The year is the 21st Anniversary of WPAOG’s Class Ring Memorial Program and 52 West Point class rings were donated. These 52 rings will be reconnected to the Long Gray Line as the metal from these rings is transformed into legacy gold next month for the Class of 2022. The Class Ring Memorial Program, also known as the Ring Melt, will take place virtually with a live stream broadcast from Ike Hall at West Point on YouTube. The link for the live stream will be posted at a later date.
WPAOG is sharing a few of the stories behind the rings and the West Point Grads who wore them as we get closer to the day of the Ring Melt program on February 12, 2021.
One of the 52 Rings was worn by Mr. Paul S. Ache Jr. Class of 1950. His son, Mr. Paul Ache III donated his father's ring to the program because “the only fitting place for the metal in my father’s ring is on the finger of someone who has earned it.” Ache was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He graduated from the Academy in 1950 with a commission in the Regular Army in the Armor Branch. Ache was an exceptional Army officer, as evidenced by his accelerated promotion to first lieutenant and his early appointment as commanding officer of Company C, 6th Armored Cavalry Regiment in Straubing, Germany.
After the Army, Ache received a Master of Science degree in Petroleum Engineering from the University of Oklahoma and worked at several major oil companies. He continued to be an avid patriot his entire life. He was instrumental in the formation of the Korean War Memorial at the Presido in San Francisco, California. He wanted to ensure that the memory and sacrifices of his classmates and fellow soldiers would never be forgotten. Ache passed away on March 19, 2017.
Read more about West Point Grad Mr. Paul S. Ache Jr. on his memorial page.
Learn more about Class Ring Memorial Program and how West Point Grad, LTC (R) Ron Turner ’58 came up with the idea for this program in 1999: https://www.westpointaog.org/RingMemorialProgram.