Military Service

Military Service

The following classmates have served our country in the Armed Forces of the United States of America

Please use the "Contact Us" page to advise us of your service. It will be posted below.

They served our country!

Fred Carino

♦ US Navy - Commander USS Robert E Peary (in Desert Storm)

Earl Chastain

♦ US Marine Corps - 4 years of service

Kenneth Covert

♦ US Army

Jim Crawford

♦ US Navy - 6 years of service, 4 of which were with the US MarineCorps.

One tour in Viet Nam central highlands, Queson Mountains

Robert Delle

♦ US Army - I Corp Viet Nam. Swing Battalion,

heavy weapons, light infantry.

Michael Eldridge

♦ US Air Force - 4 years of service

Steve Fleming

♦ US Air Force - 20 years of service

Janis King Foley

♦ US Army Reserves - 3 years of service

Tom Frazier

♦ US Air Force

Charles Gorbet

♦ US Marine Corps

Tracy Hallock

♦ US Air Force - 4 years of service

Paul Harder

♦ US Air Force - 8 years of service

James Hoopes

♦ US Navy

Nelson Horton

♦ US Army

Stephen Horton

♦ US Army National Guard - 22 years of service

Co C 132nd Engineers Combat

John Howard

♦ US Army - two years of service

Ted Huff

♦ US Air Force

Mike (Gil) Kabel

♦ U S Navy -Six years of service from 1969 - 1975. Served on submarines in engineering divisions; trained in Nuclear Power

James Kissee

♦ US Army - Arctic Test Center, Fort Greely, Alaska

Michael Krause

♦ US Army National Guard - 6 yrs of service

Bravo Company, 1st Batallion-184th Infantry, CANG

James Logan

♦ US Army - 2 years of service

Mary Grady Martinez

♦ US Navy - 21 years of service

Larry Matthews

♦ US Navy - 1969 - 1973

Linda McGill

♦ US Army - 6 years of service

Bob Nelson

♦ US Navy - Air Traffic Radar Systems - 8 years of service

NAS Norfolk, VA; NAS Fallon, NV; USS Enterprise

Gary Overley

♦ US Army - 1st Air Cavalry, 228th Aviation Battalion, Field Medic

Garth Rasmusson

♦ US Army - Sergeant, 3 years of service

Steven Rupp

♦ US Air Force

Joe Scranton

♦ US Army - 2 years of service

John Shoemaker

♦ US Air Force

Dennis Speer

♦ US Air Force - 4 years

Leonard Taylor

♦ US Army - 4 years of service. Fort Lewis, Tacoma, WA and

Wurzburg, Germany. Attained the rank of Sergeant.

Michael Taylor

♦ US Army - 2 years of service

Tom Thomas

♦ US Air Force - 20 years of service

John Wagener

♦ Air Force Reserve -Nevada Air National Guard - 25 years of service

John Wardell

♦ US Air Force

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In   a recent interview,
General Norman Schwarzkopf
was asked if he thought
there was room for forgiveness
toward the people who have harbored
and abetted the terrorists who perpetrated
the 9/11 attacks on America .

His   answer was classic Schwarzkopf:

The   General said,  "I believe that forgiving them is God's  function.

OUR  job   is to arrange the   meeting. "  AMEN




     A tribute to those who protect our country~
and every one of us.

You talk trash about your 'buddies' that aren't with you.
He knows he may not see some of his buddies again.

Your maid makes your bed and washes your clothes.
He wears the same things for weeks, but makes sure his weapons are clean.

You walk down the beach, staring at all the pretty girls.
He patrols the streets, searching for insurgents and terrorists.

You complain about how hot it is. He wears his heavy gear, not daring to take off his helmet to wipe his brow.

You go to the mall and get your hair redone.
He doesn't have time to brush his teeth today.

You go out to lunch, and complain because the restaurant got your order wrong. He doesn't get to eat today.

You're angry because your class ran 5 minutes over.
He's told he will be held over an extra 2 months.

You call your girlfriend and set a date for tonight.
He waits for the mail to see if there is a letter from home.

You hug and kiss your girlfriend, like you do every day.
He holds his letter close and smells his love's perfume.

You roll your eyes as a baby cries.
He gets a letter with pictures of his new child, and wonders if they'll ever meet.

You criticize your government, and say that war never solves anything. He sees the innocent tortured and killed by their own people and remembers why he is fighting.

You are asked to go to the store by your parents. You don't.
He does exactly what he is told even if it puts his life in danger.

You stay at home and watch TV. He takes whatever time he is given to call, write home, sleep, and eat.

You crawl into your soft bed, with down pillows, and get comfortable. He tries to sleep but gets woken by mortars and helicopters all night long.

You hear the jokes about the war, and make fun of men like him.
He hears the gunfire, bombs and screams of the wounded.

You see only what the media wants you to see.
He sees the broken bodies lying around him.

REMEMBER our Troops.

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In Memory of Medal of Honor Recipient :

US Army Captain Ed Freeman
You're a 19-year-old kid. You're critically wounded and dying in the jungle in the Ia Drang Valley , 11-14-1965, LZ X-ray, Vietnam . Your infantry unit is outnumbered 8-1 and the enemy fire is so intense, from 100 or 200 yards away, that your own Infantry Commander has ordered the MediVac helicopters to stop coming in.

You're lying there, listening to the enemy machine guns, and you know you're not getting out. Your family is half way around the world, 12,000 miles away and you'll never see them again. As the world starts to fade in and out, you know this is the day.

Then, over the machine gun noise, you faintly hear that sound of a helicopter and you look up to see an unarmed Huey, but it doesn't seem real because no Medi-Vac markings are on it.

Ed Freeman is coming for you. He's not Medi-Vac, so it's not his job, but he's flying his Huey down into the machine gun fire, after the Medi-Vacs were ordered not to come.

He's coming anyway.

And he drops it in and sits there in the machine gun fire as they load 2 or 3 of you on board.

Then he flies you up and out, through the gunfire to the doctors and nurses.

And he kept coming back, 13 more times, and took about 30 of you and your buddies out, who would never have gotten out.

Freeman, a veteran of World War ll, the Korean War and the Vietnam War was honored by the U.S. House of Representatives in March of 2009. The House passed a resolution designating the U.S. Postal Service facility located at 103 West Main Street in Freeman's hometown of McLain, Mississippi, as the Major Ed W. Freeman Post Office.

Contrary to recent internet posts, Freeman did not die this year and his death wasn't ignored because of the hooplah over Michael Jackson's death. He died last August, 2008 and his death could very possibly have been ignored by the media at that time, but we can't really say.

Medal of Honor Recipient Ed Freeman

May God rest his soul.

Medal of Honor Winner, July 2001
Ed Freeman
THANKS AGAIN, ED, FOR WHAT YOU DID FOR OUR COUNTRY.RIP
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Cemetery Escort Duty

I just wanted to get the day over with and go down to Smokey's. Sneaking a look at my watch, I saw the time, 1655. Five minutes to go before the cemetery gates are closed for the day. Full dress was hot in the August sun . Oklahoma summertime was as bad as ever--the heat and humidity at the same level--both too high.

I saw the car pull into the drive, '69 or '70 model Cadillac Deville, looked factory-new. It pulled into the parking lot at a snail's pace. An old woman got out so slow I thought she was paralyzed; she had a cane and a sheaf of flowers--about four or five bunches as best I could tell.

I couldn't help myself. The thought came unwanted, and left a slightly bitter taste: 'She's going to spend an hour for this old soldier; my hip hurts like hell and I'm ready to get out of here right now!' But for this day, my duty was to assist anyone coming in.

Kevin would lock the 'In' gate and if I could hurry the old biddy along, we might make it to Smokey's in time.

I broke post attention. My hip made gritty noises when I took the first step and the pain went up a notch. I must have made a real military sight: middle-aged man with a small pot gut and half a limp, in marine full-dress uniform, which had lost its razor crease about thirty minutes after I began the watch at the cemetery.

I stopped in front of her, halfway up the walk. She looked up at me with an old woman's squint.

'Ma'am,may I assist you in any way?'

She took long enough to answer.

'Yes, son. Can you carry these flowers? I seem to be moving a tad slow these days.'

'My pleasure, ma'am.' Well, it wasn't too much of a lie.

She looked again. 'Marine, where were you stationed?'

'Vietnam, ma'am. Ground-pounder. '69 to '71.'

She looked at me closer. 'Wounded in action, I see. Well done, Marine. I'll be as quick as I can.'

I lied a little bigger: 'No hurry, ma'am.'

She smiled and winked at me. 'Son, I'm 85 years old and I can tell a lie from a long way off. Let's get this done. Might be the last time I can do this. My name's Joanne Wieserman, and I've a few Marines I'd like to see one more time.'

'Yes, ma 'am. At your service.'

She headed for the World War I section, stopping at a stone. She picked one of the flowers out of my arm and laid it on top of the stone. She murmured something I couldn't quite make out. The name on the marble was Donald S. Davidson, USMC: France 1918.

She turned away and made a straight line for the World War II section , stopping at one stone. I saw a tear slowly tracking its way down her cheek. She put a bunch of flowers on a stone; the name was Stephen X.Davidson, USMC, 1943.

She went up the row a ways and she laid another bunch on a stone, Stanley J. Wieserman, USMC, 1944.

She paused for a second. 'Two more, son, and we'll be done'

I almost didn't say anything, but, 'Yes, ma'am. Take your time.'

She looked confused. 'Where's the Vietnam section, son? I seem to have lost my way.'

I pointed with my chin. 'That way, ma'am.'

'Oh!' she chuckled quietly. 'Son, me and old age ain't too friendly.'

She headed down the walk I'd pointed at. She stopped at a couple of stones before she found the ones she wanted. She placed a bunch on Larry Wieserman, USMC, 1968, and the last on Darrel Wieserman, USMC, 1970. She stood there and murmured a few words I still couldn't make out.

'OK, son, I'm finished. Get me back to my car and you can go home.'

Yes, ma'am. If I may ask, were those your kinfolk?'

She paused. 'Yes, Donald Davidson was my father, Stephen was my uncle, Stanley was my husband, Larry and Darrel were our sons. All killed in action, all marines.'

She stopped. Whether she had finished, or couldn't finish, I don't know. She made her way to her car, slowly and painfully.

I waited for a polite distance to come between us and then double-timed it over to Kevin, waiting by the car.

'Get to the 'Out' gate quick. I have something I've got to do.'

Kevin started to say something, but saw the look I gave him. He broke the rules to get us there down the service road. We beat her. She hadn't made it around the rotunda yet.

'Kevin, stand at attention next to the gatepost. Follow my lead.' I humped it across the drive to the other post.

I have to hand it to Kevin, he never blinked an eye--full dress attention and a salute that would make his DI proud.

She drove through that gate with two old worn-out soldiers giving her a send-off she deserved, for service rendered to her country, and for knowing duty, honor and sacrifice.

I am not sure, but I think I saw a salute returned from that Cadillac.

Instead of 'The End,' just think of 'Taps.'

As a final thought on my part, let me share a favorite prayer: 'Lord, keep our servicemen and women safe, whether they serve at home or overseas. Hold them in your loving hands and protect them as they protect us.'

Let's all keep those currently serving and those who have gone before in our thoughts. They are the reason for the many freedoms we enjoy.

'In God We Trust.'

If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under!

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Thanks to Mike Krause, for this moving Christmas poem.

Thanks to Jim Barry, LP Class of '70 for this awesome video of the Norwegian Military Marching Band and Rifle Corps (or something like that). Note that they are performing on ice! And we're loving their choice of music.

http://sorisomail.com/video/16993/olbqbewtbqo/