REUNIONS
2010 SOCIETY of the 1st INFANTRY DIVISION REUNION
2009 SOCIETY of the 1st INFANTRY DIVISION REUNION
2008 Bandido Charlie Reunion After-action Report & Photos
2008 1st INFANTRY DIVISION NCO OF THE YEAR
BANDIDOS GET TOGETHER FOR MAY 2008 "ROLLING THUNDER"
2008 5th Bn/60th Inf Reunion Held in Indianapolis
2010 SOCIETY of the 1st INFANTRY DIVISION REUNION
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, AUGUST 25-29
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Back Row, Left to Right: Matthew Carson, Ken Costich, Doug Ludlow, Joe Calhoun, Phil Greenwell, Rod Tokubo, Cliff Poris, John Hohman. Front Row, Left to Right: Al Herrera, Wayne Parrish, Alberto Celis, and Dave Kuhnert Men attendees not in the photo were: Ron Mackedanz, George Hanggi, Don Lane, Ron Morgan, Tom Bates, James Smith, Steve Rabourn, Manny Ramos, Grady Flaggs, David Secee, Aaron Fisher, PFC Freed, and Billie Williams. |
Ladies in attendance, standing in the photo are: Cathy Ludlow, Linda Greenwell, Glenda Parrish. Seated, are: Amber Carson, Kathy Dee, and Betty Herrera. Ladies who attended the reunion but not in the photo were: Janet Mackedanz, Nina Hanggi, Diann Hanggi, Patricia Bates, Roni Lynn Williams, and Lila Walker. Other Bandidos who aren't pictured were: Gene and Ernie Herrera, Shannon and Niko Blackmer, Max and Rocky Ramos, Julie Dela Croce, Nathan Williams, Travis Williams, and Sarah Williams. |
It is once again time for the annual BRO/Bandido Charlie reunion. This year, the reunion is going to be held August 25-29, 2010 at the Crowne Plaza, San Antonio, Texas. Complete registration information can be found at the 1st Infantry Division website, www.1stID.org. At the site, please select: events for a list of activities in San Antonio. In addition, the Bridgehead Sentinel should reach your home address in the next few days. The BS newspaper has a complete schedule and registration information should you wish to register using that form.
The Bandidos will again be holding their Annual Bandido Charlie auction. We are asking if you would please bring and donate an auction item to the reunion.
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M113 models that were auctioned.
All of our past auctions have been successful and are a unique attraction to the reunion. We encourage you to attend. The Bandido Charlie Association will provide an amount $100.00 to help defray expenses for the first five Bandidos who have previously not attended a reunion. Also, any other Bandido who may find it difficult to finance the reunion, please contact either Ken Costich or Al Herrera. The association will provide assistance to those Bandidos as able. The reunions offer a unique opportunity to renew past friendships and for others to find new friends of Bandidos from the active duty Bandido Charlie soldiers.
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Al Herrera 503-591-8638 |
Ken Costich 520-404-1423 |
2009 SOCIETY of the 1st INFANTRY DIVISION REUNION
DEARBORN, MICHIGAN AUGUST 5-9
The 7th Annual Bandido Charlie reunion was held in Dearborn in conjunction with the annual Big Red One reunion. The Bandidos once again proved the main attraction of the large gathering of 1st Division veterans and their families. The 16th Infantry CP was the largest and most attractive of all. The room was filled with original memorabilia, which included uniforms of several combat eras. In addition, the refreshment bar and supply booths were well stocked and busy.
Due to a diligent search and the pursuit of the internet, Charlie Company of the 2nd/16th attracted more people than the Bandidos. This was a first, even though the Bandidos contingent had 17 Bandido Veterans and 19 Associate members for a total of 36 members. There were two new Bandidos and one wife attending for the first time and they made it known that they would return next year.
New Bandidos attending were, Robert and Donna Henritze and Dominic Sondy. Dominic, is the author of the book, “The Saigon Shuffle”. He brought several copies for the annual Bandido Auction.
Prior to the auction, Jerry Gore, Chaplain, Bandido Charlie Association, presented an outstanding and emotional eulogy for our two, dear ladies that passed away in 2009. Special services were for Carole Marton and Marian (Sis) Morris. These two wonderful ladies will be greatly missed, each made a significant impact on the Bandidos and enveloped the Bandidos with all their heart, and they showed it. We loved them very much. Our deepest sympathy and condolences go to Sis’s brother, Joe Calhoun.
We wish to recognize and give thanks to Jerry, who travelled to the reunion with his lovely wife, Ruth to perform the services for Carole and Sis. Thank you, Jerry your service was very moving and appropriate.
Thankfully, “Just Plain Joe” was up to adding his exemplary personality as auctioneer again this year. We were worried for Joe, but like a good man and trooper that he is, he was in good form. As a result of his exuberance, a grand total of $1990.00 was profited from the auction. Thank you Joe, the Bandidos are very grateful to you and we appreciate it very much.
For those of you who are not aware, the next reunion will be held in San Antonio, Texas, August 2010. The Bandidos will provide registration costs, any hardship funds, and assistance for all first time attendees.
2008 1st INFANTRY DIVISION NCO OF THE YEAR
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SSG Matthew Carson is the 2008 Big Red One “NCO of the Year”. More importantly, SSG Carson is a Bandido who served proudly and valiantly in two combat tours Fallujah and Al Asad, Iraq! Below, is the talk he gave at the 1st Infantry Division 90th Annual Reunion Banquet. |
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WHAT IT MEANS TO BE AN NCO IN THE 1ST INFANTRY DIVISION When I was told that I would be giving a speech about what means to be a Non-Commissioned Officer, I struggled for a couple of weeks with what I was going to say. Then I asked myself one question. Why was I having so much difficulty with this? I’m a pretty smart guy; this shouldn’t be this hard. But I found that the reason it was so difficult was the reason that the Big Red One is special. History sets the 1st Infantry Division apart from the rest of the Army, and therein lay my problem. I felt my speech had to live up to the high standard of the Division, but history gave me the answer. I have been surrounded by history all my life, mostly unknowingly. A major roadway and a shopping mall in the capital of my home state of Iowa are named for one of the first three soldiers killed in action in World War I, PVT Merle Hay. He was killed in France, serving with the 16th Infantry Regiment of the 1st Infantry Division. When I was a kid I watched a movie called the Big Red One, without giving the name of the movie a second thought. I watched because I liked Word War II movies (and the guy who played Luke Skywalker from Star Wars was in it). Now, I watch it because Lee Marvin is a great NCO in the movie, and let’s face it, what other division has a movie named after it? Then, there is General Roosevelt, while not an NCO, still one of my personal heroes because he was the son of a President, and he didn’t have to be there but was dedicated to the Big Red One. What do these pieces of history, and countless others, have to do with what it means to be an NCO in the 1st Infantry Division? They give us a sense of who we are as members and former members of the Big Red One. They give us a standard to live up to as Noncommissioned Officers. They set us apart from all other units in the Army. While we were named the 1st Division because we were the first one organized, it ws a sign of things to come. We were the first everywhere we went. The first to get to France, the first on the line, the first to see action and the first to cross the German border in World War One. The first to England, North Africa, Sicily, the beaches of Normandy, and the first to capture a major German city in World War Two. The first division to deploy to Vietnam. The Big Red One spearheaded the attack in Desert Storm. Why were we the first so often? It ws because we were the best trained, most highly motivated and the most competently led unit from top levels of the Division down to the team level. This is what we NCOs have to live up to every day. It is not enough to meet the standard in the 1st Infantry Division because exceeding the standard is the standard in the Division. We have a reputation to maintain as the best our Nation has to offer. We have the best Soldiers in the Army, and it is our duty as NCOs to ensure that they receive the best training and leadership available. Anything less would be unworthy of the commitment those Soldiers made, and unworthy of the sacrifice of our predecessors who fought and died while wearing the Big Red One on their left shoulder. I have spent my entire career in this Division, first with the Blue Spaders in Schweinfurt, Germany, and now with the Iron Rangers at Ft. Riley. I have also served two tours in Iraq with the Big red One, first in Saladin Province and most recently in Al Anbar Province. I know the day is coming when I will leave the Division; there is no avoiding it in today’s Army... but I can assure you that I will be disappointed to leave. The only consolations I will have are that I will always have my Big Red One Combat Patch. I will always have the memories of those I served with in the 1st Infantry Division, and I will have the hope that someday I will have the opportunity to return to the Division that raised me from a Private and made me into a leader and a Non-Commissioned Officer. No Mission Too Difficult! No Sacrifice Too Great! DUTY FIRST! |
BANDIDOS GET TOGETHER FOR MAY 2008 "ROLLING THUNDER"
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(Mouse over photos for description)
"Rolling Thunder" photographs, courtesy of Peter Trentacoste
Veterans of the 5th Battalion/60th Infantry
reunited in Indianapolis, Indiana at The Adam's Mark Hotel
June 19th – 22nd 2008
Two bandidos were there, who had been with Lt. Garner the night he was killed.
Here are a few Reunion photos, by John Hohman:
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Speedwy Museum |
Our taxi is waiting... |
Pool Party |
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One my COs |
Aussie Gary Cooper & Wife
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Banquet Night |
Banquet Night |
We were young, once! |
Banquet Night |
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Charlie Taylor reports the Bandidos pictured here, "are as follows: front in the wheel chair is Jackson Davis, directly behind and touching his shoulder is Alan Kisling. Then left to right is Gary Bobbett, Lee Alley, Charlie Taylor, John Hohman, 1SG Don T. Coro (RET), and Ron Mayville. Second row left to right is Jim Murphy, Wayne Parish, Robert Todd (4th platoon medic), Clemmie Jenkins, and Don Lane."
If anyone sees an error in the names as listed above, please E-mail webmaster Ron Morgan at rhmorgan@usa.net.