Special KWVA "W in Your Dream Vacation Fund-Raiser" Information ...

My name of course is Michael
Augustus Ivy, and I live, and have been living,
in Los Angeles, Ca. for the past (30)
years now. I was in the Air Force (an M.P.),
and my last duty station before being
released was Fairchild AFB. My father had
a bachelors degree in business administration
(I have an AA, in that same field.
Weird, huh? ) So, I’m again, guessing he
was an officer in the military. However,
given the time, and his race (black
American), I cannot be sure of that
assumption. I will do all I can to contact
you again in hopes of being able to provide
you needed information.
I understand your hands might be tied
without same. I do, however, want to thank
you for the effort and time you have provided
a complete stranger, and any future
help you might be able to lend to my
search. I now have (3) grown children
(men), (4) grand children, and a younger
daughter (14), of my own. Of course they
have questions about my parents I have
never been able to find/answer, so this is a
quest (if you will).
Frank ... Mr. Cohee, thank you again for
all you have done, and I hope we can keep
in touch. Until next time; Keep the Faith.
Peace.
Finally, “The case of the found
bracelet-lost owner“
KWVA member Vincent Ciantro,
Chapter 55, reported that a friend of his
has a bracelet with the name DONALD
J. MANRELL, U.S. 51131777. On the
back is the inscription “Love Aways,
Dot.”
Vincent thinks that Manrell may be a
Korean veteran because their I. D. numbers
are similar. He would like to return
the bracelet to Manrell or to some of his
relatives.
If you recognize the name on the
bracelet, please call or send an email to
Frank Cohee, 863-859-1384, fcohee@
kwva.org.
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The Graybeards.
General Walter L. Sharp Delivers
Memorial Day Speech
General Sharp delivered this speech on
22 May 2009 Knight Field, Yongsan
Garrison Seoul, Republic of Korea. It is of
interest to Korea veterans of all eras.
Mr. Yun; General Paik; Admiral Kim;
Mr. Herndon; General Lee; CSM
Winzenried; Distinguished Ambassadors
and Diplomats; General and Flag Officers;
Honored Guests, Families and Friends; and
most importantly, veterans of past wars;
Welcome and thank you for joining us
today to pay tribute to all of the men and
women who have given their lives in service
to our nation. For those of us who wear
the uniform of the United States military,
today has special significance.
During this ceremony, we display the
colors and render full military honors to
those who have made the ultimate sacrifice
so that we can enjoy the blessings of freedom
and peace. Our outstanding United
Nations Honor Guard and the Eighth US
Army Band stand before you to honor our
dead in somber remembrance. Out of
respect for those we honor, we will not
applaud today - but I want to thank those of
you on the field for helping us to remember
the fallen and for representing them so professionally.
Ever since the very beginnings of our
country brave men and women chose to
defend the American way of life – often
with great risk to themselves. Because of
their determination and dedication to the
principles that kept our country free, they
ensured a future of liberty and prosperity for
their descendants. We stand here today as
beneficiaries of their constant labor, having
inherited their charge to defend that which
is worth defending - so our loved ones can
live free and prosperous lives.
Next month we will mark the 59th
Anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean
War – a war that ravaged this land and killed
hundreds of thousands of people, in and out
of uniform. So as we take time today to
honor our American dead who have fallen
in our nation’s wars, we need to be mindful
of the sacrifices of our Korean Allies and
those of the United Nations Sending States
who defended this great land with all they
had.
Commenting on his perceptions of those
young Service-members who fell in defense
of their country, Ronald Reagan said of
those we memorialize today:
We see them as something like the Founding
Fathers, grave and gray haired.
But most of them were boys when they died,
and they gave up two lives – the one they
were living and the one they would have lived.
When they died, they gave up their chance to
be husbands and fathers and grandfathers.
They gave up their chance to [do] everything…;for
our country, for us.
And all we can do is remember.
Today we do remember. We remember
all of those brave men and women who did
not make it home. We remember those who
were taken from their loved ones, leaving
only memory and a commitment to remembrance
behind. Unfortunately, when we
gather on this field again next year to mark
this day, history will have followed its
inevitable course - leaving us more fallen
comrades to remember.
Our fellow countrymen, who are
engaged in the great fight of our day against
terrorism and tyranny, will continue the
cycle of sacrifice that is the burden of a free
people. Our hope is that they all come home
to enjoy the fruits of their labor. But we
know that freedom has its price and today
we are committed to honoring those who
have paid that price for us.
Those young men and women volunteered
to defend the United States against its
enemies in the wake of the 9/11 attacks -
demonstrating a willingness to serve a
cause greater than themselves. Like their
forbearers, the fallen among them have
given up ‘their chance to do everything…;
for our country, for us.” So we thank all of
them for their service and remember their
sacrifice.
Finally, to those who are serving in the
Republic of Korea today, be they members
of the US Armed Forces, ROK Armed
Forces or from the UN Sending States, we
thank you for being willing to give up all
you hold dear if that becomes necessary in
defense of this great and free land.
Let us never forget those we honor today
and may their souls be forever at peace.
Thank You.
11
The Graybeards
May – June 2009