"Brats" - folks like us

"Brats".  It's an interesting term, and I don't know how it came to be associated with military family members, but I can see how it resonates among those who read this blog.  Whether we go back a decade to when Jim Pepitone kicked off a great "back and forth" e-mail chain by posting an item on the movie "Brats" or to the latest group of "Final Toast" responses among which RHS '66er LaRay Watkins commented "Thanks for giving us 'brats' something good to remember and be proud of our Air Force background much more.  So much negative in the world today."

Amen to LaRay's statement.  And to Tom's and Jim's postings that recalled the shared heritage that keeps bringing us back to this blog, and to the people we knew oh-so-long-ago - although it sometimes seems so recent.

Thanks to everybody who has gotten in on either or both of the e-discussions on the "Brats" movie or the "Doolittle Raiders" Final Toast.  (I especially appreciate anybody who has used the "comment" feature on the blog!  Please continue to do so.  It's really easy.)

I think it was LaRay's comment that reminded me of this 17 Jan 1965 item in the San Antonio Express:

Here we see my RHS '65 classmate Bill Bradford commenting that he liked being an AF brat.  I like Bill's maturity, at age 17, in saying "Traveling to Korea, England and various parts of the U.S. has aided my understanding of the world."

I didn't remember reading the article about Bill way back when.  If I had, I could have saved myself some embarrassment.  Here's that story.  

I have to confess that I did not know of the use of the term "brats" for folks like us until I was a cadet at the Air Force Academy in 1965.  One of the upperclassmen asked me where I grew up.  I replied with my stock answer "everywhere".  He paused, and I followed up with "my dad was in the Air Force".  He said, "So, you're a 'brat'?".  "No, Sir!" I remonstrated.  Puzzlement persisted on both sides.  He was using the term as a term of relationship to a military parent.  I was perceiving it as a reference to an inappropriate behavioral pattern.  That's how I learned about the term "brats" to refer to people like us.

Let me close with the link to a video.  For those of us who grew up with military aviation, I don't think you'll regret spending six minutes of your life watching this tribute to those who flew and fought for freedom. The video mixes modern and vintage "film".  Some of you are the children of crew members just like the young men shown in the grainy old film clips.  God bless the memory of those who served then and those who serve now.  Also, the family members who support them.  They are now who we were then - "brats".

http://www.youtube.com/v/RU1oB8sGyYM

Jerry Ball
RHS '65

More e-mail traffic resulting from "The Final Toast"

Rohawks!  Here is the latest batch of e-mails resulting from Tom Madsen’s posting of “The Final Toast” concerning the Doolittle Raiders.

 

As a preview of the items below, Gretchen (Egge) Gagos mentioned the National Museum of the Pacific War in Fredericksburg, TX (Admiral Nimitz’ boyhood home!). 

http://www.pacificwarmuseum.org/

 

Babs Clay spoke of the National World War II Museum in New Orleans and her endorsement was seconded by John Lieberman.

 

(If you are academically oriented, I’d like to add that the Special Collections Department at the University of Texas at Dallas has a significant collection of documents related to General Doolittle and other of the Doolittle Raiders.  Please see http://www.utdallas.edu/library/specialcollections/hac/doolittle/

 

UTD also has the archives of Air America.  I spent some enjoyable time there a decade ago learning about the “airline” that carried me around Vietnam.  If you ever had the opportunity to fly with Air America, you might be interested in seeing how much material has been declassified. 

 

Oh, and please ignore the Mel Gibson/Robert Downey, Jr. movie about Air America.  As one critic wrote at the time –  "This muddled film about a secret C.I.A. project in Laos in 1969 fails on every possible level: as action film, as buddy film, as scenic travelogue and even, sad to say, as a way to flaunt Mel Gibson's appeal."

Source:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_America_(film)

 

Off my soapbox, now.)

 

Mike Scott commented on obtaining medals for a parent’s service.  Thanks for bringing the subject up, Mike.  While Mike’s approach clearly worked for him (and will for you, too!), you usually don’t have to involve a member of Congress.  Try this first:

 

Got to http://www.archives.gov/veterans/replace-medals.html

 

Follow the directions under “How Do I Request Military Awards and Decorations?”

 

I have found that the folks at the Air Force Personnel Center who will process these requests are good folks and do a good job with the requests.  If the unlikely case you get a bureaucratic runaround, then the congressional option is always open. 

 

Great to see familiar names pop up in this group of e-mails!  Don’t forget you can use the “comment” option on Gloria’s Rohawk blog.

 

Jerry Ball

RHS ‘65

 

 

On Mon, Mar 21, 2016 at 10:36 PM, Tom Madsen < > wrote:

Thanks,  Mike Scott, for the suggestion about obtaining medals and records.  We ALL appreciate that.

 

From: John Lieberman < > 
Date: 03/21/2016 9:28 PM (GMT-06:00) 
To: Gloria Campbell Gallagher < > 
Subject: Re: RHS BLOG - FINAL TOAST 

Thanks, Gloria and Jerry.  I think it's great that you've added Tom's post and all of the responses to the blog.

I just tried to reply to Tom's post but, unfortunately, Comcast won't let me send to that many recipients.  So I've copied it below in case you'd like to add it to the blog:


Thanks for sharing this great tribute, Tom.  It certainly helps to remind all of us about why those who served so heroically during WW II are known as America's Greatest Generation.  

Having lived in Louisiana for nearly 39 years, I would like to echo everything Babs has said about the National WW II Museum.  It's one fabulous place and I would highly recommend that, if you get a chance to go, you stretch it into a two-day visit.  There's so much to see and do there that it's really hard to cram all of it into one day.

If you should ever get up to the opposite corner of the state, in the Shreveport/Bossier City area where I am, there's the Barksdale Global Power Museum (formerly the Eighth Air Force Museum) at Barksdale Air Force Base.  It isn't nearly as big as the one in New Orleans but it's got a lot of exhibits inside and a big collection of aircraft on static display outside.  It even has an SR-71 Blackbird, a British Vulcan bomber, and a Russian MIG-21.  You can also go to the website, http://barksdaleglobalpowermuseum.com/, and see some great old videos.  I just finished taking a guided video tour inside the cockpit of the SR-71 trainer.

John Lieberman, '66

 

 

 

On 3/21/2016 4:33 PM, Gloria Campbell Gallagher wrote:

 

Hi guys, I think most of you received the email "Final Toast" shared by Tom Madsen.  Jerry Ball has taken this and posted it on the blog and has entered some of the responses from you.  I believe the blog is open so you can feel free to go to the blog and enter your responses.  If you have sent emails already, then Jerry will be posting them for everyone to see.  Of course, if you replied to all then everyone else has seen your comments anyway!!!

 

We've also added a post of Janet Watkins' father on the cover of Life Magazine.  All of you have shared some wonderful stories.  Let's keep it going.  Also, please feel free to send me or Jerry any stories you would like to see posted on the blog.  Thanks

 

Here is the link:  http://ro-hawks.blogspot.com/

 

Jerry Ball, '65

jcrsdj@gmail.com

 

Love, Gloria

gutsking@aol.com

 

~Peace

 

 

On Mon, Mar 21, 2016 at 12:16 PM, Mike Scott < > wrote:

 

Yes, they were all part of the greatest generation, heroes were living all around us.  My Dad was in the cadet class of 41-C at Randolph AFB when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. Years ago I tried to go through his boxes, suit cases etc. to try and find all his medals, without total success. I went to my US Congressman and found out that as a family member you are entitled to one complete set of medals free of charge per family. I received a set  from the Personnel Records Office. You may find out he was awarded medals you didn't know he had. You will also receive an official record of his/ her  awards. I had them mounted in a shadow box, with his wings, nametag and a 5th Air Force patch. It's been a long time since I did this so I am not positive if they are still free but if you don't have your family medals  a US Congressman is a good place to start.

 

Best Regards,

 

Mike Scott           

  

 

From: Thomas Roberdeau < >
To:

Sent: Mon, Mar 21, 2016 11:44 am
Subject: Re: FINAL TOAST

My father, Neywood Roberdeau, served in the Italian Campaign as a personnel officer. Davy Jones, one of Doolittle's pilots, was our next door neighbor at Eglin AFB in Florida. He was my dad's good friend and my Little League baseball coach. I was very small and unsure if I would make the team, but one night, we drove into the driveway and the headlights caught my new baseball uniform hanging there, placed by Col. Jones. He was a wonderful coach. Of course, at that time, I knew nothing about his accomplishments during the war. Memories of childhood are romantic, yet when other do we get to so purely elevate these men who wiped out tyranny?

 

Thomas Roberdeau

 

   

  

 

On Mar 21, 2016, at 11:33 AM, Babs Clay < > wrote:

Tom -

 

1.  Thanks for sharing this article and bringing so many of us out of our personal reveries to make contact with one another.

 

2.  Food for thought - I recently was privileged to spend a day at the National WW II Museum at New Orleans.  What an experience.  The introductory film, interactive stations and static displays are most wonderful.  There are aircraft suspended from the ceilings and catwalks for peering down into them...even one B-25, which is what my dad flew in the Pacific, although not with Mr. Doolittle's crew. 

 

If any of you reading this are looking for ideas for a short trip, I highly recommend NOLA and a stroll through the Quarter and a day at this wonderful memorial to all of the people who personally lived through those brutal years.  Check the museum at www.nationalww2museum.org 

 

It's been good to hear from you.  Best wishes for the future.

 

Babs Clay, '65

The National WWII Museum | New Orleans www.nationalww2museum.org Sitemap. The National WWII Museum tells the story of the American Experience in the war that changed the world - why it was fought, how it was won, and what it means ...

 

  

 

From: Gretchen Gagos < >
To:

Sent: Mon, Mar 21, 2016 11:22 am
Subject: Re: FW: Fwd: FINAL TOAST

There is a wonderful museum at Fredericksburg, TX.  The National Museum of the Pacific War.  On a very large scale.  Admiral Nimitz lent his support as long as his name wasn't used in name of the museum.  Life size walk through dioramas of scenes from the war.  One is as if you are standing on the deck of the "Hornet" at the beginning of the Doolittle raid.  Another is at the dock of a PT boat preparing to go out on a mission.

 

All is so beautifully done.  Can't recommend it enough.

 

Gretchen Egge (Gagos) 

RHS '68

 

 

On Mon, Mar 21, 2016 at 9:33 AM, Art Nigro <> wrote:

 

Hi All, this is really cool, sharing all our father’s experiences during the great war. My father got his first Distinguished Flying Cross from MG Doolittle, when on 7 November 1942 my dad flew in the longest massed unescorted Troop-Carrier flight every performed, from England to North Africa. Out of the 39 C-47’s that took off only about 19 were serviceable after the mission. The mission was called “Operation Villain”. It was written up at great length in Rick Atkinson’s book - An Army at Dawn: The war in North Africa 1942-43. It was my dad’s 24th birthday on that Nov. 7th. Just think what we were all doing when we turned 24. Our dad’s lived through incredibly dangerous situations. It is a miracle some of us are around to tell these stories! God Bless, Art RHS ‘65

 

 

 

On Sun, Mar 20, 2016 at 8:48 PM, Lynda Lillywhite <> wrote:

Give me some time and I will respond to Pam and Jerry's requests. 

 

Lynda

 

 

 

From: Jerry Ball < >
Sent: Friday, March 18, 2016 8:24 PM
To:  Subject: Re: FINAL TOAST

 

Pam,

 

I, too, would be interested in seeing Lynda's recollections of the Doolittle Raiders Final Toast.  The event was filmed and is available on YouTube at

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDKPYpkU5Cg

 

Still, it would be great to get Lynda's personal take on being there.

 

Jerry

 

 

 

On Fri, Mar 18, 2016 at 8:10 PM, Pam Viles < > wrote:

 

So, Lynda, I gather that family members were invited to the Raider Reunions?  It must have been sad to see the numbers dissipate and certain cups overturned each year.

 

If you can, please tell us about the Final Toast.  That must have been emotional for everyone involved.

 

My father flew in that theater and was the sole survivor of a plane crash in India.  He would never discuss it, but in our house, if you did not clean your plate, it was the children starving in India whom you were depriving of food.

 

Pam

 

One family in 1945

The recent WWII discussions on the blog reminded me of a photo taken in 1945 of my dad, his brothers, a cousin, and my granddad and his brother, my great uncle.

The fellows in uniform had all been drafted and had all gone off to some of the most intense situations both in Europe and in the South Pacific. And all of them came home.

Keith and Gordon came back with CIBs, Gordon returned with two purple hearts and a lifelong case of PTSD, Dad returned with two Distinguished Flying Crosses, two Air Medals, and one Australian bride. I think Dad won the competition.

My dad, Jesse, is the one in the center with the mustache. Just this year, my uncle Leon died at age 96, the last of this group to pass away.

The takeaway here: These were men.

Life Magazine cover of Maj Gen Watkins as a West Point Cadet

I think this is the Life cover that Pam asked about.

Pam, is it?

Jerry

The Final Toast (Doolittle Raiders)

Rohawks,

Recently, Tom Madsen kicked off a flurry of e-mails concerning the Doolittle Raiders.  Gloria asked me to compile the e-mails and post them to the blog. 

Jerry Ball
RHS '65

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On Mon, Mar 14, 2016 at 9:50 PM, Tom Madsen <> wrote:	Mar 14 (2 days ago)
to <Gloria's Rohawk mailing list addresses>

Hello Everyone,

 

A good friend of mine found this message about the Doolittle raiders.  There mission was a  Big Deal to our parents and the nation in 1942.  It’s a QUICK READ.  Thanks for your time,  if you read it.

 

Tom Madsen

 

The FINAL TOAST!

They bombed Tokyo 73 years ago.   

They once were among the most universally admired and revered men in the United States .. There were 80 of the Raiders in April 1942, when they carried out one of the most courageous and heart-stirring military operations in this nation's history. The mere mention of their unit's name, in those years, would bring tears to the eyes of grateful Americans.

 

Now only four survive.

 

 

 

 

After Japan 's sneak attack on Pearl Harbor , with the United States reeling

And wounded, something dramatic was needed to turn the war effort around. 

 

 

 Even though there were no friendly airfields close enough to Japan for the United States to launch a retaliation, a daring plan was devised. Sixteen B-25s were modified so that they could take off from the deck of an aircraft carrier. This had never before been tried -- sending such big, heavy bombers from a carrier. 

 

 

 

 

 

The 16 five-man crews, under the command of Lt. Col. James Doolittle, who himself flew the lead plane off the USS Hornet, knew that they would not be able to return to the carrier. They would have to hit Japan and then hope to make it to China for a safe landing. 

 

But on the day of the raid, the Japanese military caught wind of the plan. The Raiders were told that they would have to take off from much farther out in the Pacific Ocean than they had counted on. They were told that because of this they would not have enough fuel to make it to safety. 
And those men went anyway. 

 

They bombed Tokyo and then flew as far as they could. Four planes crash-landed; 11 more crews bailed out, and three of the Raiders died. Eight more were captured; three were executed. 

 Another died of starvation in a Japanese prison camp. One crew made it to Russia . 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Doolittle Raiders sent a message from the United States to its enemies, and to the rest of the world: We will fight. And, no matter what it takes, we will win. 

 

 

Of the 80 Raiders, 62 survived the war. They were celebrated as national heroes, models of bravery. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer produced a motion picture based on the raid; "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo ," starring Spencer Tracy and Van Johnson, was a patriotic and emotional box-office hit, and the phrase became part of the national lexicon. In the movie-theater previews for the film, MGM proclaimed that it was presenting the story "with supreme pride." 

 

 

 

 

 

Beginning in 1946, the surviving Raiders have held a reunion each April, to commemorate the mission. The reunion is in a different city each year. In 1959, the city of Tucson , Arizona , as a gesture of respect and gratitude, presented the Doolittle Raiders with a set of 80 silver goblets. Each goblet was engraved with the name of a Raider. 

 

 

 

 

 

Every year, a wooden display case bearing all 80 goblets is transported to the reunion city. Each time a Raider passes away, his goblet is turned upside down in the case at the next reunion, as his old friends bear solemn witness. 

 

 

 

Also in the wooden case is a bottle of 1896 Hennessy Very Special cognac. The year is not happenstance: 1896 was when Jimmy Doolittle was born. 

 

 

 

There has always been a plan: When there are only two surviving Raiders, they would open the bottle, at last drink from it, and toast their comrades who preceded them in death.
 

 

As 2013 began, there were five living Raiders; then, in February, Tom Griffin passed away at age 96. 

 

 

 

 

 

What a man he was. After bailing out of his plane

Over a mountainous Chinese forest after the Tokyo raid, he became ill with malaria, and almost died. When he recovered, he was sent to Europe to fly more combat missions. He was shot down, captured, and spent 22 months in a German prisoner of war camp. 

 

 

 

The selflessness of these men, the sheer guts ... There was a passage in the Cincinnati Enquirer obituary for Mr. Griffin that, on the surface, had nothing to do with the war, but that was emblematic of the depth of his sense of duty and devotion:
 

 

"When his wife became ill and needed to go into a nursing home, he visited her every day. He walked from his house to the nursing home, fed his wife and at the end of the day brought home her clothes. At night, he washed and ironed her clothes. Then he walked them up to her room the next morning. He did that for three years until her death in 2005." 

 

 

 

So now, out of the original 80, only four Raiders remain: Dick Cole (Doolittle's co-pilot on the Tokyo raid), Robert Hite, Edward Saylor and David Thatcher. All are in their 90s. They have decided that there are too few of them for the public reunions to continue. 

 

The events in Fort Walton Beach marked the end. It has come full circle; Florida 's nearby Eglin Field was where the Raiders trained in secrecy for the Tokyo mission. The town planned to do all it can to honor the men: a six-day celebration of their valor, including luncheons, a dinner and a parade. 

 

 

 

Do the men ever wonder if those of us for whom they helped save the country have tended to it in a way that is worthy of their sacrifice? They don't talk about that, at least not around other people. But if you find yourself near Fort Walton Beach this week, and if you should encounter any of the Raiders, you might want to offer them a word of thanks. I can tell you from first hand observation that they appreciate hearing that they are remembered. 

 

The men have decided that after this final public reunion they will wait until a later date -- sometime this year -- to get together once more, informally and in absolute privacy. That is when they will open the bottle of brandy. The years are flowing by too swiftly now; they are not going to wait until there are only two of them. 

 

They will fill the four remaining upturned goblets. And raise them in a toast to those who are gone.    

 

Their 70th Anniversary Photo 

PLEASE SEND THIS ON TO EVERYONE

IN YOUR ADDRESS BOOK, ESPECIALLY 
TO THOSE WHO WERE TOO YOUNG TO 
KNOW ABOUT THESE BRAVE HEROES. 

 

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Responses to Tom's post start here;
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------   On Tue, Mar 15, 2016 at 9:16 AM, Pam Viles <> wrote:

Tom, I am so glad you found this.  Col. Travis Hoover, who piloted the second plane, was a good friend of my parents, so I was familiar with the story of Doolittle's Raiders from a young age.  I did not know the story of the annual reunion, however.

 

Pam Pratt Viles

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On Tue, Mar 15, 2016 at 10:35 AM, Phil Moseley <> wrote:

 

What a terrific article about a group of our nation's bravest heroes.  I'm not sure that all of our friends ever knew that our classmate (and my senior prom date) Lynda Knobloch's father was one of the raiders.  I came across her married name awhile back when an article like this prompted me to Google her father's obituary.  I tracked her down and have since then enjoyed getting reacquainted and learning about her family and her most interesting life. 

 

Capt. Phil

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On Tue, Mar 15, 2016 at 11:15 AM, Ron Bergquist <> wrote:

The dad of one of our 1964 classmates [Linda Knobloch] was one of this select group. I did not know about his experience until long after we graduated.  I guess modesty was a way of life for them.

http://www.doolittleraider.com/raiders/knobloch.htm

 

R.E. Bergquist

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On Tue, Mar 15, 2016 at 11:25 AM, Jim Dieterich <> wrote:

 

Our parents were very impressive people (and I guess some still are).

 

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On Tue, Mar 15, 2016 at 11:46 AM, Pam Viles <> wrote:

 

I found an interesting article about what happened to each of the planes that took part in the raid.  Lynda's dad co-piloted the thirteenth plane, if this article is correct: http://www.doolittleraider.com/80_brave_men.htm

 

Pam

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 On Tue, Mar 15, 2016 at 12:06 PM, Lynda (Knobloch) Lillywhite <> wrote:

 

 

Thanks for remembering, Phil!  And yes, Pam, that is correct.  My dad was co-pilot of #13.

Lynda

 

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On Tue, Mar 15, 2016 at 1:18 PM, Dickie O'Banion <> wrote:

 

Linda, 

 

I had no idea your dad flew with the Raiders.  That is just awesome and is another confirmation of how blessed we are as children of these great Americans to have been given a such a legacy.   I may not have appreciated what “the greatest generation” did for our country back then -  when we were all so carefree and unconcerned about the future, but there’s not a day that goes by now that I don’t look heavenward and thank my own father for the principles he lived by and taught his children.  Don’t we all wish that so many Americans would find again just a measure of our parent’s steadfast patriotism and faith in the founding principles of our country. 

 

Dickie

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

On Tue, Mar 15, 2016 at 5:55 PM, Janet Jendron <> wrote:

 

Have loved this thread of conversation! Amen, Dickie! Grateful for our parents and for all of you. 

 

 

JJ

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

On Tue, Mar 15, 2016 at 8:29 PM, Pam Viles <> wrote:

Hear, hear, Dickie.  But we experienced so many things differently from our civilian counterparts, e.g., the Cuban Missile Crisis when RAFB was on lockdown and we were not allowed to use our house phones in case our fathers were required to report immediately.  That situation made all of us reassess our own (albeit teenaged) mortality while our civilian counterparts were watching "American Dance Party" on one of the three available television channels.

 

Janet, wasn't your dad on the cover of TIME magazine?

 

Pam

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On Tue, Mar 15, 2016 at 11:57 PM, laray van meter <> wrote:

 

Tom

 

Thanks for giving us 'brats' something good to remember and be proud of our Air Force background once more.  So much negative in this world today.

 

LaRay Watkins Van Meter
RHS '66

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On Tue, Mar 15, 2016 at 11:29 PM, Jerry Ball <> wrote:

Tom and fellow/sister Rohawks!

 

It has been wonderful to see the e-mail "crackle" again with enthusiastic Rohawks.  Tom has certainly gotten things started with an apt subject for us Air Force "brats" - the previous topic that generated so much conversation more than a decade ago.

Those of us who were cadets at the Air Force Academy in the sixties were privileged not only to learn about the Doolittle Raiders but to have the goblets and cognac displayed in one of the hallways we walked down.  As with any item you see on a regular basis, sometimes it faded into the background, but often I, and other cadets, would pause to view the display and just to contemplate what these men had done.

It really is amazing when you think about it.  Less than forty years earlier, two bicycle makers from Dayton, Ohio had gone to the beach at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina and had flown what amounted to a motorized kite for a distance of of 120 feet and a flight time of 12 seconds.  In 1942, these 80 men we know as the Doolittle Raiders flew off the deck of a ship never designed to launch bombers in airplanes that were meant to lift off from land - not a pitching runway.  I don't know how many times as a cadet, I saw video of the takeoffs and was always awed by how close some of the planes came to disaster right at the beginning of the mission.  Still photos are great, but video gives a whole different perspective of the courage of these airmen. I found one such video.  Watch the pitching sea at about 4:40 and then check out the near-disaster of one of the last B-25s at about 5:20 in the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yXzYxUC93A

In 1982, the Raiders met in San Antonio and some of them came out and met with the folks in our HQ ATC directorate (ATC/XP - Plans).  They joked that they liked to get together every year "to polish our war stories and some of the guys have some pretty good ones now."  I doubt there was much need to "enhance" their stories.  The truth of their mission is heroic enough.

The last time I was near any of the Raiders was in 2007 when I worked in the civil service at HQ Air Force Personnel Center, and they came to San Antonio again for their annual gathering.  We had a B-25 in the hangar and after the appropriate words were spoken about the courage of the Raiders and the morale boost it gave the American people in WWII, we got to visit the airplane and, more importantly, the Raiders themselves.  You can see your balding, broadening former schoolmate below the arrow in the official USAF picture below.  I was waiting my turn in line to shake hands - just to touch the hand of one of the men behind the legend I had so long ago learned about.

I can't imagine a mission like the one the Doolittle Raiders accomplished could ever be done again.  The secrecy of the operation would be at great risk from the ubiquity of technology like cell phones and Twitter on the low level and by satellite imagery at the national level.  But the heroism of the probably-never-to-be-duplicated crew members should always be remembered.

Thank, Tom, for starting this.

Jerry Ball

RHS '65

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On Wed, Mar 16, 2016 at 7:20 AM, gutsking <gutsking@aol.com> wrote:

Jerry, this would be something to put on the blog.....

 

Gloria

~Peace

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And so here we are!  I would love to see folks use the blog capability to comment.  If not, I may be forced to re-enter the business of writing blog items on my own!

Regards,

Jerry

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