24Th Infantry Regimental Combat Team Association, Inc
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
24th Infantry Regimental Combat Team Association, Inc. “Honoring the Past, Present, and Future Of the 24th Infantry Regiment” at the 31st Annual Reunion/148th Anniversary July 19 – 23, 2017 The Clarion Inn Columbus/Ft. Benning, Georgia a hero’s heart A hero’s heart pumps the blood of a nation. For heroes press onward without reservation. A hero’s heart neither falters nor stumbles Though our heroes are brave, they remain ever so humble. Each willing to give his or her last breath in honor and defense of our commonwealth. Gird them with your love. Shield them with your prayers. Arm them with assurance that you’ll always be there. Keep a candle in the window and yellow ribbons tied just so. Send a piece of home to comfort them wherever they may go. Nourish and protect them. Let not one heart be ignored. However strong and mighty, even a hero’s heart must be restored. Through foreign lands and desert sands, Our freedom rests in their able hands. You and I must do our part, For in your hand lies a hero’s heart. A MESSAGE FROM THE NATIONAL PRESIDENT On behalf of the 24th Infantry Regimental Combat Team Association, Inc. Southeast Chapter, we welcome all our members and guests to our 31st Annual Reunion. I hope all accommodations have been met so you will be able to enjoy the hospitality that Columbus has to offer. Again, I send a big thank you to the Southeast Chapter for all of your hard work. I extend a special thank you to everyone for the support you have given me over the years. I would like to recognize the Board of Directors and National Officers for displaying excellent teamwork. Our organization is built on brotherhood, and serves a purpose to continue to educate the public, while projecting a positive image. Please keep in mind that this is your organization and it is only as great as the hard work that every one of us put in it. Our common goal should always be what is best for the 24th R.C.T. As we continue to push forward, we should always maintain and disseminate the true history and honors that we have already received. In closing, let us never forget our comrades that have fallen in the fight for our freedom that we love and cherish. A heartfelt thank you is extended to the committee for choosing Columbus, Ga. for our reunion. I know your stay with us will be an enjoyable one and you will have many memories to last for years. James Thompson National President 1 24th Infantry Regimental Combat Team Association Southeast Chapter July 19, 2017 WELCOME 31ST REUNION ATTENDEES: On behalf of the 24th Board of Directors, National Officers, and Reunion Committee I would like to welcome all members and guests to the great “Peach State” of Georgia and to the city of Columbus/Fort Benning. I am proud to be a part of this 31st Reunion and that we have been able to come together again to meet and greet each other, have fun, and transact the business of the 24th. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the Board of Directors and National Officers for upholding this organization throughout these 31 years. It takes all of us to promote growth within an organization. It seems like only yesterday that the “Original Nine” and family members met at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, and proclaimed the beginning of the 24th Infantry Regimental Combat Team Association, Inc. I am even more proud to be one of the “Original Nine”. Each year we attend a reunion, it is a happy time and a sad time. Both sickness and death have reached into our ranks of both men and women over the 31 years and we will not be seeing some of the familiar faces. I encourage you to hold on to the memory of each one of them and to the contributions each made to the Association and Women’s Auxiliary. If there is something you need at this reunion and you don’t see it, just ask me or Arthur Fitts and we will see what can be done to accommodate your need. Again, thanks for coming. Your presence will add tremendously to a successful 31st reunion. I remain proud to be a BLOCKHOUSE SOLDIER, Samuel E. Jenkins, President Southeast Chapter 2 Women’s Auxiliary 24th Infantry Regimental Combat Team Association, Inc. July 19, 2017 Welcome All! On behalf of the Women’s Auxiliary of the 24th Infantry Regimental Combat Team Association, it is a pleasure and honor to welcome you to our 31st Annual Reunion. I am proud to be a part of such a distinguished group of Veterans, family members, and guests. Please enjoy the activities that have been planned and join in to make this reunion a success. If you need something you don’t see, please let us know. Each time we come to a reunion, there are some familiar faces missing. Let’s keep all the Men of the 24th and Women’s Auxiliary in our thoughts and prayers. The Women’s Auxiliary of the 24th Infantry Regimental Combat Team Association was organized and approved on July 21, 1990, at the 4th annual reunion held in Columbia, South Carolina. The main purpose of the Women’s Auxiliary is to advance the objectives of the 24th. In addition to being a support group for the Association, the Women’s Auxiliary have sponsored fashion shows/dinners and t-shirt fundraisers to fund their annual scholarships for graduating high school seniors. Enjoy the reunion and may God continue to bless you and your families. Sincerely, Diane Grant-Jenkins President 3 Councilman Jerry “Pops” Barnes (Speaker on Thursday, July 20, 2017 at 1 pm) Jerry “Pops” Barnes was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He and his sisters and brothers were raised by their grandmother in extremely poor financial conditions, but extremely rich in love and the values of hard work, honesty and integrity that their grandmother infused in them. Pops spoke about his grandmother. “My grandmother’s name was Mary J. White but her friends called her Mamie or Mame—why I don’t know. She was what was called back then a “Washer Woman” or “Cleaning Woman”. One of her favorite sayings was “right and right don’t wrong nobody”; in other words, always do the right thing. My grandmother was one of the oldest ladies in our community. Everybody called on her for advice on everything from health issues to how to settle a family problem and she never turned anyone away. Being an African-American female and because of the times, she couldn’t get the education she wanted, but she never let her lack of ability stop her availability to help. I was the oldest boy; and many times, remember walking with her in the dark of night or early dawn to an ill neighbor’s house to take food, clean, or just see how he/she was doing. My grandmother was the most selfless and the most altruistic person I’ve known. She is also the singular person who has had the most profound effect on my life.” Pops retired from the U.S. Army as a Master Sergeant E-8. He has an AAS Degree in Journalism from the Community College of Philadelphia, a B.A. Degree in History from the University of Pennsylvania, and a BSN in Nursing from Columbus State University. In 2003, while working as a floor nurse at a hospital, he started providing free health education, free screening, and free case management in the Columbus community. In 2006, concerned about the rise in crime in Columbus and the lack of neighborhood recreation centers for the youth and the elderly, he challenged a 12-year incumbent and won election to City Council. Pops promised the citizens of District 1 three things: to ALWAYS put the citizens of District 1 first, to ALWAYS listen, and to ALWAYS be available. Pops has kept these three promises. 120 days after his election, he persuaded Council to reopen three neighborhood recreation centers that had been closed for 10 years and actively supported the passing of a local option sales tax to hire 100 additional officers as well as open a new police precinct in the heart of District 1. Recognizing that there was no parade to honor the women and men who served in our Armed Forces and protected the precious freedoms we enjoy, Pops started the Annual Veterans Day Parade in Columbus. It is celebrated annually every second Saturday in November. Pops is a member of the American Military Society, the Disabled American Veterans, the 16-county River Valley Regional Commission, and Chair of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Advisory Commission for that organization, the American Red Cross Advisory Board and Columbus Hospice. Pops is married to his lovely wife, Jannie Barnes, and they have eight children, ten grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. Pops’ hero is his grandmother and his goal in life is “to continue to try to live up to the example she gave him”. His motto is TO DO ALL THE GOOD THAT I CAN, FOR AS MANY AS I CAN, FOR AS LONG AS I CAN”. 4 24th Historian Darrel Nash 31st Reunion Banquet Speaker Darrel Nash is the historian for the 24th Infantry Regiment “Blockhouse”, “Buffalo Soldiers”. He was born and raised in the south and joined the US Army in 1981 until 1992. With a 16 year hiatus, he went back into the Reserves 2008 and saw combat in Afghanistan 2010-2011.