This Week in SigEp Patriot History, 08 – 14 JUL

Brothers,

09 JUL 1943 – Operation HUSKY, the invasion to liberate Sicily, began. Eight divisions were involved – more than 80,000 men.

10 JUL 1950 – The first engagement between U.S. and North Korean tanks occurred near Chonui, Korea.

11 JUL 1972 – American forces broke the 95-day siege at An Loc in Vietnam.

How many SigEp Patriots were present at these important moments in U.S. military history? The SigEp Patriots Project (SPP) thinks it is important to know, and we continue to work to learn the answer to this and many other questions.

This Week in SigEp Patriot History:

10 JUL 1942

On this date, NC Epsilon Brother Robert L. Orr entered the U.S. Army, and went on to serve in the Army Corps of Engineers during World War II.

13 JUL 1942

MA Alpha Brother David H. Johnson joined the U.S. Coast Guard on this date, serving as a Soundman Second Class during World War II.

13 JUL 1946

World War II Veteran and AL Beta Brother First Lieutenant James Calabra, Jr., U.S. Army was discharged from the service on this date after nearly three years in the Army, and 17 months in the China-Burma-India Theater with the 3286th Engineers.
 
08 JUL 1986
On this date, World War II Veteran, future SigEp Citation Recipient and VA Zeta Brother General Robert Jefferson Wood, U.S. Army (Retired) – one of five known SigEp Patriots to reach this rank in the U.S. military – died of a stroke at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Washington, DC. Brother Wood was a United States Army four-star general who helped organize the creation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) military organization in the early 1950s and served as director of the military assistance program from 1962 to 1965.
 
Born in 1905 in Petersburg, Virginia, he attended Randolph-Macon College for a year until entering the United States Military Academy in 1926. On 12 JUN 1930, Brother Wood graduated and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant, U.S. Army Coast Artillery Corps.

During World War II, he served in the Mediterranean Theater, advancing through the grades from Captain to Colonel. Following the war, Brother Wood served as a military aide to Secretary of Defense and NH Alpha Brother James Vincent Forrestal.

 

VA Zeta Brother
Robert Jefferson Wood
General, U.S. Army (Retired)

Following an assignment to the Advanced Planning Group charged with creating Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE), the NATO headquarters organization, Robert was promoted to brigadier general in MAY 1952 and assigned as Chief of the Defense Annual Review Team for the U.S. Mission to NATO. On 01 MAY 1956, Brother Wood became commanding general of Fort Bliss (Texas) and commandant of the Antiaircraft Artillery and Guided Missile School.

With his promotion to Lieutenant General in 1960, he was assigned as Commanding General of the Army Air Defense Command (ARADCOM) in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and two years later appointed director of the military assistance program in the office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, with the rank of full general. The Director of Military Assistance supervised the operational details of arms transfer to NATO allies and other friendly countries. As chief of staff of the foreign military aid program, he was considered to be on the same level as the chiefs of staff of the Army, Navy, and Air Force and of comparable military rank, but without a seat on the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Robert retired on 01 SEP 1965, but was recalled to active duty in 1968 to serve as Director of the Overseas Base Requirements Study Group, a special interdepartmental study group planning future overseas military base locations. With his work completed, he returned to retired status on 31 MAR 1969. He subsequently served on a presidential task force on international development.

His awards and decorations include the Army Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit (with oak leaf cluster) and Purple Heart.

This Week in SigEp Patriot History, 10 – 16 DEC

Brothers,

“It is better to be violent, if there is violence in our hearts, than to put on the cloak of nonviolence to cover impotence.” ~ Mahatma Gandhi

“I have just received the February issue of the Journal. I can say that I have read this issue with more than ordinary interest, partly because out here we are hungry for news of our friends and partly because I found out for the first time that at least two of the officers that I know here are Sig Eps.” ~ Written by a Brother serving in North Africa, and published in the April 1943 edition of the Journal

14 DEC 1918

On this date, U.S. Army World War I Veteran and MT Alpha Brother Albert Schak was with the first unit to cross the Rhine at Coblenz, Germany. As the U.S. Third Army occupied Coblenz, it is likely Brother Schak’s unit was attached to the Third.

13 DEC 2000

U.S. Army World War II Veteran and GA Alpha Brother Thomas J. Biggs died on this date in Charleston, WV.

Respect can be paid to Brother Biggs at Sunset Memorial Park, Beckley, West Virginia.

12 DEC 2004

U.S. Army Air Corps World War II Veteran and AL Beta President Glen Allen Deuel died in Huntsville, Alabama on this date at the age of 82. After high school he enlisted and served in the 15^th Army Air Force, 460^th Bomb Group of World War II. When the war was over, he attended the University of Alabama and graduated with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering.

Glen was born in Loxley, Alabama, and grew up in Castleberry, Alabama. After graduating from college, Brother Deuel worked for two years on B-52s for Boeing in Seattle. He then went on to Redstone Arsenal in 1952 of Huntsville, Alabama, and joined the ABMA Wernher Von Braun first launch team and later NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center where he worked on major space programs from 1952-1979. He was also a member of the American Rocket Society.

While walking the beaches of Cape Canaveral during the first Redstone launches of our space program, Glen found a new passion in sea shells. He was a founding member of North Alabama Shell Club and Past President of Conchologists of America, the national organization of shell collectors.

Glen served his country during WWII and through his work at NASA for a combination of 30 years. He also volunteered in his community as a member of Huntsville’s Metro Kiwanis Club and received Layman of the Year Award.

Last Week in SigEp Patriot History, 17 - 23 SEP

Brothers,

In a week that saw the anniversary of the establishment of the Department of Defense and U.S. Air Force, 9/11 and the 34^th observance of National POW/MIA Recognition Day, the following words remain true and a concern of the SigEp Patriots Project (SPP) serving to motivate and inspire us every day.

“We who have a deep concern for our Fraternity chapter are vitally conscious of the importance of its history. History is tradition and if we are wise, we seek guidance and discipline in tradition. But we observe sadly that events of importance, here today, have a way of becoming lost very quickly in the dim yesterdays. And if we are to make use of our history we cannot be satisfied to let significant events remain buried.”

~ Brother Pedro Campa, Illinois; from the Sigma Phi Epsilon Journal, Volume 67, Number 4, published May 1970



NH Alpha Brother
James Vincent Forrestal



17 SEP 1947

President Truman selected World War I Veteran and NH Alpha Brother Lieutenant James Vincent Forrestal, U.S. Navy Reserve to be the first secretary of defense and he was sworn in on this date. During the same week three years later, a bronze bust of Brother Forrestal was unveiled at the Mall entrance to the Pentagon (22 SEP 1950).

22 SEP 1995

On this date, AZ Beta Brother (then) Captain Alan Mark “Vodka” Gemmill, U.S. Navy completed his tour as Commanding Officer of the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) after serving since 20 MAR 1993.

20 SEP 2008

Operation DESERT STORM Veteran MO Lambda Brother Jay Scott Danner, U.S. Air National Guard (Missouri) died on this date at St. Francis Hospital, Tulsa, Oklahoma at the age of 43.

Scott was born 25 OCT 1964 in Maryville, Missouri, and was a 1984 graduate of Maryville High School. He graduated from Northwest Missouri State University in 1988 with a BS degree in Business Administration. Brother Danner served in the Missouri Air National Guard and was a veteran of Desert Storm. He worked for Philip Morris USA for 19 years and his final job was as a Unit Manager.

Respect can be paid to Brother Danner at Prairie Home Cemetery, Graham, MO. While gone, SPP pledges that Scott and his patriotic service will always be remembered.

19 SEP 2009

U.S. Navy World War II Veteran and CO Delta Brother Theodore “Ted” Louis Goudvis died on this date in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Born in 1918, Ted grew up near New York City. He graduated from Colorado School of Mines with a professional degree in mining engineering.

During World War II Ted was a Navy “Seabee” (Construction Battalion) and served in France and the Philippines. After the war, he and a college friend started a small business in northern Ohio manufacturing concrete products. He visited and fell in love with Aspen, Colo., in the 1960s, and built a house there when he retired in 1980. Ted was an avid hiker, skier and nature lover.

At this time, SPP does not know Ted’s final resting place, but we hope you will write if you have that information. In the meantime, SPP will keep looking, and pledges that Ted and his military service are always remembered.

This Week in SigEp Patriot History, 31 OCT – 06 NOV

In this edition of “This Week:”
- Happy Founders Day!
- OH Gamma Brother wounded, awarded Distinguished Service Cross
- A Brother made the ultimate sacrifice in Italy
- RI Beta Brother inducted in to hall of fame
- GA Epsilon Brother gets engaged in style

01 NOV 1901 – It is my belief that following the events of this date, Sigma Phi Epsilon would shape future military leaders, and, like other groups of Brothers, SigEp Patiots who have lead during peace and in combat would help to shape SigEp.

The former was true nearly immediately when, upon graduating from Richmond College in June 1902, Founding Father Carter Ashton Jenkens began teaching at a military academy in Chase City, Virginia, and was strongly reinforced when the former commandant of the United States Marine Corps, Persian Gulf War and Operation IRAQI FREEDOM Veteran, SigEp Citation Recipient and MO Zeta Brother General James Terry Conway, U.S. Marine Corps (Retired) stated at Conclave Atlanta that “Virtually everything I needed to know about leadership in the United States Marine Corps I learned as a part of Sigma Phi Epsilon.”

06 NOV 1911
On this date, World War II Veteran and CO Delta Brother Lieutenant Colonel William W. Little, U.S. Army Reserve was born in Birmingham, Alabama.

31 OCT & 06 NOV 1918
World War I Veteran OH Gamma Brother Captain Robert Lester Tavenner, U.S. Army was wounded near Olsene, on the Lys River, and slightly wounded in action at Cruyschauten, Belgium on these dates, respectively. Research by the SigEp Patriots Project (SPP) determined that as a result of his actions on 31 OCT 1918, Brother Tavenner became the second SigEp awarded the Army’s Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) – the only medal the Army can award that is higher than the DSC is the Medal of Honor.

31 OCT 1928
U.S. Air Force Veteran and Governor (Colorado) CO Gamma Brother Roy Romer was born on this date in Garden City, Kansas.

01 NOV 1936
MO Alpha Brother Sam Knott, Jr, U.S. Marine Corps passed away 30 SEP 2009. He was born on 01 NOV 1936, in Kansas City, Missouri.

01 NOV 1941
KS Epsilon Brother U.S. Army Reserve Veteran James R. Roth was born on this date in Great Bend, Kansas.

05 NOV 1944
World War II Veteran and SigEp Brother Second Lieutenant Clarence C. Roudebush, Jr., U.S. Army was killed in action on this date in Pescara, Italy. Brother Roudebush was a member of 60th Troop Division.

05 NOV 2005
On this day, Vietnam War and Operation IRAQI FREEDOM Veteran RI Beta Brother Colonel Bill Babcock, U.S. Army / Army National Guard (Rhode Island) was inducted in to the University of Rhode Island ROTC Hall of Fame.

01 NOV 2010
Last year on the 109th anniversary of the founding of Sigma Phi Epsilon, World War II Veteran and IN Alpha Brother Lieutenant William E. Smith, U.S. Army passed away. Bill studied Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University class of '40 where he was editor of the Purdue Exponent. After serving in the U.S. Army as a lieutenant during WWII, Bill owned and built a successful business, the Ceilcote Company based in Berea, Ohio. Ceilcote manufactured and installed corrosion resistant linings, floor toppings and FRP Air Pollution Control Equipment. Brother Smith was active in many volunteer organizations including Moderator of Dover Church in Westlake, OH, member of Community Church of Vero Beach, FL, and President of the Westlake School Board and Board of Fairview Hospital.

GREAT NEWS!
* GA Epsilon Brother Captain Kyle Davis, U.S. Marine Corps is getting married! You want to view an example of SigEp style, check this out http://youtu.be/3mjYBoV9AQ8. Congratulations to Kyle and Sarah!

* The holdings of the SPP grew dramatically this week. With some vigorous research and the help of several people we learned additional information about another SigEp four-star general, a two-star general, and the awarding of a Silver Star for service in Vietnam, nine more Bronze Stars, two additional Purple Hearts, 19 Air Medals, and numerous commendation and achievement medals, as well as the SigEp Citation.

* The official Facebook group of the SPP has also increased by 11 Brothers since the last edition of “This Week” and a special thanks to FL Theta Brother LCDR Christopher Sacra, U.S. Navy for referring several Brothers. We would like to wish a sincere welcome to the following Brothers:
Andy Kellner, Guy Priest (U.S. Army), Omar Sanchez, Dan Pugh, Brian Gresham (U.S. Coast Guard), Ohene Gyapong, (U.S. Navy (Retired)), Chris Quast, Thomas Joseph McNamara, Brian Wiktorski, Jon Schlosser (U.S. Army ROTC), and Russ Avey (U.S. Air Force).

* SPP has grown with the extremely helpful addition of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM Veteran and KY Eta Founding Father Specialist Seth C. Thompson, U.S. Army Reserve.

If you are a SigEp Patriot click on the link to go to the official SPP Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/groups/sigepswhoserve. Know a Brother who serves/served? Please forward the link to him.


Not on Facebook. There is also a listserve that you can join by sending an email to me at sigepswhoserve@gmail.com.

Fraternally and Respectfully,

Brother Ed Jones, NY Eta ‘96
Chief Petty Officer, U.S. Navy Reserve
Founder, SigEp Patriots Project