Honoring our Killed In Action Classmates Who
were Forward Air Controllers

     On Tuesday, April 15, 2008 a check for $10,000 from our Class was given to the 2008 Forward Air Controllers Memorial Committee. The donation of Class of 1968 funds was recommended by the 40th Reunion Committee at their third meeting. The recommendation was forwarded to our Class President, Phil Pignataro, who approved the recommendation and released the funds on 17 Mar 2008. It is a contribution of two thousand dollars in honor of each of our five Classmates who were killed-in-action while flying as Forward Air Controllers (FAC): John Duffy, Ted Hallenbeck, Paul Jackson, John Ryder, and Willis (Grant) Uhls.

     The donation becomes part of the funding needed to construct the 2008 Forward Air Controllers Memorial at Memorial Park in Colorado Springs. Our donation, the largest one of cash, received by the FAC Memorial Committee, assures that the Memorial will be completed and that a Dedication Ceremony worthy of the nearly 300 men will be conducted. Thirty US Air Force Academy graduates names will be listed on the Memorial.

     The Memorial will be on the north side of the Ring of Honor at the 195 ac Memorial Park which is located at 1605 E. Pikes Peak Avenue. Lots of us remember Prospect Lake there. The Forward Air Controller memorial will be approximately 6' high, approximately 14' 6" wide and 12" thick. The memorial will be of granite with text and graphics engraved into the face of the stone. In addition, a second granite stone, 3' high, 2' wide, and 12" thick will be erected across from the main memorial. This stone will honor the Misty Forward Air Controllers who lost their lives in the war in Southeast Asia. The monuments will be placed upon a concrete pad measuring approximately 25' in diameter. Two granite benches will be placed on the concrete at the base of the memorials.

Each bench will be inscribed as indicated in the diagram. The benches are there for people passing through or for those family members that want quiet reflection. The memorial will display quotes from others about FACs, their mission and history. This will be the educational aspect regarding FACs to the public. Behind the main pedestal and the name pieces is a spectacular view of Pikes Peak. The location of the memorial is immediately adjacent to the parking lot, which will provide easy access to the memorial.

     From Jim Palmer, Chairman, Memorial Committee; "Much of what we are doing is for the families of those whose names are on our Memorial. The Class of 1968 knows what the atmosphere was like in the US during the latter stages of the Vietnam War. Families that lost loved ones received virtually no support from the civilian community when they needed it most. Additionally, 73 FACs were killed flying classified mission outside of South Vietnam—these missions were classified until 1993. These families received little or no specific information from our government during those years, so they have many feelings that can be helped a little by these Memorials, by talking to the FACs that flew with their loved ones, by sharing a common bond with others who experienced the same shattering experiences, and in knowing that their loved ones were heroes. We cannot thank the Class of 1968 enough for your generosity!!" Click here to read the May 8, 2008 thank-you letter to the Class of '68.

For more pictures and information, please click on the thumbnails below.