l)ershina Cable

56th Field Artillery Brigade

Vol. 20 No. 9

September 1983

Whirlwind tour

Marsh visits
brigade unit
br Greg Alim
A "Pursuit o Excellence" wu ,he miin
,heme in speech delivcr<d by xcmary of
the Army, John Marsh, Jr., Aug. 26 in NeuUlm.

Marsh addrmed a ,heater full of soldiers

during a surprise visit 10 Germany and 1he
561h FA Bde.
The day ~fort, the Stars ,nd Stripes had
reponcd 1h11 Marsh wu in Cairo, Egyp, for
, thr day vi,i,.
Marsn fie.,. from Bad Toi, Thursday af1er
noon , fttr ,ddressing gnduaiing class of
NCOs a, ,he Primary ludmhip Develop
men, Course the, e.
Upon mival l l Wil'J Barracks in NeuUlm. Morsh "'" gre<IC by Brig. Gen. William Swee,, Commander of 1he 56th FA
Bde., Col. Linus Fiely, Neu-Ulm Commu
nity Commander and Lt, Col. Lewis Bishop,
Commander, 1st Bn., Sin FA. Following
four mile run along the Donau, Marsh toured
,he cities of Ulm and Neu-Ulm.
After breakfast 11 ,he Wiley Barracks Din
mg facility Friday morning, Marsh addreued

soldim, NCOs ,nd officers in 4.S-minuie

spch.
Marsh, who underwen, Airborne mining
while a Congreuman, lauded the uniu pr<S
en, on ,heir ,ccomplishmen11 and spoke of
1he Army's curren, "Pursui1 of Excellence:"
,heme.
"Main,aining smngth, building a mor<
modem force tnd rndiness art 1he current
goab", said Marsh.
To augment thtse concepu, emphasis on
,he "Spirit of '81 ", and physical fi,nm will
con,inue.
When spe,king of ,he role of officers and
NCOs, Marsh empha.iud th" it "isn't
'Rank Has i11 Privileges,' as the old saying
goes, bu, mher, ' Rank Hu iu Responsibilitics,'" and 1h11 a leader hu two basic respon
sibilities, ... to train their soldiers and 10
insure that a soldiers' ..,elfare is iaken care
of.
Following Marsh's address, he presented
Army Commendarion Medals 10 two sol
diers for heroism while saving a woman from
a burning car (See Related Story on this
page)

Brig. Gen. WIiiiam Sweet 11'"11 Secretary of the Army John Merah, Jr. during
aurprlN vlalt to NeuUlm and the 56th FA Bde. (Photo by Jim Cramblet).

2/4soldiers recognizelt for heroic act

I!
'

!!I
~
.

'

Sp4 WIiiiam Dukes (L) and SSgt. Antonio

Thoma rectlw Army Commenmitlon
Mld1l1 and congr1tul1Uon1 from John
Marth, Jr., Sec:rlltllry of the Army. The

aoldlefl were recognlnd for hefollm,

pulling I woman from a burning car.

(Photo1 by ~ Allen).

Sweet
up for
Second
Star

by Thomas Copeland
A nomination l.ist of 37 general officers
rommended for major general, including
S6th FA Bdc.'s commander Brig. Gen. Wil
liam Sweet, has been approved by president
Reagan and forwarded 10 1he Senate for confinnaiion.
The ""0-llar promotion selections were
made by a panel of nine senior generals. They
scrttned the rtcerds of all in Army category
brigadier generals as of July 1, 1982.
Besides Sweet, the list 1!10 includes Brig.
Gen. Joseph Lutz, who heads ihe ht Special
Opcmions Command at Fon Bragg, N. C.
and Brig. Gen. J>.mcs Do1ier, O.puiy CG of
IU Corps, Fon Hood, Tex.
After Senate approval, which is virrually
assured, ,he Brig. Gens. (P) mun wai1 for the

by Greg Allen
They described the incident as "no big
1hing", and said "anybody .,.ould have done
,he s&me ,hing.
But ihe no big thing" earned SSg,. Ao10nio Thomu and Sp4 Willwn Dukes of Co.
B, 2nd Bn, 4th Inf. Army Commendation
Medals for heroism.
They .,ere presented the medals Aug. 26
by Secretary of ihe Army John Marsh, Jr.
during ccr<monies held in Neu-Ulm.
On April 2S Thoma.s and Dukes were en
route to Stuttgart to deliver supplies. A
heavy fog c.aused them 10 pull over to a
parking area 10 wait for the fog 10 lift.
"The fog wa.s so ,hick we couldn't ,ee 100
yard5, Dukes told a Surs and S1ripcs report
er.
"Mo1t of the cars on ihe road had also
pulled over.

Suddenly a speeding cu entered the pork

ing area, cruhing into one of the parked cars
and buming in10 fltmu.
Dukes and Thomas pulled Romy Mui
mow of Strusbourg Fnocc from the burning
c.ar that had ~en hit. She wu unconscious
bu, survived 1he impact. Her automobile ex
plodcd shonly after she was rem!?ved.
Dukes and Thomas left the scene shortly
aftu re-scut crews arrived. So unconctrned
were the ""0 soldiers about 1hrir ac1ions,
they didn't leave their names.
It took newspaper and radio announce
mentS 10 locate the ""omen who had rcrumed to their unit. They had related the story to
friends and were located more than rwo
week, alier ,he accident.
Both soldiers have abo ~en recommended
for ihe Germn Federal Lifesaving Medal for
their a(tions.

naiural aitrition of ""ostus so that they can

tal the step 10 major general.
SWEET'S BACKGROUND
Sweet was commissioned a second lieutenant of Field Anillery at B<>wling Green Universiiy (Ohio) where he graduated -.,i,h a
B.S. in Educaiion Admininration. Besides
ibis he also holds a Master's Degrte in Public
Administraiion. He ha, also anended the
Basic and Advanced Field Anillery School,
the United States Army Command and Gen
,eral S,uf College, the U.S. Army War College and the Department of Staie Foreign
Service lnstitu1e.
He as.sumed command of the 56ih FA Bde.
on July 13, 1982. Btforr he came to Pershing
he was chief of staff for VII Corps,
USAREUR.

Brig. Gen. WIiiiam S-.et - Mlec:ted for

-,detar.

E.T. uses MARS

SSgt. James H1rmon, NCOIC of the MARS station et Herdt KaNme, Mndl
MARSgram statetlde. The masaa9", which are,,,.., Is feeture offered by H1rmon
and his unit to toldlara In tha Schwliblach Gmiind araa, Monday thro119h Friday from
7 1. m. until 5 p. m. (Photo by J. D. Godwin).

by J. D. Godwin

tion that can not b< transmitttd are: inform

Need to get a message to the States, but

tion dealing with locations, movtmrnts, acti-

don't want 10 s_pend a lot of money? Want it

10 get home w1thou1 a Wttk's delay? Changed your travel plans and need to tell the
folks back home?
Then travel to Hardt Kaseme and Ule the
Military Affiliate Radio System, known as
MARS, in building 408. O~ating hours are
Monday thru Friday, 7 a.m. to S p.m.
MARS' primry p_urpost is to ~rovidc a
backup commun,canon system wuh,n the
military system. During times of natural disuters, .or wa_r, it is used to relay ~ita_l milita
ry _iraff,c whole normal commun,cauons arc
being restored.
his usually operated br v~luntccr civilians
who have tn amateur radio hccnse. The ope
r~tors are bound by U :S. government rcg~I1ions an~ the lntemauonal Telccomm~inoc~110n Union. The J:l.ardt MARS si.au<_>n . s
oper~ttd by two m,hury commo spec,alm,
prov,ded by HH_B, S6 th Bde.
.
.
However, " is d",:,ng peace ~me ,hat
MA~S can save a soldier money. sold,er,
or hos depealnlddcnMts,AcR.San send )O-wlord fr
grams, to a most any
messages, c e
place on the world. MARSgrams, like tele
grams, will be delivered to the addressee by
telephone or mail. The usual delivery time"
within two days.
MARSgrams can be sent to any place in the
world that uses an APO number or zip code.
Some locations in Africa, Israel, and many
Latin American countries arc also included.
There arc, however, certain rcmictions
imposed on MARSgrams messages. lnforma-

vity and status of military forces; any classificd information; profane, idccoent or abusive
language; discussion of polictics, legislative
matters and sex; and calls for the purpose of
discussing a private business. Private busincss includes Stock transaions, real estate
purchases, banks or credit unions,
The 30-word limit might not seem long
enough to some soldiers. But occording 10
PFC Scon Hoagland, smion operator, a lot
cn be said in 30-words.
A 30-word limit might seem 100 short 10
some soldiers," said Hoagland. "But ,he
me,sagc is sent in telegram form. If we ha"e
10, we can send up 10 two grams, or 60
words, on a conl.inous message. Bu( these uc:
limited. However, you can send out an unlimitcd numb<r of messages.
The MARSgrams arc transmitted twice a
day to a Net Control Station in West Germany. Then all messages are stnt to Washing
ton, D. C. by trans-Atlantic underseas cable.
From D. C. ,he gram is sent ,o a major
military installation closest to , he addressee's
.
town or my.
.
Usually UJ>?n receipt of the groms. the
add_re_ssee can ,n turn se~d a reply back to !h,
orgmoal send~,. Accordm~ to Hoag_land, " s
fors.t. come, f,m s~rvc, w11h mm,mum of
wamng. And that os the only problem.
"Business has been slow," said Hoagland.
"We average about six people a day, with
only eight 10 12 messages sent. We want
more business!"

U.S.-Germany hail 300th anniversary

(ARNEWS) - In rccognit.ion of 300 years of German
contributions 10 the United States, Congress has designated. 1983 as ,he "Tricentcntcnnial Anniversary Year of
German settlement in Amerika'".
On O ct. 1, 1683, the first 13 German families landed
at Philadelphia. They had come to Amerika seeking
religious freedom, and the found it. In return, the German immigrants and thtir descendants have contributed
tremendously to the economic, cultural, political and
technologie2l de>clopment of this country.
In pres,dentiral proclamation, Ron,ld Reagan called
upon the American public 10 suppont the year-long
celtbr~tion. He explained the detpening relationship of
German this way: "Despite the legacy of two >1orld wars
which found us on opposing sides, Wm Germany and
the United States have forged and exceptionally close
relationship during the paSt three decades. The success of
rhc Marshall Plan, the Berlin Airlift and the ensuing
NATO pmnmhip have led to a recognition of our
common democratic ideals and joint interest in Western

One German's
most unforgettable
American memory
might easily be you.
1111111111111111111111111111

1111111111111111111111111111
1111111111111111111111111111
1111111111111111111111111111

11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111

economic and political strengh.

The West German Parliament also has approved a
resolution outlining German Suppon of the tricentennial
celebration.
Co-operation with the United Si.ates of Amcrika as a
friend and panncri the re.solution reads~ .. is a basic tenet
of the foreign policy of the Federal Republic of Ger
many. This co-operation is based on common moul and
political values and on a common cultural heritage.
In a salute to the one-half million American, of German descent, the prcsidcnu of both countries will met in
Philadelphia to comm<morate the annivrnry of the
original 2 landing in America and all that was 10 follow.
In addtion, the Federal Republic has sent exhibits and
cultural groups to the United States. American organiia
tions and societies nationwide have organized displays,
cxbibits and performances which rdect the GermanAmerican heritage. in addrion, both countries have
simultaneously issued a commemorative stamp featuring
th Concord- the ship shich carried the first Germans to
America.

55th unit undergoes winds of change

by R. Stephen Winfrey
"Change as Roben F. Kennedy once describ~d it, "Ruffles feathers, tends 10 intimidate people and endanger careers. But on
the oth<r hand, change can be positive. With
it can come fresh challenges, new oppor
,unities, idus and even a changing of the
guard.
That is the way in which the members of
the S5th Maint. Bn. arc viewing the rapid
accumulation of new faces in key positions.
In a span of five months, the battalion has
changed leaders in four of its six companies,
as well as acquiring a new battalion commander.
A rapid turn of events for a banalion
which was only officially activated on July 9,
1982. At the time of its ac1.ivation, concern
seemed to b< on whether the battalion could
handle itS dual roles of equal importance.
A year later any doubters or would-be
skcpucs have been silenced a, the battalion
ha.11 gone on to prove the accuracy of their

bar 1983

"complete suppon motto. Now with a

year's experience and success under their

belts, the battalion appears to be preparing

for a new set of challenges.
Leading the rarade of changes which have
already begun, and will continue through
Novcmb<r wu the appointment of Lt. Col.
Robert J. Hucffed. as the battalion's com
mander. Lt. Col. Hue/fed assumed com
mand on June 24, replacing Lt. Col. William
S. Littlcrficld. Lt. Col. Hucffd >1as formerly assigned to the U.S. Army DARCOM
lnpector Gneral Activity in Alexandria, Va.
On July 19, upt. James G. Wolf became
Co. A's new commander. Wolf, formerly the
battalion S-4 Officer, replaced Capt. Stephen
T. Rowe ..,ho'd commanded the company
since August 1~81.
HHC was the next company to respond to
the winds of change when on July 22 Capt.
Kevin M. Stump took over the reins of power. Capt. Stump had served as the battalion's
Class Ill Item Manager, before replacing

Capt. Mercury 8. Powlus.

In this, the season for change, Co. 8 was
the next SSth unit to make wiy for a new
comm.ander. The chang in this case being
the arrival of upt. Jeffrey N . Givens on the
scene in early AuguS<. Givens, a former
Motor Officer at 1-81, replaced Capt. James
B. Culley who'd headed the unit sine. February 1982.
Rounding out the array of new faces accumulating in battalion key spots is the eventual dcparrure of Capt. (P) Earl C. Verigan,
of Co. E. Verigan is slated to surrender his
command i.n November 10 Maj. William S.
Griner, who is currmtly serving as the
Brigade Aviation Officer.
In keeping with their recent changes, the
battalion hu set out 10 go one step funher in
renovating the S6th FABde's supply channels. Under a new concept titled, DS4 (Divisional), Co. D, the battalion's maintenance
and supply company will double its work
and storage areas. This will then enable them

to keep on kand even more of rhe crucial

parts which the other battalion's of may need
at a given time.
The months of March, April and May
found the banalion taking on more crucial
missions for the brigade. h was in this time
frame that the banalion's newly developed
automotive majntcnanct sections became: responsible for repairing any brigade vehicle
which could not b< done at the organizational level.
At the same time, the battalion picked up
the communication equipment rtpair mission
in the three fo"'ard supon companies of
"Alpha," "Bravo' and "Charlie," as well as
"Ddu" company. Meanwhile, Co. D also
opened a Small Arms Repair Shop that
specializes in making repairs on any handcarried weapon from the 38 cal.. pistol to the
M60 Machine gun. The battalion hopes to
realize a more positive sense 10 the word
"change than what Kennedy had in mind.
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