"We assembled 12 DC-'60 stalwarts for a wonderful luncheon and fine con­versation," wrote Tony Burshnick about their 5 Dec 2005 meeting. "The weather got to Bill Carnegie and Bob Odenweller, Bob Fischer hurt his leg while shoveling snow, Joe Higgins had jury duty, and Mike (A) Clarke had to work, as did Doug Rekenthaler, Mike Loh, George Fries, Al Johnson and Tom Burke. Norm Haller celebrated his 67th birthday, so with a solo song lead by Leon Goodson (soon to appear on American Idol'), we wished him 'Happy Birthday' Norm has two sons, two daughters and 15 grandkids [R: and re­members all their names!], and the Badger, Lalime and Burke families all have new grandkids

"Ken Alnwick led an assault on former ATO Biersack, and Ralph Lalime had a great fable about assaulting former '59er Ed Lankenau and then regaled us with a Space-A travel story on his return from Hawaii (got from Hickam to his home in Virginia for $16!) Ken still works too hard with his company--Alnwick Design Group, LTD-while daughter Melanie can be seen Sunday mornings on Fox Channel 5. Bill Goodyear talked of flying with Denis Walsh, and Ken had a good story about flying light airplanes. Bill Taylor is coming along fine with his renewed hip, and also gave us a thorough recap on where the AF is headed with its' pilot problem. Leon Goodson does some stateside touring in Philly, and soon in the Carolinas - still riding his bike! Les Querry is building up his wine cellar when not working on the walking trails near his home. Jerry de La Cruz dabbles in art, and Norm Haller is heavily involved with the AF Association of Front Royal (VA), and teaches in a special program for home-schooled children. RG Head will probably retire in a year and move to Califor­nia. Bob Badger stays up to speed on Class of 1960 projects for the AOG."

In November, Denis Walsh flew his home-built RV-6 from Denver to Atlanta, picked up Bill Goodyear, and then continued on to Destin, FL to attend their 44th pilot training class reunion. Bill is getting his private pilot's ticket and Denis showed him how to navigate at 5,000 feet by looking out the window, While there [in Destin], they ran into classmate Frank Gorham. After visiting the Naval Aviation Flight Museum in Pensacola, Denis dropped Bill off and continued back to Denver solo (photo on the class website).

Bill Carnegie crossed the U.S. to visit Lew and Sherry Price near Sacramento. Lew's wife, Sherry, has a new seal point Siamese who's both a clown and an acrobat; while Lew, [who's] still writing books and has a computer design program for Native American flutes, spent much of 2005 on the Physics Unified Theory and took a little side trip devoted to correcting the units of Planck's constant which greatly affects photon and red theory.

And now back to “The Boys (Who) Grew in Brooklyn: " Rick Walker and I were in the same class and both in the Forensics Club at St. John's Preparatory School, competing in inter­scholastic Speech and Debate Tournaments," writes Denis Joseph Haney (Entertainment Committee 1, Fencing 4, 3, Ring Committee 4,3,2,1, Ski Club 4,3,2,1). "We were among the youngest in the Class of 1960 because of the way schools in NYC advanced students from grade to grade on a half-year basis. On track to graduate in January (not a good month for college entrance), we took a six-week summer session one year and then a `full load' for two years, graduating in June 1956, rather than January 1957. I was Valedictorian of our 'new' class. I never met George Fries until I got to the Academy, eventually meeting him on the 'Sweeney Airlines' Christmas shuttle.

"My earliest interaction with classmates after pilot training was with Dave Lachelt. He and I were assigned to the same fighter interceptor squadron at Griffiss AFB, Rome, NY. I was there when Dave bailed out over Lake Ontario and subsequently drowned. While at Griffiss, I met and married my wife of 43 years, Elizabeth (Liz) Piotrowski, who had graduated from the University of Buffalo and returned to her hometown (Rome, NY) to work in Civilian Per­sonnel at the air base.

"I had several interactions with classmates over the years. I crossed paths brieflywith Sam Waters while we were stationed at Kadena AB, Okinawa, and we were in and out of SEA in 1966; Sam was flying the F-105 Thud and I was flying the F-101 Voodoo.

"When I got PCS orders to 'Nam, I bought Sam's motorcycle, and a passing-­thru MAC buddy of mine strapped it to the tailgate of his C-133 and took it to 'Nam for me (raised some eyebrows when the `new guy' checked in already riding a POV bike). My tour was uneventful, other than being shot down. George Fries and I interacted several years on the faculty of Squadron Officer School in the late '60s. We each had a bunch of kids, and they got along great. (For my part, I had to spend a lot of time with George, because I was the only one in the unit who could understand his accent!) The only other classmate that I served with for an extended period was Sid Newcomb. Sid and I were both Air Liaison Officers with the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, NC in the mid­'70s. We jumped out of airplanes, got to wear camouflage paint on our faces, stayed up late out in the woods, and did all the other fun things the Army does. We also lived in the same neighborhood, so our families spent some time to­gether and the kids played together. I gained a lot of respect for the Army but came away realizing how smart I was to have joined the AF. I particularly appreciated the AF's wisdom in sending me to the USAF Survival School where I learned the enduring lessons that (a) if you don't eat, you get hungry; (b) if you don't sleep, you get tired; and (c) if you don't wear enough clothes, you get cold. (Those poor Army guys have to practice (a) + (b) + (c) every month so they don't forget it).

"I did a stint as a charter member of the AWACS Wing at Tinker AFB, Okla­homa City ('76-79), and traveled a lot doing site surveys in the Far East and the UK evaluating possible host sites for forward operating bases for AWACS. Ed Zompa ('61) and I worked together. And, I ran into Gordy Flygare there, al­though he was with the AFLC side of the base, and we met mostly in the gym trying to ward off middle age. In late '78, I almost accepted a MAAG assignment to Tehran, Iran. (Boy, was I glad I turned that one down!)

"Closed out my AF career at Maxwell AFB, retiring in 1984. Then MetLife Financial Services for eight years in Fort Worth until my heart attack (quin­tuple bypass). After eight years as a high school Physics/Chemistry teacher, I had a hip replacement in January '03 and retired from teaching. I play some golf, and last year we traveled to Florida (four times), Alabama (twice), Santa Fe, and C-Springs

"We have raised five children; all are college graduates married to college graduates, and we have 12 grandchildren. Our two daughters graduated from USAFA ('86 and'88), two of the boys are attorneys, the other a mechanical engi­neer. The girls are no longer in the AF they are full-time moms, each having married grads from '86 and each with three wonderful kids. (Flash back to our 25th reunion, and you may recall the halftime ceremony in which our class flag was retired. Liz and I and two other classmates who had kids at USAFA marched (?) to midfield and met a formation of our cadet children who presented the flag to us. It was pretty neat!) One of the classmates was Norm Haller."

[Note: The AOG is facing an important vote on the future of the Association. As you know, a Blue Ribbon Council (BRC) of distinguished graduates and honorary AOG members submitted a report recommending changes to the current mode of governing and bylaws. The BRC report is posted on the AOG website. This vote is a decision, by the membership, to accept the recommen­dations of the BRC or retain the current mode of governing and bylaws. It is imperative that the Association gets a valid vote on this matter, one that achieves the minimum required quorum of 25%. Your AOG Board of Directors supports the BRC proposal. How you vote is your decision, but it is critical the AOG gets a 25% quorum. You should have already received a ballot. If you have any questions, please contact Dick Rauschkolb (dickrauschkolb@aogusafa.org) or Gary Howe (Gary. Howe@aogusafa.org). Both men can be reached at 719-­472-0300. We strongly encourage you to vote on the future of your Association of Graduates]