michigan marine news summer 2012

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MarineNewsNon-Profit Org.U.S. Postage

PaidFlint, Mi

Permit No. 512

Department of Michigan Marine Corps League and Auxilliary

Uncommon Valor Was a Common Virtue

Summer 2012

The Michigan

In Loving MemoryDepartment President

June 2011 – February 2012

Carol Dysarczyk

Michigan Marine News • Summer 2012 3

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Table of Contents

THE MICHIGAN MARINE NEWSThe official Publication of The Department

of Michigan Marine Corps League

Editor— PDC Jim TuohyTel: (810) 695-3088Fax: (810) 695-3088

E-mail: [email protected]

The Michigan Marine News is published quarterly by the Department of Michigan, Marine Corps

League. The Marine Corps League is a non-profit congressionally chartered veterans organization. The opinions and comments that appear in this magazine are received from a variety of sources and are not necessarily those of the Department of Michigan,

Marine Corps League

Copy and art deadline for the Fall 2012 issue is:September 15, 2012

Send information to: Jim Tuohy, Editor 12086 Riverbend dr., Grand Blanc, Mi 48439-1724

Tel: (810) 695-3088 or E-Mail information to [email protected].

DepartmentsCalendar of Upcoming Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4department Commandant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Sr. Vice Commandant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Jr. Vice Commandant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Around the leagueWoof-O-Gram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7Boy Scouts of america . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8an insight into the Vietnam Wall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Shiawassee County Young Marines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11Marines at Camp david . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11Marines Place Wreaths on Graves of deceased Members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Corpsman Up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

CommunicationsMarine Week . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Heroic Yet Humble . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14“Listen Up” We Need Your Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15SdVOB Pricing Preference. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Earning the Title. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Hospitalized Vet’s Need Your assistance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18The Bayonet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

EventsGolf Outings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

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Board of TrusteesCommandant: Lennie BrooksEmail: [email protected] Vice Commandant: Norman F. PfaffEmail: [email protected] Vice Commandant: Wendy ZamoraEmail: [email protected] Commandant- Northern ZoneEmail: Raymond R. Rayl, [email protected] Commandant: Central ZoneEmail: Emil a. Franz iii, [email protected] Commandant: Eastern ZoneEmail: Scott R. Neff, [email protected] Commandant: Upper Peninsula ZoneEmail: Frank R. Bilsky, N/aVice Commandant: Southeast ZonePhillip S. SmithEmail: [email protected] Commandant: Western Zonedavid K. MasunasEmail: [email protected] Commandant: Southern ZoneRaymond L. RowleyEmail: [email protected] Advocate: Charles E. BrownEmail: [email protected]: don L. LumsdenEmail: [email protected]: Kenneth J. auneEmail: [email protected] Past Commandant: Felipe G. ZamoraEmail: [email protected]

Appointed Department StaffAdjutant: George J. Wittstock, Jr., PdC [email protected] or Staff: John P. Tuohy, PNC [email protected] at Arms: Billy G. Traylor [email protected] Sergeant at Arms: donald R. Boak, ii, [email protected] Director: douglas R. Williams [email protected]: dale K. Erion [email protected] Director: Norman C. Jewell [email protected] Marine News Editor: James J. Tuohy, PdC, [email protected]: Mark a. Sutton [email protected] Emailer: Emil a. Franz, iii [email protected] Custer National Cemetery Liaison: Robert L. Cook, [email protected] Lakes National Cemetery Liaison 1/24th Memorial Liaison: James J. Tuohy, PdC,/angelo Lema, Jr., [email protected] & Citations: Philip S. Smith [email protected]

MayMay 25th 5:30 PM- Holly, MI. Flag Placement for

Memorial Day at Great Lakes National Cemetery by volunteers

May 27th 1:00 PM- Memorial Day services at Great Lakes National Cemetery

May 28th Memorial Day Services & Parades in Dearborn, Burton, Lansing

JuneJune 7th-10th Department of Michigan Convention, Island

Resort & Casino, Harris, MI.

June 10th-17th Marine Week, Downtown, Cleveland, Ohio.(This is BIG). Static Displays, Working Dog Demos, HALO jumps by Recon, Chopper assaults, etc. Fun for the entire family.

Come on out. Volunteers needed all week. Help lend a few hours to our Marines“. See write up in this issue”

June 23rd Flint Detachment Golf Outing, Southmoor Golf Course, Burton, MI.

Marine Corps League Life Membership Dues (as of Jan 1, 2009)

AGE GROUP COST0-35 $50036-50 $40051-60 $30061-Over $150

Buy a Life Membership. Submission of the incorrect dues or no birth date may result in the entire transmittal being returned without being processed. To avoid a delay in trans-mittal turnaround time, please verify the amounts are correct before sending. To become a Life Member, you must already be a member in good standing.

Calendar of Upcoming Events

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✯ ✯4 Michigan Marine News • Summer 2012

Department Commandant


H ere it is the first week of april and can you believe the weather? awesome. Now that i have the pleasantries out

of the way on to butt chewing.i looked up every det on the National

website to see if all the info was updated and a websgt was assigned. Low and behold over half have done neither. This is unsat in every respect. Each det must assign a websgt to maintain all the info on the site. if you are having problems getting someone to volunteer, please let me know. We’ll work around it. i charge each and every det to get in compliance by June Convention.

Let’s talk about Report of Officers in-stallation (ROi’s) for a sec. We realize that all det By-laws are different in re-spect to elections and installation of of-ficers. No matter when, your ROi must be completed and sent to the dept adjutant within 15 days from date of installation. Some det’s haven’t done this since Moby dick was a Minnow. This is a no no. Our dept adj sent out an email stating what det’s are in noncompliance as you can see below. i will not say we need them by June Convention, but need them now. No if and’s or but’s. Southeast Zone dearborn-152 (last installed 5/12/11) Eastern Zone Northwest-162 (last installed 10/15/10) North Oakland County-570 (last installed 1/13/11) SSgt Bryan K. Burgess-1337 (last in-stalled 10/19/10) Western Zone Fred Cochran-151 (last installed 5/16/11) Muskegon-703 (last installed 4/21/11) Northern Zone Greater Michigan-156 (last installed 11/3/07) alpena-1327 (last installed 6/24/09) Central Zone Harold R. Cooley-841 (last installed 4/13/11)

Southern Zone Capital-148 (last installed 3/24/11) Upper Peninsula Zone George “Toogs” St. Martin-550 (last installed 5/22/07) Lake Superior-764 (last installed 4/5/11) Keweenaw-1016 (last installed 5/19/11)

Wow am i on a roll here. Now let’s talk about the iRS 990. i was informed by the National Sr Vice Commandant that quite a few det’s nation-wide are in noncompliance by not filing in 3 years or more and have lost their non-profit status. i have instructed the dept Judge advocate to compile a list from our dept of those in noncompliance and sent each a letter. disregarding this letter will result in charges and the possibility of revoking your Charter. i believe enough is said on this matter.

i almost feel better now. in case you haven’t heard, Charlie Brown, dept Judge advocate has resigned and moved to FL. We wish Charlie and his wife the best. in the mean time with approval from the Board of Trustees i have appointed Bob Hencken as dept Judge advocate. Bob needs no introduction. i’m sure he is well known around the dept.

in March, myself, Jr Past Commandant Zamora and SW Vice Ray Rowley jour-neyed to Mendon, Mi for an organizational meeting of over 20 Marines wanting to start a det in Jackson County. i gave them a start up kit and we talked in length about the League. Not sure how many applica-tions were filled out that day, but am sure it was all of them with about 10-15 waiting in the wings not being able to attend. Let’s wish them all the best in their endeavors.

By the time this newsletter is published, the Central division Conference will be history, so i can not report on that. Our annual Convention is coming up in June in the UP. Each det should by now have a Convention package. Hopefully we’ll see more det’s in attendance this year.

as always, should prove to be a good time.

Speaking of the newsletter, Editor Jim Tuohy stated due to lack of funds, only 500 will be printed. Those are the newsletters to be mailed to the Va hospitals and Veterans Homes.

The newsletter will be put on the dept website. Let’s hope in the near future we can afford to mail them out to each member.

This is the most i’ve talked in quite awhile and you know i am a man of few words. Hope every det takes heed to all i’ve said here. See you all

at Convention. Until then, Semper Fi.Lennie N

N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N NDepartment Commandant Department of Michigan Marine Corps League

Wow Am I On a Roll

I almost feel better now. In case you haven’t heard.

6 Michigan Marine News • Summer 2012

Department Jr. Vice Commandant

N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N NJr. Vice Commandant Department of Michigan Marine Corps League

Hello Marines, Corpsman and Our Auxiliary

Department Sr. Vice Commandant

N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N NSr. Vice Commandant Department of Michigan Marine Corps League

by Norm Pfaff

I hope everyone had a wonderful, Happy and Blessed Easter Holiday. The convention is just around the corner and it’s time to get back to work. as i reported at the Mid

Winter Rally we hosted four (4) Texas Hold’em events for the department of Michigan which netted over $10,000.00 Many thanks go out to Christine Tonnegato Salo for heading up this event and the many works that made them success-ful. This year we have four (4) more Texas Hold’em scheduled and with luck and a little more hard work we can exceed this past year’s goals

The Great Lakes Marketing group also had a good year and brought in over $26,000.00 to add to our department. This is always good news but we need more help from the individual

detachments to see our goals grow. The Macomb detach-ment #154 donated $300.00 to the Scholarship Fund and the devil dogs Pound #6 donated $200.00. What a fantas-tic year we had but just think how great it would of been if each detachment could of donated just $100.00 to either the Foundation or the Scholarship Fund we would of knocked it out of the park. i hope that the Fund Raising Commit-tee is ready to get going because i have some new ideas

for raising money and i hope you can come up with even more ideas to help the department of Michigan Marine Corps League . See you at the Summer Convention 2012!

Semper FiNorm PfaffSenior Vice commandant N

The Convention is Just Around the Corner

by Wendy Zamora

T his will be the last article before the department con-vention in Harris, Mi at the island Casino & Resort which will be hosted by Marine art Menard and the Up-

per Peninsula detachment and auxiliary. i hope all will help them by purchasing an ad in their booklet and by attending this important meeting of the department. We were up at this same resort in 2009 and everyone that was there had a great time.

The week after the Convention is over, the Central division (Michigan, illinois, indiana, Wisconsin, Ohio and Kentucky) is looking for some help at Marine Week in Cleveland. The assistant division Vice Commandant, Ray dailey, is asking that if you can help please contact him as soon as possible, you can go to the Central division website at www.mclcentdiv.com for more info on Marine week.

There may soon be a 38th detachment in our state. The new

detachment will be known as the St. Joseph County area detachment located in the Mendon area and will more than likely be added to our Southern Zone. We should be able to Charter them before the end of the summer, PdC Phil Zamora and Zone Commandant Ray Rowley are working with them to get this detachment going soon.

For any devil dog Pups that wish to get your Pedigree (yellow collar) at the National Convention in Grand Rapids

in 2013, you must have your devil dog (red collar) by the depart-ment Convention this year.

Lastly, i hope all will be at the convention in June and support all of us that will be running for the department positions we currently hold.

Semper Fi,Wendy ZamoraJr. Vice Commandant N


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More Around the League on page 8

by CDD Mike English, 54th Chief Devil Dog

54th Chief Barks About

Woof, Woof devil dogs! We may be just coming into Spring Season; however, the

weather is more like summer. i am getting my motorcycle road ready and will be running the streets again before you read this. i plan on bringing my bike down to Mo-bile, aL and, if any of you want to ride down there, just bring a bike, and we will see what we can do.

i have been doing some traveling and hopefully representing you and the Ken-nel well. i always like to have a little fun and see what our Pups and devil dogs are about; i enjoy asking them questions about their experience within our Kennel and how they are enjoy-ing it. i find almost all very sup-portive of our programs and what we are about. Most all Pups and dds realize the Bones that get donated during our programs go to worthy causes, even if some of them do not know what all those causes are.

That brings me to the training process that we go through at all our initiation programs through-out the Kennel. i am not talk-ing about the initiation that we require all Pdds to go through before our Supreme Growl (that is a strong well-oiled program); however, i am concerned at what i am finding (and seeing) about the dogs coming in as Pups, and the Pups being upgraded to devil dog at the Pound/Pack levels. We are the Fun and Honor Society of the MCL! We have a history and heritage that we carry with rituals and traditions that are being lost in some areas. i am finding Pups that have not been through any type of training or ritual to become a PUP; just pay your membership fee and you’re in! i am finding dds that tell me they went through an initiation process and some not at all; one told me he had to go into the hall, bark the Marine’s Hymn, and that was it. He returned to the growl and took the oath for dd. We are really missing a point here! i think

we really need to think about what we are do-ing and promoting at both the Pound and

Pack level. i know the dogs out there want to

earn their next level because no-body likes to be at the bottom of any organization. However, we cannot throw an initiation together in 15 minutes and say that we have done that dog, and ourselves, justice. i have seen it in my own

division, and it is something that i am not proud of. We go to a division

Conference and, at the last minute, it will change from a Pound Growl to a

Pack Growl so that a Pup can be upgraded. Normally, the Pack leadership is not ready, and

dogs are jumping through hoops to get the paper work completed. There may or may not be a qualified Mad dog to conduct the initiation. i know that our leadership is doing this be-cause they feel as if they are tak-ing care of their dogs to get that upgrade. But are they sacrificing the growth and fellowship experi-enced for that dog to move up or become a Pup? i understand the need for the opportunity for the upgrade process to happen out-side of a Grand Growl; however, that process still needs to be pre-pared for before with some type of registration and preparation by both the incoming/upgrading Pup and the leadership conduct-ing the initiation process. divi-sion Vice Chiefs: i charge you

to correct these issues in your divisions and to give any training/instruction you deem necessary.

Pound Keepers and Pack Leaders: i am giving you a mission. You may elect to accept this mission or just ig-nore it; however. if you decide to do the latter, you should ask yourself why you are in your position of leadership. additionally, Mad dogs: you are a major part of this mis-sion because it is your responsibility to conduct a proper initiation for all Pups and dd’s looking to wear our black or red collars. We are heading into our season where MCL department conventions are starting and, along with the Convention, a Grand Growl should be conducted. N

WOOF-O-GRAM

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D id you know? That more than 1,700 of our nation’s CEO’s and corporate presi-dents were Eagle Scouts ? or that 38%

of all West Point Grads were Eagle Scouts and 58% of the nation’s astronauts were also scouts. 39 of them were Eagle Scouts. Grand Rapids own, President Gerald R. Ford was the only U.S. President to have earned the title, Eagle Scout. On March 25th at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, five young men from the Grand Rapids area were presented with the title of Eagle Scout. it is the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouts of america, and the title is held for life.

Fred Bishop, Marine Corps League and Life member of the Fred Cochran detachment #151 has a lot to brag about. Fred had the honor of presenting these five young men with a distinguished Citizen award for attaining the rank of Eagle Scout. The five awardees are (L-R) Michael aaberg, alex Pavey, austin Pratt, Fred Bishop, (MCL), Shawn Conrad, U.S. Navy MM 2, Patrick donovan, John donovan.

in 2011, Fred Bishop also presented five young men that attained Eagle Scout rank with the Marine Corps League distinguished Citizen award for Eagle Scout.

The five scouts are; (L-R) ZachHoiles, Thomas Murray, Fred Bishop, (MCL), Samuel Elwell,Kaj Hjelm, alex Chris-tensen. Congratulations to all on an outstanding accomplishment. N

Boy Scouts of AmericaEagle Scout Awards – Western Michigan, Troop 345

Left to Right: Micheal Aaberg, Alex Pavey, Austin Pratt, Fred Bishop (Marine Corps League), Shawn Conrad (Navy MM 2), Patrick Donovan, John Donovan.

The five Scouts with Marine Fred Bishop, who gabe them a special award from the Marine Corp League. From left to right: Zach Holles, Thomas Murray, Fred Bishop, Samuel Elwell, Kaj Hjelm, Alex Christensen.


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5 8,267 names now listed on that polished black wall, including those added in 2010. The names are ar-ranged in the order in which they were taken from us

by date and within each date the names are alphabetized. it is hard to believe it is 36 years since the last casualties.

• The first known casualty was Richard B. Fitzgibbon, of North Weymouth, Mass. Listed by the U.S. department of defense as having been killed on June 8, 1956. His name is listed on the Wall with that of his son, Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Richard B. Fitzgibbon iii, who was killed on Sept. 7, 1965.

• There are three sets of fathers and sons on the Wall.• 39,996 on the Wall were just 22 or younger.• 8,283 were just 19 years old.• The largest age group, 33,103 were 18 years old.• 12 soldiers on the Wall were 17 years old.• 5 soldiers on the Wall were 16 years old.• One soldier, PFC dan Bullock was 15 years old.• 997 soldiers were killed on their first day in Vietnam.• 1,448 soldiers were killed on their last day in Vietnam.• 31 sets of brothers are on the Wall.• Thirty one sets of parents lost two of their sons.• 54 soldiers attended Thomas Edison High School in

Philadelphia . i wonder why so many from one school.• 8 Women are on the Wall. Nursing the wounded.• 244 soldiers were awarded the Medal of Honor during

the Vietnam War; 153 of them are on the Wall.• Beallsville, Ohio with a population of 475 lost 6 of

her sons.• West Virginia had the highest casualty rate per capita in

the nation. There are 711 West Virginians on the Wall.• The Marines of Morenci - They led some of the scrap-

piest high school football and basketball teams that the little arizona copper town of Morenci (pop. 5,058) had ever known and cheered. They enjoyed roar-ing beer busts. in quieter moments, they rode horses along the Coronado Trail, stalked deer in the apache National Forest. and in the patriotic camaraderie typi-cal of Morenci’s mining families, the nine graduates of Morenci High enlisted as a group in the Marine Corps. Their service began on independence day, 1966. Only 3 returned home.

• The Buddies of Midvale - LeRoy Tafoya, Jimmy Marti-nez, Tom Gonzales were all boyhood friends and lived on three consecutive streets in Midvale, Utah on Fifth, Sixth and Seventh avenues. They lived only a few yards apart. They played ball at the adjacent sandlot

ball field. and they all went to Vietnam. in a span of 16 dark days in late 1967, all three would be killed.

LeRoy was killed on Wednesday, Nov. 22, the fourth anniversary of John F. Kennedy’s assassination. Jim-my died less than 24 hours later on Thanksgiving day. Tom was shot dead assaulting the enemy on dec. 7, Pearl Harbor Remembrance day.

• The most casualty deaths for a single day was on Janu-ary 31, 1968 ~ 245 deaths.

• The most casualty deaths for a single month was May 1968 - 2,415 casualties were incurred.

For most americans who read this they will only see the numbers that the Vietnam War created. To those of us who survived the war, and to the families of those who did not, we see the faces, we feel the pain that these num-bers created. We are, until we too pass away, haunted with these numbers, because they were our friends, fathers, husbands, wives, sons and daughters. There are no noble wars, just noble warriors. N

An Insight into the Vietnam Wall



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The Shiawassee County Young Marines of durand,

Michigan, were honored to have dutch Franz, Michigan Central Zone Vice Commandant, as the guest of honor for their first graduation ceremony.

Several Marine Corps League members have vol-unteered to help mentor the youth in this unit. Robert J. Borka Unit Commander - Shiawassee County Young Marines Life Member - Marine Corps League N

Not Bad Duty for Marines at Camp David Submitted by Bill H.

I ’ve been reading Tom Clancy’s “Executive Orders” in one scene, President (and Marine) Jack Ryan is at Camp david, where Marines are standing guard

around the house.He says to a young Captain: “Not bad duty, is it?”“The young officer nodded. ‘We do the security. The Navy does the petunias. it’s a fair division of

labor.’” “Ya gotta love it” N

Shiawassee County

Young MarinesWelcome Aboard to our Marine Family,

You’re gonna love it here !


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Marines Place Wreaths on Graves of Deceased Members Submitted by PNC John Tuohy

E ach year just before Christmas, Marines of the Flint detachment visit the Great Lakes National Cemetery to place wreaths on the graves of their deceased members. Every year we do our best to honor as many of our deceased members as possible. N

Sunset over the Great Lakes National Cemetery.Flint Detachment members honor their deceased members.

“Corpsman Up”Up at the front and filled with fear

He pleads with God, “don’t leave me here”! Wounded and bleeding and hunched in pain,

Pack on his back, in the mud and rain, another went down; some hit, all scared,

No one moved....No one dared! We’d move swiftly through the patty mire.

Then it happened...enemy fire! it’s “Corpsman Up” when things get hot!

The nearest thing to god we’ve got! “Corpsman Up” in the face of death,

No time to stop and catch your breath! Stop that bleeding...treat for shock,

No time for hesitation doc! Patch him up and get him back,

Back to the rear....Call a MEdEVaC! You joined the Navy to learn a trade, Went to school and made the grade!

it’s “Corpsman Up” when men are dying! N

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313-550-4140e-mail: [email protected]

PC GURU COMPUTERS


by Ray Dailey, Sr Vice Department of Ohio TiMES: 0800 –2000 MONdaY - SUNdaY THE ViETNaM WaLL WiLL NOT BE PUT UP ON SUNdaY dUE TO SaFTY CONCERNES WiTH BRiNGiNG iN aiR CRaFT.OPENiNG ceremony will be MONdaY (11th) aT 1100. THaT iS iN 50 daYS.WE WiLL MaN 2 POP UP TENTS aLONG SidE THE MaRiNE CORPS RECRUTiNG TENTS ONE TENT aT CiTY CENTER, THE

OTHER aT MaGTF aLLY (by progressive field) reason, manpower. (Lack of) we will man the ViETNaM traveling wall, iF YOU Volunteer YOU WiLL aLSO BE GiVEN a TiCKET FOR THE BaSE BaLL GaME ON JUNE 15TH Food / water will be supplied by the USO. Bring a camp chair to set on... PaRKiNG; is still not decided, the lot by the browns stadium is $8.00 per day (car pool as much as possible)BaSE BaLL TiCKET FOR THE MaRiNES, MaRiNE FaMiLYS aNd WOUNdEd WaRRiERS MUST BE PURCHaSEd BY JUNE 5 SO

WE CaN BUY THE TiCKETS, this is a 100% tax deduction for you as you are donating the money for the ticket, you are not buying the tickets, …a sheet of 5 will cost you $150.00 send the money,, by check to SENd a MaRiNE TO THE BaLL GaME P.O. box 3070 MER-RiFiELd, Va 22116-3070. Please put your detachments name in the memo. Your detachment will receive $1.00 back from each ticket a member of the detachment sells.

We also need help with the CLEVELaNd POLiCE 5k run Marine Corps PFT on Saturday morning at 0700.Uniform will be undress, or casual. as explained in the MCL by laws. Uniform Code - Bylaws Enclosure Three (3) Only - 2011. any

questions on uniforms check the NaTiONaL website http://www.mcleague.com. i will post updates as i receive them on the. Mclohio.org web site aNY QUESTiON PLEaSE CaLL 1800 625-1775 or 419 438-4579. N

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More Communications on page 14

MARINE WEEK JUNE 11 TO 17TH 2012


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Heroic Yet HumbleA s i came out of the supermarket that

sunny day, pushing my cart of grocer-ies towards my car, i saw an old man

with the hood of his car up and a lady sit-ting inside the car, with the door open. The old man was looking at the engine. i put my groceries away in my car, and continued to watch the old gentleman from about twenty five feet away. i saw a young man in his early twenties with a grocery bag in his arm walk-ing towards the old man. The old gentleman saw him coming too, and took a few steps towards him.

i saw the old gentleman point to his open hood and say something. The young man put his grocery bag into what looked like a brand new Cadillac Escalade. He then turned back to the old man. i heard him yell at the old gentleman saying: ‘You shouldn’t even be al-lowed to drive a car at your age.’ and then with a wave of his hand, he got in his car and peeled rubber out of the parking lot.

i saw the old gentleman pull out his hand-kerchief, and mop his brow as he went back to his car and again looked at the engine. He then went to his wife and spoke with her; he appeared to tell her it would be okay. i had seen enough, and i approached the old man. He saw me coming and stood straight, and as i got near him i said, ‘Looks like you’re having a problem.’

He smiled sheepishly, and quietly nodded his head. i looked under the hood myself, and knew that whatever the problem was, it was beyond me. Looking around, i saw a gas station up the road, and i told the old man that i would be right back. i drove to the station and went inside. i saw three atten-dants working on cars. i approached one of them, and related the problem the old man had with his car. i offered to pay them if they could follow me back down and help him.

The old man had pushed the heavy car under the shade of a tree and appeared to be comforting his wife. When he saw us he straightened up and thanked me for my help. as the me-chanics diagnosed the problem (overheated engine), i spoke with the old gentleman.

When i shook hands with him earlier, he had noticed my Marine Corps ring and had commented about it, telling me that he had been a Marine too. i nodded and asked the usual question, ‘What outfit did you serve with?’ He said that he served with the first Ma-rine division at Guadalcanal, Pelieliu, and Okinawa .

He had hit three of the worst ones, and retired from the Corps after the war was over. as we talked we heard the car engine come on and saw the mechanics lower the hood. They came over to us as the old man reached for his wallet, but was stopped by me. i told him i would just put the bill on my aaa card.He still reached for the wallet and handed me a card that i assumed had his name and address on it, and i stuck it in my pocket. We all shook hands all around again, and i said my goodbye’s to his wife. i then told the two mechanics that i would follow them back up to the station. Once at the station, i told them that they had inter-rupted their own jobs to come along with me and help the old man. i said i wanted to pay for the help, but they refused to charge me. One of them pulled out a card from his pocket, looking exactly like the card the old man had given to me. Both of the men told me then that they were Marine Corps Reserves. Once again we shook hands all around and as i was leaving, one of them told me i should look at the card the old man had given to me.

i said i would and drove off. For some reason i had gone about two blocks, when i pulled over and took the card out of my pocket and looked at it for a long, long time. The name of the old gentleman was on the card in golden leaf and under his name was written: ‘Congressional Medal of Honor Society.’

i sat there motionless, looking at the card and reading it over and over. i looked up from the card and smiled to no one but my-self and marveled that on this day, four Ma-

rines had all come together because one of us needed help. He was an old man all right, but it felt good to have stood next to great-ness and courage, and an honor to have been in his presence.

Remember, as we approach another Memorial day, OLd men like him gave you, and all of us, FREEdOM for america. Thanks to those who served and still serve, and to all of those who supported them, and who continue to support them.

america is not at war. The U.S. Military is at war. america is at the Mall.

if you don’t stand behind our troops, PLEaSE feel free to stand in front of them!

Remember, Freedom isn’t Free. Thousands have paid the price, so that you can enjoy what you have today. N


Communications

SDVOB Pricing Preference

T he State of Michigan’s dTMB-Procurement encourages Service disabled Veteran Owned Businesses (SdVOB) to register as vendors with the State of Michigan to bid on over 1,100 contracting opportunities.

SdVOBs are given up to a 10 percent pricing preference on all competitive and formal bids. This pricing preference is given to those SdVOBs that otherwise meet the requirements of the contract solicitation. SdVOBs who wish to claim the pricing preference will be asked to submit documents with their bid proposal that specify their service disabled veteran status and proof of ownership.

To review more details on the SdVOB pricing preference in Michigan, or to learn more about the State of Michigan bidding pro-cess, please visit www.michigan.gov/micontractconnect. To review current bid opportunities and to register to become a State of Michigan vendor, visit www.Bid4Michigan.com.

if you have questions about the SdVOB pricing preference or the contracting process, email [email protected].

Contact info:Jenni RiehledTMB- Procurement Business development Unit (517) 335-6633 [email protected]@Miprocurement N

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“LISTEN UP” WE NEED YOUR HELP

A t the Great Lakes National Cemetery in Holly, Mi. a Memorial Path honoring our Veterans with a variety of stones and benches was opened in 2008. To date many Veterans organiza-tions have placed a monument in memory of our veterans along this path. The department

of Michigan, would like to place a monument along this Memorial Path on behalf of the depart-ment of Michigan, Marine Corps League, our auxiliary, Military Order of the devil dogs and the Young Marines.

The approximate cost of one of these monuments is about $4,000. We would like to raise the money through donations from detachments, auxiliary Units, devil dog Pounds and Young Ma-rines. We would like to have this in place and dedicated by Veterans day 2012. The monument would be similar to the one shown below that was the first stone dedicated and installed on the Memorial Path by the Non-Commissioned Officers association. if you would like to help make this a reality, please send your donation which is tax deductible. Your check should be made out to:

department of Michigan, Marine Corps League

Send to:Michigan Marine News12086 Riverbend dr.Grand Blanc, Mi. 48439-1724attn: Memorial Path Project

*Please mark in the memo area of your check “Memorial Path donation” **PLEaSE dO NOT SENd CaSH**

if you would like to offer your suggestion for the inscription on the stone, please submit that also. N

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Sample of Memorial Stone.

More Communications on page 16


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A sk a Marine what’s so special about the Marines and the an-swer would be “esprit de corps”, an unhelpful French phrase that means exactly what it looks like - the spirit of the Corps,

but what is that spirit, and where does it come from?The Marine Corps is the only branch of the U.S. armed Forces

that recruits people specifically to Fightt. The army emphasizes personal development (an army of One), the Navy promises fun (let the journey begin), the air Force offers security (it’s a great way of life). Missing from all the advertisements is the hard fact that a soldier’s lot is to suffer and perhaps to die for his people, and take lives at the risk of his/her own.

Even the thematic music of the services reflects this evasion. The army’s Caisson Song describes a pleasant country outing. Over hill and dale, lacking only a picnic basket. anchors aweigh, the Navy’s celebration of the joys of sailing, could have been penned by Jimmy Buffet. The air Force song is a lyric poem of blue skies and engine thrust. all is joyful and invigorating, and safe. There are no land mines in the dales nor snipers behind the hills, no submarines or cruise missiles threaten the ocean jaunt, no bandits are lurking in the wild blue yonder. The Marines Hymn, by contrast, is all combat. We fight our Country’s battles, First to fight for right and freedom, We have fought in every clime and place where we could take a gun, in many a strife we have fought for life and never lost our nerve.

The choice is made clear. You may join the army to go to ad-venture training, or join the Navy to go to Bangkok, or join the air Force to go to computer school.

You join the Marine Corps to go to War! But the mere act of signing the enlistment contract confers no

status in the Corps. The army recruit is told from his first minute in uniform that “you’re

in the army now”, soldier. The Navy and air Force enlistees are sail-ors or airmen as soon as they get off bus at the training center.

The new arrival at Marine Corps boot camp is called a recruit, or worse, (a lot worse), but never a MaRiNE. Not yet, maybe never. He or she must earn the right to claim the title of UNiTEd STaTES MaRiNE, and failure returns you to civilian life without hesitation or ceremony.

Recruit Platoon 2210 at San diego, California trained from Oc-tober through december of 1968. in Viet Nam the Marines were taking two hundred casualties a week, and the major rainy season operation Meade River, had not even begun, yet drill instructors had no qualms about winnowing out almost a quarter of their 112 recruits, graduating eighty one. Note that this was post - enlist-ment attrition; every one of those who were dropped had been passed by the recruiters as fit for service. But they failed the test of Boot Camp, not necessarily for physical reasons at least two

More Earning the Title on page 18


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were outstanding high school athletes for whom the calisthenics and running were child’s play. The cause of their failure was not in the biceps nor the legs, but -in the spirit. Theyhad lacked the will to endure the mental and emotional strain, so they would not be Marines. Heavy commitments and high casualties not withstand-ing, the Corps reserves the right to pick and choose.

History classes in boot camp? Stop a soldier on the street and ask him to name a battle of World War One. Pick a sailor at ran-dom to describe the epic fight of the Bon Homme Richard. Ev-eryone has heard of McGuire air Force Base. So ask any airman who Major Thomes McGuire was, and why he is so commemo-rated. i am not carping, and there is no sheer in this criticism. all of the services have glorious traditions, but no one teaches the young soldier, sailor or airman what his uniform means and why he should be proud of it. But - ask a Marine about World War One, and you will hear of the wheat field at Belleau Wood and the cour-age of the Fourth Marine Brigade, fifth and sixth regiments. Faced with an enemy of superior numbers entrenched in tangled forest undergrowth, the Marines received an order to attack that even the charitable cannot call ill advised. it was insane. artillery sup-port was absent and air support hadn’t been invented yet, so the Brigade charged German machine guns with only bayonets, gre-nades, and indomitable fighting spirit. a bandy legged little barrel of a gunnery sergeant, daniel J. daly, rallied his company with a shout, “Come on you sons a bitches, do you want to live forever”? He took out three machine guns himself, and they would give him the Medal of Honor except for a technicality, he already had two of them. French liaison officers, hardened though they were by four years of trench bound slaughter, were shocked as the Marines charged across the open wheat field under a blazing sun directly into the teeth of enemy fire. Their action was so anachronistic on the twentieth-century battlefield that they might as well have been swinging cutlasses, but the enemy was only human; they could not stand up to this. So the Marines took Belleau Wood. The Germans called them “dOGS FROM THE dEViL”

Every Marine knows this story and dozens more. We are taught them in boot camp as a regular part of the curriculum. Every Ma-rine will always be taught them! You can learn to don a gas mask anytime, even on the plane in route to the war zone, but before you can wear the Eagle Globe& anchor (EG&a) and claim the title you must know about the Marines who made that emblem and title meaningful. So long as you can march and shoot and revere the legacy of the Corps you can take your place in line. and that line is unified spirit as in purpose. a soldier wears branch of service insignia on his collar, metal shoulder pins and cloth sleeve patches

to identify his unit. Sailors wear a rating badge that identifies what they do for the Navy. Marines wear only the Eagle, Globe, and anchor, together with personal ribbons and their CHERiSHEd marksmanship badges.

There is nothing on a Marine’s uniform to indicate what he or she does, nor what unit the Marine belongs to. You cannot tell by looking at a Marine whether you are seeing a truck driver, a com-puter programmer, or a machine gunner. The Corps explains this as a security measure to conceal the identity and location of units, but the Marines’ penchant for publicity makes that the least likely of explanations. No, the Marine is amorphous, even anonymous, by conscious design.

Every Marine is a rifleman first and foremost, a Marine first, last and always! You may serve a four-year enlistment or even a twenty plus year career without seeing action, but if the word is given you’ll charge across that Wheatfield! Whether a Marine has been schooled in automated supply, or automotive mechanics, or aviation electronics, is immaterial. Those things are secondary - the Corps does them because it must. The modern battle requires the technical appliances, and since the enemy has them, so do we, but no Marine boasts mastery of them. Our pride is in our marksmanship, our discipline, and our membership in a fraternity of courage and sacrifice. “For the honor of the fallen, for the glory of the dead”, Edar Guest wrote of Belleau Wood, “the living line of courage kept the faith and moved ahead”. They are all gone now, those Marines who made a French farmer’s little Wheatfield into one of the most enduring of Marine Corps legends. Many of them did not survive the day, and eight long decades have claimed the rest. But their actions are immortal. The Corps remembers them and honors what they did, and so they live forever. dan daly’s shouted challenge takes on its true meaning - if you lie in the trenches you may survive for now, but someday you may die and no one will care. if you charge the guns you may die in the next two minutes, but you will be one of the immortals. all Marines die in the red flash of battle or the white cold of the nursing home. in the vigor of youth or the infirmity of age all will eventually die, but the Marine Corps lives on. Every Marine who ever lived is living still, in the Marines who claim the title today. it is that sense of belong-ing to something that will outlive your own mortality, which gives people a light to live by and a flame to mark their passing.

Passed on to a Marine from another Marine!SEMPER Fi BROTHERS aNd SiSTERS!Sgt. Nick Sparacino 2/9 Viet Nam 1966d. Chief of Police Oak Forest il. N

Earning the Title continued from page 16

Hospitalized Vet’s Need Your Assistance

T he aleda Lutz Saginaw Va Hospital desperately needs disposable Bic razors. if you or your detachment, auxiliary Unit or devil dog Pound can help, please send an email to [email protected]. N


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The Bayonet

it lay upon the new mown grass

a rusted sword of pain

content to finally be at peace

it s purpose cleansed with rain.

The hands that reached to rescue it

knew not it s deadly past

a careful look upon it s shape

revealed an ancient cast

so many years ago this knife

stood proudly on the gun

that shouted death and valor

to many mother s son

it knew parades

and cheers and hope

salutes that stirred the land.

it knew the stench of rotting flesh

inflicted by it s hand.

and now it was but only steel

with tarnish as its shield

a trinket found and wondered at

Without its past revealed.


T o Honor those heroes who made the ultimate sacrifice to de-fend the freedom we enjoy today. it was originally intended that the simple white marble Tomb placed over the grave

of The Unknown Soldier immediately after the interment should serve as a base for an appropriate superstructure. accordingly very shortly after the ceremonies on November 11, 1921, the question of selecting a suitable monument to complete the Tomb was given consideration. it was not until July 3, 1926, however, that the Congress finally authorized the completion of the Tomb and the expenditure of $50,000 therefore.

The act referred to above provided that the Secretary of War secure competitive designs according to such regulations as he may adopt to complete the Tomb of The Unknown Soldier. The act further provided that the accepted designs should be subject to the approval of the arlington Cemetery Commission, the american Battle Monuments Commission and the Fine arts Commission. in accordance with the provisions of the act, the Secretary of War prepared a program for the completion of the Tomb and invited architects of standing reputation who were citizens of the United States to submit designs. Seventy-four designs were submitted

America’s Unknown Soldier

on this Memorial day, We remember

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and, from among them, five were selected for further study. The selections were made by a Jury of award comprised of the follow-ing: Mr. Charles a Coolidge, F.a.i.a., Chairman; Mr. Paul P.Cret, a prominent architect and a member of the american institute of architects; Honorable Hanford MacNider, former assistant Secre-tary for War; Mrs. William d. Rock, representing the american War Mothers; and, Mr. Victor Mindeleff, architectural advisor.

The selected competitors were required to restudy their designs and prepare models of plaster of paris. When these models were received the Jury of award studied each one, taking into consid-eration the surroundings of the Tomb, the amphitheater in which it is located and which serves as a background for it, and the final effect after the completed monument was in place. after going into the matter most carefully and thoroughly, the Jury finally recom-mended an anonymous design to be the winning one. When their decision had been reached a sealed envelope accompanying the design was opened and it was found that the winning design was the work of Mr. Thomas Hudson Jones, sculptor, and Lorimer Rich, architect, of New York City.

The design selected is in the form of a sarcophagus, simple but impressive, and most appropriate for the purpose for which de-sired. The total height is 11 feet, the width is 8 feet at the base and 6 feet 8 inches at the top, and the length is 13 feet 11 inches at the base and 12 feet 7 inches at the top. The severity of the design is relieved by the doric Pilasters in low relief at the corners and along the sides. The panel of the front, facing the City of Washington and the Potomac, has carved upon the marble a composition of three figures commemorative of the spirit of the allies in the War. in the center of the panel stands “Victory”; on one side a male fig-ure symbolizes “Valor,” and on the other stands “Peace” with her palm branch to reward the devotion and sacrifice that went with Courage to make the cause of righteousness triumphant. Each of the sides is divided into three panels by doric Pilasters, in each panel of which is carved an inverted wreath. On the back ap-pears the inscription “Here Rests in Honored Glory an american Soldier Known But To God”. This is the only inscription appearing on the Tomb.

The marble is the finest and whitest of american marble - Yule, Colorado, marble, and same as used in the Lincoln Memorial. The Tomb is made of only four pieces of marble - the die, which is all in one piece and one of the largest ever quarried, weighing over 50 tons; the base; the sub-base, and the capstone.

With the selection of the design of the monument to complete the Tomb, the next step was to secure an appropriation from Con-gress for the work. This was done december 21, 1929, a contract or completion of the Tomb itself was entered into. in order to pro-vide an appropriate setting for the Tomb when completed certain changes were necessary in the grounds, roadways and landscap-ing in the immediate vicinity of the Tomb. To accomplish this, plans were prepared to provide an elaborate approach from the East and on February 28, 1929, Congress authorized the construction of the necessary approaches to the Tomb.

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, now completed, in its simple and impressive beauty, is a fitting and lasting memorial to all those brave heroes who gave their all on the field of battle for the high principles for which the american Nation has always stood. N

✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯i am an americanThat’s the way most of us put it, just matter of fact.

They are plain words, those four.You could write them on your thumbnail,

or you could sweep them clear across this bright summer sky

But remember too that they are more than words.They are a way of life.

so whenever you speak them, speak them firmly;speak them proudly; speak them gratefully.

i am an american.

i watched the flag pass by one day. it fluttered in the breeze.

a young Marine saluted it, and then he stood at ease. i looked at him in uniform

so young, so tall, so proud, With hair cut square and eyes alert

He’d stand out in any crowd. i thought how many men like him

Had fallen through the years. How many died on foreign soil?

How many mothers’ tears? How many pilots’ planes shot down?

How many died at sea? How many foxholes were soldiers’ graves?

no, freedom isn’t free. heard the sound of taps one night,

When everything was still i listened to the bugler play

and felt a sudden chill. i wondered just how many times

That taps had meant “amen,” When a flag had draped a coffin

of a brother or a friend. i thought of all the children,

of the mothers and the wives, of fathers, sons and husbands

With interrupted lives. i thought about a graveyard

at the bottom of the sea of unmarked graves in arlington.

no, freedom isn’t free.

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Events

Flint detachment saturday, June 23rd, 2012 southmoor golf course, Burton, Mi. contact info, lou Bryan [email protected] (810 686-2524.

capital detachment saturday, July 14th, 2012 Wheatfield Valley golf course. contact info charlie spagnuolo at [email protected] or (517) 694-5104.

great lakes national cemetery saturday, July 21st, 2012 lapeer country club. contact info, Jim Tuohy, [email protected] or (810) 695-3241.

GOLF OUTINGS


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michigan marine news summer 2012

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