The Days Forward

West Point Class of 1969

Suzanne Rice

The Commander-in-Chief Trophy and the Class of 1969

     It was early in January 1985 when Colonel Bob Berry, honorary member of the Class of ’69 called me in Washington D.C. Bob knew many of our class and I was lucky to have made his acquaintance shortly after my tour in Vietnam. In addition to heading the Law Department at West Point, Bob was the OR, Officer Representative, of the Army football team. At that time, I was in my first year as the Army Aide to the President having followed in the footsteps of our classmate Casey Brower.  Fortunately, the President at the time was Ronald Reagan who had played guard for his alma mater, Eureka College, and was an avid football fan.

     Army had regained the coveted Commander-in-Chief Trophy after a seven-year absence and Bob Berry wanted to know if I could “arrange” for President Reagan to award the trophy to the Army team in person in the White House. Somewhat stunned by his request, I reminded Bob that I and the other service aides had absolutely no influence on the President’s calendar. He understood but ended our conversation by asking me to do what I could to make it happen. Knowing the President’s love of the game and mindful of my very modest position, I started making inquiries on how to “arrange” for such a first ever event in the White House.

     It was fortunate that our classmate Bob Kimmitt, at that time, held the rank of Deputy Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs and enjoyed considerable sway over the President’s calendar. After submitting the appropriate paperwork, I asked for Bob’s and others’ support for just a few minutes of the President’s time. To my surprise, my request for a 10-minute ceremony was granted.

     The Academy was appreciative and on February 28th sent the Firstclassmen of the Army team to Washington. In the Pentagon, they were treated to lunch by the Army Chief of Staff, General John Wickham and then bussed to the White House. I gave Coach Bob Young, the Firsties, the Superintendent and his spouse (MG Willard Scott and Dusty) a brief tour of the White House and then gathered them in the President’s Cabinet Room with the Trophy. Right on time, the President entered from the Oval Office and immediately shook hands with each player, chatting with them and sharing his collegiate football memories. As he reminisced and posed for photos, he soon ran over his planned time period. Although I caught some stressed glances from his staff, the President and the team thoroughly enjoyed the occasion.

Army Team with the Commander-in Chief

     What impressed me then and throughout my two years as his aide was Ronald Reagan’s ability to empathize. He was always comfortable, genuine and interested in everyone he met. We were fortunate that the Army team had the opportunity to meet such an empathetic leader. He set the precedent for the Commander in Chief to award his trophy to the winning service academy football team in the Oval Office.

President Reagan with his military Aides (Bob is on the left) (Reagan Library)

10th Anniversary Musings – Pleasantly Surprised

Happy Tenth Birthday, Days Forward!

When Chris Rice (USMA ’10) and Suzanne (widow of Bill, C-3 and G-3) launched this endeavor, I was not optimistic that it would gain the traction needed for success.  Our classmates had recently completed compiling the terrific Legacy book, and my sense was that for many it was an arm twist to get those essays done.  We’re soldiers, not authors, right?  So, not many would rise to this new opportunity to write yet more autobiography.

As often happens, I was yet again wrong, wrong.  The Days Forward has blossomed into a uniquely valuable collection of reminiscences about the lives we of ‘69 have lived.  No great surprise, many of us have done some really amazing stuff, way beyond anything we might have imagined, or that West Point might have imagined for us, on 4 June 1969. 

Among the surprises, to me at least:

  • Lots of us have stepped up and contributed an essay, or several. 
  • Virtually all are well worth reading, for a wide range of reasons.
  • Many of the things we have done are truly amazing, way beyond the Army envelope, but all consistent with the Duty, Honor, Country ideal
  • These essays have become a destination Web site for many who have no ostensible connection to West Point.  Who’d have thunk it?
  • Collectively, these essays represent a worthy body of literature, short stories that share with the world the experiences of a group of friends who together experienced good and hard times, knew and loved one another and their country through a unique historical time, and will soon pass into that history themselves.

Nice work, Suzanne and Chris!  Pop it up!  And thanks for your unique contribution to the ‘Best of the Line’ and to West Point more broadly.  Your husband and dad, our classmate Bill Rice, would be so proud of you both.

10th Anniversary Experience – Rich Legacy for the Best of the Line

Class of 1979 West Point Reunion 2019

     I first became a TDF author after the 2019 reunion. It was quite by coincidence that while standing in some sort of signup line at the reunion, standing right behind me in line was a lady I didn’t know, nor her role regarding TDF. We chatted briefly and she encouraged me to submit an article for the TDF website. After the reunion, her encouragement at the reunion was in the back of my mind, but it took until late 2019 for me to finally decide to write and submit an article.

     Reading the TDF articles illuminates well the great breadth of variety in the life events, experiences and accomplishments of classmates after graduation. Some of the Authors I knew well during cadet years, others somewhat, and some not at all. Yet, with each story, I am intrigued to learn what each of us has done, experienced or dealt with. I feel each story colors in a bit more of the author’s personality/character, both for those I knew as well as those I did not know. The cumulative collection of TDF stories provides a rich legacy of the post-graduation lives of the USMA Class of 1969. This repository furthers not only our classmates knowledge of each other, but may be of historical interest to future generations.

     A final comment – I and Frank Finch are the only two TDF authors of our Cadet Company (C1). So, I encourage all C1ers reading this – consider writing an article for TDF and sharing with the class something about your experiences in the last 55 years!

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.