The following classes have added updates this week to their Class Notes pages. 1956 | 1959 | 1965 | 1971 | 1988 | 1996 | 2000. Class Notes

Navajo Nation President Russell Begaye appointed Lt. Col. Tracey Clyde as the new director of the Navajo Nation Veterans Administration (NNVA). Clyde returns to the Navajo Nation with considerable experience in policy development, management, recruitment and human resources. "Lieutenant Colonel Clyde is capable of moving projects forward," Begaye said. "His experience and rank in the military will bring tremendous integrity to the administration. It's an honor for us to have a lieutenant colonel serve as director of the NNVA."

Clyde's overseas assignments include one combat tour to Iraq, a deployment to Haiti and multiple tours in Korea. His military awards include the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star Medal, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal and the Meritorious Service Medal. His military decorations are the Army Staff Identification Badge, the Recruiter Badge, the Air Assault Badge, the Parachutist Badge and the Ranger Tab.

"After closing out 28 years in the U.S. Army, I am honored to be appointed as the director of the NNVA," Clyde said. "I look forward to serving the military veterans on the Navajo Nation." Read More

Quality of Life Plus (QL+) announced the hiring of Dr. Bob Wolff, P.E. as Executive Director. “We are delighted to welcome Bob Wolff to the QL+ family,” said Quality of Life Plus Founder Jon Monett. “QL+ provides challenges for design and engineering students, allowing them to work directly with our wounded veterans, harnessing technology and common sense engineering practices to improve their daily lives. Bob’s extensive experience is a perfect fit for QL+.”

Bob earned his Ph.D. in civil engineering from Stanford University. He worked for the US Army Corp of Engineers in the area of water resources planning and engineering, and then both the Army and Air Force in military construction, operations, and maintenance. He then served as the Executive Director of SAME (Society of American Military Engineers) for twelve years, retiring from that position in 2014. “We work with engineering programs that are respected globally,” Monett added, “QL+ is excited to bring Bob on board. His vast knowledge of engineering and nonprofit management will help us focus the passion and talent of our QL+ engineering students on helping our nation's heroes.”

Throughout the academic year, QL+ mentors, monitors, and supports the collaboration between the veterans and the student teams. At the conclusion of the academic year, the student teams formally present the completed assistive device or modified hardware to the veteran for use in their daily life. Each project is unique, and the innovations created will give the veterans the confidence and independence to engage in the activities they enjoy. While these assistive innovations are tailored to the needs of individual veterans, the solutions created by students frequently result in helping other injured veterans.

Rick D. Wilkerson, DO is the recipient of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) 2018 Humanitarian Award. Dr. Wilkerson was honored at the Academy's 2018 Annual Meeting for his nearly three decades of work serving underserved populations around the globe. The Humanitarian Award recognizes living fellows, international and emeritus members of the Academy who have distinguished themselves through outstanding musculoskeletal-related humanitarian activities in the United States or abroad.

In addition to being a skilled orthopaedic surgeon, Dr. Wilkerson is passionate about helping countries develop and improve their orthopaedic capabilities, and he knew that with his experience, resources, and determination he could make an enormous impact on peoples' lives. His global humanitarian pursuits have taken him to more than 14 countries such as Haiti, Iraq, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Libya and Uganda. His colleagues credit his West Point education and military medical experience as a key factor for the special instincts and skill set required to thrive in environments of war, hostile governments or natural disasters.

Dr. Wilkerson has been greatly involved with Health Volunteers Oversees (HVO) and the International Medical Corps. Among his many accomplishments, Dr. Wilkerson has made annual trips to Iraq, initiating a total knee replacement (TKA) program for Iraqi residents, leading to more than 1,500 TKAs performed. He also sponsored eight Iraqi orthopaedic surgeons in his private practice for postgraduate training. During their time in the U.S., these surgeons lived with Dr. Wilkerson and his family. As a result of his commitment, Dr. Wilkerson was named honorary professor of orthopaedic surgery at the University of Basrah in Iraq. Read More

Photo: Doctor Wilkerson (right) with Dr. William Maloney President of the AAOS

PenFed Credit Union President and CEO James Schenck has joined the Board of Directors of the Greater Washington Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. "I personally have accepted the mission of the Greater Washington Hispanic Chamber of Commerce to facilitate the success of Latino and other minority-owned businesses and the communities they serve”, said James Schenck. Schenck joins the 10-member Board of Directors led by Chairman Margarita Dilone, President, Crystal Insurance. Schenck will serve a four-year term.

"We're so proud to welcome James Schenck to the GWHCC board," said Nicole Quiroga, President and CEO of the Greater Washington Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. "We feel this addition reflects our commitment to diversify our board and believe PenFed's mission aligns with the mission of our chamber. James' steadfastness to serve enables us to widen our reach, extend our network, and increase our impact."

Schenck also serves on the boards of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Carriage Services, Lasermax Defense, the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce, and the Northern Virginia Technology Council. A graduate of Harvard Business School, Schenck flew Blackhawk helicopters in Korea. While in the military, Schenck served on the Army Staff in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans and was later selected to serve as a Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Army. He received the Legion of Merit for his contribution to the Army by overseeing the creation of the $453 million Army University Access Online educational initiative. He remains an active advocate on behalf of military and veterans' issues nationwide. Read More

West Point's role in our nation's history dates back to the Revolutionary War, when both sides realized the strategic importance of the commanding plateau on the west bank of the Hudson River. General George Washington considered West Point to be the most important strategic position in America. Washington personally selected Thaddeus Kosciuszko, one of the heroes of Saratoga, to design the fortifications for West Point in 1778, and Washington transferred his headquarters to West Point in 1779. Continental soldiers built forts, batteries and redoubts and extended a 150-ton iron chain across the Hudson to control river traffic. Fortress West Point was never captured by the British, despite Benedict Arnold's treason. West Point is the oldest continuously occupied military post in America.

Several soldiers and legislators, including Washington, Knox, Hamilton and John Adams, desiring to eliminate America's wartime reliance on foreign engineers and artillerists, urged the creation of an institution devoted to the arts and sciences of warfare. On 16 March 1802, Thomas Jefferson signed the document that founded the United States Military Academy. It read, “that the said corps, when so organized, shall be stationed at West Point in the state of New York and shall constitute a military academy.”

The following classes have added updates this week to their Class Notes pages. 1962 | 1965 | 1973 | 1988 | 1989 | 1996 . Class Notes

Karl Hanson ’00 was appointed to serve as a judge on the Wisconsin, Rock County Circuit Court. Judge Hanson is on a criminal rotation, hearing misdemeanor and felony matters.

"I am honored to appoint Karl Hanson to the Rock County Circuit Court," said Governor Walker. "Hanson is a distinguished attorney and individual who has demonstrated impeccable character, service, and integrity throughout his career. His legal acumen, dedication to public service, and commitment to the rule of law give me great confidence that he will make an excellent judge."

Hanson currently serves as an Assistant Attorney General at the Wisconsin Department of Justice where he represents the state of Wisconsin and its interests in litigation before state and federal trial courts. Hanson is also a municipal judge in the Towns of Milton, Harmony, and Lima where he presides over the municipal court by hearing citations issued for the violation of municipal ordinances and issuing judgments. Read More

The first time he noticed something was off, Chuck Schretzman was in Afghanistan.

Then an active lieutenant colonel in the Army, Schretzman was serving the last of four combat tours back in 2011 when he began having trouble with balance. He also developed an issue with his gait and would take an occasional tumble for no apparent reason.

"Toward the end, I started getting off-balance," said Schretzman, the Elk & Elk Military Salutes honoree at the Blue Jackets game Dec. 23 against the Philadelphia Flyers. "It was weird. I was falling down stairs, and I was like, 'I don't know what's going on.' I was falling down and hitting my head."

It would've been strange for any solider to deal with, but especially Schretzman, a lifelong athlete and fitness aficionado. Each time she put Chuck's symptoms into the search engine, the same website kept popping up at the top. It belonged to the national ALS Association, which advocates and lends support for those battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), more commonly known as "Lou Gehrig's Disease. "Her pulse quickened. She knew about ALS because it was 2014, and that was the year of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, a fundraising effort that swept across the country and raised millions for ALS research.

One of those donations was made by Stacy Schretzman, who dumped a bucket of icy-cold water over her head, along with their youngest daughter, Chloe. She wrote out a check to help fund research for the disease, which she didn't know much about. » Full Story

Sempra Energy’s board of directors has elected Jeffrey W. Martin, currently executive vice president and chief financial officer of Sempra Energy, to succeed Debra Reed as CEO when she retires in December. Martin also has been appointed as a new member of Sempra Energy's board, effective May 1.

Martin has served as Sempra Energy's executive vice president and chief financial officer since January 2017. In his 13 years with the Sempra Energy family of companies, he has held a variety of increasingly responsible leadership positions. From 2014 through 2016, he was CEO (adding the titles of chairman and president in 2015) of San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), one of Sempra Energy's regulated California utilities. From 2010 through 2013, Martin was president and CEO of Sempra U.S. Gas & Power and Sempra Generation, the predecessor companies of Sempra Energy's renewable energy and midstream businesses. Prior to that, he was vice president of investor relations for Sempra Energy. He first joined Sempra Energy in 2004 as a principal working in Sempra Energy's mergers and acquisitions group.

Martin currently serves on the board of directors of the California Chamber of Commerce, where he is a member of its executive committee, and the board of trustees of the University of San Diego, where he is a member of the executive committee and chairs the athletics committee. He recently served on the boards of directors of the Edison Electric Institute, National Association of Manufacturers and San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce. Read More

Scientific Games Corporation announced the appointment of Robert O'Connor as Senior Vice President of Government Affairs, reporting directly to Chief Executive Officer Kevin Sheehan. "Rob brings nearly three decades of government service and advocacy experience at the global, federal, state and local levels," said Scientific Games Chief Executive Officer Kevin Sheehan. "We look forward to capitalizing on his leadership, as we continue to grow and prosper in current jurisdictions, as well as expand into newly regulated territories."

O'Connor joins Scientific Games from Goldman Sachs, where he served as Vice President, Executive Office, Government Affairs. At Goldman Sachs, he managed political, legislative and regulatory advocacy with the U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives and led company advocacy efforts in New York State, New York City and New Jersey. He also served as Treasurer of the Goldman Sachs Political Action Committee (GS PAC).

Prior to Goldman Sachs, O'Connor served as Majority Staff Director for the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security, where he led all Committee operations, strategy and personnel management. As Staff Director, he oversaw the successful passage of four significant pieces of legislation that were signed into law. Previously, he was Chief of Staff to U.S. Rep. Peter King(NY). Read More

The following classes have added updates this week to their Class Notes pages. 1956 | 1959 | 1984 | 1987 | 1989 | 2000 . Class Notes

West Point Graduates serving/working in Nangarhar and Laghman Provinces, Afghanistan recently celebrated Founders Day. Their Founders Day had Thirty-four people in attendance that came from two different provinces and five different units. Third generation grad, BG Richardson spoke about lineage. Fourth generation grad, MAJ Jackie Stilwell was also in attendance.

Satellite Beach High School has named a track and field meet after Reggie Johnson, the Reginald E. Johnson Invitational. He set a West Point long jump record (24 feet, 3 1/4 inches) while here. Reggie was a Sandhurst team leader in the annual Sandhurst competition in the Spring of 1980. He died tragically by drowning during the land navigation phase of the competition on April 11, 1980 at West Point, only 21 days prior to graduation obtaining a Special Forces assignment to Ft. Benning, Georgia. Read More

The Army West Point Ticket Office and Army A Club have announced that tickets for the 2018 Army-Navy Game, presented by USAA, are on sale now.

Fans can purchase tickets by phone only and can call the ticket office 1-877-TIX-ARMY or the Army A Club 845-938-2322.

The ticket pricing for this year's clash is set at $105 for priority and $160 for club seating.  For more information on Army-Navy ticket purchasing requirements, Click Here.

America's Game is set for Dec. 8 in Philadelphia and will be televised live on CBS.

New full season ticket memberships are on sale now.  Current season ticket members can expect their renewal information packet in the next week or renew now by signing into their ticketing account by Clicking Here.

A few grads celebrated an informal Founders Day at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, Troop Medical Clinic earlier this month.

From left to right: Dr Steven Finder '76, Dr Brian Malloy '82, Dr Raul Palacios '94, and Dr K. Albert Yazawa '89

1st Lt. Robert F. Niemann's children, siblings and other family members will hold a memorial tribute at the New Ulm Soldiers Rest Cemetery on May 12. Veterans Services Officer Greg Peterson is the local group leader arranging for family transportation, flags flown at the cemetery and downtown New Ulm, motorcycle riders flag line, family dinner and a Brown County Historical Society tribute to Niemann to premier at 1 p.m. May 12.

The U.S. Air Force authorized a 21-member Military Honors Detail to perform at 10am in addition to an authorized military aircraft fly-by. Minnesota Congressman Tim Walz, two U.S. senators, Minnesota veterans' leaders and Korean veterans' groups have been invited to attend. In addition, Peterson will ask commissioners to name May 12 as "Robert Niemann Day" via a proclamation to be brought before the board in the coming weeks.

Niemann was flying an F-86E Sabre when he and three other Sabres were engaged by two Russian MIG-15s while patrolling near the Sui Ho reservoir. Although presumed dead, he was in fact wounded in the incident, interrogated by Soviets, and "disappeared," according to a detailed account of his last known activity written by Peterson Here.

"The former Soviet documents prove that he was alive for an unknown period of time, and in their custody, and reported that he died in Siodvio (Sinuiju) region of North Korea," Peterson wrote. "He was well-remembered for his resistance to interrogation. Soviet veterans confirm Niemann was alive long enough for Soviet forces to record the fact that Niemann refused to answer questions. He said he was wounded and it was an international law violation for him to answer questions (in a wounded condition)." Story

It was on March 29, 1973, when American combat and combat support units withdrew from South Vietnam. However, by the war’s end in 1975, more than three million American men and women would serve in Vietnam, including hundreds of members of the Long Gray Line. As a proud partner of the Vietnam War Commemoration, WPAOG would like to recognize that March 29 is National Vietnam War Veterans Day. In particular, we honor the members of the Long Gray Line who served our Nation during the conflict, especially the 334 who gave their lives. Learn more about how your Class or Society can join the Commemorative Partner program. Pointer View article: “Reflecting on the National Vietnam War Veterans Day.”

Registration is now open for the 25th Annual Alumni Golf Outing. It will be at West Point, June 7-9, 2018. Reconnect with alumni, former classmates, and your alma mater. Registration fee includes two rounds of golf, all meals, a boat cruise, and some great prizes! (View Agenda) All graduates and guests are invited. Registration closes June 1.

"It is cool because this is the first year they let us wear civvies," 1LT Rita Wiley '15 said. "You also get the chance to see people that you've seen around post but didn't know were West Pointers. You just don't know who you will meet here." CPT. Thomas Richardson '11, shared the same sentiment. "We share the same hardships to become Army officers and then the Army sends us out into the world," Richardson said. "But during our time at West Point we've built friendships and the Army tests that by sending us all over the globe. Founder's Day is a chance to rekindle that camaraderie."

The 77th and current Commandant of the U.S. Corps of Cadets, BG Steve Gilland was the guest speaker. Before the event, he floated from group to group introducing himself and reminiscing on shared trials and tribulations at the academy. In his speech, Gilland outlined the million-dollar updates incoming cadets would be experiencing at the USMA. West Pointers shared in laughs as Gilland reported updated and air-conditioned barracks – a luxury that most graduates could only dream of during their stay. "Think about it, it's Founders Day, look around we have graduates from multiple decades," Gilland said. "There are a lot of people that are here and you may not see each other for very long, so this is one of those opportunities, cherish it."

For COL(R) Bill Adams '79 and president West Point Society of the Heart of Texas, the event was a chance to relate to younger graduates. "My favorite thing is meeting the younger guys," Adams said. "As older graduates there is a tendency on our part to talk about the way things were but the corps has always kept its traditional values and West Point still produces a quality product." Although the times have changed West Point has modernized with those changes and represents the society that is out there today and you see that with us being at the forefront of what is required by the rest of society, Adams said. Read More