As this issue was going to press, we learned that fellow New Yorker and command pilot, Denis Haney had lost his battle with cancer. He had told us that he was getting an advanced degree in medicine without having to take any classes! I believe few of us are aware that Denny had been shot down over NVN in his RF-101 and made his way overland to open water where he was rescued at sea. Denny will be remembered for his unfailing good humor, service to his church, country and community and his love of travel and sports of all sorts. He and his wife, Elizabeth, were married for 53 years and had five children, fifteen grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Two of their children, Elizabeth and Cynthia are also USAFA graduates.

Denny and Elizabeth Haney, Greece, 2008

Recently, Alex Zimmerman returned to Jordan as a volunteer at the excavation of a site, Tall el Hammam, believed to be the ancient city of Sodom, just northeast of the Dead Sea. This was his 10th time to make this trip. All work is carefully recorded by a supervisor and the pottery pieces are catalogued by location, washed, and "read" by the experts to determine the age. "Most everything we unearthed was from the Middle Bronze Age (1950 BC to 1550 BC)," says Alex, "No 'Welcome to Sodom' signs were found. I would love to find the city archives ... who lived there, what property was bought and sold, etc, but so far nothing written has been found."

Like the rest of us, Wayne Kendall, in the process of divesting himself of all the stuff we have accumulated (and nobody wants), uncovered accounts of his efforts as a young Air Force Flight Surgeon, testing the feasibility, and survivability, of crew members flying high-speed aircraft following a canopy loss. At a monthly class get-together in COS, his accounts of experiencing open-cockpit flight in aircraft travelling at speeds of 250 to 450 knots, was riveting--and he survived and was the recipient of the Jabara award for his exploits! At the other end of the spectrum, I still have a blue book from General Al Hurley's advanced history course, where he said, "A first class essay which deserves the maximum grade...but your spelling stinks to high heaven." Now who would part with that?

During September and October, 2016, JT Smith made a 29-day, 6500-mile, mostly solo, round-robin motorcycle trip to and up the West Coast. "The trip was ostensibly to attend the 60th anniversary of my high school graduation in North Hollywood, CA", says JT, "but it was mostly a catharsis following Diane's death, which left me with a hole in my schedule and a hole in my soul."

On the road again . . .

Here is his story. "Along the way I visited with family, friends, and classmates. In Lakewood, WA, I had dinner with Vic Yoakum and Nels Delisanti. In Colorado Springs, dinner with Andi Biancur, Jim Bujalski and Judy, Dick Schehr, and Jim Waddle."

The Colorado Springs contingent.

In McCook, NE, JT spent a few days with Dick and Anne Trail ('59), where he had the privilege of manipulating the controls of an aircraft in flight for the first time in decades. "Not a pretty sight," he said. Finally, JT spent several days visiting with Gordon and Ann Flygare in Norman, OK . JT continues, "When I returned home, I had four days to do laundry, repack, change motorcycles, and see a ballet with a granddaughter before heading east to attend the DC Gang's Roosting at the Querry-Hiatt's. After that, I went to a MOAA conference in DC and then spent a lovely evening with Leon and Maryn Goodson before returning home. Adding the miles from this trip to that from the west-coast trip, brings my total distance travelled in the saddle to just over 7500 miles in about six weeks.";

Dick and Marilyn Meyers are doing well in Fairhope, Alabama, having successfully rebounded from a flood a few years ago that left three feet of water in their living room. As with several of our classmates, Ed and Nancy Haerter are delighted with their new multi-level retired community in Madison, Wisconsin. The cold weather, caring for a big house they no longer needed and health issues helped confirm their decision. Ed is also especially proud of their 12 year-old granddaughter who has been flagged as a potential Olympic-level ski-jumper, currently training for the 100m jump. Reece Williams is still trial-lawyering in Columbus, SC. In lieu of a retirement community, he and his wife, Nancy have downsized to a new, small house 10 minutes from downtown. Recently, in a local antique store, Reece recovered some memorabilia relating to Greg Boyington's father and sent it along to Greg. Dr. Dave Luce is a retired family surgeon living in Beaverton, OR. He has family close by, and he and Marilyn enjoy living on the western boundary of the Beaverton wilderness areas.

In a recent letter to Bill Zerson, Jim Kerr wrote: "Somebody asked me to list my choice of the two best military leaders that actually led while I was at USAFA. My reply was instantaneous: Colonel George Simler (Dept of Athletics) who personally disciplined me to be as tough as necessary and challenged me to do better without mincing one word or allowing one moment to throw a pity party. Next was Captain Charles Gabriel, AOC 3rd SQD, who was the micro version of the macro version, Simler, without the huge arm. He encouraged me to never ever even think one nanosecond of my time on quitting, as the reward of a first class education was worth all the hazing and misuse of power by upperclassmen. To do so would make you a better man." Some, like Bill Gillis, would add Colonel Echelberger and W/O Charlie Cobb to that list. ... Others?

In case you missed it, Mike Loh has placed an essay entitled, "USAFA - THEN AND NOW: Observations of a Classmate" on our class website. The shoddy performance of the USAFA cadets in President Trump's inaugural parade has prompted Mike to reflect upon the similarities and differences between our experiences as the Class of '60 and the cadets of today's modern Air-Space-Cyberspace Force. Mike has unique insight into today's cadet experience due to his frequent semi-official visits to the Academy and the fact that both his son and grandson are also graduates: Class of 1984 and Class of 2016, respectively. His major conclusions are:

"I have tried not to be overly critical. USAFA does produce officers with a basic grounding in honor, discipline and character. Most of today's grads embody the best aspects of our Air Force and nation. But, too many opportunities are lost in their four years at USAFA, opportunities that would make them much better products with a deeper sense of purpose and motivation embedded with an indelible air-warrior culture.

"The Air Force and USAFA leadership have acquiesced to the pressures of today's society to accept constraints on discipline, religious expression, military training, even honor code situations. I understand the difference in political pressures and lawsuits prevalent today that we did not face. But, we need to stiffen their backbones to begin the march back to a USAFA more like one that we would recognize and our Nation expects.

"Then, at the Inaugural Parade of 2021, we could see a cadet squadron looking sharp in every respect, and making us all proud. I look forward to it."

Nulli Secundus