THE JOHN WAYNE/BOB SALZMAN MEMORIAL CHAPTER FLORIDA CHAPTER XXI SPECIAL FORCES ASSOCIATION

Transcription

1 . THE JOHN WAYNE/BOB SALZMAN MEMORIAL CHAPTER FLORIDA CHAPTER XXI SPECIAL FORCES ASSOCIATION Volume XXXXVI NOVEMBER 2017 NR 11 Website: CHAPTER OFFICERS PRESIDENT: Richard Whitman, D-6528L, Lymington Circle, Orlando, FL Tel: (407) , VICEPRESIDENT: Robert Schlafke, Jr., D-8729L, 112 June Drive, Cocoa Beach, FL Tel: , TREASURER: Thomas (Tom) Tomlin, D-722L, 1408 Gulfwood Ct., Brandon, FL., Tel: (813) , ASSISTANT TREASURER: Phil Devon, M-13612, 4313 North Course Lane, Avon Park, FL Tel: (585) , SECRETARY: George (Speedy) Gaspard, D-851L, 516 Mill Pond CT, ST Johns FL, Tel: (904) , ASSISTANT SECRETARY: Suzie Gaspard, 516 Mill Pond CT, ST Johns, FL Tel: (904) , WEBMASTER: Frank Fowler, D-256L, 1815 Reid Street, Lehigh Acres, FL., Tel: (239) QUARTERMASTER: David H. Soucie, M-12880A, 4243 McCorvey Road, Deland, FL., Tel: (386) , SFA CHAPTER XXI Judith (Judy) A. Drewry, 6619 W Saint Ann Lane, Dunnellon, FL Tel: (352) , raynjudydrewry@embarqmail.com NEWSLETTER EDITOR:

2 November 2017 HAPPY THANKSGIVING It is the time of year when we give thanks for our many blessings. I count all of you when I add up my blessings. How blessed I am to have you as friends. The most important issue is the December meeting. We will have the election and swearing in of chapter officers. We will serve for the next two years, the good Lord willing. Also, we will vote to approve the minutes of the last meeting, held back on July 1st. The officers being sworn in are: Richard Whitman, President; Robert Schlafke, Vice President; Russ Cummings, Secretary; Tom Tomlin, Treasurer; Phil Devon, Assistant Treasurer; David Soucie, Quartermaster; Frank Fowler, Webmaster; Judith Drewry, Newsletter Editor. If you notice, we do not have an assistant secretary. Any volunteers? I'm hoping Cliff Newman will come on down and do the swearing in honors. As of this morning, there are 6 rooms left. If you haven t done so, please make your reservation. Just a reminder, we will be offering Chapter XXI wine for sale. The proceeds of which will be turned over to Phil Devon to fund our educational grant. So, bring your wallet with you. We are working on bringing in two new members to the chapter. Both of these gentlemen live in the Villages. Robert Morris and John Holland. We will send them the newsletter. As you have heard, we lost Caesar Civitella. He passed away last week. See picture of him getting an award from the Commander of SOCOM. There isn t an obit. I received the following from Jim Castagno. It concerns a stolen valor case his father was involved in. The person claims he was on a 90 day TS mission into North Vietnam to capture a Russian MIG and pilot. He is trying to claim VA benefits. Cliff Newman has verified he was not in SF and Billy Waugh, who at that time was the Recon Company Sergeant Major at CCN states he never heard of the mission. See the documents on the next page. If you have any knowledge of this, please contact Jim. Richard Whitman, President

3 STOLEN VALOR We all look at cases of stolen valor and wonder what brings a person to make a claim that they are veterans deserving recognition for service, wounds, or even heroism. We ve all read stories of stolen valor being exposed and wonder how a person can face his friends and family once the truth is known. Thankfully we are seldom confronted with a situation that hits a personal nerve. Many of you who remember my father, CW4 Amadeo Castagno, knew him as a dedicated Special Forces soldier, , who came out of the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment as a First Sergeant with three combat jumps at Sicily, Italy, and Holland. Approximately a month ago, a VA police officer provided me with a copy of a memorandum purportedly written in July 1971, while my father and I were assigned to the 10th SFG. The VA received the memo from a sergeant, (E5), claiming he was wounded in combat while serving in Viet Nam. He claims he received the Distinguished Flying Cross, Silver Star, and Purple Heart during a 90 day operation into North Viet Nam and is seeking VA benefits. My father s signature appears to be authentic, but I have my doubts. I, like many of you, will immediately identify the document as fraudulent. 1. My father did not write the memorandum. He was a stickler for using proper grammar. 2. If a mission was classified TS, the location and duration of that mission would also be classified. My father would not have referenced classified information in an unclassified memorandum. 3. If my father had written a memorandum to a soldier, he would had made reference to the official Order Number granting the Purple Heart. 4. Ninety day mission to North Viet Nam??????? I advised the police officer the memorandum was most certainly fraudulent and referred him to Cliff Newman. It has been determined the soldier making the claim never served in Special Forces. The VA is still working the case and will soon drop the hammer. James Castagno, D

4 LOSS OF CHAPTER MEMBERS Tom Tomlin was notified by Geoff Barker that long time member of the Chapter, Caesar J. Civitella, D239, died of an apparent heart attack on 25 Oct. Caesar was one of the pillars to the entire SF community. He was one of the original instructors for the 10th SFG students (classes 1 & 2) in 1952 and early 53. He taught airborne techniques/air delivery and demolitions. He taught two classes each to the officers and NCO's. Upon release from the Instructor group, he was assigned to the S-3 Staff, 10th SFG before being assigned to an operational detachment as XO. He deployed to Bad Tolz, Germany with the 10th SFG in Nov and assigned as a detachment CO. He was then assigned S-3 Training where again he was instructing airborne techniques and demolitions. He then DEROS'd back to Ft. Bragg to the 77th SFG. After being assigned to an operational detachment, his was one of the early teams to Viet Nam. Upon return to CONUS he was assigned to the JFK School (S-3 section) and just a couple of days prior to his retirement from the Army, he participated in a Fulton Recovery procedure where he was snatched up into a Caribou aircraft. Upon retirement from the Army, he immediately joined the CIA and after training, made two tours in Vietnam. Afterwards he received additional training and was assigned to MacDill AFB as the CIS Liaison to the two commands that eventually became SOCom and the US Central Command. He retired from the CIA in He and his wife Mona were active with the Chapter until illnesses slowed them down and they could no longer travel to the meetings. Caesar will be missed by the Intelligence Communities as well as the SF family. A final salute to you old friend, may you rest in peace. On 21 Oct. the Chapter was informed by Raymond R Carter, III that his mother, Mildred H. Carter, A-4176, had passed away on 2 Oct. Her remains had been transferred to Virginia and laid to rest next to her husband, Raymond R Carter,II. Ray and Millie, both, had been big supporters of the Chapter for many years until illness set in. May they both rest In peace. Richard (Rick) R. Perez, M Rick joined SFA and the Chapter approx. 7 years ago while still on active duty. After retiring he worked as a contractor for the State Dept. and other agencies. His work was mainly in Central and South America for 12 to 18 months at a time. Rick attended a couple of our meetings and the last visit was at the Chapter picnic hosted by Hatcher James. About 4 years ago, he moved his family to his "dream home" in Eustis, FL and continued working as a contractor. Rick passed away on 6 Oct. Chapter members were not aware of his illness or death until Cliff Newman, SFA Administrator, notified us. ********************************************************************** DONATIONS TO CHAPTER Sharon Hoagland $25.00 ******************************************************************* Annual Dues Payers Annual Dues are now payable. The cost is $ Please make check payable to Chapter 21, SFA Send to Tom Tomlin: 1408 Gulfwood CT. Brandon, FL Any questions about dues/fees please contact Tom at or at tomtomlinsf@aol.com or at the home address.

5 HEALTH & WELFARE 1. Al & Toni Boman - Al is doing as well as possible, holding off on hernia surgery until Toni is doing better. Toni is coming along great with the physical therapy she is now receiving. She looks forward to each session and is progressing well. They both send their best regards to all. 2. Bob & Marianne Cherry - Bob just returned home after surgery, replacing his right hip joint. He is getting "in home care" (physical therapy) and is responding well. Marianne is hovering over Bob making sure he does all the prescribed exercises. They both send a big hello to all and will see us in Avon Park. 3. Gerry Feeney checked in, stating he is doing great. Said he is sorry for missing so many meetings but does a lot of traveling. (He is still working as a contractor). 4. Speedy & Suzi Gaspard - Speedy is progressing very well. The therapists are working very hard with him and he is now walking (with a walker) fairly long distances with the therapist right behind him and Suzi following with a wheel chair. His goal is to walk well enough to go home and continue his therapy there. He said that Suzi has been with him every day since he broke his femur and especially during the physical therapy, to insure that he completed every thing the therapist told him to do. Hey Suzi, our hats off to you for continually watching over the old guy for us. They hope to see us at a near future meeting. Speedy, keep charging hard; we know you can make it. 5. Sharon Hoagland checked in with her new address. She said she misses the Chapter meetings and especially the members. She sends her love to all and would appreciate phone calls. (Her computer won't be up for quite some time). Her new address: Sharon A.Hoagland, 2201 Scenic Highway # P8, Pensacola, FL Phone #: Give her a call and cheer her up. 6. Dave & Sue Soucie - I was able to speak with both of them. Sue is now resting up a bit from a long hard summer. She had to make many trips to the clinics and hospitals with Dave and was also assisting Barbara with several college admission applications. Most of this is now finished and she can relax and rest some. Dave is responding fairly well to the chemo treatments (every 3 weeks) and has an appointment this month to determine how much the tumor has shrunk. Sue said that on his 'good' days, Dave will be on his riding mower cutting grass. I forgot to tell you his left arm is still in a sling for a broken collar bone, so please try to picture what this looks like. To me it is a picture of full determination to get well and continuing to enjoy life. Dave, never slow down. Dave said they will see us in Avon Park. 7. Tom & Ann Tomlin - Tom and Ann were honored with a personal invitation to the White House to observe Gary M. (Mike) Rose receive the Congressional Medal of Honor. (Tom was Mike's first team sergeant in SF and was introduced to the Secretary of the Army and the President as the the guy who reeducated him to the way the Army worked). This was an awesome ceremony. Tom was personally introduced to the Secretary of the Army and after the ceremony, to President Trump! What an honor! For both, Tom and Ann, going to the White House, seeing Mike get his long overdue award (47 years) and then meeting and speaking with President Trump is an experience that will never be forgotten and Tom now has all sorts of bragging rights.

6 DECEMBER 8-10, 2017 MEETING JACARANDA HOTEL 19 East Main Street, Avon Park, FL Telephone: The next meeting of Chapter XXI, will be held at the Jacaranda Hotel at 19 East Main Street, Avon Park, FL 33825, December The hotel opened in 1926 and now is on the National Historic Register. Much of the hotel still appears as it did during its Golden Age. It has counted among its guests: Babe Ruth, Clark Gable, Errol Flynn, George Burns, Gracie Allen, Al Capone and many more. Cost of rooms is $64.95 plus tax. Reservations should be made no later than 23rd November, Mention Chapter XXI Green Beret. We have 25 rooms blocked off. No handicapped rooms are available, but the Holiday Inn ( ) and Quality Inn ( ) are nearby on Hwy 27 in Sebring, FL. BANQUET MENU - BUFFET Garden Salad Entrees: Roast Beef and Stuffed Chicken Broccoli, Cauliflower, Carrot Medley Macaroni, Real Mashed Potatoes Assorted Pastries Coffee/Tea COST OF MEAL IS BEING PAID BY CHAPTER XXI MERRY CHRISTMAS! We will have a Hospitality Room. It will open at 15:00 hrs to 24:00 hrs on Friday & Saturday from 10:00 hrs to 24:00 hrs. Of course, it will be closed during the meeting and meal. There will be a continental breakfast located just off the lobby. The dining area will only be open for lunch on Friday but not Saturday. There are other dining facilities nearby. Make sure you bring a wrapped gift. The ladies may bring bring a dish of their choice for the hospitality room. Officers call 16:30, Meeting 18:00 and meal at 19:00. Hope to see you there.

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