San Diego Reunion 2011 – Farewell Speech

Shakespeare’s Henry V called his soldiers “We Band of Brothers.”  After almost seven decades of association that seems an appropriate designation for us.  There is a mystic bond of brotherhood that binds us.  We meet for the last time at the rim of the Pacific.  Sixty-seven years ago a few of us here today mustered at the other rim of the Pacific.  We began on the steamy, humid island of Luzan at the end of a war.  A few of us here today remember the deactivation of the unit in the middle of another war on the rocky barren Korean peninsula.  Most of us here today recall the interim years when we volunteers bearing arms in the service of our Republic and our General.  We were young, tall, slender and green as grass.  Whether that service was at the Atsugi quartermaster depot or required parachuting on to the Rock to retake Corregidor’, each of us served where he was asked–honorably.  Entitlements and benefits flowed from that service.  We used the 52/20 Club for beer and beach.  The G.I. Bill to pay for taxidermy school or loan to buy a 5 grand tract home.  The V.A. gave me a hearing aid that cost more than my pay for my tour of duty.  But an unexpected entitlement arose from our service, the Honor Guard Association.  The camaraderie espirit de corps, the friendship and spiritual affinity we call brotherhood that continued for the decades after our discharge.  From randomly selected diverse individuals the Honor Guard Company evolved into an almost DNA compatible group.  We matured and with our families met together all over this great nation.  From Norfolk to San Francisco, from Rochester to San Diego, we mustered in St. Louis, Nashville, Indianapolis, Philadelphia, Branson, and Las Vegas, a great one in San Antonio and an almost one in New Orleans.  The audible of each cities name evokes memories of the light of those days we shared.  We look backward at these yesterdays with a smile.

Patricia told me our ages range from 81 – 94 years old.  many of us are older now than our venerable General who lived only 84 years.  He was not of an age, but for all time.  Fortunately General MacArthur’s replica, our chairman Dave Valley is eternal.  Our founder, Bob Marco started the Association to have a beer bust with his squad from the finance building and it grew into an entity with an agenda and auxiliaries.