1928
In the '28 huddle at the Dartmouth Night smoker at the Hotel Willard in Washington were Lt. Dick Rendell AUS, just arrived from Mountbatten's headquarters in Ceylon; Vic Borella and Paul Kruming of the Office of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs, Bill Harris of the State Department, George Bell of the Interior Department (P.A.W.), Lt. Jack Barry and your secretary, both from the Radio Division of the Navy Department's Bureau of Ships.
During his tour of all sections of the ChinaBurma-India theatre, Dick Rendell saw Capt. Hank Leach at an air field in Burma where Hank is Fighter Control Officer, and Lt. Bill Monaco at a school in India where he is teaching the Chinese to operate our tanks. Since last March Dick has traveled 50,000 miles.
As an example of the way our boys get around, it is interesting to note that Dick got in a plane in India Thursday morning and Saturday night of the same week he was enjoying a drink at the bar of the National Press Club in Washington.
Col. Norm Costello has "escaped" from his General Staff job in the Pentagon and is now in command of the 346th Infantry Regiment of the 87th Division, at Ft. Jackson, S. C. He says, "It's great to be back in the Army again."
Sgt. Herm Schnepel has been transferred to the Headquarters of the 87th Division, and had a nice visit with Norm Costello when he arrived. Herm says, "When we get overseas I shall lay claim to being the oldest enlisted man in the class of 1928 with a Combat Infantry unit."
Gordon Adams and I had lunch recentlyhe is in Washington for a few weeks attending the Navy Camera School.
Lt. Comdr. Bill Hunt has been transferred from Newport, R. 1., to Washington, and is on duty at the Neuropsychiatric Branch, Bureau of Medicine and Surgery.
Congratulations are in order for five '-28 lieutenants whose promotion to lieutenant commander was announced in November: Bill Alford, Dick Frame, Lew Hutcheson, Norm Nash and Johnny Scott.
Dick Frame is photo officer of Operations Information Section of Headquarters, COMAIRPAC. He writes, "Lt. (jg) Larry Kenney, fighter director of a CVE, turned up a little while ago. Since I had not_ seen him since graduation and recognized him immediately, as he did me, it is some sort of a record. Especially since we both remembered each other's names. The meeting place (need I add?) was the bar."
Promoted from lieutenant (jg) to lieutenant in recent months: Jack Barry, Charles Crosby, Jimmy Fowler, Jack Heston, Red Jenkins and Wes Patience.
The first two '28 officers to be released from active duty are Major Jack Rose and Lt. (jg) Bill Mcßoberts. Jack was back in civilian clothes November 7, after twenty-six months in the Army's Special Service Division. Bill is back at his old job as Pan American's Airport Manager at Fairbanks, Alaska.
In response to my inquiry, Eleanor Wheatley writes, "I have received no further word from the War Department about Ed, other than he was in a B-24 (Liberator) bomber on a ferrying mission from Southwestern China to Northeastern India on January 25. The plane was last contacted over Northeastern India. Its loss is believed to have been caused by adverse weather conditions." Enclosed was a check for Ed's class dues.
Rappie Bavier has been shifted by U. S. Rubber from Indiana back to Naugatuck, Conn., as Industrial Engineer of the Naugatuck Footwear Plant.
Jerry Johnston has been appointed assistant to the chairman of the Board of General MotorsMr. Alfred P. Sloan.
Lt. Col. Jerry Pitts has given $3,000 to St. John's Church, Concord, for the purchase and beautification of a property adjoining that church.
Bud Ranney, Cleveland newspaperman, writes, "Al Fowler, who has been doing a swell job for Ohio Bell Telephone, has just received a very handsome promotion .... from commercial manager to commercial results supervisor, and since November 1, Boss Man Fowler has had his own private office. Al and I live only a few houses from each other on the same street, after being college roommates for two years. Janet Fowler is in the same kindergarten class with the youngest Ranney boy."
Ben Heftier is now with the Norge Division of Borge Warner Corp. in Detroit, doing engineering work on a Navy contract. His super hush-hush job for the Kellex Corp. expired. Some day we want to know what secret weapon you were making at Kellex, Ben.
Joe Tidd is plant pathologist at Purdue Agriculture Experimental Station, West Lafayette, Ind.
Lt. Col. Curley Prosser has just returned from a trip to the West Coast with a glowing account of his entertainment in San Francisco by the Jud Whiteheads.
Attorney Roger Sundeen of New York City has gone back to his old home town, Manchester, N. H., and joined the prominent law firm of Warren, _ Wilson and Wiggin. He has changed the spelling of his name from "Sundean" to the above, in order to have it the same as that used by other members of his family in Manchester.
Bob Tyson has been elected a vice president of the Blair Securities Corp., 44 Wall St., New York.
Al Clarke, ex-supervisor of welding training at the South Portland Shipbuilding Co. in Maine, is now living at 450 Riverside Drive, New York. Occupation unknown.
Pvt. Dick Sullivan is stationed at Westover Field, Mass. Pvt. John Flanagan and Vera are living at 305 E. Chestnut St., Walla Walla, Wash.
Fran Tower, navigation instructor at M.I.T., has been trying to put on weight but has been taking it off in the process. Consequently his application for a commission in the Navy has been turned down for the fourth time for the same reason—underweight.
Fred Cole, program manager of WFEA, is giving a course in radio writing, production and speech at the Boston Institute of Arts and Sciences this winter.
Secretary, 3427 South Utah St., Arlington, Va. Treasurer, Lewis Historical Pub. Co., Inc. 80-8th Ave., New York, N. Y.
