The Days Forward

West Point Class of 1969

Suzanne Rice

10th Anniversary Opportunity – Unexpected Project

“Make new friends but keep the old; one is silver, the other gold.”  I sang this song thousands of times as a young Brownie and Girl Scout in the 1950’s. My experiences with thedaysforward epitomizes that old jingle. It has been a way to meet for the first time some of Bill’s cadet friends, but also to renew friendships of over 50 years. A couple of years ago, a comment came on one of my Korea stories from a soldier who had been a medic attached to A Battery 1-15 Field Artillery in 1972-73 when they were serving near the DMZ every six weeks or so. Years later, the medic earned his PhD and was a college professor. When he retired, he decided to write the story of his year in Korea. Because of thedaysforward, he got in touch with me and asked my help in his effort to write the story. I was even able to put him in touch with another classmate that had also served at Camp Stanley who was able to clear up a question the medic/PhD couldn’t find an answer to. Stay tuned for On the Edge Along Freedom’s Frontier: The Untold Story of an American Army’s Ordeal in the 1970’s Cold War Korea.What a delight to make a new friend and participate a bit in his project!

10th Anniversary – An Opportunity to Share

In one of my Days Forward stories, I opened by saying that today’s candidates are far better qualified for West Point than I ever was.  So, I have always looked back on the opportunity I had to attend the Academy as a gift from God.  With that being said, it follows then that the life I have been allowed to live ever since attending West Point has been a gift as well.  And The Days Forward is as much a part of that gift as many other parts.

Any perusal of The Days Forward will quickly reveal that it is indeed exactly what it purports to be … a collection of “the extraordinary stories of those ordinary Americans” that were fortunate enough to be members of the West Point Class of 1969 … otherwise known as the “Best of the Line”.  And because it is a collection of extraordinary stories, The Days Forward is also, then, extraordinary, as well.

It is extraordinary because it would probably never have come into being if not for the premature death of Bill Rice, G-3.  It probably also would not have come into being if Bill & Suzanne were not the proud parents of Chris Rice, Class of 2010.  And of course it would not have come into being without Suzanne Rice herself.  The Days Forward exists because of these three, and those of us who have been privileged to become the authors of some of those stories.

And if truth be told, without The Days Forward most of those stories would probably never have been written.  I know that is certainly true in my case.  When I wrote my first story that was all it was … one story.  I had only one story I really wanted to tell and The Days Forward give me the opportunity to tell it.  Without that opportunity I would never have been motivated to write it down.  But once the first one was written, other stories followed much more easily.  So, for me, The Days Forward gave me the forum I needed to record some of the things that God has allowed me to do.  So, for that I truly want to say thank you to Chris and to Suzanne and to say, “Happy 10th Anniversary” to The Days Forward!  May the stories keep on coming until there are no more stories to tell.

10th Anniversary Connections – Marching Back with Cadets

     Almost 10 years ago, the Class of 1969 celebrated its reunion and commemorated its 45years of service through a Legacy Book, thanks to the hard work and creativity of Jim McDonough and his editing Team.

This project sparked the creative mind of one of our Class Sons, Chris Rice (USMA ’10) and his mother Suzanne, dear friend and widow of our classmate Bill Rice, who started and have tirelessly worked these past 10 years to establish and maintain The Days Forward (TDF) website (www.thedaysforward.com) as a labor of love highlighting stories of our Class.

     As I listened to Chris first describe the concept of the website, my mind went back to my experience at the March-Back from Camp Buckner of our 50-Year Affiliation Class of 2019 on 10 August 2015, at the end of their Beast.  As I labored then to keep up with those youngsters, I heard again and again their interest in my stories of our “old days” as cadets and officers on active duty.  When Chris Rice then suggested this new project, I was reminded of the simple fact that our time left in this life is fleeting and that our stories would be lost and forgotten if we did not share them.

    I am thankful for Chris, Suzanne, the TDF Team, and all who have contributed to this wonderful treasury, and continue to be amazed at the stories generated by the Best of The Line Class of 1969, accessible to anyone, anywhere, and at any time.  Well done! 

10th Anniversary Reminder – 39er

       “A day does not go by I don’t think of him.” Words that often reflect the sentiments of those who experienced combat in Vietnam. I had just started opening my daily emails when I read those words, and they immediately brought tears to my eyes. They were part of a comment recently posted on THEDAYSFORWARD in response to a story I had written about my time as a platoon leader in Vietnam. They were not the words of a classmate but of a veteran of my Vietnam unit who only identified himself as “39er”.

           He related how his fellow soldier, a Japanese American, had taken his place on a night patrol and been killed. “Only by the grace of God” had 39er been ordered to stay behind and fix a broken vehicle. I try not to linger on my experience in Vietnam, but there are many days I think about classmates who lost their lives there. Sometimes, pleasant thoughts about what great lives they would have lived had they survived. Other times, thoughts filled with sadness about what happened to so many in my generation in Vietnam and the impact it had on their families and our nation.

           With the help of the caretaker for THEDAYSFORWARD, I found myself later that afternoon on the phone with 39er. As I suspected, “39er” was his Vietnam call sign, which was designated for the third platoon mortar track. My classmate Bill (Ross) Taylor had been his platoon leader, while I had been leader of the First Platoon. I did not remember 39er, but he had closed his comment on THEDAYSFORWARD with, “Hope Lieutenant Hamilton made it home safe”.

           He related that he had returned from the war with physical and mental disabilities and even today had difficulty doing simple tasks such as using a computer.  He had struggled in various jobs on the East Coast for many years before getting his life together and moving to California, where he worked until retirement for the postal service as a disabled veteran. He was now a leader in his local veterans’ organization and a community servant managing a Christmas charity for children. We had a long conversation about our experiences during and after the war, two old veterans, no longer separated by military rank or education but bound by the short time we had spent together in Vietnam.  “I sent an email to Bill Taylor this morning and let him know you are hoping to contact him,” I said when signing off. “I recently learned that Bill has been hospitalized, so I know he will welcome hearing from you. Let’s keep in touch.”   

        I have enjoyed reading the stories of my classmates on THEDAYSFORWARD for many years and have been a contributing author myself. I sometimes forget that thousands of visitors who are touched by our stories are not classmates and that sometimes, like 39er, their response can bless us in the most unexpected ways.                     

Bill Ross Taylor passed away after a long battle with cancer on 18 Oct 2024. The following week, 39er led the Patriot Guard Riders of California in a memorial ceremony at Miramar National Cemetery to honor his Vietnam platoon leader.  

10th Anniversary Appreciation – Making New Friends

The Days Forward has been a wonderful expansion and enrichment of my appreciation of our classmates and spouses.  Many of us have noted over the years that we knew very few classmates outside our regiment, or at best, outside 1st and 3rd or 2nd and 4th because that was the way our classes were ordered. There were also friendships forged in athletics and extra-curricular activities, but those were relatively small in number. And so throughout our careers, we often said or heard the remark, “I never knew him as a cadet.”

At reunions there were chances to get to know some others.  I remember having great conversations with two different bus seatmates between various reunion activities. Likewise sitting with folks at a reunion breakfast or lunch I got to know a few more classmates and spouses.

But with the advent of The Days Forward, the ability to read stories from a wide variety of classmates and spouses was now at our fingertips.  The names, pictures and stories of those we hadn’t ever met came into my life as welcome guests. The ability to respond to another’s story is another feature of The Days Forward which I really like. Beyond expanding my appreciation of our classmates and spouses, there is a quality of enrichment.  I am enriched by knowing this person’s experience of Checkpoint Charlie, another’s doing scientific work in Antarctica, and several others’ accounts of what they were doing on September 11, 2001.  I tend to get hooked on The Days Forward stories and end up reading another and another and another. I am enriched by all of this, and at this vantage point in life (78 years and counting), it is a blessing to appreciate more and more of our class.  The Days Forward has given us all a great gift!