Published by and for Soldiers of the 10Th Mountain Division
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PUBLISHED BY AND FOR SOLDIERS OF THE 10TH MOUNTAIN DIVISION VOLUME 37 2008 NUMBER 1 SUPPORT FOR FAMILIES OF MISSING SOLDIERS The following letter was written by the how proud I am of the warriors I’ve met, stepfather of Pvt. Byron Fouty, who with time shared is what I find to be more im- Spec. Alex Jimenez, both of 4th Battalion, portant than just about anything. I was so 31st Infantry Regiment, remains lifted by being there. Before I left, I was missing/captured in Iraq. making a plan to return in January. Time is To My Brothers and Sisters at Fort Drum: the only way to know people, and I want to I’m writing you now to let you know know as many of you as I can. Your re- how grateful and honored I was, and am, solve to act honorably in the face of cir- to have taken the trip to meet you all in cumstances we can barely imagine makes person at the 2nd Brigade Combat Team me so proud of each of you. redeployment ceremony in November. We met at the hotel with Andy Along with my desire to have you all know (Continued on Page 5) A Medal of Honor flag changes hands in the Magrath Gymnasium at Ft. Drum. The complex was named for PFC John D. Magrath (85-G) who died in battle on Mt. Belvedere, Italy, in 1945. His brother William and sister-in law Elain campaigned to obtain the flag – it was first awarded in 2002 but did not initially include Medal of Honor recipients before then. 10th Mtn. Div. (LI) Commanding General, Maj. Gen. Mike Oates presents the flag to the couple, and they have left it in the care of the Division. WHAT’S NEW? Welcome to the first Blizzard of 2008! We are now published by the Watertown Daily Times, and printed at their modern printing plant in Massena, NY. The Times also happens to be the same company printing the Ft. Drum Blizzard –the tradition goes on. It means a change in paper stock to help the Association economize. A Elsie Acciavatti, “Friend of the 10th’’, slightly-smaller size also means further savings at the US Post Office. But among with a few of “her boys’’ at Fort Drum. other things, for the first time we’re able to offer photos in color. METRO NEW YORK REMEMBERS A FRIEND We’re learning that a lot has changed in the publishing business since the first Blizzard got the word out to the Mountain troops. What hasn’t changed is the na- When the Chapter adopted the “Fightin’ collected, wrapped and shipped Christ- ture of this paper, its goal of sharing and informing and maintaining communica- 1st Platoon of B Co,” then later the 1st Pla- mas toys and clothing to the children and tions among the unique men and women of the 10th Mountain Division Associa- toon “Black Hawk Co,” 2nd Brigade, 87th families at Ft. Drum. tion. And we pledge to remember that. Regiment, 10th Mtn. Div. (LI), we made a At our luncheon in December, Jay –F.H. commitment to provide these troops with Charles, President of the Chapter, pre- items hard to come by and desperately sented Elsie with a Meritorious Service needed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Award for her generosity and dedication Elsie Acciavadi, a “Friend of the 10th” to the support of the men and women of 10TH COLD WAR VETERANS and close friend of the Chapter’s Sam the 10th Mtn. Div. (LI). th The Association seeks to expand its membership to include veterans who served in the Morrison (86-HQ-3) heard of our com- On Wednesday, February 13 , Elsie 10th Infantry Division during the Cold War (1948-58; see Mail Call, p. 14). This will en- mitment and immediately enlisted mem- lost her private battle with cancer. The th able them to meet with their Cold War comrades, with WWII veterans of the 10th Mtn. bers of her Eastchester ladies club and the members of the WWII 10 Mtn. Div., De- th Div., and with members of the modern, 10th Mtn. Div. (LI). Please contact Mike Plum- Eastchester American Legion Auxilliary scendants and 10 Mtn. Div. (LI) and all mer, President, National Assn. of the 10th Mtn. Div. (LI), email: [email protected]. to support this effort. In addition to the who knew her mourn the passing of this Send articles, photographs and notices to the Editor for publication. many items they sent to the troops wonderful lady. throughout the year, Elsie and her friends —William E. Best (86-B) PAGE 2 BLIZZARD 2008 NUMBER 1 PRESIDENTS REPORT Mike Plummer (10th Mountain Division LI) Your Association’s Executive Committee (EXCOM) held its first meeting in Water- Editorial material and photographs should be clearly marked with the sender’s name and address. No photo- town, NY, on 1 March 2008. During that meeting we reviewed a draft of the Association’s graphs will be returned unless specifically requested. All materials should be sent to Felicity Hallanan, Bliz- Strategic Plan and produced a final draft for your review and comment. When finally ap- zard Editor, 95 Zahler Tract, Sandy Creek, NY 13145, or by e-mail to [email protected]. Opinions expressed in this publication reflect those of the magnificent soldiers of the 10th and do not necessarily con- proved by the Board of Directors, our plan will spell out our Strategic Direction and the form to accepted journalistic standards. Editor reserves the right to rewrite, renegotiate or refuse materials strategies we will pursue to shape our future. submitted for publication. Questions? Contact the editor at 315-387-2929 or by e-mail. Members should also feel free to contact National President Mike Plummer at 315-782-4178 or e-mail [email protected]. Subscription rate for non-members: $20. per year. The following are our membership numbers through 1 Feb 2008: Category . .2006 2007 2008 BOARD OF DIRECTORS WWII 10th Mt. Div. Veterans . .1850 1718 1313 th The National Executive Committee consists of the President (Committee Chairman), Senior Vice President, WWII 10 Mt. Div Widows . .323 335 262 Secretary, Treasurer, Blizzard Editor, Executive Director, Quartermaster and two members-at-large, if need- 10th Mt. Div. Veterans . .69 73 51 ed, to be appointed by the President (Article VII, Section 1, National Bylaws, National Association of the 10th Mt. Div. (LI) Veterans . .166 269 840 10th Mountain Division, Inc.) The National Board of Directors consists of the Chairman of the Board, National President, National Senior Other Mt. Units . .23 30 43 Vice President, National Secretary, National Treasurer, Blizzard Editor, Quartermaster, Executive Director, Associates . .77 77 50 President of the 10th Mountain Division Foundation, all Chapter Presidents, and two voting members-at- Honorary . .24 26 7 large who may be appointed at the option of the President. (Article IV, Section 2, National Bylaws, National Association of the 10th Mountain Division, Inc.) Friends . .24 64 47 Total . .2556 2592 2613 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE President Senior V.P. Executive Director 10th Mt. Div (LI) membership has increased from 269 on 1 Jan 2007 to 840 1 Feb 2008. Michael Plummer (10th LI) Steve Coffey (Desc 87-F) Craig Boss (10th LI) 121 Paddock Street 1630 York Mills Lane 6880 Olmstead Rd. Efforts continue at Fort Drum to “enlist” active duty soldiers. At the March EXCOM we Watertown, NY 13601 Reston, VA 20194 Lowville, NY 13362 formed a marketing committee. They will be responsible for developing our national ad- [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] vertisement campaign to attract 10th Mt. Div. (LI) alumni. I have also asked the Chapter Secretary Treasurer Blizzard Editor Gil Pearsall (10th LI) Daniel Murphy (Desc 86-I) Felicity Hallanan (Assoc) Presidents to launch similar campaigns in their geographical areas. The truth is that if we 837 State Street 7 Gage Road 95 Zahler Tract don’t capture some of the 150,000 alumni and get them involved at the Chapter level, the Carthage, NY 13619 Bedford, NH 03110 Sandy Creek, NY 13145 Association will never achieve its full potential. [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] In order to afford the costs of the marketing campaign, I have decided to reduce expen- Quartermaster Fort Drum Liaison Historian Frank Thornton (Desc 85-L) Doug Cubbison (10th LI) Doug Cubbison (10th LI) ditures at the National level as much as possible. One area where I am already saving mon- 112 Maple Ave P 10,000 P 10,000 ey is by reducing the quality of the paper our Blizzard is printed on. In the past it cost Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004 Fort Drum, NY 13602 Fort Drum, NY 13602 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] $10,000 for each of the three issues we send out. In the current format the cost has been re- Web Master Chaplain Chairman of the Board duced to at least half. I believe that at some time in the future our Blizzard will be all deliv- David J. Little (HON) Dr. Larry Fields (Desc 85-HQ) John Weaver (10 Med) ered electronically, complete with text, pictures and video clips, because that is how 90% 1198 Thornbury Place 6300 Deane Hill Dr. 10 Soundview Gardens, # A of those under-40 get their news (although since I’m slightly older, I personally like the Highlands Ranch, CO 80129 Knoxville, TN 37919 Port Washington, NY 11050 [email protected] [email protected] feel of paper in one hand and a mug of coffee in the other).