altogether.) He then worked as an engineer at Newport News Shipbuilding (it was either the shipyard or VDOT, right?) for several years before returning to Buchanan County, where he worked in the computer and information sciences field. After graduating ACP in 2009, he worked seven years as a retail pharmacist and also conducted cardiac and pulmonary rehab counseling for Rockcastle Regional Hospital.

“In his free time, Doctor Talbott enjoys hiking, nature, trail running, triathlon, photography, astronomy, and local history and genealogy. He is an active member of both the Buchanan County Historical Society and the Buchanan County Bird Club. (Eddie’s membership in the Buck County Bird Club is coincidental and parallels all the time he roomed with Chris Kolditz and how Chris graduated and then seemingly gave his BRs ‘the bird.’) Eddie currently resides in Grundy, Virginia, with his wife, Doctor Michelle Justus.” Well done, E.F. Talbott! And maybe that shot across the bow will bring some return fire and update from BR Kolditz, C.P. And speaking of new positions, there was an interesting press release from the Leesburg, Virginia, Police Department. I know what you’re thinking: “Press release from the Leesburg PD? I guess they finally nabbed Jon Aycock.” It’s a reasonable assumption, and that’s what I initially thought, too.

It turns out the BR Aycock is still on the lam, but here is the Leesburg presser along with some annotations to help read between the lines.

“The Leesburg Police Department has hired

Captain Jim Daly from the Arlington County Police Department to serve as commander of the Field Operations Division. He will begin his duties Feb. 27. “‘I am excited to have Captain Daly join the LPD team,’ Chief Gregory Brown stated. ‘I am confident that his leadership, experience and personality are the perfect fit for the Leesburg Police Department and the Town of Leesburg.’

“Daly started his law enforcement career in 1990 (before 1990, he was largely on the other side of the law) when he joined the Arlington County Police Department. He has vast experience in police operations and emergency preparedness and, over the course of his career, has been a first responder to natural and man-made disasters, to include the Pentagon Sept. 11, 2001, and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in 2005. (What they didn’t say was his experience dealing with disasters like Hurricane Katrina was honed in his experience gained at the Richmond, Virginia, Hyatt Hotel in 1984 at a melee known as Ring Figure.” And for all you hangers-on out there; that’s right, Ring Figure was in 1984.)

“Daly, a Virginia Military Institute graduate, served in the U.S. Army for 10 years before joining the police force. He has taught community policing and homeland security courses to officers throughout the country and has had assignments in the operations, criminal investigations (where he had uncanny insight into the mind of a criminal based largely on his personal association with the number of criminals with whom he consorted from 1982-86) and administrative divisions of the Arlington County Police Department. In addition, he worked as the aide to the deputy chief of operations and later for the chief of police in Internal Affairs (the ACPD version of ‘spook patrol’). He was a member of the ACPD Emergency Response Team–Crisis Negations Unit for 16 years, the last five as commander.”

The good news for all of us is that with BR Daly in a loft position, we have achieved the Trojan horse and Leesburg, Virginia, is now a sanctuary city for Jim’s BRs from the Class of 1986. This news, coupled with Scott Diehl being a retired FBI agent in Warrenton and John Hart being a judge in Harrisonburg, the northwestern quadrant of Virginia is on the way to becoming a secure perimeter. I propose that the first law in this new area should be the death penalty for driving slow in the hammer lane. Hey, we got places to be!

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Class Notes Speaking of places to be – the place to be Feb. 11 was at Cameron Hall to watch the Keydets playing The Citadel Bulldogs. Among the BRs in attendance were: Barnes, S.L.; Grimm, D.K.; Howard, P.R.; Hubbard, R.C.; Inman, J.P.; Keilty, T.M.; Mason, A.W.; McCullough, T.W.; and Steenburgh, C.J. Papa G. had a sign that read, “We’re just here to kick $#% and drink beer – and we’re all out of beer.” Special mention for attendance to retired U.S. Marine Corps Col. Patrick Looney, former professor of Naval science at VMI, and more importantly, brother-in-law to ’86’s own Dan Monahan.

What’s the saying? The brother-in-law of my brother rat is my brother and friend. Pat is on the staff at VMI with the Marshall Leadership Center and is a great guy. Monahan, D.P., was AWOL – there was some cock-and-bull story going around that he wasn’t there because he was going to a Valentine’s Day function with his bride that evening, but we know that can’t be accurate. Al Comer or Chris Bass might pull that jazz, but not a great BR like Dan Monahan. The Keydets beat the Bulldogs by about 20 points, and it was nice to spank The Citadel’s coach, the infamous Duggar Baucom, who is doing the same thing at The Citadel he did at VMI – his teams are chucking the ball a lot, missing more than they make, winning about 40 percent of his games and no championships. Just my opinion, but they can have him. And no, that wasn’t a misprint; Phil Howard has been to a VMI football game and a VMI basketball game; that’s two visits within a three-month period. Phil says, “I’ll see Rapacki’s seven months and bump him four.”

Brother Rat Howard didn’t even have to check in with the guard room and get a map of post this time. Hey, if these two can do it, then Jim Radle and Glen Ralston should be there any day now.

Maybe even Ben Walker, too!?

Lot of other guys from our era have been seen around the arena or at Moody Hall, including Bill Cornett ’83 (my dyke), Dave Warriner ’83, Frank Kollmansperger ’84, Bob Chapman ’84, Glenn Ferguson ’87 and Jack McCarthy ’87.

Bill and Jack have sons in the Corps; both are 1st Class cadets.

All right, men; such as it is, that’s the report for this quarter. Hope 2017 is shaping up well for you and yours. Reach out to a BR and/or your class agent to share an update; keep those bonds tight! Take care, brother rats.

1987

Gerry Tertychny

Brother Rats, Kevin Price checked in from Melbourne, Florida, where he is the director of legal and contracts for Thales Avionics. His company provides live television, internet service and other forms of inflight entertainment for commercial aircraft.

Kevin drafts and negotiates the agreements for making this technology and service happen with both domestic and foreign airlines, satellite companies, media providers and studios.

Back in January, Kevin and his wife, Sonya,

Class if 1987: From left, James Bright, John Nolan, Owen Curley, Eric Davis and Jon McLean at the Confederate memorial at Fort Fisher, North Carolina.

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Class of 1987: Cliff Coger and Bill McCarthy in Richmond. spent a week in La Jolla, California, for a conference and were able to meet up with one of Kevin’s rat roommates, Mike Williamson, and his wife, Molly, for an evening of catching up and Old Corps stories. Mike recently retired from the Navy in Hawaii after serving for 20 years in the Seabees. Mike and Molly live in the San Diego area, and they have three kids. Their oldest son is at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and is a nationally ranked golfer, their daughter is a very talented artist and their youngest son is in grade school.

Pete Stone contacted me from Woodstock, Virginia. Pete stays very busy at Massanutten Military Academy, where he works as the athletic director, head football coach and head baseball coach. In his spare time, Pete, aka “Coach Rock,” also serves as a math teacher. Hopefully, Pete can direct some good athletes toward the Institute.

Class of 1987: Renny Renshaw and his new toy.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes planning commences.

Bill McCarthy ran into Cliff Coger I am saddened to pass along that back in December whilst running the James Kiker died after losing a streets in Richmond. Bill sent me a struggle with metastatic melanoma photo as evidence of their meeting. in the brain Saturday, Oct. 15, 2016.

Apparently, there was no requirement Updates from our brother rats: for any response by local, state or fedAubrey Walton moved back to eral law enforcement agencies.

Texas from Korea just before ChristBack in November, James Bright, mas.

John Nolan, Owen Curley, Eric DaBrent Wilson managed to have vis and Jon McLean got together at Tom Ustach for a visit in RichHolden Beach, North Carolina. Jon mond while he was on travel from McLean sent in a great photo of the Portland. Brent scheduled a full group taken at the Confederate Meslate of activities for him to include morial at Fort Fisher, North Carolina.

Class of 1988: From left, VMI ’88’s newest legacy, Spencer Chaszar, Renny Renshaw sent me an email with Cadets Cody Peregoy ’19 and Sam Coleman ’19 and Sam Tate. some beer sampling. In attendance were Tom, Frank de Venoge, Tom from Vienna, Virginia. It seems that Munno, Jim Wiecking, Ned Hannigan, JimRenny is now a certified glider pilot, having passed the check ride for his Private Pilot-Glider License my Cottrell (up from the beach) Ted Wagner, back in September. Renny and his daughter, Ellie, Scott Davila and Sanderson ’89. are members of the Skyline Soaring Club in Front Ted Wagner hosted Frank deVenoge, Tom Royal, Virginia, and often take to the skies in their Munno and Joe Swider for a Christmas party Genesis 2 sailplane. I don’t know about the rest of at his house in Richmond. you guys, but I’m not sure that I’m comfortable From Brent Hashimoto: “Aloha! I am comwith Renny at the controls of any aircraft – powpleting my tour (and career) in the Army here ered or unpowered. Fortunately, with his daughin Hawaii at U.S. Pacific Command. I will reter along, he has some adult supervision. tire in 2018 and then I guess start looking for I trust everyone had an enjoyable spring and has a real job.” emerged from the Dark Ages in good health and Bill Nixon recently had dinner with Mark in good spirits, and I hope those who attended Bristol when he happened to be in the Arlinghad an enjoyable time at our 30th Reunion. Many ton, Virginia, area. Mark continues to reside in thanks to Ashley Abernathy, who graciously volNashville and works for ServPro. Bob Hildebrand wrote, “I have moved on unteered to head up the reunion committee, and Class of 1988: Mike McGraw and Senior from the A.P. Moller-Maersk Group after to our brother rats who worked very hard to pull Col. Kultawit Vaijai. many years, and now work for SSA Marine, a off a fantastic and memorable weekend: Adrian Garcia, Doug Messner, John Phillips, Mark Barth, Paul Munson, Paul Russo, Carl Hardee, Scott Jones, Bill Wanovich and Bob Phillips.

In the spirit, Gerry

1988

Sam Tate

Brother Rats, First call on our 30th Reunion. It will be a spring (April) reunion in 2018. Block your calendar now. Planning with VMI will start early this summer, and the committee will keep you posted via Facebook, email and regular mail as

2017-Issue 2

Class of 1988: At the monthly northern Virginia ’88 lunch were John “Rock” Keppeler, Drew McKone, Hugh Brien, Hugh McMenamin, Sam Tate, Jim Florio and Scott Stachelek.

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Class Notes

Class of 1988: Class Agent Sam Tate said of this photo, “VMI versus The Citadel win enjoyed by Mark Dewyea; everyone’s favorite legacy, Madison Dewyea; Kirk Dewyea; and newest legacy Spencer Chaszar.”

U.S. Company in Vietnam. I am working for their joint venture terminal(s) in Vietnam for at least the next four years. I have been here since 2010. New position is deputy general director; company website is http://ssit.com.vn/” Over Veteran’s Day, Lew Sigmon, John “Rock” Keppeler, Scott Stachelek and Tommy Towers met up with their Marine Corps buddy, Col. Cut Patton, for a hunting trip. “We had a great hunt, got to tell some old sea stories, stories from the Institute, and bond as hunters and brothers. It was a superb weekend!”

John Cartwright wrote, “I was very sorry to read of Tom Taylor’s ill health (and Mack Carr’s, too).” (Last Review notes.) I saw Tom and Chrissy Taylor last in 2008 and would like to reconnect with them. My high school sweetheart-wife, Stephanie, and I have lived in Watkinsville, Georgia, since 1998. I’m a pilot for Southwest Airlines and was with AirTran Airways from 2000-14 until AirTran was acquired by Southwest. Lately, I’ve been in regular touch with good ole Al Bergh. He still lives in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas but seems to spend half the month working on oil rigs in Alaska!”

Karen and Mike McGraw wrote to wish everyone and their families all the best. “I have been in Bangkok since September 2016 serving as the special agent in charge of the Force Protection Detachment, Thailand (a joint United States Air Force Office of Special Investigations/Naval Criminal Investigative Service/ Army Counterintelligence office). I expect to be here for four years, to get the youngest kids through high school. Our oldest, Michael Aidan McGraw ’17, will commission in the Army

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Class of 1988: United States Marine Corps Col. Cut Patton, John “Rock” Keppeler, Tommy Towers, Lew Sigmon and Scott “Ogre” Stachelek preparing to hunt on Tommy’s central Virginia property.

(field artillery, branch detail from military intelligence) and graduate this May. We will be there! Look forward to seeing you all then. I see Kultawat Vaijai here now and again; he is doing very well as a senior colonel in the Royal Thai Army, J2 staff. Songwit Noonpackdee is also here doing a tremendous job as a senior army officer on the royal staff. In contact with Brain Hatheway, who the regional security officer at the U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe.”

Several of us, including Kirk Dewyea and John Keppeler, have been mentoring Spencer Chaszar, Bobby Chaszar’s nephew, over the past year. I know some of you have followed his story on Facebook. Spencer recently was accepted to the incoming rat mass for this August. Kirk and I were able to meet up with him and Sam Coleman ’19 before and during the VMI versus The Citadel basketball game, and we were able to introduce him to Bubba Keppeler ’18 and Cici Keppeler ’19. Spencer is the next in a long line of proud VMI ’88 legacies.

Now we all are waiting for Madison Dewyea to join that crowd of honorable youths.

Brother rats, it was a pleasure compiling these notes. I hope they inspire you to keep in touch with each other. Keep sending me your notes and recollections so that we can keep the spirit of ’88 alive. Even if you don’t think it is noteworthy, based on my experience, your BRs enjoy reading about their classmates. As always, you can reach me at the following: VMI 88 Facebook page (join 281 BRs and family and growing) 571-659-0904 (home) 703-772-0854 (cell) samtate88va@gmail.com

1989

Steve Chiles David A. Martin

Well, as you may have noticed from the last edition of the notes (there weren’t any), we were away on sabbatical at a class agent conference and unable to get the notes in on time.

Given the additional time to reflect, we realized this was the first time we ever missed a suspense in any type of VMI requirement to include homework, term papers, alumni giving, class notes, getting to East Lex on time before closing, making it back to post by 2300, etc.

So, to make up for lost time, let’s jump right in!

This would be a lame quarter for updates were it not for Nat Cross, who understands the unique class agent procrastination – er, pressures – more than anyone. Nat states the obvious bluntly (and for those of you following at home, you may want to sit down): Many of us are approaching the big 50 this year.

Along those lines, after moving to Mechanicsville (with the nest empty), the Cross family celebrated a half-century of life with Amy and Steve Stafford in Antigua. We are still waiting for those pictures ... or where they burned?

Anyhow, Steve is still working at the College

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes program supporting folks in the five-sided builda week in Cozumel scuba diving and exploring of William & Mary, enjoying life with his motorcycle and, obviously, taking some time off ing. Some folks just can’t get enough of that place. the ancient ruins in the area. “If anyone is travto travel. Amy keeps Steve busy (and honest) Al ran into John Giltz, who is doing well, moving eling out this way, we’re about a 10 minute drive as president of Body and Soul, a Christian- to Camp Lejeune this summer. Al had coffee with off I-70 on the way out of Denver. Look us up, based exercise outfit. We can picture Amy on Rob Kolb mid-January. Rob is doing well and still we would love to see you!” the beach, calling cadence, while Steve counts running ultra-marathons. He works for the Office That’s it for the notes. Hope everyone is dorepetitions; Nat supervising the operation from of the Secretary of Defense – Cost Assessment ing well! We look forward to hearing from you. underneath shaded cover on the beach while and Program Evaluation. Al continues to do auxsipping a fruity beverage. Sigh. iliary police duties with Arlington County Police Neal and Trish Hiemer now live in WashingDepartment.

Daren Payne Rumor has it that our highest ranking member ton state, where Neal is in charge of a medical (only member?) of the Coast Guard has been asgroup. Sounds like they are having a great time signed back to Virginia. If there is a Marty Malloy with their oldest, Hannah, attending the University of Oregon studying Chinese. We could sighting, someone please shout! have used her 3rd Class year to help translate Van Trumpmore, anxiously waiting the openBrother Rats, ing of pole vault season (yes, pole vault) and baskChanganomics.

Ned Cox is still doing a great job keeping the ing in the glow of the Cubs win, is working on The holiday festivities and ensuing Dark Richmond ’89 crew together with a monthly opening a restaurant. Van writes that one son is Ages (you know ... those cold, dark, damp days breakfast. The law enforcement team of Tom getting ready to graduate high school, and the othfrom mid-January until spring break when you Hamner and Buzzard Spivey can be found keeper two are getting ready for their respective senior didn’t even like yourself ?) should be in the rearview mirror and spring bursting upon us as you years in high school and college. ing the table safe. Erik Ames, Gordy Fox, Gary read this. As this hits the streets, I should be Sean and Natalie Raborn in Evergreen, ColoSibian, Dave Brown, Ren O’Ferrel and Ashley Fairchild are other frequent members of the rado, also are big into sports. As you may recall, back in Lex Vegas for the Volunteer Leader’s roundtable. Steve Stafford, George Armbruster they continue to ride mountain bikes and do Conference and will get an update out to you and even George Bowles have also blessed the some racing. They had planned to race a six- all shortly on all that is new and interesting at group with their attendance from Williamsburg day stage race in Canada in August last year, the Institute. For the moment, however, there is and points east. but Natalie crashed and broke four ribs in July, a plethora of news to share. Here we go.

Eric Buchanan is staying busy with his firm in which took her out of the game for eight or First, let me say thanks for the Christmas Chattanooga. He and Meg hooked up with Nat more weeks. As a result, Sean decided to race cards, letters and pictures received over the holiCross’ daughter and son-in-law in Boston. Nat’s the BreckEpic six-day stage race as a solo entry days. I received a letter from Rev. Matt Henning, kids raved that “Uncle” Eric is a great tour guide, with Natalie crewing for him. “It was another who continues his work pastoring a church in even in their own city. Thanks, Eric! Times never hard six days of racing with me battling hard for Georgia. His daughter, Sarah, is at the Unichange: Many of us may remember Eric giving fourth place in my new age group category of versity of Georgia and daughter, Ashleigh, resome upper classmen a “virtual rat bible tour of 50-59. Seems like those old guys just keep getmains at home with him and his wife, Jill. Mike post” during one hot evening. So hot, in fact, we ting faster every year!” After the race, they spent Herbaugh also dropped me a letter noting that saw “flames.” he and his wife, Cheryl, continue to John Piedmont and Nat Cross enjoy life in northern Virginia with linked up a few times in Leesburg, son Declan (3). Mike reported he with John hosting. J.P. is always acwas recently selected for promotion and expects to be reassigned from his tive with our class in and around current position in the Office of Spenorthern Virginia, especially the Pentagon. J.P. sent a note that anyone has cial Programs at Fort Belvoir, back an open invite to stay at his place in where he went to high school with Leesburg. I am 5 miles from Leesburg BRs Tony Baker and Tim Bosetti. but will keep that in mind the next Dennis Fogler passed along an uptime I need to get out of the house ... date from Mechanicsville, Virginia, check out my new F-150 with the Virwhere he and Sarah keep busy with children Lucia and Liam, but they ginia plates “150 VMI.” J.P. also ran Class of 1989: Three members from the Class of 1989 have sons into the Bradfords and Al Versoza in the new rat mass. Pictured at the New Market Cadet Oath did find time to squeeze in a 15th recently. For Al, retirement life was Ceremony in August under the watchful eye of Mitch Fridley anniversary cruise to the Caribbean good, but to fill the void, Al took on a ’89, deputy commandant, were, from left, Troy Barbour and Ca- last winter. det Barbour ’20, Col. Fridley, Cadet Menia ’20 and father Chris George Palomar sent me a note, as senior program manager position as a Menia, and Cadet Collier ’20 with father Brian Collier. well, and spent the holidays with the government contractor working for a

1990

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Class Notes family in Florida. Among other things, George keeps busy getting in road work and competing in two half marathons per year, along with various 5K and 10K events. George concedes that, even with all this practice, he’s still no match for Dave Chong when it comes to speed over long distances.

Colonel Tim Bosetti passed along a great letter detailing all the family’s adventures in moving from Japan to Maryland with stops in China, Singapore, California, Florida and South Carolina along the way over the summer.

He also seems to have picked up a dog along the way.

In addition to these good people, I received Christmas pictures from a number of BRs. These included Tom West and wife Helen from Anaheim; Paul Hartigan, who is still fighting fires and raising kids Bryan and Kelly with wife Lois in Colorado; Andy Conville and his wife, Annette, and their four children; BR Trey Rhodes and his beautiful family; Keith Kornegay, who lives in Lexington and apparently has someone in the family in who loves horses?

Other pictures included Jim Cox, who looks like he spends a lot of time near the beach with wife Jen and kids Henry (13), Liz (12), Max (10) and Jack (8). Hunter Trumbo and his family who were poised high atop some snow covered mountain ski area, and Barry Johnson and wife Karen were posed with kids Carter, Tyler and Haley on some tropical island in a picture apparently taken before son No. 1 got his rat haircut. I also got cards from Dave Bender and family in northern Virginia; Kathleen and Joe Burns, whose card had a nice sized doe on the front (a hunter tends to notice those things); Rob Greenway, who must have found a way to make it home to Tampa for Christmas around all that TDY for U.S. Central Command; and Damon and Florence Williams from Roanoke, where Damon resides when not out refereeing NCAA basketball games around the region. Finally, Dave McGraw (he of some of the best Halloween costumes of our cadetship) sent a card from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, to let me know that all is well north of the Mason-Dixon Line. Chuck Smith sent a card from Fredericksburg, Virginia, and judging by the picture, he also has a son in the Corps, although I’m not sure what year he is. Of course, Chuck had no reported sightings of John Franklin around Fredericksburg, although we’re still looking.

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Just before the holidays, I had an opportunity to get together for supper with Jay Whittington who was in Savannah for work. Jay is a full-time lieutenant colonel in the Georgia Air National Guard stationed in Warner Robins and spends a lot of time and no small amount of money on his hunting addiction, to include recently purchasing a gorgeous tract of land in central Georgia he plans to manage as a hunting property. Jay also just officially surpassed the 20 year mark and is now eligible to retire, although he plans to stay in a few more years to fund his hunting habits.

John King checked in via email during the holidays with the following: “Not sure I can still ‘party like a rugby star,’ but I’ve still got some game left! All is well at the King household. We are gearing up for Christmas – thankful for a good 2016 and ready to kick off 2017. I touch base with Fritz Schrichte, Garrett Thompson and Paul Holland regularly. All are doing well.”

Andy England appears to be in Wichita, Kansas, and has a new job with Central State Express after spending the past few years as president of St. John’s Military School in Salina, Kansas Chilton Morris also checked in with the following from Greenville, South Carolina, when I wondered how a history major and former Army pilot wound up in banking: “I often say my career found me; I did not find it. It all began when I was recruited by a firm in Charlotte, North Carolina, while I was leaving active duty. The rest is history. As far as BRs in the area, I know Rich Treanor is in Charlotte, North Carolina; Charles Greene is now married and lives in Barnardsville, North Carolina; and I believe Brian Haslam is still in the Asheville, North Carolina, area.

I am the only one that I know of in the Greenville, South Carolina, area.” If anyone else is in or near Greenville, do check in with Chilt.

Also reporting via email was U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. John Golden. John is in Newport, North Carolina, where he commands the Second Marine Division’s Division Headquarters Battalion – a tough and thankless job, as anyone who’s ever commanded any kind of headquarters unit can attest! Congrats, John, on the command!

I heard several times from Dave Amsden, who was last seen celebrating New Year’s Eve in the Virgin Islands, trying to track down Todd Eckloff. The best I could help him out with

were the references to Todd during his time as Battalion executive officer in the HBO original series “Generation Kill” and the book of the same name.

Speaking of tracking down BRs, Karl Powers and I traded several emails from his new location in Anchorage, Alaska, to provide me contact information on BRs John Jordan and Kelly Bledsoe. Karl stays busy with Papa Bear Outfitters, which runs an entire range of hunting and fishing excursions in the wilds of Alaska.

If anyone has had an inclination to take that outdoor adventure of a lifetime, please contact Karl, as he really knows the areas, the species and the business.

Also, Andy Kvasnicka chimed in with some contact information on the elusive Tom Cotman, who is reportedly in the Hampton area.

Rob Oviatt emailed in December soliciting attendees for a road trip to VMI in January.

Rob is in Atlanta, and I believe this is part of the annual trip spearheaded by BRs Mullori and Aydlette.

Other BRs checking in included Paul Holland, who passed along a great picture of him and John King in Rome this past summer; Thad Tegtmeyer, who is still trying to convince VMI he no longer lives in Watseka, Illinois; and Mike Lythgoe, who resides in Longmont, Colorado.

I spoke with John Hahn right before Christmas. John continues to work three days per week at Coast Guard headquarters in Washington, D.C., while spending the rest of the week at home in Moneta, Virginia, on the shores of lovely Smith Mountain Lake.

Also heard from Tiger Echo BRs Garret Peck (who is likely working on another novel), Dusty Crone, Taylor Farmer (from Oklahoma who helped me track down Alan Barr) and Steve Linder (who is likely just now taking down his Mardis Gras tree in Baton Rouge). I also hear from Tom Slater, who, for you baseball fans, is coaching with the New York Yankees and spends his offseason time in Tampa and was there preparing for spring training. Of course, I’m also regularly in touch with my roommates, Rich Mehl (Wilmington), Sean Hoover (Fort Worth) and Dave Ratliff (Roanoke).

In perusing that infallible source of intelligence, Facebook, I was able to glean the following tidbits about BRs: As of this writing, BR Greg Hatchett was back in the northern

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes Virginia area and set up a Class of ’90 northern Virginia breakfast in Centerville attended

by Carlos Fernandes and Doug Henderson, among others. Greg promises to do this again by the time you get these notes and make it a regular event. Dennis Dupras (Alaska), Glenn Dickenson (Germany), Brian Albro (Washington), Bill Ator (South Carolina) and Sal Bora (California and likely too busy out zeroing the new rifle and scope he got at Christmas or partying on the Queen Mary for New Year’s Eve) were among those unable to attend.

John Aydllett posted a long lost picture of Ian Duthie sporting a trendy 1980s, straight out of “St. Elmo’s Fire” or “The Breakfast Club” look at the snow covered entrance to his family’s home in Charleston during Christmas 1989 while he and Jim Hynes were stationed there for their Navy ROTC cruise. Chris Larlee posted several holiday party photos in which he bore a striking resemblance to the original version of the World’s Most Interesting Man” …in fact, it was reported to be somewhat disconcerting, given no one has ever seen him in a tuxedo before.

Todd Jacobs checked in looking for the longlost Mark Dick before Thanksgiving. No word if he actually found BR Dick. Todd also posted some great pictures of a White River, Arkansas, fly fishing trip he took with Reed Hudgins. Tim Mclaughlin and Sean Carty sarcastically likened the sighting of Col. Hudgins to the sighting of Big Foot or the Yeti, he had been so rarely seen. That is due in part to Col. Hudgins being only recently returned from a one year tour in Afghanistan – welcome back, sir, and well done!

Speaking of sightings, one of the unique of this reporting period was Doug Spitz getting confirmed footage of our BR Ken Kovacs escorting President Donald Trump down the parade route Jan. 20 for the inaugural parade. I also personally saw Ken on the left of presidentelect Trump as he was making his way through the White House en route to the inauguration platform. Ken has been with the Secret Service for years and looks even tougher and more intimidating than he did at VMI – and that’s saying something! Great work, and thanks so much for all you guys do, Kenny!

Also had an email from Brig. Gen. Tommy Pugh in Stuttgart and a picture of Pugh and Cols. Glenn Dickenson and Chris Eubank ’91 at a holiday function there. Notably absent was Col. Mark Cheadle, who I believe was in Zanzibar for

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the holidays at the time.

Among our long lost BRs reporting in was my old rat roommate, none other than Col. Chin Yuan Liu. Colonel Liu reports he is still on active duty with 26 years in the Taiwan ROC Army and lives near Taoyuan, Taiwan, with his wife and two children. He reports he’s been very busy with his career and that BRs Wang, Lin and Li are all retired from the military and/ or working in various places in Taiwan. No sooner had he reported this, Charlie Lin also checked in from Taiwan and was trying to get together with BRs Wang and Li. I’m going to enlist BRs Liu and Lin to head up our Asian office and keep track of our Taiwan contingent, as well as others in the Orient, like Dave West in Singapore. Another checking in was Randy St. Clair (aka Randy Jackson) who posted via Facebook to let me know he received his Christmas card, remains of sound mind and body, and still sports a dapper military haircut and physique like he had in “F Troop.”

Newly lost BRs include Errol Martin, Donnie Roberts and Scott Spellmeyer, all of whose Christmas cards were returned to sender with address unknown. Guys, please check in with me so I can get your information up to date and not have to send Col. Chuck Ellis out looking for his old roommates.

As for the Payne household, lots going on with one kid at Auburn University, another trying to figure out where to go to college, my wife holding down a second full-time job as president of the Fort Stewart Spouse Club and my retirement orders finally being approved on Christmas Eve. Finally, if you are not getting my regular email updates, please email me at the payner06@yahoo.com email address, and I’ll add you to our growing distro list, or give me a call at 540-2871252. Until next time – Go Keydets!

Daren Payne

1991

Chuck Story

The great flu epidemic of 2017 has touched down in Goode in February. As I’m writing the notes, Vicky jumped on a plane to Florida

Class of 1991: Omar Land receiving his promotion to colonel.

Class of 1991: Chris Rule, left, and Chris Barnett at a Goodyear dealer convention in Orlando, Florida. and left me here to deal with a house full of it.

Smart woman, that wife of mine.

It’s been a quiet winter from the notes side, so this edition will be pretty quick.

Thank you to everyone who took the time to send me a kind word about the previous edition of the notes. I am glad people enjoyed reading

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Class Notes

Class of 1991: J. Kevin Helmick died July 28, 2016, and was remembered during halftime of the 2016 Lee-Jackson Classic. This event was initiated by a former lacrosse player of Kevin’s at the Highland School in Warrenton who also played at Washington and Lee University and graduated in 2013. Current head Coach Jon Birsner had Kevin’s jersey, No. 9, framed to present to his wife, Kristy, and one of their three daughters at midfield during halftime. Pictured at the event were, from left, Gene McCabe, W&L head coach; roommate Jon Milner; roommate Chuck Story; Patience Garrett, W&L ’87 and mother of Will ’13; Bill Garrett ’87, father of Will ’13; Will Garrett, W&L ’13; Lew Bewley; David Ahrens; daughter Rowan Helmick; wife Kristy Helmick; Jon Birsner; Eric Hyde; and Doug Bartlett, former VMI head coach.

Class of 1991: From left, Rob Edwards, Chris Edmonston and Chris Izakov at disco night. it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

I spoke to Marshall Bridges recently, and he is retiring from the Army after 23 years. He’s still working out the details on what he’ll do next.

For now, plenty of hunting. Congratulations and thank you for your service, Bucky.

Sources close to the culprit say Scott Smith was too infatuated with the keys to his brandnew Zumwalt to break away for the reunion.

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Hans Peeders was so jealous of his roomie that he refused to book a flight to Lex, too. Let’s hope the boys are able to join us sometime in the near future.

Chris Barnett and Chris Rule bumped into each other at a Goodyear dealer meeting in Florida.

Omar Land was promoted to colonel in the Marine Corps. Congrats, Omar. Looking forward to hearing where the next steps on the journey take you. Hopefully you and Block are in a race to see who gets the first star.

Roger Jarrell touched base to share the latest stop on his journey. He has accepted a position as special assistant to the Secretary of Energy in Washington, D.C. Congratulations, and good luck with the projects, Rog. Rob Edwards, Chris Edmonston and Izzy Izakov were recently spotted somewhere in D.C. making questionable fashion choices. I mention this item just so we can post their pic in the Review.

For those of you that may be interested, Spike Watson brought one of his Marine compatriots to the reunion. The outcome of that trip is retired U.S. Marine Scott Guise has purchased the Quail Ridge Sporting Clays property in Lexington. If you are planning to be in the area in the near future, be sure to book an outing.

Maybe we can convince Spike to relocate.

Keep the notes flowing, especially those of you we haven’t heard from in a while or weren’t able to make the reunion.

Until the next (hopefully longer) edition, may you keep your steps firm on the path before you. God bless the best class in barracks. Rah Virginia Mil!

1992

William Woodward Andy Tate

BRs, Here are the latest updates from our classmates. Please keep sending me your updates and pictures, as I am sure our BRs would like to know what is going on with all of us.

I received an email and picture from Matt Humphrey. He reported that he retired from the military four years ago and is now an engineer/project manager with the Navy in San Diego. Matt enjoys being retired but definitely misses his flying days. His wife, Jane, and their

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes boys love living in San Diego, and it’s been a really good fit for all of them. Jane is an instructional aide for special needs students at an elementary school. Connor is a high school sophomore and enjoys baseball and surfing. Ryan is in eighth grade and enjoys cross-country and track, while youngest brother, Brady, is in sixth grade and can’t get enough of soccer. See enclosed picture of Matt and his family.

I also received an email and photo from Tony Sexton. He recently linked up with Bill Berry in December while they were both in Hawaii; Tony for work, and Bill for vacation.

United States Navy Capt. Dave Soldow sent in the enclosed picture of the USS Ohio recently returning from deployment. The photo was taken from atop the sail looking aft toward the stern. Dave is the commanding officer of one of the two crews of USS Ohio, one of four ballistic missile submarines converted into Guided Missile Nuclear Submarines capable of firing Tomahawk cruise missiles and deploying Navy SEALs. Had a great phone call with U.S Coast Guard Capt. John Driscoll, who is currently stationed in Bahrain. John is finishing up an unaccompanied Command tour in June and will then be coming back to the States to serve another Command tour as the CO of one of the Coast Guard’s newest ships, the USCG cutter Bertholf in Alameda, California. John’s wife is holding down the fort with the family in northern Virginia while John is off with the Coast Guard.

Tom Christman sent me an email reminding us of the date for the next Allen Stone Braveheart Run-SwimRun 5K scheduled for July 15, 2017, at 0730 in Virginia Beach at the 24th Street Park. Tom had arm surgery in early February which went well, and he hopes to recover in time to train for and participate in the race again this

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Class of 1992: Chien-Feng Yu getting his general stars pinned on.

Class of 1992: Tony Sexton and Bill Berry in front of Air Force One in Honolulu, Hawaii, in December 2016.

Class of 1992: Captains Marc Orgain and Woody Woodward at Marc’s command, the Navy Operational Support Center, Norfolk, Virginia, in January 2017.

year. Tom reported that it is a great race with a really good party afterward, and he hopes to see many BRs there this summer. See this link for more information about the race and Allen: http://www.allenstonememorial.com.

United States Army Col. Doug Vincent remains at Fort Benning, Georgia, where he is in command of the Airborne Ranger Training Brigade.

Doug reports that all is well training paratroopers and rangers. He has ample opportunity to see many of the cadets who commissioned while he was the professor of military science at the Institute in Ranger School. They have been doing a great job living up to the VMI reputation as tough, capable and dedicated officers as they slog through the woods, mountains and swamps of Georgia in pursuit of their Ranger tabs. I also got an update from Doug’s father, Joe, on BR Chien-Feng “Race” Yu. ChienFeng was recently promoted to general in the Republic of China (ROC/Taiwan) Army. Congrats to Chien-Feng as the first general officer in the Class of ’92. Race became a part of the Vincent family, spending every VMI academic year holiday break during his four years with the Vincents in south Florida.

He attended Vincent family weddings thereafter and frequently visited during holidays when back in the U.S. for his Master of Business Administration degree at University of Wisconsin and Doctor of Philosophy degree at Texas A&M University, as well as his two tours as military attaché at the ROC Defense Mission in Washington, D.C. I got a great update from Chris Keever in which he stated that he “started two businesses – one called Cornerstone H2O and the other called Risen Water. Cornerstone H2O is a manufacturer’s representative firm selling water and wastewater solutions in the southeast. Risen Water is a technology development

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Class Notes I left work early that day to go play a round of firm creating new treatment solutions for the golf. After our round was over, we went back water industry. We connect people with great out to play the last three holes again to see who water treatment ideas with investor partners, was going to pay for the day. On the 16th hole, build and install prototypes and license soluthe golf cart I was driving flipped over and hit tions created for companies that commercialme in the head. I am not exaggerating when I ize them worldwide. Both companies are off say I almost died that day. At the first hospital to great starts, and we are growing fast. As we they took me to, the doctors came out and told move forward, my plan is to connect VMI with my family and friends that I was brain-dead. these new technologies in some way, helping The only good decision they made was putting grow VMI’s reputation in the environmental me on a helicopter to Joplin, Missouri. The engineering field.” Chris reports that his family number of surgeries I had are too numerous to is well with his second child off to college soon mention; with that said, the medical staff there and the last one right behind him. He is still saved my life. My first memory after the accicoaching football and wrestling, and his wife, LeeAnn, is a super nanny for two families with dent was Sept. 5, 2009, waking up in a rehab small children. facility in Fayetteville, Arkansas. I had severe Class of 1992: Photo from atop the USS Ohio, a guided missile nuclear submarine, Shannon Terhune sent in an update that he short-term memory loss due to my head injury. returning from deployment. Captain Dave has taken on a new job in addition to being the I relived the accident hundreds of times a day Soldow is the commanding officer of one pastor at Raleigh Heights Baptist Church in thinking that I killed my son because I did not of the two Ohio crews.

Chesapeake. He is also now the president of remember if he was with me that day. To this the two year Norfolk Bible College in Norfolk, long weekends at least two times a month. The day, I have no memory of that day, that week Virginia, where he was previously serving as an other two weekends, he is on the job making or that month. I had to relearn to walk, talk adjunct professor. sure reservists like me are prepared to mobilize and write, how to hold a fork again, and what Andy Tate and I had our final tailgate of the if called upon. foods I liked. I had vision problems and hearfootball season back in November at The Citaing problems that affected my balance, causing I will conclude with an email from our BR me to fall constantly. The positive was everydel game. We saw Bob Burgess, Dean Case, Bruce Sawyer that is a great testimonial to how Charlie Martin and Chuck Weatherman but, thing that was broken, they could fix. Now, VMI can change your life even if you do not of course, forgot to get a picture. For those who complete your four years. Bruce, currently liv- it is crystal clear why I chose to attend VMI, did not see the picture on Facebook, Chuck’s ing in Seattle, said, “I left after 3rd Class year because without those character-building days, son, Charles, committed to VMI to play de- for personal/family issues that, at the time, I I would probably still be in the rehab facility.”

I hope everyone is getting all the mailings fensive end on the football team next year as a believed I could not resolve at VMI. Being a 19 member of the Class of 2021. In December, I or 20 year old, little did I know the full impact from VMI, Andy and me related to our 25th linked up with Rob Ritchie, who drove all the of that decision. Over the years, on occasion, Reunion Sept. 8-10, 2017. By the time you read way in from Lexington, Kentucky, to see my I sometimes wonder why VMI was my first this in May, you should have been contacted by son, Will ’18, get his class ring. Marc Orgain choice right out of high school. On July 31, members of our Social Committee with more and I linked up in January at Joint Base Fort 2009, that decision became abundantly clear. detailed information about the reunion. The Social Committee is being led by Story-Little Creek, where I was takJim Maiocco, who is ably assisted by ing a one-week course for the Navy Chuck Weatherman, Scott BlackReserve that was hosted at Mark’s command, Navy Operational Supburn, Dean Case and Scott Price.

Andy and I are offering assistance port Center, Norfolk, Virginia. as necessary. Hopefully everyone NOSC Norfolk services all Navy has made reservations at the Holiday reservists in the Norfolk, Virginia, Inn, which will be our headquarters, region and is one of the largest – if or the adjacent Best Western. By not the biggest – NOSCs in the nanow, you should also have gotten a tion. It was great to catch up with call from a member of our Finance Mark over supper one evening, as Committee to discuss making a comwell as a few visits with him in his office while I was on break from mitment for our gift to VMI at the class. Mark is a geo-bachelor down reunion. Please take that opportuin Little Creek while his wife and nity to think about the part VMI has kids live in Richmond. Luckily, Class of 1992: Brady, Jane, Matt, Connor and Ryan Humphrey. played in your life and the difference Mark gets home to see his family for you can make in current and future

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Class Notes cadets’ lives by making a donation.

That is all for now. Please let me know of any major life events such as marriages, births, deaths and advanced degrees so that I can inform the Alumni Review. If you have a change of address, let the Alumni Association and me know so we can make sure you get all VMI correspondence. This is especially important now as we close on our 25th Reunion.

In the bonds, Woody

1993

Jim Sharp

I hope these notes find everyone in good spirits. I was glad to receive some notes, so I did not have to submit a picture of Tony Scales celebrating the New England Patriots’ win. I think he wore us out on Facebook the day after. I do have some good news to share. With the help of Gerry Bingeman and Michael “Spike” Solovey ’96, our class was able to send a framed artist proof No. 93 of Spike’s original “Since 1839” print to the parents of Paul Syverson, who lost his life in service of our country. I posted a picture of the framed print on the 1993 Class Facebook page if you would like to see it. I received the following letter from Paul’s parents.

“Jim, Joy and I want to thank you and the Class of ’93 for the beautiful framed VMI print done by Spike. We will keep it in a place of honor in our home. Please give our best to all the members of the Class of 93. We think of you all and the wonderful times we experienced at VMI often. Again, many thanks, Paul and Joy Syverson.”

If you have not joined the 1993 Class Facebook, I suggest you do, as it is a good way to keep in touch with everyone. On to the notes.

United States Marine Corps Col. Dom Ford checked in. “News for me – not sure if I provided at the last update – pinned on colonel last June.

Moved to Okinawa with the family this past summer to assume duties as the G-6 of Marine Corps Installations Pacific. Two days after arriving on island, I was informed that I was selected to take command of the Marine Corps Communications and Electronics Schools in 29 Palms, California, so the family will be moving back to the states in

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late May for a change of command in mid-June.

Liz and the kids are excited to be returning to the land of good Mexican food and people who know how to drive.” Congrats, Dom; it is good to hear from you.

I received an email with a newsletter attached from Charles Leggett who is stationed in Erbil, Iraq, as a chaplain. Before you feel sorry for him, this was a picture with him and Kellie Pickler in the newsletter from a USO visit. So, it looks like he is making the best of a situation over there. More detail from Charles: “I am currently deployed as commander of the 122nd Chaplain Detachment, which consists of me and my chaplain assistant.

We are serving as the Base Operations officer in charge and noncommissioned officer in charge of the TF Erbil Chapel in Erbil, Iraq. We will be here through August of this year before demobilizing at Fort Hood, Texas. It is really a privilege to be a part of this coalition effort. I work with four other chaplains here, each from a different nation. It gives me hope if five religious leaders from different nations and different denominations and even different faiths can come together for the benefit of the troops we serve with, there may just be real hope for the world after all. I have run across one of our brother rats since I arrived. I bumped into Lieutenant Colonel Doug Stransky at Camp Arifjan in Kuwait. He is doing well and serving with the Virginia National Guard in Kuwait. I’m attaching a picture from our meeting. My best to all of our BRs, no matter where they may be. May God watch over and bless each one of them and their families.” Thanks, Charles.

Class of 1993: Charles Leggett, left, and Doug Stransky.

United States Navy Capt. Erik Nilsson sent in an update. “We (the USS George H.W. Bush Strike Group) deployed at the end of January to the Mediterranean, Red Sea and Arabian Gulf areas of operation conducting Operation Inherent Resolve and supporting other missions/operations as required. I will make the full sevenmonth gig. Looking forward to linking up again with Chuck Pollok in Bahrain!” Erik gave a quick update on Chuck. Erik said he is a Marine major assigned to CTF-51/5 in Bahrain, he and his wife are living there.

Our class had a great turnout for the VMI versus The Citadel football game this past fall. It was a great time. In addition to the list of classmates in the attached picture, in attendance were Ayen Torchik, Mick Tuck, Andrew Joyner, Don Spears and Dan Delawyer. Some

Class of 1993: From left, Kate Twiford; Cadet Ackerman ’18; Cadet Mosley ’18; Cadet Cederquist ’20; Cadet Radford ’20; Cadet Chamberlin ’19; Tim Ervin; Dan and Corrie Crawford; Jim Sharp; Crawford, incoming cadet; Ben Lily; Brian Piccioni; Bryan Van Dunn; Kevin Morris; Lee Clark; Matt Williams; Sills O’Keefe; Dave Hurst; Tom Kent; John Rielly; Jim Romasz; Kevin Smith; Harry Oldfield; Kelly Holbert; and Ace Freel.

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Class Notes wrestling moves on various livestock of us did not actually leave the tailgate on J.C.’s farm. Who knew sheep were for the game, but we heard we lost, so so flexible? It was also funny to listen I think we made the right decision. to a certain rat (Goldsmith ’94+26) Plus, we were entertained by Freel talk about his cadre corporal, only to and Delawyer. Which, as you can connect the dots and realize it was imagine, was more interesting than John Vazquez’ daughter. the game.

In other news, Jeff Guild has reI know everyone has heard in bits cently retired from the Navy and has and pieces that a certain number of taken a job with CBRE in Hampour offspring have started attending ton Roads. I also heard from Dave VMI, but the number of them is imPhelps; he was just named president pressive. P.J. Ackerman chimed in of the Fredericksburg Area Builders with a summary. “Dan and Corrie Association. Dave builds custom Crawford’s son, Chase, got accepted homes in the Fredericksburg area.

by VMI and will matriculate this AuClass of 1994: Clay Campbell, Tim Silva, Jim Britina and Curt Ty Johnson recently moved up to gust. Thus I am now hearing from Crowder.

Round Hill, Virginia; we are lookmy son, Jake Ackerman ’18, that he has a rat named Chase. Other legacies now at Citadel game weekend, which also happened ing to catch up soon.

Always, VMI include Alec Berry ’20, William Cederquist to be Founders Day weekend. The turnout was Pig ’20, Clay Radford ’20 and John Chamberlin ’19. quite impressive. Please refer to the picture to get John is the second Chamberlin legacy to come a glimpse of many who were in attendance. As through. His brother, Bradley Chamberlin ’08, before, there were many more brother rats and graduated in ’08. We also have a Reeves Worfamilies, but trying to get everyone together for sham ’19. I have caught up with John Cederquist a picture was like herding cats. Special thinks to Thomas A. Brashears a few times when he came up to visit. I ran into Sean Goldsmith for getting to the Parade Ground Todd Radford at Matriculation. I know several before sunrise to help grab a spot and set up the more have been accepted for this coming year tents. Thank you to all the brother rats – who am I and am sure I will recognize some names on the kidding – thanks to the wives and girlfriends who Brother Rats, matriculation roster.” P.J., thanks for the sumbrought food to share during the day. If it wasn’t It is hard to believe that I am here writing notes mary. for the ladies, we would have just been a bunch of As always, thank you to our BRs who are servold dudes with a bag or two of chips hanging out again, but alas, here I go. As usual, I rely heavily on social media to keep up with most of you, ing our country in uniform. in a tent. Also thanks to John Campbell for leavJim ing his house open and trusting all of us to stay the and there are an awful lot of great things hapweekend. The pre party at J.C.’s was more intense pening in our class. I will start with myself. In than the tent party at Ring Figure. The highlight addition to my new position here in the Alumni was watching Charlie Evans demonstrate his Association, I have assumed the title of interim

1995

1994

Clay Campbell

Dear Brother Rats, I hope everyone is off to a great 2017. A lot has transpired since the last review. Hopefully you were all able to see the Corps of Cadets represent the Institute at the inauguration parade in January. I feel as though they were the highlight of the parade, and the whole Corps marching as one was quite impressive. Recently, a new mass of rats broke out and are now able to call themselves the Class of 1994+26. Congrats.

In November, we were able to hold another ’94 mini reunion on the Parade Ground during the

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Class of 1994: Class of ’94 mini reunion at The Citadel versus VMI football game.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes executive vice president while Adam Volant ’88 do not hesitate to contact me or just stop by my interest in vascular trauma. It’s been a really great niche for me. Presently at Travis Force Base is deployed with the Virginia National Guard. Moody Hall anytime; my office is on the botbut anticipate a move in the fall now that I am a I am thrilled and excited about the opportunity tom floor. Take great care everybody, and ’95, colonel select. I am hoping to get back to Balti’95, ’95! #WeAreVMI and humbled by the selection. more Shock Trauma and run the Center for SusSeveral more BRs have either been selected for tainment of Trauma and Readiness skills. I still or pinned on O-6 and selected for brigade level deploy quite a bit in my ‘other job’ working for command, which is fantastic. I think the race is Joint Special Operations Command as surgical on to see who our first flag officer will be. It will Tom Danielsen support. Definitely a rewarding experience that I not be long, I am sure. I think, at the last count, very much enjoy, but I am increasingly eyeing we have somewhere around 50 brother rats still my retirement date in 2021 when I can return on active duty within all four services. to the Republic of Texas. Give all the guys my I continue to see Brad Coleman and Jamie best and let them know my absence from the Joyner quite a bit here in town, as well as MarBrother Rats!

Hope all of you are doing well. I’m amazed at reunions has not been my own choice. I look lin Ikenberry, who is right up the road in Harrisonburg. Joe Doyle stops by quite often, and it how fast three months go by and look forward forward to seeing everyone at the next one!”

I also heard from Steve Johnson, who is still is always great for us to sit down and catch up. to the warmer weather when these notes will be in Belgium and very active in the local triathpublished.

I talk to Matt Reiner quite often, and in fact, he We have three more brother rats who have oflon scene. He writes: “We live in a little town and I got together, along with Stu Mallory, in February. Also, I am looking forward to getting ficially been selected for promotion to colonel: called Tervuren, about 10 miles from the center together with Terrin Tucker, Jeff Hubbard, DaMike Obadal, U.S. Army, and Bryan Eberhardt of Brussels. I’m still working as a policy admian Desmond and Derek Secrist at an upcom- and Joey DuBose, both U.S. Air Force. Huge viser to the U.S. Ambassador to NATO and the congratulations to all three. I fully expect we’ll Secretary of Defense representative in Europe. ing basketball game in Greensboro.

My primary focus is Kosovo Force and counIn the realm of “long time, no see,” I ran into hear about a few more over the course of 2017.

Speaking of Joey DuBose, he recently reached ter-ISIS issues. The counter-ISIS stuff is pretty Marcus Latimer at a recent home basketball game. He was in town to see his nephew play out and writes: “My Alumni Review finally busy right now, as you might imagine, but I can usually still get away most days during lunch for Samford University. He saw a great game, as caught up with me, and I feel like a bum havwe lost that contest on a last second shot. ing missed every single reunion due to either a for a good swim or run. My O-6 board was last A couple things I would like for you all to deployment of some kind or surgical training week. I should find out in the spring if I screened but feel pretty confident in my chances. I have think about. First is that we need to identify a of some kind. I’m still in the Air Force and got new class agent. Working here in the Alumni selected for colonel last month – proof that they about 18 more months here until my projected Association makes it a bit difficult for me to will promote anyone if you hang around long rotation date. We’d like to head back to San Dimaintain that role. I am happy to continue to enough and take Air War College. After doing ego, but of course, I’m at the mercy of the ‘needs write the class notes and submit them, but in general surgery residency and a surgical critical of the Navy.’ I also have my two major command regard to sending out correspondence such as care/trauma fellowship, the Air Force let me do a boards this fall, which could influence where we end of year solicitation letters, Christmas cards, vascular surgery fellowship in 2013-15 to pursue go if I screen. My plan is one more tour after Belgium and then look at retirement.” birthday cards, etc., I do not have the Jim Zepko and I caught up live the capacity to do that anymore. If you other week. He’s a U.S. Marine Corps are interested, please reach out to me lieutenant colonel currently in charge directly. Also, to that end, we need of the Crisis Operations Center for to start thinking about the 25th ReU.S. Southern Command in Miami. union. Our dykes from the Class of Needless to say, busy is an understate1992 will be having theirs this fall, so ment, especially when there’s any type you know ours is just around the corof crisis south of the United States. ner. We need to establish a committee Jim has decided after multiple combat of four to five brother rats, to include deployments and a very rewarding 20a fundraising chairman. As was the year career that it’s time to retire this case with our 10th Reunion, we will fall. He would welcome any and all be out on the Parade Ground in the advice from BRs as he makes this tranfall 2020 presenting a check. If you are interested to assist in this capacity, Class of 1996: Rusty Parrino married Dr. Tania Kasdaglis in No- sition. Jim and his family are hoping vember 2016. Pictured were, from left, back row, Pete Kokolis; to stay in Florida, with Jacksonville or please also reach out to me directly.

Well, that is about it for now. If you Mason Ayers ’99; Dave Belfiore; Jim Parrino, Rusty’s father; Tampa being the ideal locations.

Rusty; and John Kokolis. Front: Dr. Tania Kasdaglis.

Jim Tinguely and I catch up every are ever anywhere near VMI, please

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Class Notes few weeks; he’s still with Progressive Medical, where he manages a sales team that covers from Virginia to Maine. He told me he spent some time speaking with C.J. Mulligan recently. He reports that C.J. is actively looking for his next career, as he’s retiring from the Army after 20 years of service. C.J. would also welcome any help with his transition from BRs. He wants to stay in the Washington, D.C., area.

Congratulations are in order for Eli Wahesh and his wife, Carrie. Elias James Wahesh was born Jan. 5, 2017.

Also, receiving congratulations is Rusty Parrino, who had a destination wedding in New Orleans, Louisiana, where he married Dr. Tania Kasdaglis. A good group of VMI guys were able to make the trip, including Dave Belfiore, his best man; John Kokolis; Pete Kokolis; and Mason Ayers ’99. An Old Yell was heard throughout the French Quarter. Rusty and Tania recently returned from their honeymoon in Ireland.

A final report comes from Bob Swan, who I caught up following the New England Patriot’s incredible Super Bowl comeback. Bob is still with the Defense Threat Reduction Agency as a program manager focused in the nuclear threat arena. He says he catches up every few months with Mike Waltz and otherwise enjoys spending time with his family when he’s not traveling for work.

That’s all of have for this edition. We have three months until the next one; please continue to send updates on you and your families.

All the best, Tom Danielsen

Class of 1996: Eli and Carrie Wahesh gave birth to their second child, Elias James Wahesh, Jan. 5, 2017.

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1997

Tim O. Moore David M. Hudock

Gentlemen of the Old Corps! Congratulations on having arrived at yet another New Year, especially this New Year which, among other significantly historic events, contains our 20th Reunion! That’s right, boys; you read correctly: Unbelievably (and for the math-impaired), two decades have passed since we sped away from post with the “I” in our rearview mirrors and tears of absolute joy streaming down our faces. As our parents looked at us and thought at that moment, “Aw, he’s going to miss his school and his friends,” we were really just silently thinking: 1) how glad we were to have escaped another random Ron Williams bone for being in civilian clothes (again) on the stoop, 2) how happy some of us were to finally turn in our rifles after marching our last penalty tour the night before graduation and 3) how we would never again have breakfast quite like the omelet lady could make us.

OK, so maybe not all of you had those thoughts in your heads; nonetheless, how ironic is it, then, that a couple of months from this writing, I am predicting that the majority of you will be speeding back to Lexington in order to relive some of these vile and banal experiences as well as catch your BRs up on what they’ve missed in your lives since 1997? Good times await, gents, at the end of April, and I sincerely hope to see all of you there for a raucous recounting of the misdeeds and malefactions of the last class of the Old Corps!

In the near term, let us start in Washington, D.C., where once again it was proven to me that all roads in the military at some point pass through the National Capitol Region and that anyone involved with Navy or Marine aviation cannot escape the clutches of the F-35 program, when I walked into a random

meeting a couple of weeks ago and sat next to a random Navy dude who turned out to be Chris “Face” Coats of naval aviator fame. He currently resides in the panhandle of Florida where he is a member of the Air Force’s 33rd Maintenance Squadron, a joint Air Force/ Navy unit supporting training for future F-35 mechanics. Chris is working with Jeff Henderson, also located in the Florida panhandle, to come up with an airtight reason to sign out a naval aircraft for a cross-country training flight to Roanoke, Virginia, that coincides with the weekend of April 28-30. Their attendance at aforementioned reunion will depend greatly on their ability to sell their training plan to the Operations Department (and perhaps more importantly, the Maintenance Control master chief)! Good luck, boys, and we hope to see you in town for the festivities.

Speaking of airtight, Ryan Shy (a West Virginia native, you may recall) checked in from his abode in the Tar Heel state (that’s North Carolina, for those of you on the wrong side of the Mason Dixon Line) where he is working as a professional engineer “building a world of difference” for Black and Veatch International Company. He currently hangs his hat in Charlotte; however, he has spent the past five years moving between there, West Bank and Winston-Salem. Ryan confirmed his reservations at the Natural Bridge Hotel for the reunion and very much looks forward to seeing everyone there, where he hopes to continue his search for former roommate and long-lost Chinese man-of-mystery, Arthur Jai, reportedly last seen in Bangkok’s underground Thai boxing circuit being coached by none other than the third roommate in this indelible trio, Gregg Russell. Ryan, look forward to seeing you in April, and I hope we can get the other two together at the same time.

In continued news from the Far East, Jason Roberts checked in from the tropical Japanese island delight known as Okinawa, where he and his family have been living recently as civilians supporting the defense department’s military construction efforts. Considering his company, Contrack Watts, has had him serving in other garden spots such as Afghanistan a few years back, he is happy to be together with his family in a relatively stable living environment! He is doing all he can to get back to the continental U.S. for the reunion in April, but

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes as the company’s area manager in Okinawa, it who were constantly busting his balls. Marines the reunion and catching up with everyone in might be tough to get away and leave the “kids are pretty good at dishing it out, Straq, but April. Look forward to seeing you there, Will!

Rat roommate Shah Rahman got in touch in charge of the candy store.” Having made the rest assured if you’re a PM for Trident, you’re journey from Okinawa to Lexington myself for probably smarter than most of ’em! I can say with me via LinkedIn. After departing southern our 5th Reunion, I totally understand the logis- that because I am a Marine, but it is good to see California in 2012, he and his family returned tics/time commitment involved, but we hope that my bros are not letting our Navy brethren to Texas where he now works for the Thompoff the hook that easy. Hopefully Straq can link son Pipe Group alongside Eric Davidson, ’92. you to see you there in April, if at all possible!

Also checking in from afar recently was Tay- up with Jason Roberts in Oki on our reunion His three kids are aging way too fast for his liklor Edwards, who is still serving his arduous weekend and toast a few oat sodas in honor of ing; his son, Zubin, is now nine and his daughtour of duty in Paris, France, with our nation’s 1997. Safe travels, brother! ters, Sophia and Norah, are seven and three, World traveler Elk Richardson checked in respectively. Obviously, his hands are not full Air Force. The party is about to end, however, as he has orders to report back to the NCR this from Mechanicsville, Virginia, in between enough with this brood, so Shah has also taken summer where he will be assigned to the Na- crazy work hours at Philip Morris USA. He’s to filling his spare time with studies toward an tional Reconnaissance Office in Chantilly, Vir- been living in Mechanicsville with his 12-year- Executive Master of Business Administration ginia. It looks like Taylor’s European commit- old daughter, Lexington Saige, for 15 years degree at Southern Methodist University. Hard to say at this point if he’ll make it to ments will keep him from joining Lexington in April given all that is us at the reunion, so he said to “tell going on. Hopefully he can make it everyone hello” for him when we work; it’d be great to see you at the get together. Enjoy the rest of your reunion, brother!

European vacation, Taylor, and we Jason St. Clair sent me an email look forward to having you back in from his home in Lynchburg, Virthe States later this year.

Jason Stracqualursi came up on ginia. He is there doing project the net from West Peabody, Masmanagement for AREVA, which delivers nuclear fuel and engineersaschusetts. By day, Straq is a program manager for the Trident class ing services to Duke Energy. To submarine, and by night (or one help fill his schedule and feed his weekend per month) he is a Naval live music habit, he sits on the James reservist. The bad news is Straq Class of 1997: Matt Smith, Elk Richardson, Tom Wagner and Eric River Council for the Arts and HuAsh got together recently in Mechanicsville, Virginia, to begin might not make it to the reunion be- an extensive training regimen for April’s reunion festivities. manities or, as he likes to call it, the “Lynchburg Arts Council.” Any cause he will be traveling on a business trip to Okinawa, Japan, where he will ex- now and has enjoyed work trips to such far free time between he and his wife after that is spent taking their daughter to gymnastics perience the pleasure of riding an amphibious off and remote places as Germany where he landing ship. He said he’s done this before and spent two months last fall and, of course, had a meets or their son to soccer games. They defihad to room with a handful of Marine officers blast! In between trips, he crushes barley pops nitely stay busy, but in advance of his return to with BRs Matt Smith, Tom Wagner and Eric VMI for the reunion, he said he has been turnAsh. He is currently in training to crush more ing up the VMI school spirit by dragging his of those barley pops at the reunion in April. whole family to –count ‘em – three basketball See ya’ there, Elk! games this season, including The Citadel game Will Martin sent me a note announcing he VMI won where he ran into his rat, Pat Hadhas just entered his 20th year with Kroger, dock ’00. Between Christmas and new year’s, where he has recently moved up in the organihe also caught up with Dan Roach and his zation to manage its third-party gift cards. The kids. Apparently both he and Dan were home bouncing off their walls with their kids while new work is a challenge, but he’s having a lot of fun doing it. Congratulations on both counts, their wives were at work. Jason posted about Will! He is currently living in Cincinnati, Ohio, his stir-craziness on Facebook and next thing with his five kids who range in age from third he knew, he was hanging out with Dan and his grade to college freshman, so Will says he kids! Thank goodness for social media, and definitely never has a dull moment. Will stays thanks for checking in, Jason. Look forward to Class of 1997: Brett “Flounder” Oglein touch with Mike Medlin; the two of them seeing you in April! tree holding Emma with his wife, CathSlemp lives! Noah dropped me a line at the met in Lexington last summer for a lunch date. erine, who is holding Jordan, and their last minute to let me know he is indeed alive More recently, he saw Keith Peterson in Dallas two boys, Evan and Lucas. in January. Will’s definitely looking forward to and well. He is working as an engineer for the

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Class Notes Navy supporting the Marine Corps in the Quantico area. He was hired by the Navy in 2015 and has since traveled for work to San Diego, where he met up with Andy Staich and John Riggs.

Naturally, they failed to get pictures. No worries, Noah; you’ll get plenty at the reunion.

And last but not least, Brett Ogletree checked in with me. He tells me he is “still plugging along.”

He is working for the “Fed” in database administration and lives with his wife, Catherine, and as of Dec. 1, four kids in Moseley, Virginia. Flounder’s “domestication” is virtually complete since settling in to suburbia; he and Catherine have been painting rooms so the house is feeling more like home every day. His two oldest, Evan (9) and Lucas (6), have made a ton of new friends in the neighborhood and even their little sister, Emma (3), has made a bunch of friends on their street and does not want to stop playing with them! All of the kids are smitten by their new sister, Jordan, who appears to enjoy being spoiled by all of them.

Catherine is doing very well since the birth and planned to go back to work in March. All in all, Flounder says there isn’t really more they could ask for out of life at the moment. Thanks for the family portrait, Flounder, and see you in April!

Thanks, everyone, for keeping in touch and providing updates. Enjoy the rest of your winter and spring. I am looking forward to seeing all of you in Lexington in April.

than Chris Jones ’96. They caught up and have run into each other occasionally, since they are both based in Philadelphia.

Tom is still living in Hastings, Michigan, with his wife, Andrea; and kids, Xoe Beatrix, 9; Thomas Jackson T.J., 7; and Gus Ulysses, four months.

I also heard from Pat Baker, who is now teaching law at the University of Tennessee at Martin.

I’m guessing he is the coolest professor on campus! He has three boys: William (6), Thomas (9), and John (6).

1999

William Steinbach Class of 1998: Tom Smith and Chris Jones in front of the simulator at Charlotte Training Center.

1998

John A. Strock Hamel Reinmiller

Hello, everyone! This will be my last submission for class notes. Starting on the next round, Joey Bates has offered to take on the role for our class. I certainly appreciate Joey stepping up to continue to report the great goings on of our brother rats. I have really enjoyed keeping up with everyone over the past few years, but it is time to pass the torch. We will be in good hands with Joey!

Just a couple of updates for this round of notes.

After 16 years, four months and three days at

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Class of 1998: Pat Baker’s three sons, William (6), Thomas (9) and John (6).

American Eagle, Tom Smith moved over to “big brother” American Airlines in May 2016. They merged with US Airways in 2013 and, as of his date of hire, still had not fully combined their seniority lists. To make a long story short, he was hired onto the Airways side of the house and started his training in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Before heading east, he noticed a familiar face from a photo on his union’s website. It was from an Allied Pilots Association welcome dinner for the class just before his. The individual in question was wearing a VMI T-shirt that caught his eye, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on why he thought he recognized him.

On his first day in Charlotte and just before starting class, their paths crossed, and he was surprised to find out that the mystery pilot was none other

Brother Rats, I heard from Barry Williams. He is still at Fort Belvoir working at the Acquisition Support Center. He will move up to the puzzle palace this summer to be the executive officer for the deputy assistant secretary of the Army for procurement.

He also just made the battalion command select list, so he thinks he will only be at the Pentagon for about a year before taking command.

Chris Lowery sent me the following update: “A couple of updates from ‘team Lowery,’ as I do not recall ever submitting previously: Happily married to the former Mariam Abedi of San Antonio, and we have four kids who keep us on the go and incredibly busy. I’m still serving active duty in the Army, was promoted to lieutenant colonel last April and recently came out on the command list this year. I’ve had the pleasure of crossing paths with a few BRs, as well as other alumni both stateside and during my four-year stint in Germany. I’m amazed at how easy it is to strike up a conversation with complete strangers when you share the VMI experience. My next assignment is taking me to Fort Eustis, Virginia, where I hope to connect with some BRs who have made their home in that great state.” Good to hear from Chris. I don’t think that is his first submission, though. My memory has very vague recollections these days.

When we last heard from Powell Harrison, his wife, Audrey, was six months pregnant. Three months later I receive this note: “I’ve had a late start at fatherhood at 40 years old, but good things come to those who wait. Proverbs 13:12:

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes that he didn’t even recognize him.

‘Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longBen Ashmore is proud to announce his son ing fulfilled is a tree of life.’ The Harrison tree in has been admitted early-decision to the “I” and France has bloomed and produced its first fruit. will be matriculating in the fall with the Class of Audrey and I are tired but grateful parents of 2018+3. Apparently, the warnings of several of Agnès Louise Harrison, born Jan. 31, 2017, in a our BRs was not compelling enough to have him rural town hospital in Saint-Palais in the heart of look elsewhere. Ben requests that if anyone is on the Basque country. Agnès weighed in at a healthy post next year, look up Ben Ashmore Jr. and let 8 pounds, 10 ounces and measured 21 inches. In him out of the Rat Line if he’s sufficiently squared keeping with her ‘American size,’ she’s proved in away, or strain him a little extra if he needs it. I her first two weeks to have a prodigious appetite, didn’t have the heart to tell Ben that the tradition as well. Her daddy is very proud. Surf Church in of letting rats out of the Rat Line ended several Hossegor is going well, but my surfing hasn’t imyears ago, and they have no idea what that even proved. Anyone thinking of planning a French means. I also recommend against straining him, surfing vacation is still welcome to contact me, even if he needs it. Pretty sure alumni straining a though our guest room has now been supplanted rat is a felony offense now and will get you 10-20 by the baby’s room!” Congrats on the birth of your in Gitmo. daughter. I feel you on the late start to fatherhood.

Class of 1999: Powell and Audrey HarMatt Irving sent me the following update: “I Charlie Fleet checks in from Colorado with this rison with baby Agnes. wanted to send an update. Recently celebrated my update: “I continue to live in Colorado but recent40th birthday, and my wife was able ly changed jobs to one that’s more local. to get some of the guys from ’99 to I’d worked from home in information come up, drink a lot of bourbon and technology for 10 years, but that just share some stories from back in the meant get on an airplane. So around day. Mike Wilson, Ryan Debouchel, the new year, I switched over to a desk Jochen Dunville and Chris Varjob at Travelport as vice president, engineering. Last fall, I was coming back ner (all the way from Reno, Nevada) from one of my trips to Singapore for were able to make it over. Unfortuwork, and as I got into my seat, the guy nately, Jake Britt couldn’t change his two seats over is wearing an Institute spa reservations, and Conor Powell shirt. I give him a Rah Virginia Mil, Class of 1999: At Matt Irving’s 40th birthday celebration were, was stoking tensions in the Middle and the guy in between us says, ‘I’m from left, Tom Edwards, Jochen Dunville, Matt Smith, Greg East, so they weren’t able to make 1996.’ What are the chances that three Klein, Matt Irving, Chuck McGarr, Ryan Debouchel, Mike Wilson it, but we consumed their rations and Chris Varner.

Keydets would all be seated next to of bourbon for them. We also had each other in 1A, 1B and 1C on a flight a good representation from VMI’s from Tokyo to Denver? Another perk north campus (James Madison Uniof all the travel at the last job I may miss versity) in the house. It was great getwas taking the family with me at times; ting a chance to see everyone, catch Shelley and I ended up taking our boys, up and realize I’m not the fattest rat Alex (8) and Andy (6), to Dubai, India anymore. Thanks, Jochen! I have inand Singapore among other U.S. locacluded photo exhibit A for evidence of this, as well as to prove to everytions. 2017 is looking good, although the boys are already speeding past me one Wilson finally went ahead with on the ski slopes, and it’s likely to get that cosmetic surgery he’s always even worse once I pass 40 this year. Any wanted and had Varner permanently BRs visiting Colorado, do reach out.” attached to his back. Proud of you Rico Espinoza moved the family to for following your dreams, Wilson.”

Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, this While it is rare, it is always good to past summer. He deployed to Kuwait hear from Mirv. in October as a part of Combined Joint Congratulations to all on births, Task Force Inherent Resolve with the promotions and 40th birthdays. Maengineers. He also got selected for lieujor life moments all. Until next time.

In the bonds, tenant colonel. He says he bumped Class 1999: Charlie and Shelly Fleet with boys Alex and Andy.

Bill into Robinson, but it had been so long

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Class Notes

2000

Jim Boatright

Brother Rats, As I write this update, it is Super Bowl Sunday, and spring is right around the corner. It was great to see the Corps march in Trump’s inauguration parade in January, and I just read that the Class of 2020 broke out this past week which brings back many memories from Feb. 20, 1997. (Twenty years ago!)

On to the updates. First to check in was (Dr.) Nathan Friedline, who has been traveling on temporary duty at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville,

Class of 2000: Conrad Bicknell and Paul Weber in Stuttgart, Germany.

several continued the party over dinner, drinks and VMI stories.

Conrad Bicknell sent a note to say hello and included a great picture of him and Paul Weber together in Stuttgart, Germany, where they worked together for six months.

Jon Hartsock and I stay in touch, and he is enjoying family and Army life in Fort Hood, Texas, where he is working at III Corps Headquarters. His wife, Jenny, serves in the Virginia Guard. Jon returned from a three-and-a-half month tour in Kuwait this past summer.

Greg Bosley sent a note and says he continues to live and work in the Houston, Texas, area with his wife and three kids. He and Tim Catalano met last fall to run a marathon in North Carolina. Tim lives in Virginia with his wife and six kids. Greg says he will be taking his oldest son (turning 11) to the football game over Founders Day if anyone else will be on post.

Please continue to send updates to our email address at classnotes2000vmi@gmail.com. Finally, to all of our brother rats who have served or are currently serving our great country, be safe and thank you!

2001

Rich Groen

Class of 2000: Pictured at the Class of 2000 mini reunion in Arlington, Virginia, hosted by neighbors Tony Esteve and Shawn Segreti were, from left, Ed Clarke, Scott Kuebler, Matt Keller, Tony, Chris Lucas, Kenny Denton, Shawn, Christian Arllen and Matt McComas.

Alabama, with the Army. Nate says Redstone is a good place to be and is cooler than Florida and Afghanistan.

Shawn Segrerti and Tony Esteve, neighbors in Arlington, Virginia, hosted a mini reunion in November. Present were Ed Clarke, Scott Kuebler, Matt Keller, Chris Lucas, Kenny Denton, Christian Arllen and Matt McComas. Thanks, Shawn, for including the great picture with your notes.

Tony Esteve also sent me a note and said a happy hour was hosted for John Adams ’96, who is running for Virginia attorney general, at the Army Navy Country Club, and there was strong attendance from the Class of 2000, including Shawn Segreti, Chris Lucas, Dave Hoffman, Jason Maslow, Liam Connor, Eric Schnabel, Ed Clarke and Jay Kearney. Following the event,

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Class of 2001: The 2001 Class guidon inside Old Barracks, Oct. 30, 2016, at the 15th Reunion.

Brother Rats of the Class of 2001, First off, thank you for selecting me as your class agent. I’ve just finished a great transition and personally want to thank Brandon Farris for all of his hard work and dedication to our class over the last five years. We are all truly grateful for his selflessness.

Additionally, I’d like to thank all of you for supporting our 15th Reunion, from assisting during its planning to providing comments for improvements. I’d like to highlight contributions from Tony Gelormine and Taylor Maywer in turning a concept into action, John Casper ’04 for planning our remembrance ceremony, and Will Alley and Charlie Bunting for providing remarks. Amazing job, gentlemen.

We couldn’t pull it off without you, and we’ll strive to make our 20th Reunion even better.

That said, I’ve failed in my first duty as class agent and let the requirement for class notes

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes pass by. My next go at this will be in May, and I’ll be sure to do our class justice by capturing all of our highlights.

Again, thank you for selecting me as class agent and am proud to call VMI 2001 “my class,” as Brig. Gen. Farrell highlighted during our reunion: “Because that’s where the best people are, what the best people are: Brave and dumb ... or, at least, dumb by the way the measurers measure. That’s what the tough was about at this cranky old place. So you’d get your butt kicked out there. Not over vanity or ambition. But over plain ol’ vanilla dumb. So dumb you don’t see the virtue in compromise and so tough you can live with the black ... or the white. But not both. Never both. If the Institute be heard from these days, that’s what I expect to hear, about two double ought one, at least. That’s my class.”

2002

Salmaan Khawaja

Brother Rats, I hope that this edition of the Review finds you and yours well. As I write these notes, spring is almost here and planning for our reunion is going well. Please check social media, and a mailing will also be sent out with details about hotel reservations and events. Looking forward to seeing you and yours! For those of you who haven’t been back to the “I” in a long time, I’m sure you’ll be pleasantly surprised by all the new facilities. The Corps is doing well, and Matthew, Mark, Luke and John have been fully restored. Hopefully, you won’t experience the pit in the stomach as the Institute comes into view! I greatly appreciate BRs submitting class notes; I’m sure you are aware we have not had notes two editions in a row. Thank you for putting up with my ongoing solicitations for notes, and thanks for contributing! On to the good stuff: Henry Papiano wrote in to let me know that his father sold the family trucking business five years ago, and Henry stood and upheld his contract until January 2015. Last year, Henry started another small home heat business, and he is happily self-employed again. The company is called Little Hank’s Tanks (named after one of Henry’s

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sons), and business is booming. Henry has been coaching his sons in all sports for the past five years. This year, his son, the quarterback, led the team to a five and three season, and they made the first round playoffs! Henry frequently talks to Jed Puszykowski and let me know that Jed and his wife are doing very well.

J.C. Villar is serving the state of Florida proudly in law enforcement. He posted some amazing videos of the hurricane this past fall and also a photograph of Air Force One when President Trump visited Mar-A-Lago recently. It goes without saying (but I will say it anyway) that we greatly appreciate the service of our military and law enforcement (and other) families. Thank you and yours for what you do for all of us.

Doctor Marc Yelle has finally completed years of postgraduate education in his combined M.D./Ph.D. program, including fellowship.

Doctor Yelle is now working in a pain management clinic, and he and his family are doing well.

Congrats, Marc!

Alex Haseley wrote in to let me know that he and team Haseley are living in Washington, D.C. They returned to D.C. about two years ago after spending three years living in Paris. Alex and his wife, Courtney (University of Virginia class of 2001), have two daughters, Avery (age 6) and Olivia (age 3). Alex left active duty in 2006 and has been working with Deloitte & Touche LLP ever since, including a time spent to get his Master of Business Administration degree. Alex hasn’t been able to make it to a reunion yet, so he and his family are very excited to visit the “I” Oct. 15. He writes, “I’m looking forward to catching up with everyone, especially former roommates Alex Martin and Mike Escobar.”

Keenan Entsminger wrote a lengthy note graciously providing updates on a lot of folks with whom he has been hanging out. Instead of taking credit (or writing “help received”) for writing so many updates, I thought it would be more appropriate to copy his letter to me here.

Keenan: “Happy New Year! I hope all is well with the Class of 2002. I thought it would be a good idea to submit some notes since we had a small ’02 gathering at the VMI versus The Citadel game in Lexington this past November. Grey Lester, Jesse Bilthuis (enjoying his lifted parade deck restrictions), Nate Jones (in from Pennsylvania) and I (along with our better halves) got a condo uptown and made the most of an awesome weekend back in Lex Vegas. Ryan Hickey

Class of 2002: Class Agent Salmaan Khawaja said of this photo, “Coach Henry Papiano’s son (and future VMI quarterback, No. 16?) led his team to a 5-3 season and a first round playoff bout this season.”

Class of 2002: “Lil” Hank Papiano sporting a Little Hank’s Tanks cap, the heating company of his father, Henry Papiano.

Class of 2002: The Haseleys in the Dominican Republic over the holidays. Pictured were Courtney, Alex, Avery and Olivia.

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Class Notes and his family were down from Rochester, Harry deployed in 2015. It was nice to get a Christmas Also, be on the lookout for a packet in the mail to message from Matt Thompson. arrive soon with reunion information. Can’t wait Montoro and his family came in from MorganGreat hearing from you! Thanks to Jason Breedto see you all and your families in October! ’02! town, Conor Evans was in from Dallas by way of Pennsylvania, James Howard and his girlfriend ing for sending out all of the Christmas cards and ’02! ‘02!

As I usually do – here’s my solicitation for class were over from Richmond and Ryan Peay snuck birthday cards for the Class of 2002. We apprecinotes – please submit notes! over from the supe’s house to join us for a while. ate you taking the time to make that happen.

In the spirit, We were also joined by Whitt Hall’s parents, The Richmond crew stays pretty tightknit, and Salmaan Mark Hall ’75 and Bitsy Hall; Chad Correll ’94 many of us are active in the VMI Club of Richand Nancy Fudacz (in from Chicago); and Scott mond. If you are in the metro-Richmond area, get and Jade Knick at the tailgate. Thanks to Scott involved with us. It’s a solid group of alumni who and Jade for all of the great food and tickets to the are always having a good time. Grey Lester, Jesse game. Also a big thanks to Randy Campbell ’62 Bilthuis, Derick Swenck, Brett Prillaman, David William Talley V and Julia Campbell for an extra parking pass and Ross, James Howard, Matt Erwin, JM Nemish, tickets to the game (you all were missed). We also Erik Baines, David Becker, Keith Graham, bumped in to Bryan Rodriguez over the weekend Ross Booth, Kevin Fields, Dave Ellington, Joel (the Institute Society sash has never looked better). Meeks, Eddie Anderson, Wes Tatum and Chris “After an eventful day of trading old stories and Mills are some of the folks I have run in to over As I sit down to write this set of notes, it’s midtailgating in front of Moody, we took the party the last year or two at events in Richmond and/ February, and as usual, I can’t figure out how to uptown. We landed at the Palms, ordered a few or Lexington. It’s always a great time catching up start them since it’ll by almost mid-May by the bourbon-gingers (with a toast to Luke Wullen- with those guys! time you all are reading them. So, with that intro“As most of you all know, ‘Patriots Day,’ has duction, here we go! waber), and connected with a number of BRs via Literally days after the last set of notes were subFacetime (Kerri “The General” Bilthuis and Lia been released, and Dic Donohue is featured in Lester led the charge). We were able to heckle Tri the film. It was published on the Chive in the Jan. mitted, a sizable group of us gathered at VMI for Tang (in Charlotte), Tim Burke (in Atlanta), Jack- 13, 2017, Daughters of the American Revolution. The Citadel game Nov. 12. What a great day it son Castleberry (in Atlanta), Jesse Wullenwaber Another big thanks to Dic for speaking at the VMI was, outside of the outcome of the game. By my ’04 (in Downington, Pennsylvania) and Matt Club of Richmond’s Annual Dinner in 2013 and estimate, it was the largest tailgate we’ve ever had Blanchette (in Hawaii but headed back east in the for helping us shut down Penny Lane Pub that as a class outside of a reunion. We are all busy with our families, professional lives and other obnear future). All are well and looking forward to night. KCCO, Dic!” A sign that we are getting older – we have BRs the reunion in October. ligations. So, it makes it even more meaningful “Other ’02 folks I have caught up with over being inducted into the VMI Hall of Fame! Maswhen some of us can gather for a few hours and the last year or so: Whitt Hall is living in Nashsive congratulations to Matt Erwin (wrestling) and catch up in person rather than via Facebook, text message or phone. The bonds that were formed ville and is doing well. Keenan flew out there Joe Gibson (football) for their recent inductions.

I encourage you all to consider joining the 2002 inside the four walls of barracks and on a muddy for a long weekend where we managed to hit hill are stronger now than they were 14 years ago. a number of hot spots in Nashville and made a Facebook page, as it contains information regardpilgrimage to Lynchburg, Tennessee, to the Jack ing our reunion with more information to come. Paul Quinn, Brian Wacker, Phil Harris, Doug Warner, Kyle Haire, Dave Woody, Daniels Distillery. John Tibbs is living Chris Mision, Jim Hitch, Frank Saul, the dream down in Charleston, and I Chaz Wagner, Steve Nakazawa, Derhad the chance to check out a couple of breweries with him in the Holy City ek Brown, John Bocek, Phil Hampton this past year (we missed Paul Carroll and Joe Ziadeh were all present for that weekend). I got to talk with Seth formation on the Parade Ground. The Wheeler before he was deployed last uniform of the day was duty jacket. spring. It was great hearing from him, Also present was Harry Montoro ’02, and I hope he has a safe return to the Joel Meeks ’02 and Brett Ogletree ’97.

Pacific Northwest. It was also great The food and beverages were plenticatching up with Reuben Trant toful, as were the laughs. Chaz Wagner was seen riding his motorcycle across ward the end of 2016. We are all hapthe Parade Ground with the sound of py that he is back safe in Virginia after the “VMI Spirit” pouring out from his his most recent deployment. I haven’t talked with John Trant in a while but Class of 2002: David Ross, Coach Cal McCombs and former VMI speakers. For those of you who missed had one hell of a time with him, Reu- football alumni Bryan Rodriguez, Darian Lafferty and Keith Gra- this, there’s a video of it somewhere ben and number of other ’02 Keydets ham attended the Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony for their on Facebook. Many of us brought former teammates Joey Gibson and Sean Mizzer ’06. our kids, who had a blast playing corn down near Disputanta before Reuben

2003

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VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes

Class of 2003: Trey Guy with his wife, Candace; daughters, Caerwyn (2 months) and Madi Grace (6); and son, Quaide (4-and-a-half), visiting the U.S. Embassy while in London last fall.

Class of 2003: Class Agent William Talley said of this photo, “Chip Hancock with a lovely lady by his side at the Jefferson Hotel in Richmond, Virginia, during the holidays.” hole, football or running around enjoying the beautiful weather that graced us that day.

It’s no secret how fast the months of November and December fly by with all the holiday activities.

I can’t report much during this period, so I’m just going to jump to January.

The inauguration of a new president also brought about some opportunities for BRs to catch up in our nation’s capital. Trip Robbins, Chaz Wagner, Jason Lambert, John Noonan and Steve

Nakazawa caught up with one another in late January. I’m not sure what position BR Lambert has in Washington with the Marines currently, but he’s posted some mighty impressive photos on Facebook! I understand from Jared Swanson that John Noonan is now the defense adviser for Sen. Tom Cotton (Arkansas).

I got an update on Dave Tavenner the other week. I understand Dave is in Stafford, Virginia, and is teaching and coaching football. I also understand he’s a father of two now, having adding a daughter to his family in fall/winter 2016. I saw Jason Annis and his wife, Theresa, at the VMI versus The Citadel basketball game in mid-February.

They were up at the Institute to celebrate Jason’s

Class of 2003: Steve Nakazawa, Chaz Wagner, John Noonan, Jason Lambert and Trip Robbins caught up in northern Virginia in late January.

2017-Issue 2

Class of 2003: Jon Anderson with his wife, Mandy, and their children in Estes Park, Colorado. rat, Kelly Sweppenhiser ’06, being inducted into the VMI Sports Hall of Fame. Jason and Theresa are expecting their third daughter in March 2017.

Also present at the game were Doug Warner and A.J. Schmaus and his wife, Jessica ’04.

Life continues to be one level of chaos below a Chuck E. Cheese birthday party in the Talley household. We’ve been up to several basketball games and hope to catch a baseball game this spring at the Institute. By the time these notes come out, I’ll have to start thinking about our 15th Reunion next fall!

That’s all for now. Remember to send me updates, announcements and photos on what’s happening in your life!

In the bonds, Rah Virginia Mil ’03, ’03, ’03!

Class of 2003: Paul Quinn, Brian Wacker, Phil Harris, Doug Warner, Kyle Haire, Dave Woody, Chris Mision, Jim Hitch, Frank Saul, Chaz Wagner, Steve Nakazawa, Derek Brown, John Bocek Phil Hampton, Bill Talley and Joe Ziadeh met up for the VMI versus The Citadel football game Nov. 12.

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Class Notes

2004

Scott E. Campbell C. Justin Roberts

Daniel Ayres and his girlfriend, Carrie Rutledge, welcomed Kyla Rae Ayres to the world Nov. 12, 2016. Kyla was 8 pounds, 13.4 ounces and 19-and-a-half inches long. Everyone is home and doing well!

Daniel Cragg and his wife, Jenna, welcomed their son, John Francis “Jack” Cragg, into the world Nov. 22, 2016. Dan has already done the math; Jack is on track to join VMI Class of 2037.

Ryan Consaul and his wife, Erica, were expecting a baby girl Feb. 16, so by the time you read this, they should be hip deep in dirty diapers with no sleep.

Ross Garnett and his family are doing well in their fifth year at Quantico. He and Joe Montagna have passed the halfway point for Marine Corps Command & Staff College. Ross and the family will be heading to Okinawa, Japan, in June 2017. He hopes to stop by the Institute this spring/summer before departing. Josh Montero is heading to The U.S. Marine Corps School of Advanced Warfighting this summer, as well.

Brian Hudak has become the first of us to send one of our own back through the grinder that is VMI. His step-son, Jonathan Alan Smith Jr. ’17, graduated a semester early with his Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering in December 2016. Jonathan has moved to northern Virginia, where he has started working for Whiting Turner Construction. Congratulations!

Brian’s wife, Jane, is still saving lives in the emergency room, and he continues life as a defense contractor working in Virginia Beach. He and Jane had drinks with Alex Nicoloff while spending a few days in New York City over the July 4 weekend this past summer. Brian said, “Attending many football games over the past four seasons and watching Jonathan progress through his cadetship has been a very rewarding experience, but VMI has changed so much since we last rolled hays there. Some good, and some not so

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good. I dare not say country club, but I just did.

I think Jonathan had more weekends after he broke out than we had as 2nd Classmen – those of us without academic days, that is. Having my step-son at VMI these past three-and-a-half years has given Derek Wiley and I plenty of time to spend catching up while sipping on bourbon.”

Drew Hardin wrote, “Things are going well for us down here; a very balmy winter in Texas.

I hosted the Centex Founders Day event at my favorite brewery back in November, which was a lot of fun. Also my dyke, Chris Simpson ’01, surprised me by being in Austin a few months ago, so I got to say hello to him for the first time in a couple of years. John Ginder and I got to do a little bit of hunting a few months ago, as well.

Right now, I’m training for Ironman Texas in April. Still interested in doing a class event at the Savageman Tri in Maryland in August if anyone is interested. Hope all is well.”

Warrant Officer 1 Will Johnson ’03 and I arrived in at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, Dec. 10. We deployed with the 29th Infantry Division headquarters under U.S. Army Central Command as the new Intermediate Division Headquarters.

Captain Randy Hager ’01 and Lt. Col. Doug Stransky ’95 are also here with the division. This is the first time a National Guard division headquarters has been in command of active duty brigades. I’ve also run into a few other familiar faces. Major John McGrady ’01 was on the base briefly at the end of January, as was Col. Jose Devarona ’95.

Take care! Be safe, and keep in touch!

Scott Campbell

Class of 2004: Drew and his wife, Megan, at Drew’s office Christmas party in December 2016.

2005

Tom Hardinge Timothy Johnson

Brother Rats, I hope this note finds you well as another class graduation anniversary is upon us (12 years!) and we head into the summer months of 2017.

Danny Fields has exciting news to share with the class: “I’m not sure if I can solicit business leads through the Alumni Review, but that’s what I’m hoping to do. Even if I can’t, I’m excited to tell people that I’m pursuing my passion of being an entrepreneur. I have recently decided to leave my career at General Electric Co. Oil & Gas to partner with a Rice University Master of Business Administration classmate to create a Search Fund. A Search Fund is an asset vehicle that will allow my partner and me to search for and purchase a well-established small business anywhere in the United States.

Upon finding a business that meets specific financial criteria, we will purchase the business, take ownership and grow the business over a long-term period. We want as many people to know what we are doing, because were not only excited about it, but we also think we will potentially find the right business through word-of-mouth referrals from our personal networks. And if there’s a stronger or more reliable network than my brother rats, I have yet to find it. If anyone wants to speak to me about what I’m doing, they can contact me by email at danny.t.fields@gmail.com or by phone at (706) 761-5644.”

Brian Duncan has also made a career move: “We’ve had a few changes at my house in the past year. I decided to make a career change and have since gone into teaching. I was fortunate enough to get hired to teach agriculture at my local high school along with coaching Future Farmers of America and am now working in the same school system as my wife who is a civics teacher. I’ve also taken over more of the

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes

Class of 2005: Ted Henderson recently caught up with Brian Pak when Brian was in the Richmond area.

Class of 2005: Linda and Henry Lynch welcomed their daughter, Brooke, in December.

Class of 2005: Ted and Rachel meet their daughter, Penniella Mae Henderson.

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management of my family’s cattle farm from my dad. Lastly our son, Eli, is growing like a weed and keeping us busy all the time.”

Mildred M. Cooper was selected for induction into the VMI Sports Hall of Fame, becoming the first female to achieve this honor.

The 2017 induction ceremony and banquet was held Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017, in Marshall Hall, VMI’s Center for Leadership and Ethics.

She, along with the rest of this year’s inductees, were also recognized at halftime of the VMI versus The Citadel basketball game earlier that day. A game, I might add, in which our Runnin’ Roos soundly defeated El Cid 101-78.

Whole damn team!

Daniel Harrison checked in from post: “I am our great-great-grand rats’ (Class of 2020) class adviser. They had Breakout last week, and I was there to watch the fun. My wife, Brittany, and I have an 18-month-old son, Austin Franklin Harrison, and all of us were there to watch the ‘culminating event.’”

Also, in other news from post, Maj. Chris Perry, current VMI assistant commandant, recently graduated from the Chaplain Basic Officer Leader Course Dec. 2, 2016.

Henry Lynch and his wife, Linda, recently welcomed their second daughter into the family. Brooke Kenyon Lynch was born Dec. 28, 2016, at 8:22 a.m. She weighed 7 pounds, 2 ounces. Three-year-old daughter Noelle is adjusting quickly to life as a big sister. Linda and Henry still reside in Washington, D.C. Henry has been with Morgan Stanley eight years now and was recently promoted to first vice president of wealth management, where he is a senior portfolio manager.

Doctor Ted Henderson and his wife, Rachel, welcomed their daughter, Penniella Mae “Pennie” Henderson, Dec. 30, 2016. “Though she be but little, she is fierce!” (William Shakespeare).

The Hendersons live in Richmond, where Ted is a pediatrician in the Bon Air/Midlothian area (www.pahpartners.com), and they are very active in their church community. Ted recently enjoyed spending time with our long lost BR Brian Park, as he was en route to VMI. After spending a decade in the Corps, Brian was recently accepted into medical school and is excited about pursuing a medical career.

A few more quick hitters I’ve managed to gather through social media: Adam Rouse was married Nov. 11, 2016, to Ms. Halah Touryalai. Colleen

Class of 2005: Daniel Harrison with wife Brittany and son Austin at Breakout for the Class of 2020. and Steven Bryan welcomed their first daughter, Avery, last year, and Rachel and Ryan Murphy very recently welcomed their daughter, Darcy, into the world Jan. 25, 2017.

That’s all for this edition, BRs – short and sweet. Thank you for all of those who sent updates, and please continue to keep those submissions rolling in so we can all remain touch.

Stay safe and be well, Tom Hardinge

2006

Shawn Driver

Well, Brother Rats, These will be my last class notes, at least for the foreseeable future. I’m happy to announce that Andrew Upshaw will be taking over for me as the class agent. As you remember from the 10th Reunion, Andrew led the fundraising committee and volunteered tons of time while living in Germany, knowing he wouldn’t be able to attend the reunion to celebrate. In a world where our time is increasingly more valuable and stretched thin, I

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Class Notes the fundraising side of things, please shoot me an email or give me a call. I’ll also ask again through our Facebook group.

You’ve probably noticed that, some Review issues, the notes don’t get submitted on my part. The reason for this is that, recently, I’ve received few to no submissions from the class.

If I only receive the odd email every now and then, I tend to hold on to what I do have until I can put together a more robust set of notes.

This tends to be one set of notes every other edition of the Review, at the earliest. I don’t really want to write about myself every single time, and I doubt you all really want to read it if I did, so reach out to any BRs that you know of who have had little or no correspondence up

to now and encourage them to write in. And, to those of you who do send me large updates on numerous brother rats, thank you!

Now, because I dropped the ball for him last Review, huge congratulations are owed to Josh Prible ’07 and his wife, Heather, on the birth of their son, Jordan Alexander Prible. Jordan was born Oct. 23, 2016, and both he and his mom are doing great!

Also, congrats to all of our BRs who have recently been promoted or will be in the near future. According to my Facebook feed, there’s a good sized group of y’all.

Hope to see you all soon!

In the bonds, Sally

Class of 2006: Shawn Driver with wife Jamie and newborn Brayden. was lucky to have him on my team.

It’s been an honor helping out for the past two years. I was lucky to have taken over in time for the reunion, and I’m grateful for the experience.

Being class agent is truly a labor of love, and I’m excited to see what direction Andrew takes it. There’s plenty of room for improvement, and I encourage you all to continue to stay involved and volunteer your time, ideas and updates when able.

Before I sign off, we do have one announcement. My wife, Jamie, gave birth to our second child (first son), Brayden Leo Driver, Feb. 3, 2017, in Savannah, Georgia. Everything went smoothly, and mom and baby are doing great. We’ll be moving to Ithaca, New York, this summer, so if you find yourself nearby, give me a shout.

Rah Virginia Mil, Shawn 571-235-0137 Shawn.L.Driver@gmail.com

2007

Sally Bushore

As our 10th Reunion looms in the near future, keep your eyes peeled for correspondence pertaining to it. Also, if anyone desires to help with planning and is not already involved in

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Class of 2007: Josh and Heather Prible’s son, Jordan Prible.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes 20-and-a-half inches. Saoirse’s big sister, Aria, is over the moon, as are mom and dad. Along with the birth from the Mellos, I got a chance to catch Robert Hill up with Shane Keys. Shane let me know that he and his wife, Genevieve, welcomed a baby boy to their family. Harrison was born Sept. 28, 2016.

Both mom and baby are doing wonderful.

Niels Madsen made it back to the states for about eight weeks after nearly six-and-a-half years This edition of the class notes is short and abroad and finally got a chance to see the Alumni sweet. Please remember you can send submisReview and what everything has been up to. Niels sions to my email at any time. moved to Berlin in 2013 after getting out of the Ross Hening has received a promotion to Army to get his Master of Business Administramaster deputy. Ross has been working with tion degree and since then started a business in the Roanoke City Sheriff ’s Department for Berlin subletting a prefinished office space called the past four years and was promoted Jan. 31, co-working. They had their opening 2017. Congrats on your promotion, in January 2017 with nearly 40,000 Ross! square feet of office space. He told me Joseph Prinzinger has taken that his experience at VMI definitely command of the 186th Engineer made a difference in the entrepreneurCompany in Dothan, Alabama.

The 186th is part of the Alabama ial world, as the luxury of time just National Guard with a mission of never seems to exist! Beyond that, he horizontal engineering mission. also got a chance to catch up with Dan Congrats, Joe! Brode from Company E this past AuJustus O’Connor married Reimi gust. He has since moved back to the Kojima in Tokyo, Japan, Jan. 20.

U.S. from Israel and is living in WheelThey met several years ago while ing, West Virginia. Niels said he looks Justus was stationed in Japan with the same as always and seems to be dothe Navy. They are now living in the ing well at his new job and is happy to Class of 2008: Justus O’Conner and wife Riemi with their famiWashington, D.C., area. Congrats, lies in Japan to celebrate their marriage. be back in the U.S. Niels also asked me Justin and Reimi. to include the fact that if anyone from Matt Harrison and his wife, Lauren, welcomed Zane Brennan Harrison to the family Jan. 18, 2017. Zane tipped the scales at 6 Bradley Simpson pounds, 15 ounces with a length of 21 inches.

2008

Matt, Lauren and Zane are all doing well, minus the sleepless nights like us fellow engineers had with Maj. Bott during 2nd Class year.

Also adding to the family was Rick Goodwin and wife Kelly. They welcomed Brady Paul Jan. 19. Congrats to the Harrisons and the Goodwins.

Lauren and I found out we’re having a baby girl. Lauren’s due May 16, but I’m pushing for New Market Day and my birthday, May 15!

We are looking forward to visiting northern Virginia in March as we celebrate with Matt Mitchell and wife Arlene-Raquel for the first birthday of their daughter, Ava Victoria.

Until next time, God bless.

2009

Class of 2008: Class Agent Robert Hill said of this photo, “Future VMI cadet Zane Brennan Harrison. Zane was born Jan.18 and is the son of Matt Harrison and wife Lauren.”

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Brother Rats, I hope yet another edition finds you and your families well. I trust that everyone had a wonderful last couple of months since the last Review came out.

I had a chance to talk with Stefan Mello at the beginning of January. Stefan and his wife, Nicole, moved to West Virginia. They made their move in September so Stefan could start his new job with the West Virginia State Police. They had some more good news Jan.10, 2017. Stefan and Nicole welcomed their second daughter, Saoirse Noelle Mello, into the world and to their family. She was born at 6:44 p.m. coming in at 8 pounds and

Class of 2009: Stefan and Nicole Mello with their family and new addition, Saoirse.

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Class Notes the class finds themselves traveling to Berlin, feel free to contact him, and he will take you for a beer.

He also stated he hopes they were comparable to Brad Cooper’s beer.

I also received Daniel Johnson’s email update, and he is out doing awesome stuff with the Army and is doing well.

Well, that about wraps up the notes for this edition. I didn’t get too many this go around, but if you have anything for the next round, please let me know. I always like getting updates, and if I don’t get anything from all of you, you will force me to write an entire edition about me, and we all wouldn’t want that.

As always, go out and do great things, and stay classy, 2009!

2010

Cody Hennelly Garland Gray III

It’s a cold February day in Richmond as I write this, but it will finally be spring by the time this issue of the Alumni Review gets to you. I’ll start this off with news of my own. I joined a small general practice law firm in Suffolk, Virginia, in January.

Val and I hope to move to Suffolk in the spring. If you’re in the area, I’d love to hear from you.

I attended the football game against The Citadel, where 2010 was well represented. Friday night before the game, I did something completely out of

character and walked to Macado’s. Throughout the evening, I ran into Matt Babcock; Chris Mendillo; Jack Curtis and his wife, Ashley; Thomas Chapman; Mike Louthan; and Mike Virden.

On Saturday, Val and I watched the parade with Jon Buckland and his wife, Kathryn; Will Shannon and his wife, Maria, and their very well-behaved golden doodle, Martha (for Martha Washington); and Clint and Anne Raine. Jon recently took command of a rifle company in 2nd Brigade Combat Team of the 82nd Airborne down at Fort Bragg. Will is in his second year of medical school at George Washington University. Clint is a staffer for the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Education and the Workforce. Jon tells me another roommate, A.J. Korbely, is stationed in Norfolk, where he works at Fleet Forces Command.

During the game, I ran into Lance Long, Hunter Naff and Justin Brinkman, who told me they had an informative tour of Barracks during their visit.

Tim Maypray was, of course, on the sidelines of the game as our running backs’ coach. I also ran into Brett Leonard, who had brought his daughter on her first visit to Lex Vegas. Juliet Leonard was born July 23 of last year in Frederick, Maryland, weighing in at 7 pounds, 15 ounces with a full head of hair. Congratulations to Brett and mom Catherine! Jack Wright and Jarrett Craddock were also in attendance. If I missed anybody in Lexington that weekend, I apologize.

Of course, the highlight of the weekend was Evan Aguirre’s engagement to Kim Dinsdale of Washington state. Kim and Evan were in Richmond from August through February while Evan took a course at Fort Lee and will be moving to Southern Pines, North Carolina, in the spring.

Davis Garrett married his high school sweetheart, Courtney Miller, in Centreville, Maryland,

Class of 2010: Hunter Cox ’13, Jacob Robertson, Shawn Fox, Garland Gray and Rand Irby ’12 at the Robertsons’ annual Christmas party.

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Class of 2010: Class Agent Garland Gray said of this photo, “Three generations of the Hutchings family rally for VMI on Thanksgiving: Two airborne Rangers and one non-airborne personnel.” Pictured were, from left, Virginia Militia Col. Eric Hutchings’77; Ballinger Hutchings (7 months old), future VMI Class of 2038; and retired U.S. Army Captain Michael Hutchings ’10.

Class of 2010: United States Marine Corps Capt. Matt Babcock and U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Kyle Haire ’03 flying for VMFA(AW)-533 in support of Operation Inherent Resolve.

Class of 2010: Garland and Valerie Gray, Brandon Page, and Jacob and Brittany Robertson at Brad Cooper’s ’09 Steam Bell Beer Works.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes of two years, Ashley FitzGerald. ConSept. 24. There was a big VMI presence at their wedding. In attendance gratulations to you both! were Randy Phillips, Lance Long, David Perry, another Richmond Miles Treacy, Justin Ferrell, Hunter brother rat, sent me a note to let me Naff, Colin Walker as the best man, know about some big changes in his Thomas Chapman, Mike Virden, life. David got married in the fall, and Paul “Photo Dodging” DeValk, me his family is growing. Not only is he and Johnny Godwin ’13. The Garnow a step-father to his eight-yearold step-son, but he has a baby due retts went on a romantic tour of Italy in April. David is back working at for their honeymoon.

VAMAC in Richmond. So happy for Justin Ferrell is now in his fourth you and your wife, Dave! year of medical school at the Medical Christopher “Woody” Hall and his College of Virginia. He and his wife, wife, Spenser, just had their second Lauren, recently went on a backpacking trip in South America, where JusClass of 2010: The VMI crowd at the wedding of Mr. and Mrs. child this past November. Their daughter is now an older sister, as Christotin didn’t get a haircut.

Davis Garrett, Sept. 24, 2016, on Maryland’s eastern shore. pher Hamilton Hall II was born Nov. For BRs in the greater Richmond area, Brad Cooper ’09 recently opened Steam Bell A huge thanks to Laura Resetar, who was the 30, 2016. So happy for the Halls and their family; Beer Works in Midlothian. He held an event for first to contact me for this edition of notes. Laura, thanks for writing, Woody! the VMI community in November, where I was a northern Virginia native, recently moved back to Aaron Castro wrote me to inform me he was happy to see Brandon Page, Jacob and Brittany the area after five years working in the financial about to get out of the Army. Aaron recently Robertson, and a host of other alumni. Brandon services industry in New York City. She is now moved in with his girlfriend, who works in Phoeis still going strong in Hampton Roads, where he working as a consultant with X Corp Solutions in nix as an attorney. As with any move, it’s been an works in the financial industry. Jacob has recently Washington, D.C., a firm currently partnered with adjustment. She’s been quoted as saying, “Now started a new position at Dominion Voice and the Small Business Administration and the Office I’m living with a boy.” In their off time, they enjoy Data, where he specializes in information technol- of Veterans Business Development on their Boots doing triathlons together. Aaron is in search of the ogy solutions for senior living facilities. to Business Program. Congratulations on the new next adventure after his transition to civilian life.

This past winter, I headed out to Virginia Beach Over the Christmas holidays, I had the privilege job, Laura, and welcome back home! of attending Jacob and Brittany Robertson’s anCam Hagan reached out with some exciting to catch up with my roommate, Alex Crow. Alex is enjoying stateside Navy life. He is currently stanual Christmas party, where I got the chance to news recently. Cam is engaged to be married and speak with Shawn Fox. Shawn’s stationed at Fort will be a father by early summer. Cam is now livtioned at Afloat Training Group as a training liaiBragg and spending as much time as he can in the ing in Tampa and lives close to Mike Thompson. son officer for the ships on the waterfront. Alex is deer woods.

This winter, the two enjoyed the grilling weather in enjoying Virginia Beach; we enjoyed the food and Jason Morgan informed me that he is now Florida while the rest of us were in slightly colder went to a concert on the strip at the beach. working as an assistant commonwealth’s attorney climates.

With a less than typical career transition, Vinin Lynchburg. If you get arrested in the Hill City, nie Do updated me that he had taken a demotion Last fall, I was fortunate enough to attend the at least you’ll get to see Jason. from captain to chief warrant officer 2 in order to wedding of Jeremy Lucier and the former MaddiThat’s all for now. I hope to hear from you or, son Wilbur. The two had a beautiful ceremony at pursue his dream of flying. Vinnie is now in flight better yet, see you soon. If you have any updates a family estate in the Northern Neck of Virginia. school at Fort Rucker, Alabama. His description you’d like to share, you know how to reach me.

At sunset on the riverbank, they were joined on of flight school was an interesting one I needed to share: “It’s like balancing a unicycle on a basthe groom’s side by Eric Wittig, Quinn Wicks, Tom Louderback and Josh Geher as groomsmen. ketball while juggling flaming raccoons. The racMike Thompson was in attendance, as well; he coons also happen to be rabid.” Best of luck with Allen McCown and Jeremy worked together in Richmond and the juggling, Vinnie!

Marty Tucker ’12 is at Rucker, as well, and have stayed close. It was great catching up with BRs and celebrating with Jeremy and Maddison! took the same path of demoting to get a pilot Zach Morgan is now in the Richmond area and slot. He is a few classes behind Vinnie. Pat recently closed on a house. After playing soccer for Sweeney, Joey Keese and Zach Henke are all One of the highlights of my position is getting the Keydets, Zach is back in the world of sports. there now for the Aviation Captain’s Career to share good news and have it shared with me. He is working for Monument Sports Group, an Course, as well. Rob Kelly ’08 is teaching in I really appreciated everyone’s emails, calls and insurance agency that specializes in commercial the Combined Arms Division, and another one texts in writing this because of the amount of insurance for sports businesses. Three days after of our dykes, Alex Grey ’08, is also at Rucker, excitement that was shared with me. closing on his house, he proposed to his girlfriend as well. Vinnie also had a reminder of how old

2011

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Class Notes we’re getting when he ran into some ’15 Keydets.

Chris Buck is doing well at Fort Bragg, and Josh Bookwalter is expecting his second child soon.

Another one of Vinnie’s roommates, Clark Morgret, is still in the Navy and staying busy. The rest of OB 231 is doing well. Lane Pratt recently got out of the Army and is working as a manufacturing facilitator for Ethicon in Georgia. It appears he loves Georgia and is spending more time on his motorcycle than he did in the Army. Chris Moser and David Gerardo are both in Germany. Vinnie made sure to remind me that while he is a captain in the Army at the moment, he will always be our fearless first captain.

Matt Parmer and his wife are also living in Germany. They’re enjoying traveling, and recently Matt has been with the 2nd Cavalry Regiment and traveled to Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Hungary with the Army. Matt and Courtney are taking advantage of being overseas and went to Paris last summer and Prague in the winter, along with a number of other destinations. Matt works with Noah Scribner ’09. After getting to Germany and finding another Keydet, he said to me, “It really is a small world.”

Gabe Itoka shot me a note to let me know he wrapped up his volunteer service in the Peace Corps in 2015. He served for two years in Morocco as a youth/community development volunteer.

After finishing his time in Morocco, he moved to Liberia to work in agriculture projects going on in the country. He is currently a project director and partner at Icarus International Inc., a firm based in D.C. that works specifically building agriculture in Liberia through a means of channels from business risk assessment, consulting and government relations. Gabe is in Boston at the Hult International Business School working on his Master of Business Administration degree. His plan is to head back to Liberia after finishing and work specifically jump-starting projects in agriculture sector. So glad things are going well, Gabe, and I know we will continue to hear more about your ventures in Africa soon.

Trent Gordon and his wife recently had a son, Bradley Aston Gordon. Mom and son are doing great. Congratulations on your growing family, Trent!

Patrick Terhune recently got out of the Marine Corps and moved to North Salem, New York.

Patrick is working as service manager for Cintas Corporation.

Through Facebook and email, I caught up with

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Tom Hamlin. He and his wife, Jackie, are doing well and still living in Leesburg. Tom is on active orders as a reservist for the year working for the Defense Intelligence Agency. Jackie recently got her nurse practitioner license and is working in Herndon. Tom’s roommate, Josh Kinder, is currently working as a facilities engineer at Newport News shipbuilding. He plans to move to Williamsburg soon; he mentioned walking to Busch Gardens being a big perk of his new place.

As if I needed a reason to feel more lazy, Travis Bowman gave me one. His update included that, along with being a teacher in the Virginia Beach area, he is training to ride his bike from Norfolk, Virginia, to Niagra Falls, Canada, this summer.

Last summer, he rode from Norfolk to Savanna, Georgia. His ultimate goal is to ride from San Francisco to Norfolk in summer 2018. Best of luck, Travis!

Rob Jones is deployed as I write this, and in another small world moment, he’s rooming with his 4th Class year roommate, Jack Folger, in Afghanistan. Jack is also in the 101st with Rob. They are both doing well. Get home soon, guys.

John Manning is still working in Washington and reported all is well with the House Judiciary Committee. He’s packing for India for work as I write this; hope you had a great trip, John! John and his wife, Mia, are expecting a boy in the spring. John has his fingers crossed for the VMI Class of 2039! If he wasn’t busy enough, John is now back in school working on his master’s.

Justin Simmons and his wife just had their first baby, Isabella Juliet Simmons, Feb. 5. Justin is headed to Japan this summer.

James Clayton is now stationed in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He is serving as an active duty Navy lieutenant at the Military Entrance Processing Station with an Army command. James ensures all applicants are qualified and gives them their oath before sending them off to recruit training centers.

James is enjoying this assignment, as it has been extremely rewarding helping change young men’s and women’s lives as they choose to serve in the military. James is also in school working on his Master of Business Administration degree. Equally impressive as balancing school and work is that James just paid off his student loans from VMI. I couldn’t say it better: James finished his email off with, “I wouldn’t take that debt again in a million years, but I proved it’s possible.”

I always enjoy writing the notes and hearing from BRs. I know there have been some missed issues,

but I need some help with updates. The notes will only be as long as the updates I receive. It’s never too late to let me know or send me a photo, even if the wedding, event, etc. was mentioned in the recent issue. Thank you for the opportunity to serve the class, and I look forward to hearing from you.

Rah Virginia Mil, Allen McCown

2012

Bruce Howard

Brother Rats, I hope this edition of the Review finds you and your families well.

Congratulations to Max Yates and his wife, Lauren, on their wedding. They were married on New Year’s Eve and will be moving to Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in May. I wish you both the best.

Also, congratulations are in order to Brandon Butler and his wife, Elissa, who welcomed their baby boy, Owen Lee Butler, into this world this past November. Thanks for the picture, Brandon, and I wish your new family well.

Stewart Hargrove is recently engaged after proposing to Dana Fredericks in 2016. The two are planning their wedding for August and will be able to join the community of VMI and Washington and Lee University couples. I guess Lexington just has a way of bringing people together! I wish you both a long and happy marriage.

Another accomplishment from one of our

Class of 2012: Owen Lee Butler, son of Brandon and Elissa Butler.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes ahead of you, Joe, so I wish you all the best.

I want to thank all of you for the updates. Please continue to send any news my way to be included in the next edition of the Review. As a reminder, we will be celebrating our 5th Reunion this fall; man, how time flies. I will be sending updates through email and Facebook about the event as we draw closer, and for those of you who would like to help out, please let me know. I wish you all the best and look forward to hearing from you soon.

In the bonds, Bruce

2013

Charles P. Jones

Class of 2013: Tyler and Jessica Davis with their new child, Ruby Eleanor.

Class of 2012: Joseph Fleshman and his wife, Meg, along with their children, Marigold and Curran.

2013, It’s hard to believe it, but it’s been four years classmates: Samantha Farr recently graduated from Army Logistics Captains Career Course. since we graduated. That means it’s time to get ready for our 5th Reunion! We don’t have an Sam is now living in Fort Riley, Kansas.

Wayne Whiting was working in D.C. before exact date yet, but 5th Reunions typically occur moving up to New York for a job opportunity. in the fall, so we can expect ours in fall 2018. If After being north of the Mason Dixon Line for you are interested in helping plan the reunion, too long, he made the wise decision to move back please give me a call or send an email; I am acto Richmond, Virginia. Glad to have you back, tively looking for volunteers to get planning.

We have just over a year to make it happen! brother!

Congratulations to Joe Munno for competing at I recently heard from Jessica Davis, who menWodapalooza in January. Joe and his teammates tioned that she and her husband, Tyler Davis, had their first baby, a girl named Ruby Eleanor, were not only able to qualify for the Crossfit competition, which is a great feat in itself, but also put Oct. 30, 2016. Congratulations! They’re curup quite a performance throughout the weekend. rently stationed at Fort Hood, Texas, where Congrats on your success, Joe, and best of luck in Tyler is serving as an executive officer in 4th Squadron 9th U.S. Cavalry, and Jessica is dothe future.

Class of 2013: Caleb Clubb on a recent ing civil engineering/land development work.

Joesph Fleshman is currently in Naval Postdeployment to Romania. graduate School in Monterey, California. Joseph I also received an update from Jenna Vilushis, who said she and Fred are expecting anis studying operations research for the other child in mid-February 2017 (Will Navy Human Resource Department. have passed by the time you read this).

I’m not going to act like I know what Be sure to congratulate them, as well! any of that means, but it sounds I’ve had the pleasure of living in the smart ... so great job! He’s set to gradsame apartment complex as my roomuate in September and then continue mate, Thomas Hulcher, for the last his career shortly after in Arlington, few months. The other day, he menVirginia. Joseph and his wife, Meg, tioned he’ll be transitioning out of the also want to share how blessed they Army in May and is actively looking are to have two children now. Their for work in Germany where his wife, son, Curran, was born in May 2014 Katie, will be stationed. Please contact and their daughter, Marigold, was born in October 2016. Sounds like Class of 2013: From left, Fred and Jenna Vilushis and Donnie and me if you know of any opportuniRebekah Martin at a VMI football game last fall. ties you’d like to send his way! Like you have a great family and future

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Class Notes least a few of you at the graduation ceremony, and I would like to say what an incredible moving ceremony and commencement speech.

Congratulations to all of our rats who graduated in May! For those of you who need an extra semester or year, I say enjoy the victory lap or two, or as BR Pierpoint knows, the extra mile. I mean, who would want to spend only four years at VMI when they could spend five? I would like to give a small personal shoutout to my rat, Ben Stewart ’17, Company B commanding officer and now following in his dyke’s footsteps as class agent of 2017. Hopefully you’re more on top of your class notes than I’ve been.

Anyway, back to actual class business. Kyle Reavis has been promoted to captain ... of a fishing vessel. I believe he is the first to achieve this rank in our class.

Mr. Reavis is the proud owner of Galveston Sports Fishing off Galveston Island, Texas.

I was really trying to come up with something

funny about Kyle assigning fishing trips better than he assigned the rooms as class historian (Thank you, Mattingly) but seeing as I write these notes the day they are due and about 30 minutes before the deadline (Thank you for reminding me and getting everyone’s stories, Harding) I couldn’t come up with anything – but y’all get the point.

In baby news, Brett Nichols and his wife, Aleesha, recently moved to Kansas, where they had a beautiful daughter, Hayden Grace Nichols, Dec. 27, 2016. Quentin O’Neal and his beautiful wife, Crystal, are expecting their first child! Congratulations to both of y’all!

Samuel Guidry I think when it comes to making babies, “Cold Steel Sex Appeal” Charlie seems to be in the lead.

Not that it’s a competition, but if it were, Charlie Taylor Floyd would be winning, as usual.

Sam Busche is a married man! I would like to take this time to officially apologize to you and your lovely wife for missing the wedding; I was a little bit caught up, if you know what I mean, but I love you, and I can’t believe you were the first guy in our room to get married. Really thought it Brother Rats, would have been Ben Smith, but it looks like you This might just be the first time the Class of 2014 beat him by a little bit! Ben, congratulations, as actually has class notes in the Alumni Review well! Looking forward to your wedding! back to back, like we’re Jordan ’96-’97. Very excitThe Class of 2014 has released the Kraken! Juan ing ... I guess this means we are all really growing “The Kraken” Adams wrote a little piece for the up and maturing into real adults. notes! Thank you, Juan. You are “number Juan” When I wrote these notes (about two to three in the ring and “number Juan” in our hearts. months before they are delivered to your parents’ “Hey, BRs; I’m currently 3-0 in amateur MMA. house), our grand rats had just broken out and ofClass of 2014: Juan “The Kraken” AdI’m the Garcia Promotions heavy weight champ, ficially became the Class of 2020 – another sign ams celebrated with his coaching team and I will be declaring pro for the second half of that we’re getting old. Speaking of Breakout, I as the undefeated Garcia Promotions this year. I am defending my title April 28 at the recently had lunch with a member of our dyke heavyweight champion.

Humble Civic Center in Humble, Texas. I am also line, John Judge ’08, who told me about his own coaching wrestling for professional fightBreakout, or rather a “fakeout.” I always thought these were a myth, but he told ers and aspiring wrestlers. Two of my clime their dykes went so far that they even ents are in the UFC and one just qualified fed the rats their steaks before telling them for high school prep nationals. My fight that they were, in fact, still rats. While that name is The Kraken, and all of my fight might have been a little excessive, I am videos are on my fan page on Facebook, sure that the Class of 2017 kept our dyke Juan ‘The Kraken’ Adams. Big shoutout line tradition of grueling Breakouts going, to my rats, Shabaka and Bryce, and all the and I am very happy to welcome the Class other rats of our room – especially Dalton. of 2020 into our ranks.

Good luck to the Class of 2020; hopefully What all of this really means is that by VMI empowers you all to reach your goals the time you are reading this, our rats in life and equips you with the tools to do will have graduated and some of them expediently.” commissioned in the Armed Forces.

In some more class news, Joe PredaOur rats graduated from the Virginia bon completed his service with Teach for Military Institute. I don’t know if the Class of 2014: Kyle Reavis returns from a successful trip America and has gone back to school rest of y’all are as amazed as I am, but on the Jack’d Up, the flagship for his company, Galveston himself in pursuit of a master’s degree.

Sport Fishing. time really does fly. I hope I got to see at Nicole Augins also started her master’s Thomas, many of our active duty BRs are beginning to transition out of the military. I encourage those of you making the move into the civilian sector to take advantage of all the resources offered by the VMI Alumni Agency. Feel free to call me if you’re unsure of who to contact at the agency.

As always, I love getting updates from everybody and will include them in the class notes here. If you have anything you’d like included, please send it my way!

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VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes in executive leadership. She was also awarded the 15th Wings Company Grade Officer of the year for 2016! Congratulations to both of you!

As always, I am sure that there are a ton of awesome accomplishments I have left out. Please, please, message me or Nicole Harding on Facebook and keep us updated with what y’all are all doing!

Nicole, Thank you so much for stepping up and keeping me organized and constantly reminding me that the class notes are due in a week, in three days, in two hours ... yesterday.

Look forward to hearing from all of you, and I can’t wait to see all of you at our 5th Reunion – which, by the way, Taylor, Nicole and I will need help planning. (Plans that don’t include excessive use of fireworks and smoke grenades ... Billy). If you would like to help in any way, please let us know.

Very Respectfully, Samuel Guidry

Class of 2015: Erica Putney, Mary Shriver ’14 and Kelly Sullivan ’01, visiting with Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Class of 2015: Taylor Hicks with his wife, Emilee.

engagements recently. Be sure to congratulate your brother rats next time you speak with them.

Adam Diehl recently got married to Gretchen Glaze at a ceremony in Atlanta, Georgia. Katheryne (Austin) married William Ruck Jan. 28, 2017.

Her roommate, Kristin Voss, and her rat, Anna Johnny Conover ’18, were both in attendance. Taylor McDonald Hicks married Emilee Taylor of Chesapeake, Virginia, Dec. 18, 2016, in Virginia Beach. Madeleine Julienne married Zsombor Németh Dec. 3, 2016.

Alex Monson married Katelyn Huckery. Mike Brother Rats, Prifti married Rachel Gauldin. Hannah DickWe are finally through the holiday season, and it inson became engaged to Booth Hornsby ’13 in is time to sit down and write class notes again. It Class of 2015: Ross and Breanna BarMay 2016. They will be getting married June 2017 has been a busy year for me, and looking at all the nett welcomed Indiana Marie into in Norfolk, Virginia. notes I have from BR’s, it has been the same for their family.

The following brother rats welcomed a few fueveryone else. ture Keydets into the family recently.

Erica Putney, along with Mary Again, please be sure to congratulate Shriver ’14 and Kelly Sullivan ’01, them. Brent Clark and his wife, Casey, met Supreme Court Justice Ruth Badhad their first child, Silas John Clark, er Ginsburg Feb. 1, 2017. Justice GinsAug. 22, 2016, at 10:30 p.m. Silas burg held a public interview in Camweighed 6 pounds, 11 ounces and was eron Hall, which was nearly filled to 21 inches long. Ross and Breanna Barthe 3,800-person capacity. Erica said, nett gave birth to their daughter, Indi“It was an honor to meet Justice Ginsana Marie Barnett, Jan. 31, 2017, at burg. I wouldn’t be where I am today Langley Air Force Base. if it weren’t for her.” Justice Ginsburg The following BRs are currently made the majority opinion in U.S. verdeployed or stationed abroad. Please sus Virginia, the Supreme Court case keep them and their families in your which opened VMI to women. This thoughts. Hardy Hendren is currently year marks the 20th anniversary since in Iraq in support of Operation Inherit the ruling.

Resolve. Joseph Macchiaroli, Stephen This was very exciting to Erica, and Class of 2015: Brice Scott, Joseph Macchiaroli, Stephen Cas- Caskey and Nathan Webster are all I congratulate her on being a great exkey and Nathan Webster posed for a picture at a VMI alumni stationed in South Korea. Brice Scott ample of who the Class of 2015 is. reunion in Yongsan, South Korea. is deployed to South Korea.

There were a lot of marriages and

2015

2017-Issue 2

145

Class Notes Other announcements: Connor (Sulqualifications before arriving at their livan) and Joshua Lawrence recently boats later this year. We wish luck to bought a house in Orange Park, FlorNate Cole, Troy Emig, Jared Gruber, Cody Damewood and Devon Floida. They look forward to spending rendo, who recently started Nuclear time on the beach under sunny skies Power School. with their two dogs, Maggie and Andy.

Alex Hastings completed flight Michaela Wright is working as a school and was awarded her aviator project engineer for Branch Civil out wings Jan. 5, 2017. Alex will now be of Roanoke, Virginia, primarily foflying the UH-60A/L “Blackhawk” cused on Interstate 81. She is also planfor the United States Army out of Fort ning her wedding to Jonathan Speas, Drum. Hayden Whetstone still dresswhich is set for Sept. 16, 2017. We wish her the best. es impeccably, utilizing his shirt stays Patrick Piedad is beginning ABOLC both in and out of uniform.

Jarred Marlowe has finally settled Class of 2015: Booth Hornsby ’13 and Hannah Dickinson will be Feb. 20 and is linking up with Mark Miller and Moe Valiani down at Fort down after bouncing around for a married in June 2017 in Norfolk, Virginia.

Benning. while. He has his master’s degree and Giustino Iuliano is working for Turner Conis currently living in Bassett, Virginia, teaching swimmers. He is getting married to Raegen Begany upon his return to the States.

History at Bassett High School while also coachstruction in Washington, D.C., and was just reJoe Lamagna was the first of the Army Aviators cently working on the Capitol Hill dome renovaing football and baseball. to select his aircraft, and he is incredibly happy that tion.

Tessa and Mitchell White are currently located he will be flying the CH-47 Chinook.

Mark Armstrong is living in Berlin, Germany, at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in North CarCongratulations to Sydnie Bligh, who graduolina, where things are going “pretty well.” Tessa working in information security and data privacy is finally starting to get into her real job, once she ated Officer Candidate School in November and for Coca-Cola Deutschland. He is finding time to finishes with qualifications. Mitchell is still going commissioned into the Marine Corps, currently at pursue his master’s in international affairs.

Andrew Skibicki is keeping the legacy alive; his to graduate school and doing once-a-month drill Quantico. Also a shoutout to Daniel Whitaker for commissioning into the Coast Guard. little brother, Ben, just committed to play soccer with the local Army Reserve unit.

Robert Elmore, Chris Siebert and Jake Tyler for VMI for the Class of 2018+3.

Those are all the updates I have for this edition Thank you to all of you for the contributions. of the Alumni Review. Please keep me updated just recently graduated Nuclear Power School in December. They are in New York working on Rah Virginia Mil. and feel free to contact me at any time with questions, concerns or just to catch up.

Whole damn team, Johnny

2016

Jacob Norris Patrick Hine

2016, we have lots of announcements and good news to spread for this Review. First off, congratulations to Will Camp and Domenick Stumpo, who are both now engaged.

Bennett Dotson is currently deployed to the Middle East on the USS Cole working as a division officer and as one of the boat’s Search and Rescue

146

Class of 2016: Giustino Iuliano working on the Capitol Hill Dome renovation.

VMI Alumni Review

Class Notes

Baby Keydets WAHESH – a son, Elias James, to Carrie and Elias G. Wahesh ’96, Jan. 5, 2017.

AYRES – a daughter, Kyla Rae, to Carrie Rutledge and W. Daniel Ayres ’04, Nov. 12, 2016.

CRAGG – a son, John Francis, to Jenna and Daniel J. Cragg ’04, Nov. 22, 2016.

GOODWIN – a son, Brady Paul, to Kelly and Frederick D. Goodwin IV ’08, Jan. 19, 2017.

HARRISON – a son, Zane Brennan, to Lauren and Matthew C. Harrison ’08, Jan. 18, 2017.

Marriages PARRINO – Dr. Tania Kasdaglis to James T. Parrino III ’96, Nov. 19, 2016.

O'CONNOR – Reimi Kojima to Justus K. O’Connor ’08, Jan. 20, 2017.

AUSTIN – Katheryne R. Austin ’15 to William Ruck, Jan. 28, 2017.

HICKS – Emilee Taylor to M. Taylor Hicks ’15, Dec. 18, 2016.

The VMI Alumni Association has completed an upgrade of its popular website, www.vmialumni.org.

Visitors to the revamped site will find an improved event registration page, upgraded profile updates and an enhanced alumni directory, as well as more alumni-related news and information. For those who want to give to VMI, it also offers a simplified and secure donation process.

These changes and others that the Alumni Association will make over the next several months will provide a better online experience and make it easier for alumni to engage with the Institute, their brother rats and thousands of their fellow alumni.

Please take a moment to visit the site and start connecting with VMI through a better online experience.

JULIENNE – Madeleine M. Julienne ’15 to Zsombor Németh, Dec. 3, 2016.

VMI’s 25 Most Senior Alumni According to the records of the VMI Alumni Association, the people listed below constitute the 25 senior alumni of the Institute.

Please contact the Alumni Review staff if any errors are noted.

William E. Cantrell ’926

Oct. 17, 1905

B. Anthony Fisher ’40

Sept. 14, 1918

Ernest C. Johnson ’929

May 19, 1908

William W. Middleton Jr. ’39

Sept. 20, 1918

Thomas M. Zeledon ’930

Dec. 21, 1908

Richard H. McCormick ’934

Dec. 4, 1912

Robert L. Spear ’41

Oct. 21, 1918

James C. Sherman ’35

March 31, 1914

Richard H. Peake Jr. ’41

Oct. 31, 1918

Henry B. Johnson ’38

Aug. 9, 1915

Yandell Boatner Jr. ’40

Jan. 28, 1919

Floyd S. Smith ’41

Sept. 7, 1916

Robert C. Maling ’41

Aug. 16, 1919

Raymond W. Parks ’37

Oct. 6, 1916

Lloyd W. Winkler Jr. ’43

Sept. 7, 1919

James M. Witt ’39

Dec. 23, 1916

B.H. Hardaway III ’40

Sept. 28, 1919

Ira N. Saxe ’39

Feb. 9, 1918

Sol W. Rawls Jr. ’40

Oct. 25, 1919

James L. Lennox ’40

March 23, 1918

Robert P. Smith ’40

Nov. 1, 1919

David R. Gaitskill ’40

April 9, 1918

Gordon L. Early ’41

Nov. 3, 1919

Donald E. Hillman ’40

Aug. 24, 1918

Frederick D. Kilmer ’43

Nov. 19, 1919

2017-Issue 2

147

Restructuring the Agencies

by Robert P. Louthan ’82, VMI Alumni Association President Hugh M. Fain III ’80, VMI Foundation President Buzz Birzenieks ’64, VMI Keydet Club President

R

ecently, we announced the hiring of retired U.S. Navy Cmdr. Stephen M. Maconi as the chief executive officer for the VMI Alumni Agencies.

This announcement prompted several alumni and friends to ask us what this means for the VMI Alumni Agencies and their ability to support the Institute and the Corps of Cadets, and why we are changing our leadership and structure.

While the VMI Alumni Agencies have always embraced new technologies and adopted new ways of doing business, the planning and execution of An Uncommon Purpose: A Glorious Past, A Brilliant Future: The Campaign for VMI prompted us to examine closely how other advancement organizations serve their respective constituencies and what the emerging best practices are in such fields as alumni relations, fundraising, stewardship and communications. We paid particular attention to how advancement agencies coordinate their efforts with each other and the colleges and universities they support, and how they organize themselves to realize maximum efficiency and get the most out of every dollar they spend.

Through this examination, we learned a lot about how to improve how we serve VMI and its cadets, faculty, staff, alumni and friends. After much consideration and consultation with advancement professionals and the Institute’s leadership, we developed and brought to our respective boards a plan to better integrate and coordinate the work of the VMI Alumni Association, the VMI Foundation, the VMI Keydet Club and the Institute.

Last summer, each organization’s board approved it, and as you were informed , we took the first step of realizing this new vision: The search for a chief executive officer who will provide the day-to-day leadership for the Agencies as they go through this process – and beyond.

It is important to stress what the restructuring plan is not. First, at this time, there is no plan for the three agencies to be amalgamated into one “superagency.” Each organization will retain its own charter, articles of incorporation and bylaws. Each will maintain its own governing board with full fiduciary authority and responsibilities. Each organization will continue to execute its own particular mission. Each will maintain its own traditions and values. In other words, things will look and work much like they do now – and have for many decades. It is important to understand, however, over time, emerging “best practices” and our own experience very well could result in some mergers of functions and other actions that will cut costs, improve messaging and otherwise enhance advancement at VMI. There will be a new nine-member board consisting of the presidents of

VMI Alumni Association 148

•

the three agencies and, as ex-officio voting members, a vice president of each agency, the Board of Visitors president, the superintendent and the Alumni Agencies CEO. This board will be responsible for the Agencies’ overall strategic plans and policies and for overseeing and evaluating the CEO’s performance.

The CEO will be the Agencies’ representative to the Institute, responsible for better coordinating our activities in support of VMI and for ensuring that they speak with one voice to VMI. He also is tasked with improving our communications with our alumni and friends, eliminating any redundancies in our fundraising, and making the most of our staffs’ experiences, talents and imaginations.

Our new CEO of the VMI Alumni Agencies (who is already on the job) is Stephen M. Maconi. A 1977 graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Steve served as an officer in the U.S. Navy for 21 years and, as a naval aviator, flew the P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft. After retiring from the Navy, Steve joined the U.S. Naval Academy Foundation. There, he played a key role in the Naval Academy’s first-ever comprehensive campaign which raised more than $253 million. As the foundation’s vice president for development, he led numerous fundraising efforts, cultivated and managed a dedicated staff of development professionals, and worked to coordinate the efforts of the U.S. Naval Academy Foundation, the U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association, and the Naval Academy Foundation Athletic and Scholarship Division.

Chosen from dozens of candidates, Steve brings extensive experience in advancement, proven leadership ability, sound judgment and an energetic personality that will stand him in good stead as he serves as the first CEO of the VMI Alumni Agencies.

On July 5, 1842, the day after VMI’s first commencement, its first graduates formed the Alumni Military Association. In 1853, when it was reorganized as the Society of the Alumni of VMI, its constitution stated that it was established because alumni were “deeply interested in the prosperity of [VMI] and desirous of affecting something, in a body, toward her increased usefulness and renown.” That interest and that desire have never flagged, and acting through the organizations which descended from the one formed in 1842, VMI’s alumni (and its innumerable friends) have made them tangible. Their support has made the Institute a national institution, a national resource and a national treasure.

The VMI Alumni Agencies made these changes mindful of both VMI’s importance to the country and our support’s importance to VMI – and with the sole purpose of improving how we serve the Institute.

Keydet Club

•

VMI Foundation VMI Alumni Review

Provisional Appointments APPOINTEE’S NAME

ALUMNUS-CLASS

RELATIONSHIP

APPOINTEE’S NAME

ALUMNUS-CLASS

RELATIONSHIP

2026

2021

Connor Haas

William E. Haas ’57

Grandfather

Thomas J. Frazier ’871

Great-great-

Peter J. Maxwell

Lee C. Yowell ’93

Cousin

Ed Newman

Michael K. Cole ’80

Uncle

Makenzie Wright

E. Sean Lanier ’94

Cousin

Donald C. Roberts ’90

Cousin

2027

Curtis A. Mason ’92

Cousin

Carla J. Bogusky

Matthew P. Bogusky ’96

Father

T. Scott Hayes Jr. ’19

Cousin

Emily T. Maeger

Henry V. Maeger ’69

Grandfather

Lyla R. Chittum

F. Glenn Furr Jr. ’75

Grandfather

Stephen O. Johnson ’96

Father

Michael D. Perry

Shane M. Perry ’12

Brother

Samuel T. Hartt ’926

Great-

great-grandfather

2028

2022

Patrick Johnson

grandfather 2023

Garrett H. Kucera

Jonathan J. Kucera ’93

Father

Randolph P. Williams

Edward C. Addison ’59

Grandfather

Grafton D. Addison ’921

Great-

Nathan Eads

Matthew S. Eads ’93

Father

Caleb Hackett

Christopher I. Hackett ’93

Uncle

Malik Jones

E. Sean Lanier ’94

Cousin

Donald C. Roberts ’90

Cousin

Grafton D. Addison Jr. ’54 Great-uncle

Curtis A. Mason ’92

Cousin

Grafton D. Addison III ’82 Cousin

grandfather

T. Scott Hayes Jr. ’19

Cousin

Grafton D. Addison IV ’11 Cousin

Michael L. Parnell Jr.

Michael L. Parnell ’91

Father

Thomas E. Gottwald ’83

Uncle

Emily E. Smith

Charles S. Smith ’90

Father

Thomas D. Gottwald ’09

Cousin

Matthew A. Tederick II

Matthew A. Tederick ’89

Father

Edward P. Gottwald ’14

Cousin

Meade A. Spotts ’79

Cousin

Christian B. Addison ’14

Cousin

Michael C. Denton ’81

Uncle

2024 Evan T. Brandt

Robert S. Sayre ’80

Uncle

Olivia C. Evans

Thomas A. Gritzmacher ’67

Grandfather

Martin D. Parnell

Michael L. Parnell ’91

Father

2029

Patrick Sexton

Christopher G. Caplice ’84

Uncle

William J. Evans

Thomas A. Gritzmacher ’67 Grandfather

John Caplice ’80

Cousin

Michael W. Lawrence Jr.

Chris E. Hair ’83

Grandfather

Eric A. Tarbox ’94

Father

David M. Hair ’19

Uncle

Stephen O. Johnson ’96

Father

Samuel T. Hartt ’926

Great-

Krystof S. Kucera

Jonathan J. Kucera ’93

Father

Xoe B. Smith

Thomas A. Smith ’98

Father

Howard L. Smith ’48B

Grandfather

Luke Tarbox

2030

2025

Elliot Johnson

Robert J. Kennedy III

Robert S. Kennedy II ’00

Father

Richard D. Van Wagoner

David D. Van Wagoner ’79

Father

Harrison M. Williams

Edward C. Addison ’59

Grandfather

Grafton D. Addison ’921

Great-

Grafton D. Addison Jr. ’54

Great-uncle

Grafton D. Addison III ’82

Cousin

Grafton D. Addison IV ’11

Cousin

2031

Thomas E. Gottwald ’83

Uncle

Hailey K. Maeger

Henry V. Maeger ’69

Grandfather

Thomas D. Gottwald ’09

Cousin

Sean J. Maeger

Henry V. Maeger ’69

Grandfather

Edward P. Gottwald ’14

Cousin

Meade A. Spotts ’79

Cousin

2032

Christian B. Addison ’14

Cousin

William R. Gorman III

Michael C. Denton ’81

Uncle

grandfather

2017-Issue 2

grandfather

William R. Gorman II ’94 Father Michael H. Gorman ’93

Cousin

149

Provisional Appointments APPOINTEE’S NAME

ALUMNUS-CLASS

RELATIONSHIP

APPOINTEE’S NAME

ALUMNUS-CLASS

RELATIONSHIP

William R. Gorman III

Christopher R. Gorman ’96

Cousin

Tanner Falcon

Mark A. Falcon ’07

Father

(cont.)

John B. Gorman ’48B

Cousin

Caden V. Maeger

Henry V. Maeger ’69

Grandfather

Thomas L. Gorman ’52

Cousin

William H. Maeger

Henry V. Maeger ’69

Grandfather

Chris E. Hair ’83

Grandfather

Madeleine Rosenbaum

Adam C. Rosenbaum ’06

Father Grandfather

Hailee E. Lawrence

David M. Hair ’19

Uncle

Alexander M. Shuffler

Paul D.C. Marks ’69

Liam McGuire

Christopher P. McGuire ’99

Father

Camden R. Whitestone

Franklin J. McConnell Jr. ’80 Great-uncle

Griffith J. Polk

Kurt Polk ’95

Father

Cole H. Wilkinson

Hilbert W. Wilkinson III ’94

Father

Robert C. Polk ’61

Grandfather

Christopher R. Braun ’98

Godfather

Paul X. English III ’73

Grandfather

Paul X. English ’911

Great-great-

2038 Michael P. Beckett

2033 Blake Brashears

Thomas A. Brashears ’95

Father

Bella F. Griffin

Dean A. Kratzenberg ’87

Great-uncle

Braxton R. Haddock

Dean A. Kratzenberg ’87

Great-uncle

Marshall C. Moore

Paul D.C. Marks Jr. ’69

Grandfather

Norah M. O’Boyle

Timothy M. O’Boyle ’94

Father

Hailey B. Watson

James M. Watson ’07

Father

grandfather Paul X. English Jr. ’49C

Greatgrandfather

Samuel M. Hairston ’47

Greatgrandfather

Randolph S. Knipp ’56

Greatgreat-uncle

Davis H. Blackmon

Bruce Haldeman II ’58

Grandfather

George P. Frazer ’929

Cousin

J.E. Dawson Boyer ’08

Father

William B. Dawson ’51

Great-

Robert C. Boyer ’11

Uncle

Lara T. Chambers ’03

Mother

Stuart R. Chambers ’03

Father

Great-uncle

Webb L. Tyler ’73

Grandfather

Father

Catlin E. Tyler ’31

Great-

Catlin E. Tyler Jr. ’68

Great-uncle

Richard H. Donohue Jr. ’02

Father

Edward O. Donohue ’03

Uncle

2034 Brayden H. Bragg

James G. Pavlou ’74

Grand-uncle

Cole Chambers

Lara T. Chambers ’03

Mother

Stuart R. Chambers ’03

Father

Webb L. Tyler ’73

Grandfather

Catlin E. Tyler ’931

Great-

Catlin E. Tyler Jr. ’68

Great-uncle

Sofia A. Griffin

Dean A. Kratzenberg ’87

Declan F. Herbaugh

Marvin M. Herbaugh ’90

grandfather

Marvin O. Herbaugh ’66

Grandfather

Katelyn E. Maeger

Henry V. Maeger ’69

Grandfather

Haven D. Parker

John H. Dixon ’81

Cousin

Abigail Rosenbaum

grandfather Ethan Chambers

grandfather Connor Donohue Tyler J. Elliott

David R. Elliott ’61

Grandfather

Richard H. Donohue Jr. ’02

Father

Jackson M. Esteve

George A. Esteve ’00

Father

Edward O. Donohue ’03

Uncle

Sophia G. Fielder

Layne M. Fielder ’02

Father

Adam C. Rosenbaum ’06

Father

Marc L. Fielder ’72

Grandfather

Leslie D. Fielder ’76

Great-uncle

James W. Baker ’69

Grandfather

2035 Richard H. Donohue III

William D. Boyer

Jackson C. Franco

2036 Beau W.P. Corcoran

Ryan W.P. Corcoran ’08

Father

Jason M. Bass ’17

Cousin

Kara Ryan

Adam C. Rosenbaum ’06

Uncle

Myles Gonzales

Joshua W. Gonzales ’03

Father

Michael Ryan

Adam C. Rosenbaum ’06

Uncle

Adelaide Harr

Jason R. Harr ’03

Father

McKenna L. Watson

James M. Watson ’07

Father

William T. Hupp III

Stephen E. Hupp Jr. ’16

Cousin/

Kenneth D. Woodson III

Kenneth D. Woodson II ’02

Father

Godfather Henry T. Hupp Jr. ’44

Great-

William T. Hupp ’77

Grandfather

grandfather

2037 Madalena R. Dean

150

Francis J. Rosenthal III ’82

Grandfather

VMI Alumni Review

Provisional Appointments APPOINTEE’S NAME William T. Hupp III (cont.)

Dean C. Jones Charlotte R. Luxhoj

Joseph D. Moore Jr.

ALUMNUS-CLASS

RELATIONSHIP

APPOINTEE’S NAME

ALUMNUS-CLASS

RELATIONSHIP

Stephen E. Hupp ’84

Uncle

Jackson A. Smith

Franklin J. McConnell Jr. ’80

Grandfather

Thomas B. Hupp ’20

Cousin

Jacob Williams

David M. Williams ’07

Father

William B. Klick ’12

Uncle

Ike A. Woodson

Kenneth D. Woodson II ’02

Father

K. Barrett Luxhoj ’09

Father

Andrew C. Luxhoj ’11

Uncle

2039

William J. Luxhoj ’15

Uncle

Dominic A. Bishop

Michael J. Smith ’77

Grandfather

James D. Gearhart ’71

Grandfather

Penelope J. Colhoff

Edmund R. Strickler ’62

Great-

George W. Gearhart ’70

Great-uncle

C. Jesse Gearhart ’77

Cousin

Gregory A. Gearhart ’78

Cousin

grandfather Stephen A. Strickler ’68

Greatgreat-uncle Great-

Donald M. O’Sullivan Jr. ’00

Father

Cooper D. Rosenthal

Francis J. Rosenthal III ’82

Grandfather

Anastasia M. Simmers

Joseph M. Simmers ’10

Father

James M. Perry

Shane M. Perry ’12

Father

Bradley J. Simpson ’09

Father

Andrew M. Reel Jr.

Andrew M. Reel ’03

Father

Daniel M. Simpson ’08

Uncle

Adam L. Reel ’07

Uncle

Edgar C. Knowling ’65

Great-uncle

Parker J. Slagle

Morris D. Slagle ’77

Grandfather

Vincent C. Scott Jr. ’66

Great-uncle

Gus U. Smith

Thomas A. Smith ’98

Father

R. Trent Blackman ’09

Uncle

Howard L. Smith ’48B

Grandfather

Donald M. O’Sullivan III

Payton L. Simpson

2017-Issue 2

Michael M. Strickler ’71

great-uncle

151

Taps Emmett J. Heerdt Jr. ’34 Emmett Jessee Heerdt Jr. ’34 of Aiken, South Carolina, died Aug. 21, 2013. He was 101.

Heerdt matriculated from Stamford, Connecticut, and was a distinguished graduate of VMI, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering. He earned his Master of Science degree from Harvard University.

He is survived by his wife, Sally; sons, Douglas (Margaret) and David; four grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and brother, Bruce.

He was preceded in death by his first wife, Nancy.

Tapley; sons, James Garman Tapley Jr. (Page) and David Lee Tapley (Paula); grandsons, Bryan Shands Tapley and David Hollis Tapley; step-granddaughter, Stephanie Varner Wilson (Mark); and great-grandchildren, Jack Vincent Wilson, Lilly Wilson, Blake Wilson and Harper Tapley.

and Lewis Thomas Curdts (Ivy Sigel); son-in-law, William A. Stratton; nine granddaughters; and two great-grandsons.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Mildred “Tatty” Fleming Curdts, and daughter, Courtney Curdts Stratton.

Robert P. Jones Jr. ’44

James Albert Lyle Jr. ’46 of Lynchburg, Virginia, died Dec. 20, 2016. He was 93.

Lyle matriculated from Riverside, Illinois, and attended VMI for less than one year.

He earned his Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

He is survived by his children, James Earle Lyle (Belinda Chin) and Kathleen Lyle Falls (Dr. Randall Keith Falls), and grandchildren, Jeffrey Anderson Lyle, McCausland Chin Lyle, Dr. Randall Keith Falls Jr., William Frederick Falls and James Alexander Falls.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Jean McCausland Lyle, and son, James Albert Lyle III.

Robert Parke “Egypt” Jones Jr. ’44 of Newport News, Virginia, died Nov. 27, 2016. He was 93.

Jones matriculated from Norfolk, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from John A. Gialanella ’36 VMI. He earned his Master of BusiJohn August “Gelly” Gialanella ’36 ness Administration degree from the of Tecumseh, Michigan, died Dec. 17, College of William & Mary.

2016. He was 102.

He is survived by his wife, Faye; Gialanella matriculated from Newdaughters, Christina (Dave Cassel) ark, New Jersey, and earned his and Ridley; grandchildren, Carrie Bachelor of Science degree in civil Gumm (Daniel), Robert “Robbie” P. engineering from VMI. Jones IV (Stacy), Melinda “Lindy” He is survived by his son, John Campbell (Chris) and Elizabeth Gialanella (Sue); grandchildren, John Gialanella ’36 “Liz” Kent (Fred); and 12 greatA. Nicholas, and Laura and Alex grandchildren.

Gialanella; and brother, Dr. Robert Gialanella.

He was preceded in death by his son, Robert He was preceded in death by his wife, Lee, Parke Jones III; grandson, Gregory Thomas and seven brothers.

Johnson; two sisters; and one brother.

Preston T. Syme ’41 Preston Trigg Syme ’41 of Ruther Glen, Virginia, died Dec. 12, 2010. He was 92.

Syme matriculated from Petersburg, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from VMI. (Editor’s Note: We have no further information on Mr. Syme.)

Nathan H. Monus ’43 Nathan Harlow Monus ’43 of Palm Beach, Florida, died Dec. 19, 2016. He was 95.

Monus matriculated from Youngstown, Ohio, and attended VMI for less than two years.

He is survived by his children, Michael Monus (Mary) and Susan Monus (Fred Kalmer); grandchildren, Jason Monus (Jill) and Brett Monus; and great-grandchildren, Jackson and Juliette.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Frances.

James G. Tapley ’43

James Garman “Jim” Tapley ’43 of Roanoke, Virginia, died Dec. 4, 2016. He was 94.

Tapley matriculated from Logan, West Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from VMI. He is survived by his wife, Martha Snoddy

152

Morton C. Wilhelm ’44

James A. Lyle Jr. ’46

William C. Phillips Jr. ’47 William Causey “Bill” Phillips Jr. ’47 of Lynchburg, Virginia, died Dec. 13, 2016. He was 90.

Phillips matriculated from Lynchburg and attended VMI for two years. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Virginia.

He is survived by his children, Joe and Dianne Phillips, Dick and Laura Phillips, and Heath and Rex Mason; seven grandchildren; four great-grandchildren; and sister, Polly Garbee (Bob).

He was preceded in death by his wife, Jean.

Morton Callowhill “M.C.” Wilhelm ’44, M.D., of Charlottesville, Virginia, died Jan. 18, 2017. He was 93.

Wilhelm matriculated from Roanoke, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from VMI. He earned his Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Virginia.

He is survived by his wife, Jean; daughters, Melissa Wilhelm and Phillips ’47 John W. Trumbo ’48A Christina Owens; and grandsons, John Walter Trumbo ’48A of Stuarts Draft, Christopher Creane, Crosby Owens and SpenVirginia, died Dec. 29, 2016. He was 89. cer Owens.

Trumbo matriculated from Richmond, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree William T. Curdts III ’45 in electrical engineering from VMI. William Theodore “Bill” Curdts III ’45 of He is survived by his wife, Barbara; daughter, Richmond, Virginia, died Jan. 3, 2017. He Anne (Erick); son, Steve (Sue); grandsons, Dawas 92.

Curdts matriculated from Portsmouth, Vir- vid (Shannon), Andrew, Matthew, Keith, Will ginia, and attended VMI for two years. He and Nathan; and great-grandchildren, Gavin and Blakeley. earned his Bachelor of Science degree from He was preceded in death by his son, George Purdue University.

He is survived by his sons, William Rives Thomas Trumbo II; sister, Mary Edna Ritchie; and brother, Robert Holder Trumbo.

Curdts (Blair), Heath Palmer Curdts (Nancy)

VMI Alumni Review

Taps James H. Fitts III ’48B James Harris Fitts III ’48B of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, died Nov. 7, 2016. He was 88.

Fitts matriculated from Tuscaloosa and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from VMI. He earned his Master of Arts degree from Yale University.

He is survived by his wife, Katharine Woollen Fitts; children, Evan Fitts (Kelly), Joanna Ware (Paul), John Fitts and Tom Fitts (Mary Ben); grandchildren, Faulcon and Merrill Fitts, Hannah and Jameson Ware, Jacob, Judson and Katharine Fitts; and brother, Gary Fitts (Beji).

He was preceded in death by his daughter-inlaw, Christine Shoemaker Fitts.

Davis matriculated from California, Pennsylvania, and was a distinguished graduate of VMI, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in history. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Hartford, a Master of Science degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of South Carolina.

(Editor’s Note: We have no further information on Mr. Davis.)

the University of Virginia.

He is survived by his wife, Phyllis; daughters, Susan Krenek (Steven) and Diane Gallian; son, Eric Scanlan (Dawn); step-daughters, Monique and Kylee Hamon; grandchildren, Zachary and Brendan Scanlan; and sister, Patricia Chapek.

Willard M. Hays ’51

Colonel Willard Murrell Hays ’51 of Lexington, Virginia, died Dec. 6, 2016. He was 88.

Hays matriculated from Lewisburg, Tennessee, and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Thomas D. Kelly ’50B Thomas Dawson “Tom” Kelly ’50B of Phoe- history from VMI. He earned his Master of Arts degree and Doctor of Philosophy degree from nix, Arizona, died Nov. 15, 2016. He was 87. the University of Tennessee.

Kelly matriculated from Alexandria, Hays served as a professor of hisVirginia, and earned his Bachelor of tory at VMI, department head, on Arts degree in English from VMI. Clinton H. Whitehurst Jr. ’48B the Tenure Committee and as Honor He earned his Master of Business Clinton Howard “Clint” Whitehurst Jr. ’48B, Court faculty adviser.

Administration degree from Harvard Ph.D., of Clemson, South Carolina, died Jan. He is survived by his wife, Peggy University.

11, 2017. He was 89.

Webster Hays; daughters, Keltie Hays He is survived by his wife, Norma; Whitehurst matriculated from Allerton, MasPeay, Meredith Hays Benincasa (Frandaughter, Susan McKone (Kelly); sachusetts, and attended VMI for less than one cesco); grandsons, Francesco Hays and grandchildren, Tommy McKone, year. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree, Benincasa and James Henry Binford Kelsey McKone and Molly McKone.

Bachelor of Science degree and Master of Arts degree from Florida State University. He Kelly ’50B Peay V; granddaughter, Giulia Louise Benincasa; and sister, Housteene Leonard L. Lewane ’50B earned his Doctor of Philosophy degree from Hays Prior.

Retired U.S. Army Col. Leonard Lamarr Lethe University of Virginia.

He is survived by his wife, Marion; son, wane ’50B of Nags Head, North Carolina, died Jan. 7, 2017. He was 88.

William F. Gilley ’52 Trey; daughter, Lisa; grandchildren, Katherine, Lewane matriculated from Camden, New JerRetired U.S. Army Col. William Francis “Bill” Thomas, Spencer and Daniel; and sisters, Ann sey, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Gilley ’52 of Ashburn, Virginia, died Oct. 4, W. Crawford (Roger) and Elizabeth W. Hare pre-medical from VMI. He earned his Master of 2016.

He was 84.

(Wilbur).

Arts degree in international affairs from George Gilley matriculated from Richmond, Virginia, He was preceded in death by his brother, Washington University and his Master of Sciand earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Dr. W.W. Whitehurst, and nephew, David ence degree in political science from Auburn civil engineering from VMI. He earned his Whitehurst.

University.

Master of Science degree from Johns Hopkins He is survived by his daughters, University.

Charles W. Bragg Jr. ’50B Catherine Goodrich (Edward), Victoria He is survived by his wife, Anne Gilley; son, Charles William “Red” Bragg Jr. Peters (Rex) and Gloria Land (fiancé David Gilley; daughter, Lynne Larabee; and ’50B of Huntington, West Virginia, Kenton Holsapple); grandchildren, five grandsons. died Jan. 1, 2017. He was 91.

Brandon Love, Brittany Brome (Ryan), Bragg matriculated from Clifton Catherine Peters, Lindsay Cheshire John R. Hopkins ’52 Forge, Virginia, and earned his Bach(Joe), Jennifer King (Patrick), Taylor John Root Hopkins ’52 of Hartly, Delaware, elor of Science degree in civil engiGoodrich and Casey Land; and greatdied Nov. 11, 2016. He was 86. neering from VMI. grandchildren, Bella Love, Brooks and Hopkins matriculated from Atlanta, Georgia, He is survived by his wife, Ruth A. Blake Brome, and Grace Cheshire. and earned his Bachelor Science degree in Bragg; daughters, Kelly A. Richardson Lewane ’50B He was preceded in death by his electrical engineering fromofVMI. He earned his (Gary) and Barbara J. Lesher (Brad); wife, Sara Sue “Sally” Mcmillan Lewane.

Bachelor of Laws degree from George Washsons, Dean W. Bragg (fiancée Tracy LeMaster ington University. and her daughter, Gia) and K.C. Bragg (Tam(Editor’s Note: We have no further information William G. Scanlan Jr. ’50B my); granddaughters, Alexandria F. Runyon on Mr. Hopkins.)

William Gregory “Bill” Scanlan Jr. ’50B and Molly E. Runyon; and grandsons, Joshua of Wheaton, Illinois, died Nov. 15, 2016.

He Meiners, Kyle L. Bragg and Willem O. Bragg. was 88.

Austin H. Morgan Jr. ’53 Scanlan matriculated from Freeport, New Austin Herr “Tee” Morgan Jr. ’53 of GreenCarroll C. Davis ’50B York, and attended VMI for two years.

He ville, South Carolina, died Dec. 8, 2016. He Carroll Clifford Davis ’50B of San Leandro, earned his Bachelor of Science degree from was 85.

California, died Nov. 13, 2014. He was 88.

2017-Issue 2

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Taps Morgan matriculated from Alexandria, Vir- Devin Shaw (Colleen); and great-grandchildren, Reagan, Daniel and Jayce. ginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from VMI. He earned an additional John F. Wolfe Jr. ’54 Bachelor of Science degree from the John Fennell Wolfe Jr. ’54, D.D.S, of University of Virginia.

Ormond Beach, Florida, died Dec. 5, He is survived by his wife, Mar2016. He was 84. tha Dunn Morgan; sons, William Wolfe matriculated from Silver Spring, Alexander Baker “Sandy” Morgan Maryland, and earned his Bachelor of (fiancée Karen Greer), Hunter Science degree in civil engineering from H. Morgan and John D. Morgan VMI. He earned his Doctor of Dental (partner Teresa Chastain); daughter, Morgan ’53 Surgery degree from the Medical ColMary-Lanier “M-L” Wolff (Ted); lege of Virginia. grandchildren, Austin White, Casey Crone He is survived by his wife, Joan Hatchette (Mikey), David Morgan and William Morgan; Wolfe; children, Charlotte Henderson (Miand great-grandchildren, Elizabeth White, chael), Amie Williamson (Hank) and John Cameron Crone, Kensley Crone and Bentley Charles “J.C.” Wolfe (Melissa); and grandCrone. children, John Thomas “J.T.” Sprouse, Rachel Frances and Martha Henderson, and Charlie, Katherine and Olivia Wolfe.

Donald G. Colwell ’54 Donald Gene Colwell ’54 of Mount Vernon, Illinois, died Nov. 24, 2016. He was 84.

Emmett R. Langley III ’55 Colwell matriculated from Bluford, Illinois, Emmett Robert “Bob” Langley III ’55 of Jackand earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in his- sonville, Florida, died Nov. 13, 2016. He was 84. tory from VMI. Langley matriculated from Jacksonville and He is survived by his wife, Norma; sons, Craig attended VMI for one year. He earned an asColwell (Amy) and Brad Colwell (Mary); grand- sociate degree from General Motors Institute. sons, Alexander (Becky), Nathan and Andrew; He is survived by his wife, Joyce; daughters, brother, Dale Colwell (Kathie); and sister, Debra Kristy Langley Jenkins (Mike), Susan Langley Gresham (Ted).

Newman (Jim), Jennifer Langley Miller (Tim); grandchildren, Meghan Ashley Congro (Stephen), Amanda Jenkins Crist (Trey), Alexander Donald F. Howard ’54 Bullock Jenkins, Weston Gray Miller and Colby Donald Franklin “Don” Howard ’54 of Marblehead, Massachusetts, died Nov. 9, 2016. Langley Newman; great-grandchildren, Paige and “Beau” Crist; brother, Ronald Lee Langley He was 83.

Howard matriculated from East Point, Geor- (Ann); and brother-in-law, Dick Waller. gia, and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in English from VMI. He earned his Master of William R. Hopkins ’56 Business Administration degree from Harvard William Roberts “Bob” Hopkins ’56 of MarUniversity. tinsville, Virginia, died Nov. 9, 2016. He was 82.

He is survived by his wife, Bonnie; daughter, Hopkins matriculated from Suffolk, Virginia, Laurence Howard (Timothy Duffy); grandson, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Benjamin Duffy-Howard; sister-in-law, Paula civil engineering from VMI. Kroening; and brother-in-law, Robert Kroening.

He is survived by wife, Sally Niedermayer Hopkins; daughter, Susan Hopkins Childress (Vincent); son, William James Hopkins; and Paul A. Kuhne ’54 grandchildren, Brandon James Hopkins and Retired U.S. Air Force Capt. Paul Andrew Kuhne ’54 of Weeki Wachee, Florida, died Nov. Samuel Trevor Hopkins.

23, 2016, 2016. He was 85.

Kuhne matriculated from Pittsburgh, PennKenneth McDonald sylvania, and earned his Bachelor of Science Kenneth McDonald ’56 of Hampton, Virdegree in chemistry from VMI. ginia, died Jan. 31, 2017. He was 81.

He is survived by his wife, Ramona; daughters, McDonald matriculated from Hampton and Karen Schateman (Richard), Lindsay Polglaze earned his Bachelor of Science degree in civil (Jay) and Debra Shaw (Michael Camara); engineering from VMI. grandchildren, Jessica and Kyle Polglaze and He is survived by his wife, Sandra Kibbee

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McDonald; children, Kenneth Allen McDonald (Cheryl), Amy McDonald Blow (Wes), Leslie Margot Gerber (John), Brian Neil McDonald (Margaret) and Scott Douglas Gerber; granddaughter, Isabel Alessandra McDonald; and sister, Marjorie McDonald Gordon (Bruce).

William E. Woodward ’56 William Edward “Bill” Woodward ’56 of Fairfax, Virginia, died Oct. 24, 2016. He was 81.

Woodward matriculated from Radford, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in biology from VMI. He earned a Master of Science degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Master of Science degree from George Washington University.

He is survived by his daughters, Lisa Woodward (Joe Turrini), Susan Fuhs (Georg) and Laurie Ferguson (Aaron); grandchildren, Lucy, Gio, Carl, Eric, Emma, Ryan and Sarah; brother, Robert Woodward (Margaret); and former wife, Elizabeth Woodward.

Robert D. Alexander ’57 Robert Dennis Alexander ’57 of Exton, Pennsylvania, died Jan. 15, 2017. He was 80.

Alexander matriculated from Towson, Maryland, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from VMI. He earned his Master of Science degree from the University of Pennsylvania.

He is survived by his wife, Virginia E. Mourar Alexander; children, Susan E. Barnard, Catherine L. Roumpz (Brian) and Stephen G. Alexander (Tiffany); and grandchildren, Lauren, Danny, Caroline, Elizabeth, Emma, Charlotte and Christina.

He was preceded in death by his brothers, Charles S. and John P. Alexander.

William W. Blythe Jr. ’60 William Ward “Bill” Blythe Jr. ’60 of Kingsport, Tennessee, died Nov. 15, 2016. He was 78.

Blythe matriculated from Appomattox, Virginia, and attended VMI for less than one year.

He is survived by his wife, Gloria T. Blythe; sons, William Warde Blythe III (Nancy) and David A. Blythe (Penny); grandchildren, Will Blythe (Chelsea), Dalton Blythe (Hope), Ben Blythe (Becca), Drew Blythe and friend Talya, and Austin Blythe; and sister, Sandra Marcus.

He was preceded in death by his sister, Suzanne Blythe.

Jon P. Hamric ’60 Jon Phillip “Phil” Hamric ’60 of Boise, Idaho,

VMI Alumni Review

Taps died Nov. 11, 2016. He was 79.

Hamric matriculated from Lexington, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in physics from VMI. He is survived by his wife, Carol; children, Lisa Ross (Lawrence) and Mark; grandchildren, Jessica and Allison; and brother, Lowell.

He was preceded in death by his brothers, Claude Jr., Charles and Robert.

Carl R.G. von Hellens ’61 Carl Robert Goran von Hellens ’61 of Phoenix, Arizona, died Nov. 27, 2016. He was 77.

Von Hellens matriculated from Arlington, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from VMI. He earned his Master of Laws degree from George Washington University and his Juris Doctor degree from Michigan State University.

(Editor’s Note: We have no further information on Mr. von Hellens.)

Herman J. Gedro ’62 Retired U.S. Air Force Maj. Herman Joseph “Joe” Gedro ’62 of West Point, Virginia, died Dec. 16, 2016. He was 76.

Gedro matriculated from West Point and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in English from VMI. He is survived by his wife, Alice; son, Stephen (Lita); grandchildren, Brendan, Ethan and Lindsay; and brother, Francis (June).

Frank M. Rich Jr. ’62 Frank McCoy Rich Jr. ’62 of Bloomington Springs, Tennessee, died March 31, 2016. He was 76.

Rich matriculated from Burlington, North Carolina, and attended VMI for less than one year.

(Editor’s Note: We have no further information on Mr. Rich.)

Claude A. Abernathy ’63 Claude Ashley Abernathy ’63 of Richmond, Virginia, died Nov. 11, 2016. He was 76.

Abernathy matriculated from Alberta, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in history from VMI. He is survived by his wife, Joan Abernathy; son, C. Ashley Abernathy Jr. (Mary Sam); stepsons, Gary Haizlip (Barbara) and Eddie Haizlip (Tabitha); grandchildren, Jonathan, Tori, Kelsey, Claudia and Logan; and step-grandchildren, Scott (Christi), Kelli, Tyler, Broden and Elias.

He was preceded in death by his first wife,

2017-Issue 2

Betty Gayle Abernathy, and daughter, Susan Gayle Abernathy.

Robert F. Yurachek ’68

Robert Francis “Bob” Yurachek ’68 of Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey, died Dec. 4, 2016.

John H. Cloe ’63 He was 69.

Retired U.S. Army National Guard Yurachek matriculated from RichCol. John Haile Cloe ’63 of Anchorage, mond, Virginia, and earned his Alaska, died Dec. 26, 2016. He was 78.

Bachelor of Science degree in chemCloe matriculated from Stafford, Viristry from VMI. He earned both his ginia, and earned his Bachelor of Arts Master of Science degree and his degree in history from VMI. Master of Business Administration He is survived by his wife, Susan; stepdegree from Florida State University. children, Cynthia and Dan Ryynanen He is survived by his wife, Gerri; and Christina and Rob Jennings, Toms daughter, Margaret Yurachek; son, and Kelly Andrews, Christian and Leslie Brian Yurachek; step-daughter, SteAndrews, and Christopher and Kelly fanie Gray (Brandt); step-son, Marc Andrews; and step-grandchildren, Lu- Yurachek ’68 Biunno; grandson, Holden Gray; cas and Tyler Ryynanen, Susannah and Isabel and brother, John Yurachek (Barbara).

Jennings, Claire and Gage Andrews, Polly-Faye Andrews, and Lily and Sophia Andrews.

John D. Power ’69

Charles D. Walker ’64 Charles Douglas “Doug” Walker ’64 of Richmond, Virginia, died Oct. 4, 2016. He was 74.

Walker matriculated from Powhatan, Virginia, and attended VMI for less than four years.

He is survived by his daughter-in-law, Michelle Walker; grandson, Wyatt Walker; sister, Cheryl Graham; and brother, Mason Knabe.

He was preceded in death by his brother, Ervin, and sister, Gaye Crowl.

Randolph G. Mueller ’67 Randolph George “Randy” Mueller ’67 of Austin, Texas, died Nov. 1, 2016. He was 71.

Mueller matriculated from Austin and attended VMI for one year. He earned his Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Texas.

He is survived by his children, John Martin Mueller (Widad), Andrew Scott Mueller (Sarah), Betsy Ann Mueller, Mark Randolph Mueller (Elizabeth); grandchildren, Martin Nicklaus Mueller, Naya Noelle Mueller, Zachary Ivan Mueller, Luke Randolph Mueller, Travis Robert Mueller, Tyler Davis Mueller and Hayden Leigh Mueller; and sister, Peggy Jean Mueller.

Charles E. Shorter ’67 Charles Edward “Chuck” Shorter ’67 of Richmond, Virginia, died Jan. 16, 2017. He was 71.

Shorter matriculated from Crewe, Virginia, and attended VMI for less than two years.

He is survived by his wife, Ruth Shorter; step-children, Patrick and Paul Milligan; grandchildren, Tara O’Malley and P.J. Milligan; and sisters, Nan Vick and Mina Ison.

Retired U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. John Dietrich Power ’69 of O’Fallon, Illinois, died Jan. 20, 2017. He was 69.

Power matriculated from Lynchburg, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in biology from VMI. He earned his Master of Arts degree in health care administration from George Washington University and his Master of Arts degree in logistics from Webster University.

He is survived by his wife, Kimberley Klein Power; sons, Jason Dietrich Power (Catherine) and Marcus Cameron Power; grandchildren, Lillian and Jackson Power; brother, Thomas Michael Power; and sister, Deborah Kay Power (Lloyd Solberg).

Christopher M. Councill ’71 Christopher Marble “Chris” Councill ’71 of Marietta, Georgia, died Dec. 17, 2016. He was 68.

Councill matriculated from Franklin, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from VMI. He is survived by his wife, Jan Councill; children, Daniel Councill (Katie), Matthew Councill, Andrew Councill (Lena) and Mallory Councill; grandchildren, Lizzie, James, Aiden and Aubrie; brother, James Councill (Bambi); and step-mother, Genie Councill.

Bennie E. Weaver Jr. ’76 Bennie Eugene “Ben” Weaver Jr. ’76 of Bowie, Maryland, died Jan. 2, 2017. He was 62.

Weaver matriculated from Richmond, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree

155

Taps in economics from VMI. (Editor’s Note: We have no further information on Mr. Weaver.)

Walter P. Camper ’77 Walter Phillip “Phill” Camper ’77 of Buchanan, Virginia, died Dec. 28, 2016. He was 62.

Camper matriculated from Buchanan and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from VMI. He is survived by his wife, Diana Mundy Camper; daughter, Brittney (Kenny King); sons,

Ian (Allison) and Adam (Kristen); grandchildren, Chance and Cheyenne King and Liam and Adeline Camper; brother, Mark Camper; and sisters, Gail Barker (Walt), Chloe Simpson (Bobby) and Susan Camper.

Wade R. McKann ’02 Wade Ratliff McKann ’02 of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, died Dec. 28, 2016. He was 36.

McKann matriculated from Baton Rouge.

He is survived by his children, Madison and Michael; parents, Michael and Sallie Delle Mize McKann; brother, Matthew; half-siblings,

Jonathan and Patrick McKann and Susannah McKann Stoltz; and grandmother, Minnie Ratliff Mize.

Matthew T. Winkler ’10 Matthew Thomas Winkler ’10 of Covington, Kentucky, died Sept. 16, 2016. He was 28.

Winkler matriculated from Covington.

He is survived by his mother, Debbie Mueller Winkler; father, Steven Winkler (Karyn); sister, Nicole Winkler; niece, Juliet Winkler; and grandparents, Joe and Faye Mueller and Mary Jo Winkler.

VMI Family Thomas J. Daigle Thomas Jerry Daigle of Lafayette, Louisiana, died Dec. 14, 2016. He was 87.

Daigle formerly taught foreign language at VMI. He is survived by his wife, Anne; daughters, Claire and Elaine (Robert); sons, Kenneth and Christopher; grandsons, Logan (Whitney) and Nicholas (April); great-grandsons, Graham, Dawson and Tate; and brother, Ralph.

He was preceded in death by his sister, Kathleen Daigle Junot, and sister-in-law, Joyce Thompson Daigle.

George L. Proctor George Louis Proctor of Coos Bay, Oregon, died Dec. 21, 2016. He was 92.

Proctor taught philosophy and psychology at VMI for two years.

He is survived by his wife, Alexis Proctor; children, Carrie N. Greisen (Todd), Craig G. Knight (Christine) and Leslie K. Sullivan (Patrick); 11 grandchildren; one great-grandson; and nieces and nephews, Julie McCallum (Jim), Jan Proctor, Jamie Proctor (Valerie) and Marty Proctor.

He was preceded in death by his first wife, Lady Elaine Proctor, and brother, Phillip Kenneth Proctor.

Hart Slater Hart Slater of Lexington, Virginia, died Jan. 11, 2017. He was 90.

Slater retired from VMI after serving as the

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Institute’s business executive from 1969-91.

He is survived by his wife, Bonnie Jean Jackson Slater; children, David Hart Slater (Beth), Jeanne Slater Trimble (David) and Susan Slater Hartman (Jeff); grandchildren, Jill Slater (Tom Crosbie), Melanie Slater, Benjamin Slater (Samantha), Robert Trimble (Christine), David Trimble (Katie), Byron Hartman (Lauren), Jeffrey Hartman and Caroline Hartman (fiancé Phil); and greatgrandchildren, Rae and Calvin Crosbie, Colette Trimble, and Bennett and Virginia Hartman.

He was preceded in death by his grandson, Tyler Hartman; sister, Eula Lee Slater Maddrey; brother-in-law, Larry; and nieces, Linda and Janet.

Frances K. Tolley Frances Knick Tolley of Lexington, Virginia, died Dec. 27, 2016. She was 95.

Tolley retired as a secretary from the George C. Marshall Library at VMI. She is survived by her sons, Paul Blair Tolley and Timothy Lewis Tolley (Cornelia Salas Tolley); grandchildren, Jonathan B. Tarris, Jennifer Tarris Huffman, Jeremy M. Tolley and Zachary E. Tolley; and sisters, Elsie Knick Tolley and Mary Knick Brogan.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Henry Blair Tolley; daughter, Linda Tolley Tarris; and brothers, Dean Knick Sr. and Paul Knick.

VMI Alumni Review

VMI Alumni Association Directory The VMI Alumni Association, Inc. President

First Vice President

Robert P. Louthan ’82 rlouthan1@gmail.com

Directors at Large

Hugh M. Fain III ’80

Samuel N. Stocks ’90 sstocks@kbsgc.com

Immediate Past President

Thomas A. Brashears ’95 tbrashears@vmiaa.org

President

Second Vice President

Asa H. Page III ’79 vmi79@verizon.net

Executive Vice President

The VMI Foundation, Inc.

Edgar J.T. Perrow Jr. ’96 tperrow@woodardcurran.com

Chief Executive Officer

Gregory M. Cavallaro ’84

Terms Expire June 30, 2017

Terms Expire June 30, 2018

Terms Expire June 30, 2019

Jessica J. Schmaus ’04 jessica.schmaus@gmail.com James E. Henry Jr. ’68 henryjejr@aol.com

Joel W. Andrus ’04 jandrus@kemperconsult.com A. Damon Williams ’90 damonwilliams@msn.com

Chapter Alaska Arizona Greater Los Angeles Hawaii Inland Empire Northern California Pacific Northwest Pikes Peak Rocky Mountain San Diego

Director: Matthew R. Hemenez ’90 Chapter President

Trent L. Boggs ’83 Christoph Lohr ’08 Terrence S. DeGray ’04 Russell Shun Takata ’74 Andre S. Gibson ’78 Brian K. Andrew ’03 James R. Farmer ’68 Todd M. Baldwin ’06 William V. Trumpore ’89 Micah T. Wei ’99

President’s Email tboggs@gci.com lohrc08@gmail.com tdegray@gmail.com russell.takata@yahoo.com andrejg@aol.com brian.k.andrew@gmail.com seattlefarmer@comcast.net todd.baldwin1@gmail.com vailkeydet@gmail.com mwei100@yahoo.com

Director: James F. Dittrich ’76

Region II – Midwest Arkansas Bluegrass Centex

James F. Dittrich ’76

jfdinarkansas@aol.com

Chicago

Daniel C. Young ’88 Molly M. Hastings ’13 Brian D. Skusa ’00 David C. Hagemann ’80 Jeffrey D. Vordermark ’79 S. Curtis Johnston ’82 Hamel B. Reinmiller ’98

dan.young@wfadvisors.com hastingsmm@mail.vmi.edu bskusa@kforce.com dhag80@aol.com vordermark@juno.com Chewy.Johnston@hdrinc.com hbrvmi98@vmialumni.org

Daniel J. Fitzgerald ’89 Stephen P. Weiss ’86 J. Micah North ’00 David P. Loduca ’81 Murray F. Hudson ’82

daniel.fitzgerald@hdrinc.com steve.weiss@libertyiu.com j.micah.north@gmail.com loduca@pbworld.com murfh@urbaneng.com

Gregory McDearmon ’99 Stephen J. Barcik III ’85

Cleveland Detroit Kansas City, Missouri North Texas – Dallas Oklahoma Rio Grande San Antonio Southeast Texas – Houston Southwest Ohio St. Louis Third Coast (Corpus Christi)

Region III – Northeast New England New York City – Long Island North Jersey

Central Keystone Maryland Southeastern PA – Delaware Valley Western PA – Pittsburgh

Region V – Southeast

ggmcd34@earthlink.net steve.barcik@htds2.com

Director: Patrick J. Griffin ’80

A. Bruno Loefstedt III ’80 Christopher J. Brandriff ’06 Richard C. Wolffe ’78

Region IV – Mid Atlantic

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President

U. “Buzz” Birzenieks ’64

Hilbert W. Wilkinson ’94 bwilkinson@hhjcpa.com E. Sean Lanier ’94 av8sean06@hotmail.com

Region I – Far West

Augusta Appalachian Atlanta Coastal GA – South Carolina East TN – Knoxville Middle TN – Nashville Midsouth

Warren J. Bryan ’70

The VMI Keydet Club, Inc.

Historian

J. Bolling Williamson ’60 bollingwmson@gmail.com

Chief Executive Officer

bruno.a.loefstedt@saint-gobain.com

christopher.brandriff@jpmorgan.com rwolffe@tspcapitalmgt.com

Director: Peter R. Charrington ’66

Robert P. Hill ’08 David R. Gleason ’80 Frederick J. Killmeyer IV ’95 Thomas N. Gelles ’80

rphill48@gmail.com gleason@umbc.edu rickkillmeyer@gmail.com tng317@verizon.net

Director: C. Patrick Haddock ’00 Terence L. Bowers ’68 Thomas N. Daniel Jr. ’60 David R. Nagel ’01 Mark P. Parton ’08 Christopher R. Jones ’96 William E. Kirby III ’96 Philip J. Altizer Jr. ’80

terrybowers@vmialumni.org tomdaniel60@charter.net nageldr78@hotmail.com partonmp@gmail.com crj2112@gmail.com ktkirby@comcast.net paltizer@bellsouth.net

Email: mrhemenez@cox.net Chapter Representative Trent L. Boggs ’83 Christoph Lohr ’08 Matthew R. Hemenez ’90 Russell Shun Takata ’74 Todd E. Arris ’87 James R. Farmer ’68 Robert L. Fricke ’78 William V. Trumpore ’89

Email: jfdinarkansas@aol.com Hugh R. Hill ’85 Christopher J. Whittaker ’90 J. Andrew Hardin ’04 Donald A. Noschese Jr. ’92 Stephen M. Chiles ’89 Mark A. Benvenuto ’83 Todd J. Jacobs ’90 S. Harrison Williams ’15 Garry C. Varney ’76 Thomas R. Shaw ’78 Steven P. Weiss ’86 J. Micah North ’00 Robert C. Polk ’61 M. Douglass Payne ’73

Email: anchors80@comcast.net John R. Gibney Jr. ’80 Kevin P. Sincavage ’87

Email: pcharrin@comcast.net H. Larry Mays Jr. ’73 Thomas M. Wirth ’98 John T. Pace IV ’77 J. Mark Hennigan ’90

Email: vmitranspo@hotmail.com Raymond R. Lawson ’81 Campbell C. Hyatt III ’65 Charles C. Schoen IV ’86 Kevin L. Snell ’82 Charles S. Sanger ’82

VMI Alumni Review

VMI Alumni Association Directory

Region VI – Carolinas Camp Lejeune/Crystal Coast Cape Fear Central North Carolina – Raleigh Charlotte Club of the Triad Coastal Carolina/South Carolina Palmetto, South Carolina Upsate SC/Pisgah NC Wilmington, North Carolina

Director: Charles L. Ramsburg ’66 Ian G. Dunlap ’05 Michael A. Ceroli ’85 Laurence B. Wilson Jr. ’62 Michael S. Anderson ’88 Ray S. Brooks ’76 George Troy Mosby ’97 Carl B. Hammond ’00 Paul X. English III ’73 John P. Gangemi ’61

Region VII – Deep South Birmingham Central Florida Greater New Orleans Mississippi Mobile Northeast Florida – Jacksonville Northwest Florida Southern Florida Southwest Florida – Fort Meyer Tennessee Valley The Villages – Florida Treasure Coast West Coast Florida – Tampa

Norfolk Peninsula Virginia Beach Western Tidewater

Charles M. Rogers IV ’83 Jason M. Goldstein ’02 James D. Friskhorn ’81 Scott A. Houser ’98 Bradford T. Herrell ’01 Herbert U. Fluhler ’77 Blake W. Thomas ’73 Donald D. Carson ’64 Robert M. Bailey ’72

max.rogers@mobileinfirmary.org jmgoldstein@mactec.com vmi81@comcast.net housersa@yahoo.com vmigrad1@hotmail.com huf2000@aol.com blaket606@aol.com dcarson678@bellsouth.net bobngracebailey@tampabay.rr.com

John H. Friend III ’82 Grafton D. Addison III ’82 Wayland H. Patterson ’80

troy.barbour@hcahealthcare.com weastham@carrhyde.com jim@realcentralva.com wdtvmi65@comcast.net jarvistk@vmi.edu jasongruse@hotmail.com

Director: Michael S. Ogden ’79 Director: Sean P. Hingley ’07

Michael S. Ogden ’79 David G. Tyler IV ’86 Joshua P. Priest ’80 Edward M. Plucinski ’86 Gary J. Haste ’77 John L. Rowe Jr. ’66

vmi79classagent@aol.com dtyler4@cox.net joshua.p.priest@navy.mil ed.plucinski@hanson.com ghaste@associatedcontracting.com jrowe66@cox.net

Director: Douglas B. Warner ’03 Director: John D. Kearney Jr. ’00 Matthew R. Keller ’00 A. James MacDonald ’83

matthew.keller@ofplaw.com macvmi83@yahoo.com

Director: Anthony U. Moore ’78 Director: William R. Charlet ’01

Thomas H. Walton ’04 Samuel L. Mattocks ’74

Region XIII – Rappahannock Fredericksburg – Quantico Rappahannock Southside Williamsburg

shduerson@gmail.com bradburrus@yahoo.com reeldadx2@gmail.com

Director: T. Keith Jarvis ’82

T. Troy Barbour ’89 G. Wayne Eastham ’76 James E. Duncan ’98 W. Douglas Thomas ’65 T. Keith Jarvis ’82 Jason K. Gruse ’97

Region XII – Central VA Richmond Tri Cities

Director: Dennis A. Hackemeyer ’80

Samuel H. Duerson III ’86 Gerald B. Burrus ’96 Andrew M. Reel ’03

Region XI – Metro D.C. George C. Marshall Potomac River

Email: waltchalkley@aol.com William H. Cather Jr. ’65 John C. Nagle IV ’87

Region X – Hampton Roads Eastern Shore

Henry Brown ’60

billcather@bellsouth.net jay.nagle@parsons.com michaelmwallace@mac.com

Region IX – Shenandoah Valley Allegheny Highlands Blue Ridge Charlottesville North Shenandoah Valley Rockbridge County Stonewall Jackson

Director: Walter L. Chalkley ’72

Stephen L. Skakandy ’01 Charles L. Toomey ’74 Ronald R. Wall ’69 James A. Sharp ’93 T. Matthew Creech ’96 Eric L. Duncan ’99 F. Grey Farthing III ’79

William H. Cather Jr. ’65 John C. Nagle IV ’87 Michael M. Wallace ’93

Region VIII – Southwest VA Lynchburg New River Valley Roanoke

dunlapian@hotmail.com mceroli@thekratosgroup.net lbebwilson@aol.com vmi2army@gmail.com rsbr1111@gmail.com gmosby@liquidnet.com hammondcb@yahoo.com pxenglish@verizon.net jgangemi@ec.rr.com

Email: clramsburg@gmail.com

twalton@general-assurance.com samuelmattocks762@gmail.com

Director: Richard A. Duke ’90

Brett R. Martin ’00 Raymond J. Pietruszka ’77 Alan H. Vicory Jr. ’74 Robert M. Bailey ’72

Email: dennis@nanoseptic.com Joseph W. Hutt III ’78 Gerald B. Burrus ’96 Alan G. Soltis ’79

Email: jarvistk@vmi.edu Harrison L. Fridley Jr. ’61 R. Edward Duncan ’60 James E. Duncan ’98 Kevin J. Callanan ’78 Lewis V. Graybill ’62 Phillip L. Harris ’03

Email: vmi79classagent@aol.com Email: sean.p.hingley@wfadvisors.com Thomas F. Wilson ’80 James A. Parsons ’80 David J. Trenholm ’70 H. Ali Mahan ’80 Oliver D. Creekmore ’66

Email: douglas.warner1@vmialumni.org Email: kearneyjd00@gmail.com L. Randolph Williams Jr. ’66 L. Randolph Williams Jr. ’66

Email: amor_78@comcast.net Email: wcharlet@gmail.com Thomas H. Walton ’04 Augustus Robbins III ’47

Email: rduke517@gmail.com

Carl J. DeBernard Jr. ’94 Stephen E. Wilson ’68

carl.debernard@dhs.gov sewilson68@verizon.net

R.C. Thompson III ’74 William F. Brent ’67

John J. Kokolis ’96

jjkokolis@cox.net

Jim E. Henry ’68

chingpu@saturn.yzu.edu.tw

Ching-Pu Chen ’85 Vaipot Srinual ’72

Region XIV – Pacific Rim Taiwan Thailand

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Ching-Pu Chen ’85 Vaipot Srinual ’72

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Alumni News John E. Kemper ’68 was recently named a member of the board for the Community Foundation. The Community Foundation, located The American College of Dentists in Richmond, Virginia, is a public awarded the Outstanding Faculty charity with the purpose of helping Award to James C. Burns ’68, Vircommunity members accomplish philginia Commonwealth University anthropic goals through a charitable School of Dentistry, in appreciation fund. Grants are made through this of notable contributions to the educafund, primarily to benefit a defined tion of dental professionals. During his area. Kemper assumes 39-year tenure in academic dentistry, Burns ’68 geographical this position after 40 years of practice Burns rose from assistant professor, in growing, buying and selling business conassociate professor, full professor, assistant dean sulting companies. He currently works with to associate dean of clinical education. high-potential startups, investing in growth Burns matriculated from Dahlgren, Virginia, organizations and also serves on multiple nonand was a distinguished graduate of VMI, earnprofits’ boards. ing a Bachelor of Science degree in biology. He Kemper matriculated from Alexandria, Virearned his Master of Science degree from the ginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree University of South Carolina and both his Doctor in civil engineering from VMI. of Philosophy degree and Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from the Medical College of Virginia.

George H. “Skip” Roberts Jr. ’68 recently joined Lenhart Pettit, a business and litigation firm, at their Harrisonburg, Virginia, location. Roberts started practicing law in Harrisonburg in 1971 and plans to remain focused on estate planning, nonprofits, and corporate and business matters for the firm. He Retired U.S. Air Force Gen. John P. previously served as the executive vice Jumper ’66 was unanimously elected president and general counsel of the as the chairman of the board of direcVMI Foundation, as well as formerly tors for the Museum of the American practicing in Richmond and representRevolution Dec. 14, 2016. The museum ing a New York-based family investment was scheduled to open April 19, 2017, in firm. Roberts was also on the Virginia historic Philadelphia and aims to host a Bar Association’s executive committee collection of American Revolution-era and was a board member and president weapons, personal items, documents and art. Jumper comes to this position Walton Jeffress ’68 and wife Suellen with the two trophies of the Virginia Law Foundation.

Jeffress won at the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Roberts matriculated from Petersburg, after retiring as a four-star general in the Hualalai 2017 Pro-Am. Virginia, and was a distinguished graduAir Force following a career that includate of VMI, earning a Bachelor of Arts ed his appointdegree in history. He earned his Juris Doctor Walton M. Jeffress Jr. ’68, along with his ment as the 17th chief degree from the University of Virginia School of staff of the Air Force, team consisting of Vijay Singh, professional of Law. which is the branch’s most golfer, and two other partners, won first place senior uniformed officer. at the Tuesday morning competition at the Hugh M. Fain III ’80 was awarded the Walker He also served as a mem- Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai Award of Merit by the Virginia Bar Association 2017 Pro-Am in Hawaii. He also won second ber of the Joint Chiefs of in recognition of exceptional leadership within Staff and was a military place at the Wednesday morning competition the bar at the 127th Virginia Bar Association adviser to the Secretary with Jerry Smith, professional golfer and Jefannual meeting. Fain served as the VBA presiof Defense, the National fress’ team member. dent in 2012, and during his term, he traveled Jeffress matriculated from Culpeper, Virginia, Security Council, and the Jumper ’66 president of the United and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Virginia to local bar organizations to highlight the VBA and Virginia State Bar and their respeccivil engineering from VMI. He earned his States. tive missions and initiatives.

Jumper matriculated from Hampton, Virginia, Master of Laws degree from George WashingFain currently serves as the president of and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in ton University and his Juris Doctor degree from the VMI Foundation. He matriculated from electrical engineering from VMI. He earned Washington and Lee University.

Kenner C. Rice ’61, Ph.D., received the 2016 Mentorship Award of the College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD.org). The CPDD is the oldest and largest organization in the U.S. dedicated to advancing a scientific approach to Rice ’61 substance use and addictive disorders. Rice has mentored 90 postdoctoral fellows from 22 countries in the organic and medicinal chemistry of drug abuse research and is the author or co-author of over 840 published research papers and patents. He is has lectured widely and is the recipient of numerous research awards. Rice presently serves as the chief of the Drug Design and Synthesis Section of the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Rice matriculated from Courtland, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from VMI. He earned his Doctor of Philosophy degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

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his Master of Business Administration degree from Golden Gate University.

VMI Alumni Review

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Alumni News Richmond, Virginia, and graduated with distinction from VMI, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics. He earned his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Virginia.

previously serving as a deputy attorney general.

Taylor matriculated from Suitland, Maryland, and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from VMI. He earned his Juris Doctor degree from Washington and Lee University.

Victor J. Bernet ’85, M.D., assumed a 4-year term as secretary/chief operating officer of the American Thyroid Association in October 2015. The ATA consists of 1,800-plus physician and scientist members from 43 countries who are dedicated to improving care for patients with thyroid disease and thyroid cancer. Bernet previously served 21 years in the U.S. Army Medical Corps, retiring at the rank of colonel. He is also the chair of the Division of Endocrinology at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida.

Bernet matriculated from Richmond, Virginia, and was a distinguished graduate of VMI, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in biology. He earned his Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Virginia.

and strata corporations in the U.S. and Canada.

The company’s managed communities include low-, mid- and high-rise condominiums and cooperatives, single-family homes, masterplanned, lifestyle and active adult communities, and rental and commercial properties. As president, Jaklitsch leads the company, which is responsible for 250 communities in the greater San Antonio area.

Jaklitsch also serves as a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve and is assigned to U.S. Army Medical Command at Fort Sam Houston.

Jaklitsch matriculated from Williamsburg, Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from VMI. He earned his Master of Business Administration degree from Pennsylvania State University.

Robert E. Clark ’91 was named No. 43 on PRWeek and MM&M’s Health Influencer 50 list. Clark is the vice president of global communications and corporate marketing for Medtronic, a global medical device company. In this position, Clark is responsible for the brand’s corporate marketing, global public relations, employee communications, digital and social media, and philanthropy communication teams across the world.

Medtronic reported revenue of $28.7 billion in its previous fiscal year, in part due to Clark’s role as vice president, The Virginia War Memorial Foundaduring which Medtronic purchased tion announced Jamal A. Thomas the Covidien, a Dublin-based surgi’96 as one of its recently elected cal supplier. After that acquisition, members to their board of direcUnder the leadership of Ashley L. Taylor Jr. Medtronic’s employee count reached tors. The VWMF, created in 2000, ’90, current attorney with Troutman Sanders, 85,000. is a private, nonprofit 501 (c)(3) Clark matriculated from Dallas, the firm’s Consumer Financial Services practice corporation that is responsible for has been recognized by Law360 as a Practice Texas, and earned his Bachelor of financing all educational outreach, Arts degree in English from Thomas ’96 patriotic events, historical programs, Group of the Year in the consumer VMI. He earned his Master protection category. Taylor is one of exhibits and documentary films of of Arts degree from the University of the firm’s lawyers responsible for the the Virginia War Memorial. Thomas currently South Dakota. growth of the multifaceted practice serves as the vice president of Scott & Stringand the group represents areas of fellow, a BB&T investment firm located in Ray F. Jaklitsch Jr. ’95 was selected Richmond, Virginia. He previously served in litigation, compliance and enforceby FirstService Residential Corpora- financial advisory positions to include Wells ment. Law360 recognized Taylor tion as the president of FirstService and his team as a Practice Group of Fargo Advisors, Davenport and Company, Residential San Antonio. FirstService and Wachovia Securities. the Year for recent successes and the Residential is one of North America’s practice’s commitment to excellence Thomas matriculated from Fairfax Station, largest managers of residential comand client service. Taylor has decades Virginia, and earned his Bachelor of Arts of experience in leadership, to include Jaklitsch ’95 munities, community associations degree in economics from VMI.

.. . Bo ok An n o u n c e m e nts ... Book Announcements . . . Bo o k An n o uncem ent s ...

Announcements ... Book Announcemen Announcements ... Book Announcements ... Book “Our Path To Safety: A U.S. Secret Service Agent’s Guide To Creating Safe Communities” by Jason Wells ’99. DTAC Publishing, November 2016. ISBN: 9780998248806. Available via Amazon, Kindle and Barnes & Noble.

“Our Path To Safety: A U.S. Secret Service Agent’s Guide To Creating Safe Communities” provides an understandable and workable process for identifying, assessing and acting on threat-related behaviors, and explains how to do so in a positive, proactive and safe manner.

This concept of behavioral identification has

2017-Issue 2

been used by agents of the U.S. Secret Service for decades, and now the same methodology has been developed for citizens. By educating members of the community in these concerning behaviors and developing programs in schools and businesses to report these concerns to mental health and law enforcement professionals, society stands a much greater chance of stopping threats such as active shooter violence, “lone wolf ” attackers and

random violent intentions. The concept is a proactive intervention, and it is a plausible alternative to reactive measures that are applied today. It is a proven system of success, used even today to protect the president of the United States, and it can be used to protect each other, as well.

About the author: Jason Wells is a former special agent and

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Alumni News criminal research analyst with the United States Secret Service, having served in the agency from 2005-14. During that time, he protected Presidents Obama, Bush (41 and 43), Clinton and Carter, as well as many other distinguished leaders of the world. He holds a master’s degree in strategic security and protection management with highest honors earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in English from VMI. He was previously published in Forbes, The Huffington Post, Slate and Fatherly on matters of safety, security military operations and anti-bullying strategies. Wells is married and a father of two.

Georgia “In-Brief ”: Distinctions between Federal and State Law by Glenn R. Riser and Jackson Lee Todd ’06.

CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2016. ISBN: 1540416623, 978-1540416629.

Available via Amazon.com.

Jackson Todd is co-author of “Georgia ‘In-Brief ’: Distinctions between Federal and State Law” with Glenn R. Riser, a colleague from the Florida Coastal School of Law and veteran of the U.S.

Army, intelligence and business arenas. The book is a complete study guide for the Georgia state portion of the bar exam and is the 10th volume in the “InBrief ” series of legal study aids.

About the author: Jackson Todd matriculated from Berlin, Maryland. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in history from VMI, and after seven years as a police officer, he earned a Juris Doctor degree from the Florida Coastal School of Law.

ook An nou n c e m en ts ... Book Announcements . . . Bo o k An n o u n cement s ... B ook Announcements ... Book Announcements ... uncements ... Book Announcements ... Book

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The Institute CPTF Offers Myriad Training Opportunities for Corps, Track Team Obstacle and High Ropes Courses, Climbing Wall, Hydraulic Track Soon to Be in Use After more than two years of construction, VMI’s newest building, the indoor training facility, recently designated the Corps Physical Training Facility, is now poised to welcome cadets.

On Oct. 28, 2016, VMI’s construction office received a certificate of occupancy for the vast new building, which has been under construction since summer 2014 at the corner of Main and Diamond Streets. By mid-November, the track team had begun using the $84 million building, and that team’s coaches had moved into their offices there. The entire Corps will start using the facility sometime in 2017.

“VMI is still working out the overall operations of the building – how it’s going to be accessed, who gets access to it, who gets to use it on a daily basis,” explained Col. Keith Jarvis ’82, deputy director of construction, as he led a recent tour of the structure.

Inside, the CPTF features two running tracks, both made of a rubberized surface that’s safe for the spiked shoes frequently worn by track athletes. The 200-meter, six-lane lower track, which will be used for competitions, is hydraulically banked so it can be raised or lowered as desired.

The upper track is designed for athletes to use for warm up or cool down.

Complementing the tracks are two six-meter sprint lanes, plus venues for field events, including two triple jump pits, two pole vault areas and

two throw areas. Surrounding the main track are seats for more than 1,400 spectators. To keep those spectators informed, there’s a large screen connected to the finish line cameras, plus 10 loudspeakers. “We have this fantastic audio system that’s tied into the video screen,” said Jarvis.

Soaring 70 feet into the air above the main track is a high ropes course. Though it will be used by the entire Corps, it will be especially useful for ROTC activities and for Rat Challenge events in inclement weather, noted Col. Bill Wanovich ’87, commandant of the Corps of Cadets.

Also of interest is the 34-foot rock climbing wall, which has eight climbing lanes. The wall features handholds and footholds that can be altered to make climbing harder or easier, depending on the skills of the climber. A cargo net hanging near the wall provides an additional venue for cadets who want to test their climbing skills, and an obstacle course set up throughout the building is another source of physical challenge.

Nearby is the “cardio balcony” with stationary bicycles and elliptical trainers, plus a large, L-shaped weight room.

The entire building, Wanovich commented, is really all about options. “You can run in there. You can work out. There’s ropes, obstacles, climbing walls. ... There’s so many things that the Corps can do.” Wanovich added that the building will provide a venue for physical

Among the features of the Corps Physical Training Facility are a 200-meter hydraulic track, overhead obstacles, a rock wall, a warmup track and spectator seating. Photo by John Robertson IV.

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training, especially during the winter months when the weather gets “pretty brutal.”

Instead of canceling training or pursuing it in unsuitable weather outdoors, he said, “people can go in there and use all of that great space.”

Downstairs, the CPTF is all about athlete support. Spacious locker rooms, with lockers built to NCAA specifications, are available for both male and female athletes. There’s also a cold plunge pool with the water kept at a chilly 50 degrees Fahrenheit and a zero-gravity treadmill which can be used by athletes to stay in shape while recuperating from injury.

Attached to the lower level is a 126-space parking garage – the first one ever on post. Jarvis noted that while the parking garage will be limited to faculty and staff access on weekdays, it will provide a critically needed source of additional parking for football game days and other events.

Less visible are a number of features designed to mitigate the building’s environmental impact – among them, underground cisterns that collect rainwater from the roof. This water is used to irrigate the plantings around the building, flush toilets and rehydrate the mechanical system to make up for water lost to evaporation.

“We’re storing and using the rain water when we need it, so we’re not dumping the rainwater into the stormwater system,” said Jarvis.

Below the building, a small stream, Town Branch, still flows as it always has, but it is now diverted by a wide culvert which should alleviate flooding problems that once plagued the area.

Above the building, a section of the roof has been set aside as a “green roof,” with plantings of herbs and grasses that will absorb and utilize rain water.

Efforts to be environmentally sensitive continue inside the building, with a light harvesting system that reduces interior lighting costs and an innovative HVAC system that reduces costs to cool the building. This passive downdraft system makes use of convection, so that cooler air falls and then, as it warms up, comes up through louvers on the roof and escapes.

As a result of all of these efforts, the building is on track to obtain Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Gold certification.

“The state mandates silver LEED,” said Jarvis.

“We’re one level above that at gold. We feel pretty good about that.”

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VMI Band Shines in the Spotlight M

embers of the VMI band traveled extensively in the first weeks of the semester, acting as ambassadors to the Institute and connecting with alumni across the country.

Their most prominent performance, seen around the world, was their participation in the presidential inaugural parade along with the entire Corps of Cadets.

Marching between the Corps’ two battalions, members of VMI’s Regimental Band and Pipe Band brought the parade to a close with a rendition of “Shenandoah” as they passed the reviewing stand Jan. 20, 2017.

“The cadets outdid themselves. It’s a really long day for a minute of glory,” said Col. John Brodie (Hon.), music director. “You prep so long for it, and you’re on the national stage for about a minute, but it was worth it. I’ve had an overwhelming number of emails and an outpouring of alumni reaction.”

For the 16 cadets who make up the Commanders Jazz Band, the inauguration performance was followed closely by a trip to New York and Connecticut Jan. 27-29.

The band stayed at the Fort Indiantown Gap Reserve Center in Pennsylvania and were able to see Chinese New Year in Chinatown in New York City.

“In East Norwalk, we played at an American Legion lodge, and it was sold out,” said Brodie. “We raised money for a most worthwhile cause for Connecticut veterans. Steve Nezas ’89 was instrumental in getting the cadets there and sponsored them at the hotel and for several meals.” His hospitality was very appreciated by the cadets and Brodie.

The Commanders also performed a benefit concert at Richmond’s Jefferson Lakeside Country Club, which benefited the Richmond Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Feb. 11.

The band’s next big performances took place during Mardi Gras, for which the band traveled to Mobile, Alabama, Feb. 24-27. Mobile lays claim to the oldest annual Mardi Gras celebration in the United States.

For this trip, 117 cadets were flown by Lt. Col. Ken Jambor ’95 to and from Mobile on a U.S. Air Force C-17 where the band performed seven times in two days. The cadets marched in the Floral Parade, the Queens Parade and the Order of Mystics Parade. That evening, the entire band performed in the Mobile Civic Center for the opening ceremonies of the Mystics of Time Ball. Later, a small contingent of the

band performed for the arrival of the queen and king at the civic center. On Feb. 26, the band performed at the home of Norman Pitman for alumni and friends of the Institute at a beautiful morning brunch on Azalea Avenue. They were then bused with a police escort, courtesy of Max Rogers ’80, to the Knights of Revelry’s Barn Party and performed for the arrival of their queen. The trip was made possible in large part to the generosity of Mrs. Katherine Thompson, widow of Vester Thompson ’40, and Mrs. Barbara Ann Guthins, widow of Robert Guthins ’51. John French ’82 was instrumental in arranging the performances.

Next, the band was off in the form of a 24-piece pep band to perform for the Keydet basketball squad in Asheville, North Carolina, for the regional championships held March 3-5. The band returned, and a few days later, 40 cadets traveled to The Villages in Florida where they performed for the St. Patrick’s Day parade March 17. The trip was set up by Col. Walt Chalkley ’72, and VMI was the featured band in the largest St. Patrick’s Day parade The Villages had ever experienced. The featured speaker at the alumni chapter gala that evening was Gen. J.H. Binford Peay III ’62, superintendent. On March 24, the Institute Brass traveled to Montreal, Canada, for a series of performances in the capital city. The cadets were able to perform in the Basilica of Notre Dame, a beautiful church built in 1672. In addition to parades on post, the band and its component units have performed more than 75 times this year, to include alumni chapter performances in Connecticut and Richmond.

The Pipe Band has, of late, become a regular part in the opening boxing matches in which VMI has played a winning roll. They have played the boxers on to three matches just this semester, including the National Championships held at VMI. Major Burt Mitchell, Pipe Band director, said he was glad to see the pipes finally being used for their original intent, which was to lead warriors into battle. In February, the Pipe Band once again performed for many regional alumni and high-ranking U.S. military officers at the Sons of the Revolution’s George Washington’s Birthday Dinner held each year at the Commonwealth Club in Richmond. This year, Mitchell was awarded a bust of George Washington by the organization for his years of support in the form of the VMI Pipe Band.

The band in front of the the U.S. Air Force C-17 they rode to Mobile, Alabama, flown by Lt. Col. Ken Jambor ’95.

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The Institute

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John Return Some things are not built to last. The often VMI chose to use a company that is known carriages in every detail, including finishing the recreated wooden carriages that once supported for making Civil War era aluminum carriage surfaces with a wood-grain pattern.

As Steen explained, “They are painted to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John – the cannons replacements, Steen Cannons. Based in Ashof the cadet battery – were among them. land, Kentucky, the company has replaced look like wood, so most people aren’t going to be able to tell they’re aluminum until you Even in 1848, when the cannons were first cannon carriages at Vicksburg, Manassas, go up and bang on them.” The wood grain made for VMI by Cyrus Alger and Co. in Petersburg and many other sites. look is due to a painting technique Boston, Massachusetts, the wooden they use. Underneath the paint, the carriages were not expected to last aluminum is smooth. more than a few years.

But the cadet battery presented a While those cannons served cadets new challenge for Steen. The carriagas artillery training pieces, went to es are not the standard size for a Civil war with the Rockbridge Artillery War era cannon. A standard cannon in 1861 and were fired ceremonitube weighs around 800 pounds, ally until the 1970s, they have been which would have been nearly impossupported by many, many sets of sible for cadets to pull up VMI’s steep wooden carriages. hill to the Parade Ground. The VMI “We could only expect to get about tubes were specially made to be a seven or eight years out of a wooden comparatively light 562 pounds, with carriage. That was a constant mainsmaller carriages to fit accordingly. tenance problem,” explained Col. “These smaller carriages ... created Keith Gibson ’77, executive director a challenge in manufacturing. There of VMI’s museum system.

It’s a problem that battlefields The cannons resting on their new carriages in January 2017. Photos aren’t any molds for them. Everything had to start from scratch,” said around the country are dealing with, by Micalyn Miller, VMIAA. Gibson. too. That’s why many of them are For that reason, the process took longer than switching to aluminum carriages. About a year “Anywhere there are Civil War cannons, you’ll ago, VMI decided to make the switch, as well. find our carriages,” said Will Steen, a craftsman normal. The carriages were removed in June 2016, and finally returned Jan. 10, 2017.

“The decision to go to the aluminum instead with Steen Cannons.

Steen enjoyed the challenge, explaining, “This of the wood, really reflects [the cannons] curThe company produces about four to six carwas a unique once-in-a-lifetime job, and it was rent status as monuments here on the Parade riages a month, and their proficiency is clear. really fun to be able to do it.”

Ground,” explained Gibson.

The company is able to replicate the original

Baker Receives Byrd Award

James A. Baker III, former White House chief of staff, received the 2016 Harry F. Byrd Jr. ’35 Public Service Award in Cameron Hall Nov. 2, 2016. The ceremony was followed by a parade to honor Baker, who served under three U.S. presidents: Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush.

VMI photos by H. Lockwood McLaughlin and Kelly Nye.

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News and Updates from the Center for Leadership and Ethics Cadet Leadership Enrichment Opportunities The Center for Leadership and Ethics sends select cadets to attend a diverse selection of leadership conferences and symposia in the U.S. and abroad each year. Different cadets are chosen for each opportunity in order to provide the experience to as many cadets as possible each year.

The focus is on developing emerging leaders in the Corps of Cadets.

For the 2016-17 academic year, the center sent cadets to conferences at American Veteran’s Center, the U.S. Naval Academy, The Citadel, the U.S. Military Academy, the Air Force Academy, the Coast Guard Academy and Texas A&M University.

Cadet Ethics Team Cadets meet regularly to discuss relevant ethical dilemmas ranging the spectrum from business, military and civic responsibility perspectives to further leadership and character development. The center-led competitive team competes annually at events like the Southeastern Regional Intercollegiate Bowl Competition and the U.S. Naval Academy’s annual ethics competition.

VMI Annual Leadership and Ethics Conference The 2017 conference titled, “Strategic Leadership in Times of Global Transition,” featured James A. Baker III; Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, Linda Robinson and Michael Mandelbaum. These and many other experts on the subject of strategic leadership covering topics from military, government and business cadets from VMI and peer institutions as well as other college students, academics and professionals. The program began with a study of George C. Marshall ’901 and the Marshall Plan as our exemplars. We then moved forward through more recent world events, and finally discussing what may be required of leaders through year 2040. Baker, conference keynote speaker and this year’s prestigious Byrd Public Service Award recipient, surmised that “Leadership ... is nothing more than knowing what to do and then doing it.” Presentations and discussions were lively and engaging. The audience was able to blend discussion and presentation information during our active learning session, the Ethical Leadership Challenge. This feature of the conference provides participants with tools for making ethical decisions based on sound logic and reasoning principles.

For more information on the VMI Annual Leadership Conference, please visit www.vmi.edu/leadershipconference.

H.B. Johnson Jr. ’26 Distinguished Speaker Series Kicking off the academic year of speakers under our 2016-17 theme of “Strategic Leadership,” was the Institute’s convocation speaker Robert Kaplan, senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security. Kaplan is an expert in geopolitics, and his address brought to mind the importance of understanding world geography, as well as historical context as key factors in leading in the 21st century. Next, attendees heard from Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, who is the director of the Army Capabilities Integration Center and author of “Dereliction of Duty: Johnson, McNamara, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Lies That Led to Vietnam.” McMaster delivered his address, “Developing the Next Marshall: Trends in Future Strategic Leadership to 2040,” during the annual Leadership and Ethics

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Conference. On March 2, Daniel Rodriguez, decorated combat veteran and a walk-on football player at Clemson after his military service, visited post.

He is also the author of the book, “Rise: A Solider, a Dream and a Promise Kept,” one of the CLE Leadership Book Club selections. His speech was titled, “Goal Setting: Achieving Your Goals,” and while on post, he met with small groups of cadets.

Commonwealth Cyber Fusion and Cyber Cup Competition The Institute was asked to host the inaugural Commonwealth Cyber Fusion event and Cyber Cup Competition by the Virginia Secretary of Technology and Sen. Mark Warner. Thirteen colleges, including VMI, were invited to send teams to participate in a “capture the flag” style cyber competition alongside a job fair, as well as hear from industry experts. The event took place Feb. 24-25 in Marshall Hall. The competition portion of the event was created and hosted by the Virginia Cyber Range, a commonwealth of Virginia initiative with a mission to enhance cybersecurity education in our high schools, colleges and universities. The Cyber Range provides an extensive courseware repository for educators and a cloud-hosted environment for hands-on cybersecurity labs and exercises for students.

VMI STEM Education Conference On Oct. 4-5, 2016, approximately 300 educators and administrators working with students in grades 3-8 gathered together to enjoy two days of hands-on STEM learning for VMI’s fifth annual STEM Education Conference. The 2016 event focused on “Math: The Roots of STEM,” with speakers Christine McKinley and Tim Chartier. Any interested alumni are welcome to respond to the upcoming call for presentations, which usually opens in May. Next year’s conference is scheduled for Oct. 3-4, 2017, and will highlight science lessons for teachers with students in grades 3-8. www. vmi.edu/stemconference.

Video of most of the VMI Center for Leadership and Ethics’ speakers is available on the CLE YouTube channel. Check it out and follow the CLE on YouTube and other social media platforms. Links available at www.vmi.edu/ cle. (Article and photo provided by the Center for Leadership and Ethics.)

United States Army Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, director of the Army Capabilities Integration Center, delivered the keynote speech during the annual Leadership and Ethics Conference.

VMI Alumni Review

The Institute

Class of 2020 Breakout

Editor's Note: Unless otherwise noted, articles in the Institute section were originally published

by Communications and Marketing. Breakout photos by Micalyn Miller, VMIAA.

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Keydet Athletics VMI Hall of Fame’s Newest Inductees Mildred Cooper ’05 (track and field) – First VMI women’s individual conference champion in any sport history and dominated the women’s shot put throughout her career with five individual crowns in the events.

Matt Erwin ’02 (wrestling) – Was a four-time NCAA qualifier and won the 174 pound weight class in the Southern Conference in 2002.

Joey Gibson ’02 (football) – Quarterback between 1999-2002 seasons; Finished his career as the school’s then-all-time leading passer with 5,607 yards.

Sean Mizzer ’06 (football) – Finished his cadet career second on the school all-time rushing list with 3,733 and had 27 rushing touchdowns.

Mich Pettyjohn ’55 (rifle) – Was a first team All-American in 1955 and the only VMI cadet to win the National Rifle Association Golden Bullet All-American Award.

Eugene Scott ’80 (track and field) – Won the three SoCon individual titles in the jumps and co-captained the 1979-80 track teams.

Kelly Sweppenheiser ’06 (baseball) – Became the only player in school history to rank in the top five in career hits, runs, RBI and home runs.

Roland Lazenby ’74 (special citation) – Sports author who has written over 60 books and publications, including works on Jerry West, Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, and penned “Best Regrets, VMI’s John McKenna And The Lost Age Of College Football.”

The newest inductees into the VMI Sports Hall of Fame posed with past members who attended the Feb. 11 banquet at Marshall Hall.

Swimming Joins America East Conference The VMI swimming and diving programs will become associate members of the America East Conference in 2017-18, according to information released by the organization Dec. 15, 2016.

“VMI is grateful for the opportunity to join America East in men’s and women’s swimming and diving,” said Dr. Dave Diles, VMI director of intercollegiate athletics. “The league is widely recognized for the high educational achievement of its student-athletes, sportsmanship and competitive excellence. Amy Huchthausen [America East Conference commissioner] provided exceptional leadership through our discussions.

Joining America East provides our programs with an exceptional competitive platform and underscores our commitment to advancing all of the intercollegiate programs at VMI.” The AEC will be the fifth conference home in the history of the VMI men’s program, following the Southern Conference (1937-82), the Southern States Conference (1991-2003),

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the Northeast Conference (2003-07) and, most recently, the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (2008-17).

The Keydets will join Binghamton University, University of Maine and University of Maryland, Baltimore County in a league that will be reforming after being defunct since 2013 and will be with at least one familiar team, as the Keydets and UMBC are both currently in the CCSA. VMI also got a sample of its future conference action this season when the Keydets faced Binghamton Nov. 12, 2016.

“We are excited to bring back men’s swimming and diving as a championship sport and welcome VMI as an associate member for both men’s and women’s swimming and diving,” said Huchthausen. “As a conference, we pride ourselves on our broad-based athletic mission and are pleased more student-athletes will be able to compete for America East championships in the future.”

This will be the third home for the Keydet women, who spent one year in the NEC before moving to the CCSA. University of Maryland, Baltimore County and New Hampshire have combined to win four of the last five titles on the women’s side in the AEC. In the AEC, VMI will join the three schools that feature men’s swimming and diving – UMBC, Maine and Binghamton – while also facing the University of Vermont, University of New Hampshire and Stony Brook University.

“Our programs are very excited about joining the America East Conference, and I am excited about the competitive opportunities this will provide for our cadet-athletes,” said Bill Nicholson, VMI head coach of the swimming and diving programs. “I personally would like to thank everyone who facilitated this move from the conference administration to the VMI athletic department, and we look forward to making an impact in our new home.”

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Keydet Athletics

Goode and Luckett Help Women’s Track and Field Open CPTF With Win Cadet Kerisha Goode ’18 swept the 60- and 200-meter events, winning the 60 in school record time, while Cadet Logan Luckett ’20 won both the mile and the 3,000-meters to lead the VMI women’s track and field team past The Citadel Bulldogs, 87-51, in dual meet action Jan. 28, 2017, at the Corps Physical Training Facility in Lexington. The meet was the first NCAA competition inside the building that houses VMI’s new indoor track.

The Keydets were never particularly threatened in the dual, and Goode and Luckett were two prime reasons why. The freshmen cruised to a victory in the 3K (10:51.53), about an hour after holding off teammate Cadet Bethany King ’18 in the mile, 5:27.86 to 5:28.94. Luckett continued her streak of never finishing behind a teammate in any individual race in her short collegiate career, dating back to the cross-country season.

Goode set the women’s program standard for speed on the new facility’s sprint straight, breaking 14-year old school record set by Shelly Mackall ’06 by winning the 60 in 7.69 seconds. Goode then returned to win the 200 in 25.04, with both times standing as ECAC qualifying marks.

Another victor that day was Cadet Yaa Agyepong-Wiafe ’18, who prevailed in the 60 hurdles in an ECAC qualifying time of 8.78. It was the

second straight meet that had seen AgyepongWiafe hit the ECAC standard. She also ran a 7.79 in the 60-meter dash, good for second place behind Goode and a personal best time.

In addition, Cadet Julianne Knoblett ’20 won the 800-meters in 2:26.23.

The Keydets also captured multiple wins in the jumps, with Cadet Bria Anderson ’18 winning the long jump in 5.68 meters (18’7 3/4”) and falling just shy of ECAC qualification in the

process, while Cadet Kennedy Smith ’18 won the triple jump (10.69 M/35’1”) and Cadet Julia Logan ’18 won the high jump (1.50 M/4’11”).

Finally, the throwing events saw Cadet Tiffany Quick ’19 be victorious in the shot put (12.38 M/40’7 3/4”) and move up to No. 3 on the all-time VMI list in that event, while Cadet Elizabeth Johnston ’17 was second in the weight throw (14.39 M/47’2 3/4”) and moved to seventh in school history in that discipline.

Henderson and Warren Lead Men’s Track and Field Past The Citadel in First Meet at CPTF The Citadel Bulldogs took the lead briefly in the final events, but the VMI Keydets used a sweep of the pole vault and domination of the mile to regain the lead for good en route to a 78-68 win in dual meet action Jan. 28, 2017, at VMI’s new Corps Physical Training Facility.

The meet was the first NCAA competition inside the building that houses VMI’s new indoor track.

The Citadel had pulled ahead by a single point late in the competition, but the Bulldogs did not field a competitor in the pole vault.

That enabled VMI’s Cadet Levi Whitt ’19 and Cadet Desmond Weinberg-Jones ’17 to collect the maximum eight combined points without

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opposition, and when Cadet Luke Phillips ’17 and Cadet Ryan Drew ’20 went 1-2 in the 3K moments later, VMI regained the lead for good.

For the second straight week, the Keydets were led by Cadet Greg Henderson ’17 in the sprints.

Henderson defeated another of the SoCon’s top sprinters, Josiah Johnson of The Citadel, in winning both the 60 (6.83) and the 200 (21.78). Henderson also hit the IC4A qualifying standard in both for the second straight meet.

Cadet Lee Warren ’18 was another VMI standout Saturday, as he won the 60-meter hurdles with an IC4A qualifying 8.18 time. Warren knocked off The Citadel’s Malik Diggs, last year’s conference runner-up in the 110 hurdles

outdoors in doing so, and then came back to finish third in the 200-meter dash with a personal best time of 22.92.

In addition to his win in the 3K, which he won with a kick over the final lap, Phillips was second in the mile by the slightest of margins. Both he and teammate Cadet Jay Broom ’18 were timed at 4:26.30, but Broom bested Phillips by thousandths of a second with a lean at the line.

Finally, the Keydets swept the top three spots in the long jump, another crucial event in capturing the win. The effort was led by Cadet Korey Bullard ’17 with a 6.36 M/20’10 1/2” winning jump that just bested Cadet James Granderson ’20 with his 6.35 M/20’10” effort.

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Keydet Athletics

VMI Football Announces 2017 Signings Scott Wachenheim, VMI head football coach, announced the signings of the 2017 football recruiting class Feb. 1, 2017.

“VMI football’s 2017 recruiting class is made up of men of character with an outstanding academic foundation who love playing football and desire the unique leadership training VMI provides,” said Wachenheim. “Our signing class includes student-athletes from six states: Texas, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Florida, North Carolina and Virginia. It is a competitive group that looks to make an immediate impact on VMI football.”

The following signees are members of the 2017 VMI Football recruiting class. The info below includes name, position, height, weight, hometown and high school. Further capsule information on each signee follows.

2017 VMI Football Signees as of Feb. 1, 2017 Chris Anderson: Wide receiver, 6’1”, 190 pounds from Lutz, Florida. (Admiral Farragut) Imani Bey: Linebacker, 6’3”, 205 pounds from Upper Marlboro, Maryland. (Bishop McNamara) George Brown: Defensive lineman, 6’0”, 285 pounds from Fredericksburg, Virginia.

(Chancellor) Will Bunton: Defensive back, 6’0”, 185 pounds from South Mills, North Carolina. (Camden County) Tyren Cloyd: Linebacker, 6’1”, 190 pounds from Chesterfield, Virginia. (Benedictine) Brad Davis: Offensive lineman, 6’4”, 255 pounds from Victoria, Virginia (Fuqua School) Montrece Gatling: Defensive back, 5’9”, 190 pounds from Havelock, North Carolina.

(Havelock) Jaylen Jefferson: Defensive back, 5’9”, 180 pounds from Chesapeake, Virginia. (Deep Creek) Colin Loftis: Defensive back, 6’0”, 170 pounds from Arlington, Texas. (Mansfield Timberview) Noah Manuel-Delaney: Defensive lineman, 6’4”, 220 pounds from Fredericksburg, Virginia.

(Chancellor) Christopher Owens: Wide receiver, 6’0”, 170 pounds from Aberdeen, North Carolina.

(Pinecrest) Collin Reese: Offensive lineman, 6’7”, 260 pounds from Chesapeake, Virginia. (Grassfields)

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Colby Rider: Tight end, 6’2”, 240 pounds from Barren Springs, Virginia. (Fort Chiswell) A.J. Smith: Athlete, 6’2”, 200 pounds from Virginia Beach, Virginia. (Cox) Shane Strand: Offensive lineman, 6’5”, 260 pounds from Fredericksburg, Virginia. (Colonial Forge) Kris Thornton: Wide receiver, 5’8”, 160 pounds from Manassas, Virginia. (Osbourne) Reese Udinski: Quarterback, 6’4”, 180 pounds from North Wales, Pennsylvania. (North Penn) Chuck Weatherman: Defensive lineman, 6’5”, 230 pounds from Staunton, Virginia. (Buffalo Gap)

He recorded 87 tackles over his career, including 54 solo takedowns for an average of 2.8 tackles per game and logged 36 tackles as a junior and 26 as a senior. Bunton tallied 13 interceptions in high school, including seven as a sophomore, five as a junior and one his senior year. He had 297 interception yards, including 151 his sophomore year and 146 as a junior and also played as a tailback on offense, recording 16 touchdowns, 928 rush yards and 553 receiving yards between his junior and senior years. During his senior year alone, he had 235 receiving yards and 859 rushing yards with 10 touchdowns as a senior, including seven on the ground, two in the air and one pick-six.

Extended Profiles

Tyren Cloyd had 40 tackles and two forced fumbles as a senior and also recovered three fumbles and had four tackles for loss. As a junior in 2015, he logged 33 tackles (19 solo) over nine games for an average of 3.7 tackles per game and had three tackles for loss in 2015, including one sack, and caused two fumbles, recovering both.

Cloyd served as team captain and played on two state championship squads. He was starting outside linebacker in the 804 versus 757 Senior Bowl. He also lettered three years in track in long and triple jumps.

Chris Anderson is a four-year letter winner in both football and track at Admiral Farragut High School in St. Petersburg, Florida. He played wide receiver and safety under Rick Kravitz, head coach. On offense, he has 54 career catches for 735 yards and five touchdowns, and as a safety, he tallied three interceptions, three forced fumbles, two sacks and 43 tackles.

Imani Bey tallied 69 tackles, eight sacks and forced five fumbles as a senior and recovered three fumbles on the year. As a junior in 2015, he played in six games, recording six sacks and 40 tackles, including one safety. He runs a 4.55 40-yard dash and has a 34-inch vertical.

George Brown recorded 219 total tackles over four years of varsity football, including 58 solo, for an average of 5.8 tackles per game. He logged seven sacks since the 2013 season and caused three fumbles, recovering one and played in 38 varsity games in high school, starting all 11 games in 2015 and 2016. Brown tallied 67 tackles in both his senior and junior seasons for a 6.1 tackles per game average and registered 11.5 tackles for loss as a senior, topping the 6.5 from his junior year and 8.5 as a sophomore. He earned four sacks his senior year.

Will Bunton played in 31 varsity games in high school, including 12 as both a junior and senior.

Brad Davis was All-State First Team offensive lineman in 2015 and 2016 and was First Team All-State as defensive lineman in 2016.Two-time team most valuable player on offensive line. He had 38 tackles and 31 assists with a sack and pass deflection in 2016. He was named a Virginia Commonwealth Conference First Team All-Conference offensive lineman in 2014 and VCC All-Academic in 2013 and 2014. He served as SCA president and was the recipient of the Anna McGovern scholarship.

Montrece Gatling was named All-Conference and All-Area as a defensive back in 2016. Over his career, he had 111 total tackles, including 50 solo, for a 2.1 tackles per game average and recorded three interceptions, caused two fumbles and deflected 38 passes over his four years. As a senior, he had 37 tackles (20 solo), 22 pass deflections, two interceptions and 1.5 tackles for loss over 15 games. As a junior, he tallied 21 tackles (8 solo), one tackle for loss and nine

VMI Alumni Review

Keydet Athletics deflected passes. In his 2014 sophomore season, Gatling logged 48 tackles (21 solo) for an average of three tackles per game and had three tackles for loss. He is also a kickoff return specialist and registered 277 kickoff return yards over his career, including 231 as a senior, as he averaged 38.5 return yards per kick. On offense, he carried the ball 188 times over his four years, including 67 as a senior and 75 his junior year, for 1,245 rushing yards (6.6 per game) and recorded 17 touchdowns on offense, including five as a senior and nine as a junior. He also logged receiving yards in his final two seasons, totaling 16 receptions for 163 yards (124 as a senior), or 10.2 yards per reception.

Jaylen Jefferson was named First Team AllConference as a defensive back and Second Team All-Conference as a quarterback his senior year, Jefferson participated in the 757 All-Star game in 2016. Before his senior year, he participated at the Nike Football The Opening Regional in Washington, D.C. As a junior in 2015, he registered 68 tackles, 10 passes deflected, three interceptions, two forced fumbles and recovered two fumbles, and he logged six touchdowns in 2015.

Colin Loftis was named Second Team AllConference as a senior and had over 200 tackles in his career with six interceptions and 15 pass breakups. He had 65 tackles as a junior, 51 of which were solo, and averaged 7.4 tackles per game junior year. He helped his team to a conference title as a sophomore in 2014 and also lettered in track and basketball.

Noah Manuel-Delaney totaled 187 career tackles in high school, including 104 his senior year, for an average of 8.7 tackles per game. In 2016, 41 of the 104 tackles were solo takedowns, as he logged 9.5 tackles for loss in addition to a pass breakup and forced fumble. As a junior, he logged 58 tackles (10 solo) for an average of 5.3 tackles per game and had four tackles for loss and one pass breakup. He registered seven sacks in high school, six of which came his senior year, and saw time as a wide receiver both years, tallying nine catches for 160 yards as a senior (17.8 yards per carry) and eight receptions for 70 yards (8.8 ypc) as a junior. He scored five receiving touchdowns in high school, including four in 2016.

Over his junior and senior seasons, Christopher Owens totaled 60 catches for 1,548 yards for an average of 25.8 yards per reception and

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tallied 17 receiving touchdowns. He averaged 77.4 receiving yards per game the past two years, and in 12 games as a senior, he logged 43 receptions for 1,074 yards and 10 touchdowns, averaging 25 yards per catch and 89.5 receiving yards a game. Owens had a season-best 93-yard touchdown reception, and as a junior in 2015, he played in eight varsity games and had 17 receptions for 474 yards for an average of 27.9 yards per catch and 59.3 receiving yards per game. He totaled seven receiving touchdowns as a junior.

Collin Reece is a two-year letterman under head coach Martin Asprey at Grassfield High School. He also played two years of basketball and one year of volleyball and was a member of the Grassfield Lacrosse Club and the Boo Williams AAU basketball team.

Colby Rider was a four-year letterman as a tight end/defensive end under head coach Todd Tiller at Fort Chiswell High School. He was named First Team All-State as a tight end and Second Team All-State as a defensive end and also played center for four years on the basketball team. Rider was an All-Region track and field team member.

A.J. Smith was named a Top 50 recruit by The Virginian-Pilot for 2017 in South Hampton Roads, Virginia. He was named defense impact player of the year and had the highest playoff passing percentage mark at Frank W. Cox High School. He was First Team All-Conference and Second Team All-Region. Smith also lettered three years in basketball and was team most valuable player and Second Team All-Conference.

He played for AAU basketball Elite Express.

Shane Strand was named to the First Team All-6A South Region team as an offensive lineman and First Team All-Conference 4 football team by InsideNova.com as a lineman. He was also named Second Team All-State. His sisters, Sarah and Megan Strand, both played women’s soccer at VMI. As a senior wide receiver, Kris Thornton caught 94 passes for 1,601 yards for an average of 17 yards per catch and 160 receiving yards per game in 2016. He had 16 touchdown receptions in 2016, including a long of 89 yards and carried the ball 15 times for 102 yards as a senior for a 6.8 yards per rush average. He totaled 31 touchdowns in high school, composed by 16 receiving touchdowns as a senior, 12 rushing

touchdowns as a junior and three kickoff returns for touchdowns. He logged 3,197 all-purpose yards between his junior and senior seasons, including 2,053 in 2016. A kickoff and punt return specialist, Thornton returned two kickoffs for touchdowns as a senior and one as a junior. As a senior, he returned nine kickoffs for 325 yards for a 36.1 average per kickoff return, including a 95-yard touchdown return, and as a junior, he returned nine kickoffs for 303 yards for a 33.7 average, including a long of 80 yards. He also returned four punts in 2015 for 43 yards for a 10.8 punt return average and played primarily as a running back his junior year in 2015, scoring 12 touchdowns as he carried the ball 123 times for 616 yards for an average of 5 yards per rush and 61.6 yards per game. He earned 182 receiving yards on 20 catches his junior year for 9.1 yards per catch and earned playing time on the defensive side of the ball, grabbing three interceptions as a senior and one as a junior.

As a senior, Reese Udinski was named AllArea Player of the Year as he led the North Penn High School Knights to a 6A District 1 title and 14-1 record, falling only in the state championship game. He was named 6A First Team All-State by the Pennsylvania Football Writers Association and to the All-Southeastern PA football team. Udinski is only second player in state high school history to throw for more than 4,000 yards in a single season and destroyed previous District 1 passing yards in a single season record with 4,119, breaking previous mark of 3,300.

In 2016, he tallied 41 receiving touchdowns on a 62 percent (210-336) completion percentage and averaged 274.6 pass yards per game, eclipsing 300 yards in six separate games, including school record 444 versus Garnet Valley. As a junior in 2015, he was named First Team AllLeague and Second Team All-Area as he went 154-241 passing for 2,471 yards and threw 20 receiving touchdowns in 2015. He transferred from Central Bucks West High School before his junior season at North Penn.

Chuck Weatherman was named a First Team All-State linebacker as a senior, and as a junior in 2015, he was named Second Team All-Region and First Team All-District, First Team All-State Underclassman Linebacker and a Second Team All-District Tight End. Weatherman has 107 career tackles, including 55 solo and nine career sacks and one interception. As a tight end, he logged 11 receptions and three touchdown catches.

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VMI Foundation, Inc. Message from the Interim CEO

by Warren J. Bryan ’71

Warren J. “Buddy” Bryan ’71 made a presentation to then-chaplain Col. James Park in spring 2016. Photo courtesy VMI. In late 2016, the VMI Foundation’s Board of Trustees named me as the interim chief executive officer of the VMI Foundation, and I assumed that position Jan. 1, 2017. I am honored by the confidence the trustees have placed in me. This is an exceptional opportunity to lead the VMI Foundation and its highly skilled and dedicated staff and to work with our devoted volunteer leaders.

This opportunity comes close to the end of my career with the VMI Foundation, which began in spring 1976. During more than four decades, I have worked with alumni and friends on annual giving, planned gifts, and since June 2009, I have served as the vice president for major gifts. For most of those years, I was involved with 50th and 25th Reunion Campaigns, beginning with the Classes of 1927 and 1952. It’s a bit sobering to realize that my own class’ 50th Reunion is not many years away.

During my time at the Foundation, I have

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also witnessed many changes at VMI. I have seen the development of new buildings and facilities – from Cameron Hall to North Post and Maury-Brooke Hall to Third Barracks – and the coming and going of many faculty and staff members, as well as five superintendents. I have watched the Corps of Cadets grow in size and change in composition. I have served under 16 presidents of the VMI Foundation Board of Trustees and worked with dozens of trustees.

An Uncommon Purpose: A Glorious Past, A Brilliant Future: The Campaign for VMI marks the fourth major fundraising campaign with which I have been involved. Those efforts have been catalysts for progress in fundraising in support of the Institute. The first such effort – The VMI Campaign, A Heritage Continued – moved the Institute into the modern era of fundraising and, by doing so, helped to create the endowment (now valued at nearly $400

million) which provides vital support to the Institute and its faculty, staff and most importantly, cadets. That and other efforts have raised hundreds of millions of dollars that have advanced every aspect of the Institute’s extraordinary education and helped move VMI into the front ranks of American higher education. During my time, the VMI Foundation – along with its sister organizations, the VMI Alumni Association and the VMI Keydet Club – has embraced new technologies, expanded its services and increased the size of its staff in order to enhance its ability to support the Institute.

Throughout the changes at VMI and the VMI Foundation, two things have been constant: The VMI family’s unshakeable devotion to the Institute and resolute commitment to its progress, and the generosity toward VMI from its alumni, parents, grandparents, family members, spouses, faculty, staff and friends. Throughout my career, I have been amazed by the willingness of the entire VMI family to make often sacrificial gifts to the Institute, as well as to engage others and urge them to do the same. Although everyone has his or her own specific reasons to give to VMI, my experience is that most people have a sense of gratitude toward it.

If they are alumni, they are thankful for what their years at the Institute did for them, how it prepared them for their careers and their lives, and for the many friendships of their brother rats and other alumni. If they are, say, parents, they are grateful for how the time in barracks transformed their son or daughter into someone ready for a purposeful and honorable life. For many, they are thankful for what VMI has done for the country since it graduated its first class in 1842, and they want to ensure that the Institute can continue to graduate citizen-soldiers who will be leaders in their chosen professions as well as in service to the country.

In closing, I now look forward to serving the Foundation and the VMI family in this new role as we strive together to ensure this special institution has the resources to continue to educate honorable men and women.

VMI Alumni Review

VMI Foundation, Inc.

Michael Griffin ’17 Interns at VMI Foundation During the 2016-17 academic year, Cadet Michael P. Griffin ’17, an English major from Mansfield, Massachusetts, interned at the VMI Foundation. Griffin will graduate with all four concentrations available in the English department as well as a minor in history. Griffin’s time has been at a premium throughout his cadetship; however, when Col. Emily Miller, the head of the Department of English, Rhetoric and Humanistic Studies, presented information on the internship program at the Foundation, Griffin saw it as an opportunity to get involved in the work of the Foundation and to apply what he had learned in the classroom in a practical environment.

Asked what he had learned from his work at the Foundation, Griffin responded, “How to deal with a variety of tasks. I’ve helped with stewardship efforts – that is, ensuring donors are kept informed about how their gifts are being managed by the Foundation and how they are being used on post to help cadets, faculty and staff members. I was responsible for writing and developing the newsletter that the trustees of the VMI Foundation receive, and I have

helped reorganize many of its files related to endowments.” He also said his time at the VMI Foundation has given him an appreciation of how the VMI Foundation does its job on behalf of VMI. “Unless they’re on scholarship, most cadets don’t interact all that much with the Foundation. They don’t realize, therefore, how much goes into what it does. [Before] working here, I thought, ‘An alumnus sends a check or makes a phone call, and that’s it.’ But, that’s just the beginning. The donor needs to be thanked, he or she must receive a receipt and then be recognized for that gift, and that gift must be directed to the proper place. Then, there is the work of managing endowments and keeping donors informed of how their gifts are being used and who is benefiting from them.”

One experience that stood out for Griffin was his presentation to the VMI Foundation’s Board of Trustees at its meeting in November 2016.

He was asked to talk about his experience as an intern. While he admitted to not knowing “if [he] was ready to for it,” he said he enjoyed the experience. “It was a little intimidating to speak to a group of men and women who are

as accomplished as the trustees, but I saw it as a way to bridge the gap between alumni and cadets and share with them some firsthand impressions on the Foundation’s important role.”

“Michael is only the second intern to work for us at the VMI Foundation,” said Jacki Berkshire, Foundation chief of staff, “and we very much appreciate the work that he has done for us this academic year. The program is an excellent way for the Foundation to strengthen its links with the Corps of Cadets and with the faculty, especially the English department. We wish Michael all the best after graduation and look forward to welcoming another cadet in the fall.”

Christina Hatcher, Foundation donor relations coordinator, said, “It’s great to have Michael here, because he provides us the perspective of a cadet and, more generally, of barracks. That helps all of us feel an even closer bond with the Corps of Cadets than we already have.”

“I’m excited to be getting out of barracks and to be starting my career with the U.S. Air Force,” Griffin said. “But my mind won’t be far from barracks, as my brother, John, will be matriculating in August.”

Classes of 2006 and 1991 End Reunion Campaigns The Classes of 2006 and 1991 closed the books on their Reunion Campaigns Dec. 31, 2016, according to John J. Wranek III ’85, the VMI Foundation vice president for annual and reunion giving. In the middle of January 2017, he reported the results to each class. The Class of 2006 gave $272,262 in gifts and commitments, with 33 percent of their class participating in their campaign. For the Class of 1991, the final results were $1.2 million in donations, pledges and deferred gifts, with 148 of 319 brother rats taking part in the campaign, garnering a final participation rate of 46 percent.

When asked why the campaigns keep working for months after the classes celebrating their 10th and 25th Reunion Campaigns present their initial proceeds during the two fall reunion weekends, Wranek responded, “It has been our experience that, because of the

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demands of work and family, there are some alumni who don’t focus on their class’ reunion campaigns until they arrive back on post.

Some who have been away for years are in a ‘wait-and-see’ mode; they want to see what VMI looks like and feels like before they make a gift or a commitment. Still others make the majority of their philanthropic gifts toward the end of the calendar year. So, it makes sense to keep the work of the campaigns going until the end of the year.”

Following the example set by previous 10th Reunion classes, the Class of 2006 focused on immediate gifts and short-term pledges to the funds associated with VMI Annual Giving, such as the Keydet Club Scholarship Fund and the Foundation Fund. Most 25th Reunion campaigns, however, have appeals to endowed funds related to the class conducting the campaign. Among such funds for the

Class of 1991 was a scholarship honoring the memory of their brother rat, Lt. Cmdr. David Williams ’91, who was killed in action while serving at the Pentagon Sept. 11, 2001, and the Class of 1991 Endowment, which provides unrestricted support to VMI for all programs except NCAA athletics. “All of these funds are meant to do two things: Meet the Institute’s critical needs, which also happen to be priorities of An Uncommon Purpose: A Glorious Past, A Brilliant Future: The Campaign for VMI, and engage the class more closely in the campaign,” explained Wranek.

“Thanks to tireless work of leaders who would not rest until the last possible moment and the generosity of their brother rats, these reunion campaigns were successful,” said Warren J. Bryan ’71, interim chief executive officer of the VMI Foundation. “Their success will help ensure the future strength of the Institute.”

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VMI Foundation, Inc.

“I Owe VMI More than I Thought I Ever Would:” Richard Moore II ’82

During his childhood, VMI was never far from the mind of Richard Moore II ’82, mainly because its presence was never far from where he lived: New Market, Virginia. “The battlefield park overlooked my grandfather’s farm,” he recalled. The presence of the Institute in his life grew larger when one of Moore’s four brothers, Michael, left home to attend VMI in 1974 – graduating in 1978. Another brother, James, also would later graduate in 1984.

Moore attended VMI as a state cadet, a needbased scholarship for Virginia residents, which paid for his room and board. To pay the remaining cost of his education – which he describes as “four years and four summers” – he depended on several other need-based scholarships, grants and loans.

After graduating as a civil engineer, Moore repaid his obligation for the state cadetship by remaining in Lexington and working for the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Division of Water Programs for two years. After working for a fellow alumnus for another two years as a design engineer, he embarked on a 30-year career in the construction industry. “Work was never a chore. It’s easy to get up in the morning when you love your job,” Moore stated. The bulk of his career was spent renovating medical facilities

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on Army posts across the country, which, as he put it, “combined my VMI background with my business,” and concluded with the sale of his company and his retirement.

After graduation, Moore set out to repay the Institute for the valuable life lessons he learned.

“I am a firm believer in the VMI system, because I got a lot out of the experience. In fact, deciding to go to VMI is what I describe as ‘my first mature decision.’ I knew without the structure of cadet life, I might not make it through college.

The VMI experience provided me the structure and tools necessary to be successful as a person and businessman.” Several years ago, after he reached a point in his career when his family was financially secure, Moore increased his giving to VMI substantially.

In 2014, he and his wife, Melissa, decided to create the Mr. and Mrs. Richard M. Moore II 1982 Scholarship. It is a need-based scholarship that focuses on cadets who wish to study engineering and are from Shenandoah County, Virginia. “My wife, Melissa, and I were both raised in the Valley, and by providing assistance for young people to attend VMI, we give back to VMI and our home,” Moore explained.

A desire to give back to the Institute is a thread that runs through Moore’s philanthropy to the

Institute. “Looking back over my VMI experience and what it afforded me to do, I feel a great sense of responsibility to help continue the tradition for others. I owe VMI more than I thought I ever would as a cadet.”

Another thread, however, is the value of VMI as an institution. “The Institute does so many good things for our cadets and for the country.

It educates for leadership and success and inculcates a strong sense of service, and its graduates give so much to their employers, their communities and the country. Everything that we can do, therefore, to support that type of education, we should do.”

When asked what his future philanthropy at VMI might look like, Moore said, “I feel fortunate to have the ability to make a difference, and as long as I’m able, I’ll continue to support the Institute.”

Editor’s Note: Unless stated otherwise, the articles and photos in the Foundation section of the Alumni Review are provided by the Foundation.

VMI Alumni Review

The Keydet Club Keydet Club Establishes the Brian Scott Crockett Athletic Scholarship At the 2016 fall board meeting of the VMI Keydet Club Board of Governors, the establishment of the Brian Scott Crockett Athletic Scholarship was announced, and the Keydet Club surprised Crockett by presenting him with a Memorandum of Understanding. This scholarship will provide annual grant-in-aid to a cadet-athlete with preference given to a member of the VMI football team and/or a cadet from the state of New Jersey.

Greg Cavallaro ’84, Keydet Club chief executive officer, shared that it was important for the Keydet Club to acknowledge Crockett’s retirement and recognize his impact on

the overall fundraising efforts at VMI as the chief executive officer of the VMI Foundation and as the chief operating officer of An Uncommon Purpose: A Glorious Past, A Brilliant Future: The Campaign for VMI – a comprehensive effort that raised more than $300 million in gifts and commitments from 2012-17. “We hope this scholarship will keep Brian engaged with VMI, the athletic program and our cadet-athletes,” remarked Cavallaro.

Crockett began working at the VMI Foundation in July 2009 after serving at the U.S. Military Academy as the vice president for development for the West Point Association

of Graduates since November 2007.

Before his position at West Point, Crockett served his alma mater, Rutgers University, as its vice president of external programs from 2004 to November 2007. He also served as the executive director of the Scarlet R Club and associate athletic director for development from 1993-2004. A 1982 graduate of Rutgers, Crockett also served as a graduate assistant with the Rutgers University Scarlet Knights football team from 1982-84.

From 1984-93, Crockett worked in the field of sales and marketing, enjoying success with Xerox and Digital Equipment Corporation.

The Dr. Cole Davis Memorial Football Scholarship A native of Rockbridge County, Col. William Cole Davis graduated from Washington and Lee University in 1902 and received his medical degree from the University of Maryland in 1908. He entered the Army Medical Corps in 1909 and graduated from the Army Medical School in 1910.

During the next decade, Davis served in a variety of posts, including U.S. Army medical facilities in the Philippines, during which time he met his wife, Madeleine Davis, a Canadian citizen on a trip with her parents. Davis later served at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. During World War I, he commanded a base hospital in New Jersey. He left the active Army as a lieutenant colonel and later became a colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve.

After his Army service, he was medical director at the Byeberry Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as well as medical director and assistant superintendent of the Norristown State Hospital in Norristown, Pennsylvania. Entering

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private practice in 1928, he lived and worked in New Jersey for the next 15 years.

In 1943, he became post surgeon at VMI and held that position until 1946. He retired in Lexington and maintained his interest in medicine.

In late 1957, he was moved by information about the need for medical care in the remote regions of the Amazon River Basin in Venezuela and joined a medical expedition to that area. Davis was accompanied on this trip by James Shepherd ’49B. Davis contracted pneumonia during the trip and died in Caracas, Venezuela, Feb. 23, 1958.

Davis is survived by his daughter, Margaret Cole Davis, of Lexington, Virginia, and grandson, James Cole Bowness, of Montclair, New Jersey. Margaret was employed at Sigma Nu headquarters in Lexington, Virginia, from 19592000 and currently resides in her home on the grounds of Sigma Nu. The scholarship will be known as the Dr. Cole Davis Memorial Football Scholarship at VMI. It will provide scholarship assistance for a

cadet-athlete in any class who emulates the standards and character expected of a cadetathlete, demonstrating a better-than-average scholastic record and having an all-around record of performance in extracurricular activities, exhibiting leadership potential and is a member of VMI’s Division I football team.

The scholarship was established by Anthony E. Waddell ’62 of Lexington, Virginia, and his contribution was made in honor of James W. Shepherd ’49B of Birmingham, Alabama.

When asked to give his reason for establishing the scholarship, Waddell responded, “Jimmy Shepherd has been a very good friend of mine for many years, and I wanted to honor the memory of Doctor Davis, as he was a fine mentor for Jimmy during his VMI cadetship.”

Donnie Ross ’74, Keydet Club vice president, added, “The Keydet Club is proud and honored to award this scholarship for many generations to come thanks to the personal vision and devoted generosity of Tony Waddell ’62.”

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The Keydet Club

Keydet Club Leadership Levels to Increase Effective July 1, 2017 The Keydet Club Board of Governors recently voted to increase the membership gift requirement levels effective in FY ’18 (July 1, 2017-June 30, 2018). Membership levels have not changed in many years, since the average of the in-state and out-of-state scholarship cost increased from around $20,000 per year in 2005 to over $38,600 today.

FY ’17 Gift Levels New Gift Levels (and for those with open or new Starting July 1, 2017 5-year pledges before July 1, 2017) (FY ’18) $36,000 Out-of-State Full Scholarship $45,000 $18,000 In-State Full Scholarship $25,000 $12,000 Scholarship $15,000 $7,000 Sportsmen $8,000 $5,000 Spirit $6,000 $3,000 Flying Squadron $4,000 $1,875 Lettermen $2,500 $1,000 Big Red $1,500

The Campaign for VMI continues through FY ’17, and all those who love VMI athletics are asked to consider making a 5-year pledge.

In appreciation of the generous Keydet Club Leadership members who have made a pledge for the campaign, and for those who make a pledge before the end of FY ’17, they will be “grandfathered” for the duration of their pledge at the current gift levels.

Pledges allow the Keydet Club and VMI to more accurately forecast future funding projections and ensure we are able to cover the 4-year scholarship commitments made by our coaches to the VMI cadet-athletes.

Greg Cavallaro ’84, Keydet Club chief executive officer; Donnie Ross ’74, Keydet Club vice president; Doug Bartlett, Keydet Club vice president; Andrew Deal ’12, Keydet Club assistant vice president; and Avis Slagle, Keydet Club office manager, will assist you with any questions you may have by calling (800) 444-1839.

The T.L. Atkeson ’57 Rifle Team Scholarship Born in Norfolk, Virginia, in 1934, Tom Atkeson ’57 received his Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from VMI in 1957.

He was an active member of the Junior National Rifle Association. He commissioned in the U.S. Army Field Artillery after graduation and later served in the 82nd Airborne and Special Forces units. He retired from the U.S. Army in 1978 as a major and enjoyed a second career as a professional civil engineer.

After several positions in the civil engineering field, Atkeson opened his own sanitary engineering firm before looking for a retirement community for him and his wife, Joan. They settled in Monterey, Virginia, in Highland

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County, where Atkeson formed an engineering partnership with a fellow engineer. They ventured into constructed wetlands engineering. A talented crafter since his childhood, Atkeson used his spare time crafting miniature furniture for the Irish cottages he created and sold worldwide.

Atkeson died in August 2011. He was preceded in death by a daughter, Katherine Louise Atkeson. He is survived by his wife, Joan Marie (Dorf) Atkeson, of Monterey, and son, John A. (Pete) Atkeson, of Lexington, Kentucky.

The scholarship was established in 2016 by contributions from his wife, Joan. The scholarship is restricted to the VMI rifle team

and will provide scholarship assistance to a member of the team with preference given to a female cadet-athlete.

Donnie Ross ’74, vice president of the Keydet Club, added, “The Keydet Club is proud to add the Atkeson ’57 name to an ever-growing list of endowment scholarships in support of VMI’s Division I athletic program. We are extremely grateful to Joan Atkeson for her visionary contribution to the VMI rifle team in memory of her beloved husband, Tom.”

Editor’s Note: Unless stated otherwise, the articles and photos in the Keydet Club section of the Alumni Review are provided by the Keydet Club.

VMI Alumni Review