Thursday, December 10, 2015

USMA 1970 Class Officer Elections

Gary Steele sends -
Members of the Class of 1970:
  • With this communication the nominating committee presents the slate of nominees for our Class Officer positions.  
  • We ask that you take a few moments to reacquaint yourselves with the nominees by reviewing their Bios on the Information Sharing Sheets.
  • Those elected will serve in position until the next Class Reunion in 2020 when, in accordance with our Constitution, we will again begin the nomination and selection process.
  • We certainly thank all nominees and we should all be inspired by their willingness to serve in whatever capacity needed. Administrative Guidance.Voting is now officially opened.
  • Here is the link to vote:
  • https://www.westpointaog.org/connections/class-vote-1970
  • The site will remain open ONLY until 312400R Dec 2015. To cast your vote you must log in to the AOG website.
  • If you have forgotten your login information, please click the "forgot id/password" link. It will take 24-48 hours to update.Let's get engaged and take the time to review candidates and make your selection!!
Nomination Committee:
Gary Steele
Don Blakeslee
John Norton Jr
John Stidd
Jim Sullivan
Problems to Monaco



Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Classmate Professor John Mearsheimer on PBS: Strategies for Dealing with ISIS

Folks, I was on the PBS NewsHour last night talking about strategies for dealing with ISIS, a depressing situation for sure.

Here is a link for the show for anyone who might be interested: 

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/what-should-we-be-doing-to-defeat-the-islamic-state/

Hope all is well with everyone and Happy Thanksgiving.

John Mearsheimer

Sunday, November 8, 2015

RIP, John C. Brenner Jr., USMA 1970

BRENNER, Mr. John C., died on November 5, 2015. A native of Philadelphia, long-term Brandermill resident, member of Brandermill Church and graduate of USMA at West Point with eight years active service in the U.S. Army Field Artillery. John was stationed in West Germany during the Cold War - honorable discharge with the rank of Captain. He then settled in Virginia in 1978 and most recently enjoyed a 20-year career with Commodore Sales. John is survived by his beloved wife, Virginia Brenner; his three children Angela Brenner (Eric), Jacqueline O'Connor (Charles) and Matt Brenner; eight grandchildren, Cassandra, Aidan, Emma, Anne, Rose, Hailey, Griffin and Adeline; brother, James Brenner (Peggy); sister, Nancy Bowen (Mark) and a host of loving relatives and friends. Funeral service will be held 3:30 p.m. Monday, November 9, at The Brandermill Church, 4500 Millridge Pkwy., Midlothian, Va. 23112. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to The Brandermill Church Congregational Care Ministry or to the Winfree Memorial Preschool Playground Fund, 13617 Midlothian Tpke., Midlothian, Va. 23113.

Monday, October 12, 2015

Image and Video coverage of the USMA 1970 Vietnam Memorial Remembrance Ceremony and Reception

Thanks to Classmate Bill Taylor for Image and Vide coverage of the USMA 1970 Vietnam Memorial Remembrance Ceremony and Reception held last Saturday, October 10, 2015 at the Vietnam Wall (Reception was held after the ceremony at a local establishment)

Special thanks to classmate Charlie McGee and his team for organizing this special event.

Images are here

Videos
The wreath laying is only 21 seconds, but clearly presents that portion of the event.

The service is 66 minutes and the audio came out OK, with some background noise (that was unavoidable from National Airport Plane Take offs)

Problems with the links - let me know please (frank.j.monaco@gmail.com)

Monaco ‘70

Thursday, September 3, 2015

USMA 1970 Vietnam Memorial Ceremony and Reception -Saturday, 10 October 2015 in Washington, DC: Details here -

USMA 1970 Vietnam Memorial Ceremony and Reception -Saturday, 10 October 2015 in Washington, DC: Details here - 
1. To indicate attendance for the ceremony, please send email if you haven't already done so to: vnceremony70@gmail.com. Agenda: 9:00am -...
WESTPOINTAOG.ORG

Friday, August 28, 2015

Classmate's Memorial Service and Obituary - Dr. Robert J. Kenevan, USMA 1970, A4


Obituary - or cut and paste this link into your browser: 

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/telegram/obituary.aspx?n=robert-kenevan&pid=175660505&eid=sp_shareobit

Memorial Service is on Sunday, Sept 6th, 2015 at Mountain View Cemetery in Lakewood, WA at 2 pm. The address is 4100 Steilacoom Blvd SW, Lakewood, WA 98499,  Telephone 253-777-0177.

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Search for New President of AOG Announced



Dear West Point Class Leaders and Society Presidents:
I want to inform you that we have a new development concerning the leadership of the West Point Association of Graduates. For the past 8 years, Bob McClure has provided selfless service to West Point and to its graduates. Recently, Bob informed the Board of Directors that he has decided to retire as President & CEO of the WPAOG. I write to make you aware of this news and to ask for your assistance and participation.
Most of you are well aware of Bob McClure's transformative leadership at WPAOG, which has “raised the bar” in every aspect of our world class alumni association. Most recently, Bob’s leadership and organizational skills were instrumental in the WPAOG's Comprehensive Campaign exceeding its $350M fundraising goal, over a year before completion of the campaign. This is only one of his countless accomplishments, which are far too numerous to describe here. Needless to say, Bob has done a spectacular job, and we will miss him tremendously!
However, to provide for a smooth transition, Bob has agreed to continue as President & CEO of our Association through June of 2016. This will permit the WPAOG enough time to conduct a global search for our next President & CEO, who will lead the Association through our next strategic planning process, through our 150th Anniversary celebration, and beyond. 
We have initiated a comprehensive search process, and I seek your help and support to find the best President & CEO candidate available. I will Chair a Search Committee that includes LTG (Ret.) Joe DeFrancisco '65, Tom Dyer '67, LTG (Ret.) Buster Hagenbeck '71, Darcy Anderson '78, Ellen Houlihan '82, and John Robb '91. In addition, Mike Franzino '71, President of Korn Ferry Global Financial Services Practice and a member of Korn Ferry’s Global Operating Committee, has agreed to help conduct this search on a pro bono basis. Korn Ferry is a preeminent authority on leadership and talent acquisition.
The job description and the list of experience/qualifications required for the CEO can be found online (http://www.westpointaog.org/file/WPAOGCEOJobSpec.pdf…) . Our Association Bylaws require that WPAOG's President & CEO be a graduate of the United States Military Academy. Any graduate who is interested in being considered for this leadership role should email their resume to Mike Franzino at michael.franzino@kornferry.com. In addition, if you know of a graduate who should be considered for this position, please nominate that individual, directly, or ask that graduate to submit his or her resume.
Thank you for your support and participation in this important transition for the West Point Association of Graduates.
Sincerely,
LTG (Ret.) Larry Jordan
Chairman
West Point Association of Graduates

RIP, Dr. Robert J. Kenevan, USMA 1970, A4


Passed away Saturday, 22 August 2015 (Tacoma, WA). Arrangements TBA (Awaiting Obituary).

Monday, August 10, 2015

The Carlson Challenge

From USMAPS 2016 / USMAPS 1966 Affiliation CINC Bruce Nolte -
Classmates. Brothers:
By now, many of you have seen Terry Young 's Facebook post about the 2d event of our Class 50 Year Affiliation Program, the Carlson Crucible Challenge, named for our fallen Classmate, Randy Carlson, which was held up at the Prep School last week. A total of seven Classmates participated:
Bill Arcuri
John Veenstra
Bill Richardson
Bill Trivette
TJ Young
Craig Rutler
And yours truly,
Bruce Nolte
The Carlson Challenge began at 0600 on 06 August and continued all day. There were a total of six events, and the day concluded with an awards ceremony at 1830. Some candid shots of the day taken by Bill Arcuri are attached.
The Prep school Class of 2016, which will form the “Vanguard” of our 50 Year Affiliation Class of 2020, reported for duty back on 20 July, so by the date of the Carlson Challenge, most of them had only been in the Army for some 17 days. Unlike back in our day, most of the Cadet Candidates had no prior military service, as Basic Training is no longer required before coming to Prep School. Instead, a Cadet Detail of some 80 First & Second Class Cadets formed a training cadre, and put the new CC’s through an abbreviated basic training.
And if what we saw last week is any indicator, these cadets did a great job. Not only in training these young men and women on basic soldier skills, but in creating cohesion, spirit, and acceptance of the Army Values. All of us Old Grads were proud of the Cadets and of the Cadet Candidates.
A couple of vignette’s:
· You’ll all be glad to learn that the Marne Obstacle Couse at Buckner is unchanged since our day with the exception that they have managed to get the mud and water out of the Low Crawl event… J
· One of the Cadet Candidates is a 305 lb football recruit. He ran the 2 mile run in 15:10, and then ran back to encourage CC’s behind him. This guy “gets it,” and my bet is that he will be the football captain. A really impressive kid.
· The Cadet Cadre took the bio of Randy Carlson’s life written my Mike Jones and de-constructed it into a number of what I’ll call “Mini Sermons” about Army Values. They also took the photos of Randy from Snoopy’s Memorial to Randy and blew them up to 36X24. They then placed a photo and one of these Values Discussions at each of the six stops of the Carlson Challenge. As each squad of CC’s rotated through each event, a First Classman discussed each of these values with the CC’s and how these values were exemplified by MAJ Carlson. As us Old Grads rotated through the events ourselves, we were truly touched.
· The last event of the day was a climb up the ski slope. The Cadet Detail had taken a number of large 20 pound stones, painted them black, and painted on each on a letter of Randy’s name in gold. Each squad had to carry one of these stones up the ski slope and on up to Redoubt 4 without it touching the ground. At the Awards Ceremony at the end of the day, these stones were placed on the stage to spell MAJ RANDALL ARTHUR CARLSON 1970. I’m telling you, this was a moving event.
· At the Awards Ceremony, the ’70 Contingent also presented “Carlson Crucible Challenge” coins to each member of the winning squad. These coins were procured and prepared on very short notice by Bill Arcuri, and we all owe him a debt of gratitude. At the conclusion of the Ceremony each ’70 participant shook hands with every Cadet and every member of the Cadet Detail.
As we rotated though the course, all of the ’70 participants got to mingle freely with both the CC’s and the Cadet Cadre. They are an impressive bunch. And the Prep School staff is really top notch. The Vanguards of the USMA Class of 2020 are off to a good start.
SWI and BEAT NAVY!
Bruce Nolte F-4

For Use with http://usma1970.com As part of my annual contribution to West Point, I host this "Smugmug" service for all pictures and short videos associated with the United States Militar Academy Class of 1970. Classmates can attach original...
USMA1970.SMUGMUG.COM

Sunday, August 9, 2015

Lieutenant Scott Love Memorial Scholarship

From Classmate Jeff Gault 703-599-8029
or Jeff.Gault@ArmyScholarshipFoundation.org
"
The Lieutenant Scott Love Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Marie Russell of Hanceville, AL.  Marie’s parents are Lieutenant Colonel & Mrs. Patrick Russell of Hanceville.  Marie is a junior at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, majoring in music education and performing arts.  First Lieutenant Scott Love was killed in action in 2006 while serving in
Operation Iraqi Freedom.  Scott Love was an “Army brat” who was born at Fort Campbell, KY and graduated from high school in Huntsville, AL.  He graduated from Florida State University in 1996 and enlisted in the US Army in 1999 as a military intelligence specialist.  In 2003, he attended Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning, and was subsequently assigned as a platoon leader with 2nd Battalion, 6th Infantry stationed at Baumholder, Germany. His unit deployed to Kuwait in November 2005 with Scott's platoon assigned as part of Task Force 1-35 Armor when he was killed at Ar Ramadi, Iraq.  

Sunday, August 2, 2015

Pat Locke - “Army Strong” Exemplified: Breaking Barriers with the USMA Class of 1980

From Classmate Kerry Lawrence- "The video of Pat Locke who has so faithfully mentored for our class at NCEA is incredible. I recommend we put the link to the video out to the class as a whole.
“Army Strong” Exemplified: Breaking Barriers with the USMA Class of 1980
See below on an oral history given by Pat Locke ’80, one of the first two female African American West Point graduates.
Sent to the USMA Admissions Field Force: 
"Set aside the required time to watch the entire interview. It’s relevant not only as testimony of the perseverance of an incredible individual but also to a greater understanding of what we should look for in our candidates."
Video here:

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

USMAPS 2016 Affiliation with USMAPS 1966

Classmates.  Brothers:

The first event of our 50 Year Affiliation with the USMA Class of 2020 is now history!

On 19 July, 11 Classmates gathered at the Patton Bar of the Hotel Thayer to begin our participation in R-day for the entering USMA Prep School Class of 2016.

The '70 participants were as follows:

Bob Brand
PC Casto
Rolf Knoll
Jim Price
Gary Thomas
Phil Doleac
TJ Young
Dave Porreca
Gary Conrelison
John Connors
and yours truly, Bruce Nolte

We received a briefing from the Prep School Commandant, LTC John Cross (a former Regimental Tac for the 1st Regiment), followed by a hilarious group dinner.  How is that that, after 50 years, I am only now hearing some of these stories...?

Anyway, early the next day (0600!), we assembled at IKE Hall to welcome the incoming prepsters.  Our assigned mission: to "reassure the parents."  We spent 3 or four hours doing this as the incoming Cadet Candidates and their families came in waves of 30 to 40 to receive the now standard "90 second speech," and begin their in-processing.  I do believe us Old Guys were successful in our mission.  There was many a teary eye among the Moms & Dads, and I thinks all participating Classmates came away thinking that our being there was a really good thing.

We learned that, of the 241 Cadet Candidates entering this year's class, some 60% represent recruited athletes, while 40% come out of the ranks of the Army.  I will say that, as a group, they seemed a lot bigger than us ('course, we're all shrinking now...), and there were two easily identifiable 7 footers headed for the Basketball Team.  (I ask you, what could Bobby Knight have done with two 7 footers...?)

After this, we were taken up to the new Prep School , which is now located up by Washington Gate, for a tour and an opportunity to watch the new Cadet Candidates go through their in-processing, which, at least for yours truly, was highly reminiscent of another hot July day some 49 years ago....  I listened to a young man having a lot of difficulty reporting to the Cadet First Sergeant, and watched a lot of good basic marching instruction.  The Prep School staff remained distinctly in the background during the in-processing, as a cadre of First and Second Class USMA Cadets led the process.  I was told that the Cadets had been given only "mission-type orders," and had basically planned and conducted the process themselves.  I got to talk with the Cadet Battalion Commander for USMAPS R-day, an Afghanistan Veteran with a CIB....Pretty impressive young man....The new Prep School facilities are truly spectacular, and a far cry from the abandoned Army Hospital at FT Belvoir that we attended.

Finally, at 1730, there was an Oath Ceremony attended by the Supe, Com, Dean and a host of notables, as well as the Cadet Candidate families.  The Class of 1970 representatives were introduced and seated front-and-center.

And just to prove I'm not making all this up, please see the attached photo of a classy looking group of Classmates.

One more thing:

The next event in our 50 Year Affiliation Program, is the Crucible Stakes which will be named after our Fallen Classmate, Randy Carlson, who, you may recall, was killed with the UN in Lebanon back in 1982.  It is the custom at the Prep School for each 50 Year Affiliation Class to set up a memorial to their chosen fallen classmate, located in a prominent site at the Prep School, which remains in place there for the entire year.   Classmate Mike Jones has worked tirelessly for months with Randy's brother to put together a truly wonderful tribute to a great Classmate, which we managed to get in place before R-day.  If anyone reading this message goes up to West Point for any reason in the next 11 months, you should make it a personal mission to go by the Prep School and see Randy's Memorial.  It is great, and we all owe Mike Jones a big thank you.

So that's my report.  The Carlson Crucible Stakes are scheduled for next week with 7 Classmates scheduled to participate.  More to follow after that.

SWI and BEAT NAVY

Bruce Nolte F-4

Sunday, July 12, 2015

50 Year Class Affiliation Program - USMA 1970 -> USMA 2020

Our 50 Year Class Affiliation Program is starting soon with the USMAPS Class of 2016 beginning 20 July 2015, followed by the USMA Class of 2020 beginning next R-Day 2016.

See http://usma1970.com/USMA-Class-of-1970/50_Year_Affiliation.html for information about the AOG Class Affiliation Program, plus the great tribute to Randy Carlson (thanks, Mike Jones) that will be put on display for the new USMAPS class.

Bruce Nolte is heading up a group of classmates (USMAPS 1966 grads) for the Prep School Affiliation with USMAPS 2016, and Terry Young and John Connors are coordinating the USMA 2020 affiliation efforts.

Problems please let me know - Monaco B4 ‘70

Thursday, July 9, 2015

Staying Healthy for our 50th and Beyond - From Classmate USMA 1970 Terry Keene

Hi Brothers – I am starting what I hope is an email chain that will spread far and wide through our classmates. This is about your health. And I am living proof!

I talked to several of you at the 45th reunion and I told Toby at the chapel that I wanted to jump up and give my testimonial in front of the whole “surviving class” that there is a road to health and you can take it. I talked briefly to Greg Knight and Dick Williams about this at the parade so you can ask them if you still don’t believe. We just didn’t have time to walk through the whole story. I told them I would send this out to the class and that’s what I’m doing.

Now before I go further let me say that I’m not selling, promoting, or offering anything except a blueprint for a new lifestyle that will take you down a new road – hopefully the road to our 50th and 60th and then whomever is left. We lost 22 classmates between the 40th and 45th and that number will soar if we don’t do something radical. The good news is that what I am giving you isn’t even that hard, but it does take some commitment.

I have a “health list” of family, friends and acquaintances that have heard me talk about my new lifestyle. They have asked to be on the email list where I send along things that I’ve read or researched about our health, our food, our environment, and our current lifestyles that will definitely impact our lives as we age. It turns out that we don’t have to put up with this getting old stuff. Again I’m living proof.

I have included two things that can get you started. The first, at the bottom of this email, is an excerpt from and email that I received yesterday from one of my critical sources of information on cancer called "The Truth About Cancer”. If you don’t think your current lifestyle is killing you then you need to read these article and decide for yourself.

The second is a short blog that I wrote at the request of many of the folks on my “health list”. After hearing my story, and seeing the results with their own eyes, they have asked me to write down what I did, what I am doing, what I eat, how I exercise, and why I haven’t been sick a day since I started this 18 months ago. And I’ve lost 15 pounds in the process, although that was never a goal. I didn’t think I was 15 pounds over weight. My body knew differently.

You have two choices: you can ignore this, delete it, and hope that everything I’ve discovered in my 18 months of hard research is not true; or you can read this, think about it, do your own research, and change your life. You owe it to your families, and to you classmates, to do something about this. I’m just trying to get you started.

If you would like to be added to my health list let me know and I’ll send along updates and ideas as I find them.

My goal with this email is to see as many of you as possible at the 50th. If I don’t get hit by a bus, I’ll be there for sure. Dodging busses is not in this lifestyle thing, although healthier old folks can move faster.

To your health – I love you all!
Terry Keene
“If it were easy, everyone would do it”

1st: From The Truth About Cancer:
We’re in the editing room now ….working on the latest footage from the global quest. Let me tell you, what I’ve discovered from these international doctors, scientists, and experts is awe-inspiring. I cannot wait to share it with you.
You probably hear a lot of conflicting information about cancer. There seems to be so many opinions about what causes it, who is at highest risk, and how you can beat it.
Which ones are facts and which are myths? Discover some of the truths behind common misconceptions about cancer that may surprise you.
In the meantime, I wanted to give you the inside scoop on 5 common myths about cancer. Enjoy - Ty Bollinger

2nd: Finally and most importantly, My Recent Blog Article -

I Am Living Proof!
A note from Terry Keene

Eat your way to a healthier, happier life – & drop pounds per week

Hi everyone! I’ve been sending out health tips pretty regularly for the last year or so to a list of my friends and family. In most cases, the folks on the list joined because we had a face-to-face conversation about my discoveries and personal efforts to be healthier, and to fight the aging process that is hitting us all so quickly. Yuck!! Many of you have asked me to write down what I am doing and how I did it. Well, here is my recipe to a happier, healthier, and hopefully longer life.

Recently, I attended my 45th class reunion at West Point and saw hundreds of my classmates, many of whom I hadn’t see since June 1970. I was shocked and a bit surprised that many of my classmates were not doing as well as they should be. In fact, someone told me that we have lost 66 classmates since graduation and 22 since our 40th reunion. And then last week, I received notice that another of our dear friends and brothers just passed. It’s time to take control of our own health. If not, lots of my classmates won’t be there for the 50th, much less the 60th, like the class of 1960 that was on the parade ground with us that day, unless we change our habits. I’m here to help.

My Lifestyle Change


Over the past 18 months I’ve shifted my lifestyle, mostly eating habits and supplements, with the express goals of being healthier, never getting cancer, and becoming as active as I can until it’s my turn to go. My goal is simple: on my last day, I want to be “vertical and coherent”. I just lost my mother to dementia, even though she was physically healthy and ambulatory. I don’t want that to happen to me or to anyone I love. A significant part of this new lifestyle is what I eat and drink. It is absolutely true: “You are what you eat!” And the most amazing part of this effort is that I eat as much as I want, whenever I want, and I’ve lost 15 pounds over that same period. Losing weight wasn’t one of my goals. I didn’t think that I was overweight to start with. Does any of us?

My Fountain-of-Youth


It started with my fascination about anti-aging. There has to be a way to slow down or even stop the aging process. I know there are many doctors, researchers and scientists looking for the fountain of youth for an exploding baby-boomer population. We represent a huge spending potential and that would certainly draw money out of our pockets, and even our retirement accounts. But we’re not alone. Everyone would love to slow that old man time down.

I began studying the aging process and reading about studies being done to slow it down. I signed up for many health newsletters around the web focused on anti- aging and healthier lifestyles. The information that intrigued me the most came from Dr. Al Sears in Palm Beach, FL, about the discovery of a group of chromosomes at the end of our DNA strands called telomeres. You can do your own research on this, but to net it out, a group of scientists discovered that each time a cell divides the number of telomeres reduces until, at some point, the DNA begins to unravel and deteriorate to dysfunctional cells and we die. This is kind of a time clock on our mortality. They also discovered that an enzyme is present that stops the shortening of telomeres in reproductive cells so that we aren’t born dead. They call it telomerase. The current goal of aging research is to find a way to maintain telomerase production to keep the telomere shortening process from happening, and thus stop or dramatically slow the aging process.

I started my journey by taking an experimental supplement called TA-65 that would cause telomerase to be produced and slow my aging process. I took that for one year back in 2010. It was very expensive with no guarantees except pretty much anecdotal evidence. I had my telomeres measured at the start of the process.

After that year, Dr. Sears had come up with his own formula that was not nearly as expensive. He had been testing it for over a year to see if it was effective and his claims were that his formula worked as well at the original formulation of TA-65. I switched to his formulation call Essence and later upgraded to Ultra Essence and now Telo Essence, and I’ve taken that for another 18 months. I had my blood work done once again in February of this hear and the comparisons were astounding. The median length of my telomeres has lengthened by 25% in that time. Dr. Sears seems to be well ahead of most of the anti-aging doctors and has many other supplements that I take for strengthening my immune system. I’ll get to that shortly. The evidence is in the results of my blood tests. Based on gathered data for comparison, my physical age is 67, just like most of my classmates, but my average biological age is around 44 – and dropping.

Cancer Could Spoil it All

Although that’s all pretty exciting to me, I kept thinking about how devastating it would be to get my biological age down to 21 again and get inoperable cancer. That would be a bummer. So my next mission was to learn all I could about cancer. My greater goal is to not get cancer so that I can enjoy my newfound youth. What I found has been astounding!

About 18 months ago, in early 2014, I ran across a letter from a gentleman named Ty Bollinger. Ty lost his parents to cancer, and then aunts, uncles, friends, and it made him mad. There had to be something he could do to help people not get cancer, or at least help them survive cancer if they were unfortunate enough to be diagnosed with cancer. He went on a quest to find the “Truth About Cancer” and what he found was mind-boggling. We are not being told the truth about what cancer is, how we get it, or how to cure it. His discoveries are well documented in his video interviews with cancer researchers, doctors, especially oncologists, as well as naturalists and homeopaths, and most importantly what he calls “survivors/thrivers”. Cancer patients that have been cured and are thriving as a result of alternative treatments to the most dreaded disease of our time. According to what he discovered, today 1 out of every 3 women will get cancer, particularly breast cancer, and one out of every 2 men will get cancer, particularly prostrate cancer, in their lifetime. That is just unacceptable.

Ty discovered two things that tell the whole story: 1) cancer is a disease of the immune system and 2) the destruction of the immune system is primarily a result of what we eat and the toxins in our environment. The saddest fact that he uncovered is that the standard treatments for cancer today, surgery, chemotherapy and radiation, are actually as toxic to the immune system as they are to cancer. We are doomed by the cure to get the disease again and again. It’s a spiral of death.

It’s About the Food We Eat – We Are What We Eat

So what is it that we eat that is causing cancer? What are the critical toxins in the air, land and water? And what can we do to prevent cancer, or cure cancer if we get it? Go to TheTruthAboutCencer.com to find the answers. My discussion here isn’t about preventing or curing cancer, it’s about creating a healthy life-style to add to the quality of your life, and to the lives of those you love. I am doing just that. The by- product of this commitment to my life could well be that I don’t get cancer. And if I do by chance get cancer, I want to cure it without cutting, burning or poisoning my body. Time will tell.

Here’s what I did and how it has worked. I am a living example that if you are willing to change your lifestyle, especially what you eat and drink, you can dramatically improve your quality of life. And you can be a great example to your family and friends, and inspire them to share the health.

Quite simply, I stopped eating sugar, as much as is possible, and I stopped eating processed simple carbohydrates. That means anything made with flour (even whole grain flower), rice, and white potatoes. And anything that comes in a box ready to eat (processed foods) like cereal, snacks, or ready-to-eat meals. The deadliest sugar that you can consume is high fructose corn syrup. Manufacturers put HFCS in everything to make it taste better. We are addicted to sugar. Type II diabetes is primarily a result of eating more sugar, and simple carbs that are converted to sugar (glucose), than your pancreas can process with its own insulin, according to all the doctors that Ty interviewed. So stop! The glucose gets stored as fat because your cells can’t use it for fuel fast enough. It’s another death spiral.

Another factor is acidity in your body. Your blood should be around 7.35-7.45 pH (remember that from chemistry?). That’s alkaline. It turns out that cancer thrives on sugar (it metabolizes using fermentation – sugar!) and an acidic environment. Guess what is one of the most acidic drinks you can put in your body? Soft drinks; any soft drinks. It’s the carbonization that creates the acidity. According to one of the doctors that Ty interviewed, it takes 32 8-ounce glasses of water to neutralize one soft drink! Now that’s scary! And of course almost all soft drinks contain outrageous amounts of either sugar or a sugar substitute. Neither of which are good for us. The only things in your body that loves that kind of drink are the cancer cells that are continuously floating around just waiting for a good sugar hit. Don’t do it for them. Make them work at it and make them battle a tough immune system.

In addition, you need to detox your body of all the toxins that we take in every day from pollution, drinking water additives like chlorine and fluoride, some seafood, and from the “silver” amalgams in our teeth that contain mercury. You need to get a good dentist to carefully replace those with new white non-toxic amalgams by the way. There are a lot of articles on the web about detoxing our liver, kidneys, blood, and other parts, but I found an easy one that helps almost everything. First thing in the morning, squeeze the juice from half of an organic lemon into filtered room temperature drinking water and drink it 10 to 30 minutes before you put anything else on your stomach. Lemons are acidic outside the body but turn alkaline inside your body. Lemon juice helps alkalize your blood and has shown to help detox the liver as well. You can read all about it and you will surely read more about it once the world discovers how good it is for us. You have probably already read something about it, but didn’t notice because you hadn’t heard how good it is for you. Do it! Make it a ritual for your whole family. It’s fun watching everyone’s face waking up to sour lemons!

Another great detoxing techniques is strawberries, or raspberries or any fruit that has seeds on the outside. I use strawberries. The seeds are connected to the core of the berry with a fiber that doesn’t dissolve even in nitric acid. That little fiber passes through your stomach and into your gut and attracts heavy metals like mercury, lead and other nasty stuff that we’ve ingested through our environment, and carries them out with the waste. And strawberries are really good in a fruit smoothie. Go get yourself a NutriBullet and whip up a great fruit smoothie every morning. Use organic fruit, cold-pressed fruit juice, like sour cherry juice for some zing, and add carrot juice for sweetness. It turns out that one of the most effective alternative cures for cancer is tons of carrot juice. It has to do with that orange color. Watch the videos on Ty’s site.

Another critical nutrient for out bodies is animal protein and fat. Yes, a lot of animal fat. It turns out all the information about cholesterol and animal fat causing heart disease is false. We evolved from caveman days to eat primarily unprocessed fresh meat and vegetables. Our systems haven’t changed since then. Stay away from processed meats (like bologna, hot dogs), meat from animals raised in pens and fed grains, steroids and antibiotics. You are what you eat. That means you are what those animals eat, or are injected with. You should each have a “fistful” of fresh, grass range fed meat, poultry or wild caught fish every day. When I say a fistful, I mean about 4-6 ounces. That’s enough. Big guys might do 8 ounces, but that’s more than most of us need. And eggs are a great source of protein. Again eggs from free- range chickens fed off the land, not out of the trough.

And butterfat from milk, butter, cottage cheese, aged cheese, and other dairy products that are made from cows/goats that are grass fed as well. Look for milk that says no rBST. If it doesn’t say that, don’t buy it! And buy organic whole milk. Your kids need the fat from milk for brain development. Use butter not margarine! Avoid hydrogenated fat and trans fats at all costs; and anything made with those fats like canola oil, soy oil, anything but natural oils and fat. Extra virgin olive oil and coconut oil are the kinds of oils that you want to cook with and consume on your salads.

The By-Product is a Healthy Body

Understand, all this is just so you know what I’ve been discovering and how I changed my lifestyle to gain ground on health and leave cancer behind. And the best part is what it has done for me, and those around me that have tried it. I am living proof that this works. It all started with this new eating lifestyle, and that’s what it is. It’s not a diet! I eat all I want. I’m never hungry. I just changed what I eat.

When I started I weighed around 185 pounds. For those of you that knew me at West Point I weighed 172 pounds there at my fighting weight. I played 150 football, so I weighed 154 pounds every Thursday, but played the Saturday games at 170. That was pretty dumb, but I have to admit that during the season when I drained almost all the water from my body once a week (that’s what it took for me to get to 154 lbs on Thursday). I never got a cold, sniffles, sneezes, sore throat, or flu during football season; not once! Now mind you that I didn’t take on this lifestyle change to lose weight. I didn’t think I was really overweight, although I always thought it would be cool to see something in the 170s on the scale. I did it for my health. Once I stopped eating the wrong stuff and started eating the right stuff, I lost about a pound a week for the first couple of months. I’ve leveled out at 170 pounds. Apparently that’s where my body is most comfortable. I haven’t changed what I eat for a year now and I’ve hovered around 170 pounds ever since I hit there. I have more energy than I’ve had in the 40 years since I stopped jumping out of airplanes. My mind is sharper. My smile is brighter. But the most amazing thing to me is I haven’t had a cold, sniffles, sneezes, sore throat or flu; not once since I started!!

How Did I Do It?

I’ve been asked many times exactly what I eat every day to make this happen. After all, stopping by Wendy’s for a burger and fries or Kentucky Fried Chicken are out of the question. So how do I do it?

Pre-breakfast:

  • Juice of 1⁄2 organic lemon (or a whole lemon if it’s small) in room temperature filtered water at least 10 minutes before anything else.

    Breakfast:

  • Two organic free range eggs – any style – cooked in bacon grease is great!
  • Two strips of bacon, crisp preferably (or range fed steak, pork, chicken if you like)
  • A fruit smoothie with strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, mango, papaya, a spoon of chia seeds (great fiber and omega-3), cold-pressed cherry/pomegranate juice, finished with carrot juice – I don’t use bananas because they get way too thick
  • Other fruit like cantaloupe, watermelon, or others
  • Organic Greek Yogurt – no sugar – mixed with organic chopped up fruit

    Lunch:

  • Snack throughout the afternoon starting at lunchtime
  • Organic nuts (great fat), almonds, cashews, Brazil nuts (great nutrients), walnuts, pecans, pumpkin seeds (amygdalin inside kills cancer cells), sunflower seeds, pine nuts, pistachios, but not many peanuts
  • A banana a day, now or earlier at breakfast but lunch is a good time because they’re like a desert
  • An apple a day – organic
  • Carrots and celery make a great snack in the afternoon – and you could do radishes, cold broccoli, among others
  • At least one cup of hot organic green tea, maybe two instead of coffee during the day
  • Might be a good time to have an Organic Greek yogurt instead of for breakfast

    Dinner:


  • Around 6 ounces of meat or fish protein – range grass fed or wild caught
  • Great range of vegetables steamed or grilled preferably – asparagus, broccoli, may others that are high in nutrients, cooked with garlic which is great for you Many times I’ll add organic mushrooms to the vegetables, or grill mushrooms to put on the meat, or separately – mushroom have tremendous medicinal powers across the board
  • Organic lettuce salad with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar
  • Nuts, dried fruit, seeds as a salad topping
  • Occasionally for desert a small piece of dark chocolate – 85% cocoa is really good for you
  • Glass of wine – red better but white is also good for you – just not too much.
  • Alcohol has a tendency to cause inflammation – that’s where it all begins.

    There are a lot of things you can substitute in this list but this is how I have eaten for about 18 months. I am never hungry, I enjoy the flavors and add garlic to everything (now that’s really good for you) and seasoning salts, preferably real sea salt based seasoning. You could do grass fed beef hamburgers, but the bread is the killer. Do like BurgerFi does and substitute iceberg lettuce on both sides of the hamburger for your “buns”. The key is to make the meals from fresh meat/vegetables/fruit that you prepare. If it comes in a box or bag with other stuff, then the food manufacturer has added things to keep it fresh, make it taste and look better. Nature does that better than anyone.

    I could go on and on. This is a subject that I am passionate about, but not obsessive.

    I have an occasional cookie, small piece of cake for someone’s birthday, a bread crust if someone puts olive oil and balsamic vinegar in front of me. But only one piece of anything, and very rarely. When I transgress, my body lets me know. It’s not pleasant until I get it all through my system. But to me, that’s a small price to pay for that little bit of pleasure. But just a little bit, I assure you.

    Smoking, Stress & Obesity Are the Killers

    And dare I say that if you are a smoker, nothing else you do will help. Your body is so busy cleaning up after your lungs that nothing else really helps. The three things that devastate your body are smoking, obesity, and stress. Stop smoking, change your eating habits, and learn to meditate. 15 minutes with your eyes closed sitting quietly and thinking of the most wonderful things in life is an important part of your physical health. It does help your mind but remember, every cell in our body is intelligent, connected to every other cell, and highly impacted by electrical and chemical changes in our bodies. They all need the rest.

    And certainly not the least important thing you can do is exercise and rest. Not an hour at the gym pumping iron, just good refreshing exercise. A walk around the block or shopping mall three or four times a week is plenty. Amazingly, one of the most valuable exercises you can do for your whole body is rebounding. A small trampoline that you just gently bounce up and down on for a couple of minutes a day will do wonders for your whole lymphatic fluid system. The movement forces fluid up and down your body, and the G-forces help sturdy you cells and make them more efficient. Look it up – fascinating.

    I spoke about Dr. Sears early in this discussion. He has an interval exercise system that he calls PACE. It takes about 15 minutes, maybe 3 times a week, on any apparatus or even walking and swimming. PACE is the most effective exercise program you can give your body at our age. And if you just can’t do anything else, at least get up every morning and stretch – every muscle and joint in every direction. Hold it for 15 to 30 seconds. Touch those toes, the ceiling, twist around both directions, swing your arms, toe risers, short squats, use your imagination. If you don’t use it, you lose it! And if you don’t play golf, start. Walk as much as possible and swing a club. You can do that until you’re 100 (and maybe sometime in there you could shoot your age) and you can do it with your significant other – together. Golf courses are the most beautifully landscaped parks in the country. Try it!

    Positive Mental Attitude – Just Get Started

    Now keep in mind that my goal is to increase my quality of life, to enjoy seeing my grandkids grow up, to see them graduate from college and have a family, and who knows, maybe to see my great-grandkids graduate from college, grow up and have a family. I only know that I don’t want to lose my mind before my body, nor my body before my mind. On that last day I want to be vertical and coherent. When you feel this good you wake up looking forward to every day. Your mind controls your body. Make a positive change in your life. It starts with your attitude and aspirations. I hope I have added value to your lives. If nothing else, just reading this has exercised your eyeballs. I wish you a better lifestyle, a more fulfilling life, and a loving family.

    If you are a West Point classmate of mine, I hope to see you at the 50th. Let’s get started.

    terry.keene@integrationsystems.com
  • Saturday, June 6, 2015

    Report from Alex Alexander, ’65, on his recent episode of recidivism, as Cdt CPT, Commanding A-1 . . . _________________ Here is the full account of the spirit mission in the form of a journal entry. I wrote it to preserve the memory for myself. I've also included the letter I sent to the men and women of company A1, the Avengers. West Point Reunion 2015 - The Spirit Mission December 2014 -May 17, 2015 I've been prepping for this reunion for months, loosely, and a couple of weeks intensely. Late last year I was remembering my favorite West Point "moment." When I was a cadet captain, and commander of company A-1, I used to start off all the parades on the Plain. When the A-1 Commander said, "Forward: March!" the band played and everything went into motion. The moment before that, everything was quiet, with an expectant air. It occurred to me that, at the upcoming West Point 50th reunion, I might be able, with the help of some cadets, to sneak into the A-1 Commander's slot, and once again, as in the "days of yore" lead off the parade, turning aside after passing the reviewing stand to join my classmates and watch the rest of the parade from the sidelines, like I was supposed to do in the first place. So I sent a blind email to the Avengers Newsletter (Company A1 produces a quarterly newsletter for all of us old grads who used to be in A1) suggesting we do a black ops prank: sneak me into the parade, in full dress uniform, as a joke and a surprise to all and sundry. A good morale builder for the cadets, and an even better one for my classmates at our 50th reunion. Long story short, they went for it. It seems that the Corps still has a sense of mischief. So, this coming Tuesday, weather permitting (rain is predicted - damn!), I'll don cadet grey, and one last time march where cadets have marched since 1802. Monday, May 18, 2015 After the memorial service (I sang in the choir), I joined my co- conspirator for the Cadet Parade, Cpt. Sean Breen, age 32, so we could do some reconnaissance and practicing in case tomorrow's expected rain didn't happen and I could actually march in the parade. Sean turned out to be a stalwart supporter, with a backbone to match (more about that later). We reconned the Plain to see how the parade works these days, and then he took me through the barracks where I would be donning the uniform tomorrow, introduced me to some cadets and staffers, all of whom were completely on board, loving the prank, and inclined to see me in a good light for initiating it. Breen and I parted after a couple of hours, regretting that the rain was almost certainly going to wash us out, yet, hoping somehow the parade might happen. We wouldn't know until the next morning at 7:00am, when this kind of weather/parade decision gets made. Tuesday, May 19, 2015 Up at 7:00am, and called Sean Breen first thing. Miracles do happen. The parade is ON! And now I have to deliver on my promises. I'll hit the highlights. I arrived at WP just after 9:00am, got off the bus, and met up with Sean. We headed to the cadet barracks, where my uniform was waiting, along with the Cadet regimental commander (Bill Goodwin) and his cadet sergeant major, (Casey Childers) all of whom helped me into the uniform, which - yay team! - fit well. Except for the hat, which would later prove to be a problem. Quick trip to the bathroom (old bladder), then out into Central Area where the cadets were forming up for the parade. Sean, plus the company commander, Bob Hill (whose place I'd be taking), and the guidon bearer, Tyler Griffin (who would march one step behind and left of me, coaching me every step of the way), took me under their collective wings, and launched into an intensive training session, in which I had to relearn stuff I'd long forgotten, mainly what commands would be happening when, and how to handle the cadet saber. (The saber and the ill-fitting hat would meet up later.) While we were practicing, hundreds of cadet eyes were staring our way, wondering what we were up to. I felt conspicuous as hell, but enjoyed it nonetheless. As the stares continued, and the word circulated that the old fart was actually going to march in the parade, the stares turned into smiles, and I found myself posing for a lot of pictures. Sean called me over to company A1, my old company, and the one I'd be commanding for the parade, so he could introduce me, and so I could say a few words. He glorified me a bit, and then I spoke to the company. I told them that I fondly remembered when I was the commander of A1 fifty years ago, to be patient with the old fart up in front in today's parade, and finally what a privilege it was for me to be marching with the likes of them. They seemed to like my remarks. And then it was time to march off. It could have been a disaster - I was that out to lunch - but we actually pulled it off pretty well. The guidon bearer did a masterful job of coaching me through all the motions (he was a great kid, a former Prep Schooler, with excellent presence of mind, which was important because I was pretty much in a haze). I screwed up almost every small motion, but got the big ones right, which was okay because, at our distance away from the audience nobody could see the small things. Like my damned hat. It didn't quite fit right, and for the 45 minutes or so of the parade, it was slowly, slowly slipping down my forehead, toward my nose. I didn't dare adjust it - the white gloves would draw every eye in the place if I reached upward. So I said to myself, "deal with it" and carried on, slowly tilting my head backward to keep the hat level. I got into a good marching rhythm (I always could keep in step), so as we passed in review, I looked like I belonged there - except, as a number of people later told me, for the frizzy old-guy hair sticking out from under my hat and over my collar. Still, when we finished the pass in review, the cadets called out to me, "Good job, sir!" All in all I felt pretty good about it. Finally, after the "Eyes, Front" I reached the leading edge of my classmates, who were occupying their part of the day's Long Gray Line. I did a sloppy right turn, started the saber salute I had planned, caught the tip of the saber on my hat, and flipped the damn thing in the air. Luckily I caught the hat on the fly and didn't drop it. I inserted this picture because I love his smile and the smiles of all the cadets behind him. At that point my classmates realized what had happened, and that one of their own had done something that had never been done before (as far as I know) since West Point was established in 1802.an old grad had marched in a cadet parade, and not only that, but had "commanded" a company. After that it was handshakes, pictures, smiles, laughs, and "how the hell did you pull that off?" For the rest of the day and into the next, I was a minor celebrity. I'd have to call it the highlight of the reunion for me, actually one of the highlights of my life. But wait. There's more. Immediately after the parade, Sean Breen and Stephen Ruth, the Regimental Tactical Officer (the LTC in charge of the Army staff overseeing the cadet regimental organization) came up to me: both the Superintendent and the Commandant of Cadets were pissed and the cadet and military staff, including Sean Breen, were in hot water for my prank. We had known that there might be some flack, and Sean was willing to take the heat, and now, here it was. So I told Ric Shinseki (former Chief of Staff of the Army, 4 stars), and Dan Christman (former Supe, 3 stars, I used to date his sister), both of whom are classmates whom I know quite well, about the potential dustup, and asked them if they would use their influence to ease whatever repercussions might be in the works. Next Sean and LTC Ruth plus the cadets involved plus me (still in cadet uniform) marched over to the Brigade Tactical Officer's office presumably to be royally chewed out. It looked ominous. I was safe from any harm arising from the stunt that I had instigated, and, although I had no power or influence in the affair, I wanted to protect Breen and the cadets as best as I could because they were all standup guys, and had done so much for me. Well, the bird-colonel loved it. He launched into a five minute speech, praising us for the stunt, and congratulating Breen for having the cohones to pull it off, adding that it's this kind of thing that creates legends in the Corps of Cadets, and that any aftermath would dim with time and do no career harm, and in fact would informally enhance the reputations of all involved. He pledged his full support, saying, "I stand with you in this." We wrapped up the meeting by taking a picture of me standing before him, giving him a snappy salute. Later in the day, Sean texted me that it had all blown over, with no negative impact on him or the cadets. Yay, team! We hustled back to the barracks so I could change back into my own clothes. I thanked Sean for all he had done, and pledged to stay in touch. Then I scooted over to the cadet mess hall, where lunch was served, and more formalities (presentation of Distinguished Graduate awards). The final result as reported to me by Cpt. Breen is this: The official punishment from the event: We had to submit a few reflective essays to the Superintendent and the Commandant. We finalized and submitted those yesterday and have been absolved accordingly. General Shinseki assisted greatly in keeping us off the area, but I can tell you that had we been put on the area, most of the Corps would have voluntarily been out there with us and it would have been worth it-100%. Since that day, I have been getting all kinds of feedback, all of it positive, from cadets, grads of all classes, and of course my classmates. The only regret I have is that I should have paraded down the full line of the class of '65, instead of veering off at the beginning. That way the whole class could have borne witness to the "spirit mission." Maybe next time. Alex Alexander Alex92240@yahoo.com 530-432-2882  Next we have the letter that Alex wrote to his old Company A-1 (The Avengers): Dear Avengers, I want to thank you all, and add some thoughts from my old grad's perspective. You can't know (until you reach my advanced years) how grateful I am for the privilege of marching with you in one of life's really cool spectacles, a West Point parade. I hope it wasn't evident to you, but throughout the parade, I felt like a bumbling old fool, making mistake after mistake. Yet we pulled it off. The only reason I didn't totally screw up and embarrass all of you is that Bob Hill called the commands and Tyler Griffin coached me every step of the way, and your TAC, Cpt. Breen put everything in place so that the venture could succeed (I suspect that he even had something to do with clearing up the weather). Fortunately, the many mistakes I made were small scale and invisible to the spectators, so to them I looked like I belonged, and thanks to all of you, I felt like I belonged. Most importantly, mission accomplished. I want you to know that this "prank" had a deeper meaning to me and my classmates than you might think. At our stage in life, having lived all the joys and tragedies that come to people who engage in the risks of war and service to the nation, we have (and you will have) a deeper appreciation of ourselves and our comrades than does the average citizen. Because of our caper, my classmates felt an even closer connection to the spirit of the Corps, a spirit that shaped each of us profoundly 50 years ago, and continues to shape us even now. Bumbling or not, I, and therefore in a very real way, they, were again a connected part of, not just the Long Gray Line, but the very spirit that is the essence of that legacy. We all know that spirit starts with Duty, Honor, Country, but it also contains kinship and the love of brothers (and now sisters). And threaded through it all - all the dedication, sacrifice, risk, and hardship - is a twinkle of the eye. I have never known a West Pointer - even the deadly serious ones - who didn't have room for joy in hardship. It's more than cracking jokes and pulling stunts like our Old-Grad-Marches-in-Parade caper. There's a deep thread of humility that fuels it. We can laugh at ourselves; we can see the light side to everything (except the death of comrades, and even then we derive joy from having known them); we can see the good in any situation, and when there's no good there, we make it appear. I don't know how, but this spirit gets built into us during our West Point years, and pranks are a small part of it. Even "Beat Navy" is much more than the desire to win a contest. It's part of the connective tissue that binds us all in service of a common goal. We're in it together and we depend on each other, whether the goal is to win a war, keep the nation safe, or triumph in a sporting contest. This parade prank made me an instant celebrity among my Classmates, at least for a little while, and it struck the deeper chords I spoke of, but it's all due to you. So, once again, I thank you. Alex Alexander, Class of '65 more pictures of this 50th reunion prank - http://usma1970.smugmug.com/.../50th-Reu.../Class-of-65-40th-Pix