From: "ercgreen" ercgreen@yourinter.net
Subject: DAYS OF OUR LIVES #113
Date: Fri, 25 Apr 2003 09:03:18 -0400
MAIL-call - PRESERVING
FORGOTTEN MEMORIES
TAPS
BISTANY, Samuel J., DOB: 1916, DOD: 11 Nov 2002, 84y, 06, CDR, Det 4, 67-68. Burt Slesinger's newsletter reports the death of COL Bistany. Among his many ASA tours were assignments in Arizona, Fort Bragg, Fort Devens, Alaska, Turkey, Germany and as XO of USASA Caribbean Hq in Panama. Sam's wife, Catherine, predeceased him in November 2000. I am told that "Sam always fretted that as a native Lebanese speaker he was never asked to serve with the task force that deployed to Lebanon."
ELAM, Douglas B., E4, Det 4, 58-59, DOB 18 June 1937 DOD 27 January 2003
The following is derived from the
obit appearing in the Orlando Sentinel: CSM Douglas B. Elam, 65,
of Maitland, FL, passed away Monday, January 27, 2003. He is
survived by his wife, Sieglinde (Siegi and his daughter,
Kathleen. He served many years in the Army Security Agency and
the Intelligence and Security Command before retiring as INSCOM
Command Sergeant Major in 1982. During his distinguished military
service, Elam was awarded score of honors and medals, including
the Bronze Star for his service in Vietnam. In addition to his
regular duties, he hosted a radio show in Sinop, Turkey, a talent
he carried over to civilian life with the Douglas Elam Show on a
local [Orlando] AM radio station, a weekly political discussion
and commentary program. CSM Elam was buried with full military
honors alongside his son Timothy, at the Jefferson Barracks in
St. Louis, MO. You may still be able to sign the guestbook at: www.baldwinfairchildfuneral.com.
The following was received from the Elam family: "We thank
you all for your kind words and prayers at this difficult time.
Doug was surely blessed to have such a large number of selfless
and thoughtful friends. Sincerely, Siegi, Kathy &
Marcus" The family can be reached at: 1917 Blossom Trail,
Maitland, FL 32751, 407-332-4930.
Among the many tributes paid to Doug, was this from MG Tom Flynn:
"...Doug was a very close friend of mine. He was my CSM most
of the time I commanded FS Augsburg, and was the INSCOM CSM when
I was one of the deputies..I served with a lot of great Command
Sergeant Majors...but none better than Doug Elam. He was a
soldiers' soldier, and everyone who ever served with him knew he
was there to look out for them, enlisted, NCOs and officers
alike.... I remember a conversation with him when he became my
CSM. He asked me what I wanted him to do. I told him he knew
better than I what needed to be done and if I ever did want him
to do something I would let him know. I do not ever remember
telling him to do anything. He went about his job and did it
better than anyone I have ever served with. He was a great friend
of the late LTC Gerry Beshens, who was my deputy, and the two of
them together made a great team." I knew Doug in Sinop at
the onset of his career, both in the Army and as
a "broadcaster," a duty we shared in Sinop, but at
which he excelled. Doug and I ran into each other several more
times in our respective careers. I will miss him, and his e-mail
traffic. To view a beautiful tribute to Doug, contact Jim Brock: <BROCKJIM@aol.com>
THOMAS, William Golden, Det 4, ?-?. Burt Slesinger: "The following obituary appeared in a local N. VA newspaper [in January 2003]. It is short on details but indicates that the deceased, a Col. William Golden Thomas, served 23 years in ASA, then was Asst. Chief of Staff, Plans and Programs, DIA, where he represented DIA and the JCS in the annual review of the consolidated cryptologic program. He enlisted in 1942 and served in New Guinea, Australia, Philippines, Japan, Korea, Germany, Turkey and Vietnam." Hal Rumery: "I knew Col Thomas from the time he was a First LT and was his driver when I first got to Tokyo in July 1946....Condolences may be sent to the Thomas family: Anne. T. Haley, 5507 Roland Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21210." Bill Thomas and I served at Hq ASA at the same time. He was the Deputy Comptroller. Real nice guy. Small in stature but large in heart and ability. bes. In Jim Boyte's Look Homeward book he states that a Major Thomas was the CO at Sinop in 1958
LOOK HOMEWARD
by James Monroe Boyte, Sr
Foreword
Look Homeward is a true story of joy found in the midst of loneliness. On top of a mountain in Turkey, not far from the Soviet Union in the area where Caesar once stood and made his famous statement, "I came, I saw, I conquered," a small number of American soldiers seek to bring their loneliness to God. Desiring to return to the warmth of home, many months of loneliness for these soldiers slowly turns to joy as they undertake the long struggle, in a Moslem country, of financing and building one of the most beautiful chapels ever built. Eventually, a permanent military installation is built that will serve for years to come as a listening post on the Soviet Union. Through alterations of the plans for the installation, what was to be a temporary chapel becomes the first permanent building. The comfort and joy of a dog and two small children help to strengthen the soldiers as they live from one day to the next. Through reading Look Homeward, the reader will be able to experience something of the true joy that can come in the midst of loneliness.
[The 170 page Look Homeward book was sent to me by Richard Riedy and I am in the process of writing a review and trying to locate the eleven other GI's that Jim Boyte mentions who were instrumental in the planning and building of the chapel. That task is difficult as Boyte died in 1997 and in Look Homeward he only uses first names as follows in random order: Tom, Bill, Ted, Gary, Henry, Shane, Mark, Chad, George, Butch, and Dennis The most curious aspect that I've noticed is why the visiting chaplains NEVER got involved in the planning, funding and construction until it was nearing completion. Ernie Carrick who worked in Personnel at Sinop with Boyte and along with Richard Riedy have been most helpful in my attempt to add to the construction of the chapel at Det 4, Sinop. I certainly will appreciate any information from anyone who remembers the chapel being built.]
BURCH, Joe, DOB: 2OC38, RA15565911, E4-E5, 988RU, Det 4, 58-JN59, (Sue),108 Tahoma Rd., Lexington, KY 40503, 859-277-3538, sburch@uky.edu. Contacted on 23 April 2003. Joe was assigned to the 320th USASA Battalion at Bad Aibling after he completed the Russian linguist course. He was enjoying life in Germany and the Lebanon crisis upset his apple cart. His orders were for a 90 day TDY to Turkey and he left all of his civilian clothes at Bad Aibling when he departed for Turkey. Joe was sent to Sinop in the back of a 2 1/2 ton that took two days. More about Joe Burch later.
CARRICK, Ernie DOB: 15AP36 RA25358534 E3-E4 Personnel Det 4, NO57-OC58, (Betty), 6111 Fairfield Dr., Huntsville, AL 35811, 256-852- 6180, eecarrick@hotmail.com Elder - My name is Ernest E. (Ernie) Carrick. I am a natice of Tracy City, Tennessee. Took basic at Ft. Chaffee, Arkansas, then was sent to Ft Devens for training and my first overseas assignment was to Det 4, Nov 1957 to Oct 1958. I was in personnel at Sinop with Bruce Branch, SSG James Owenby and Jim Boyte. Jim was a bright yound man. Richard Reidy and I have been sending email to each other. We were discusing Jim Boyte. I sent Richard some pictures of Jim building the chapel. I was very sorry to hear about the death of Jim Boyte and Doug Elam. Doug and I worked for the same company several years ago and I last saw him in 1990 here in Huntsville. He was a good man. I made the Army a career and retired in 1976 as a CW2. Nine of the 20 years was in the ASA. I enjoyed my time on the 'HILL'. I still remember a lot of vet's who were at Sinop. One was Tom Abrials who was a cook at Ft Devens in 1956 or 57 and was a driver at Det 4. I still have the Thanksgiving menu that has Pvt Thomas E. Abrials name on it. Another was Jack Dunlap who turned into a spy for the Soviet Union. Once he was caught - I and any others who knew him - were interogated in an attempt to discover more info about that traitor. I will write a BIO and send you some photo's of my Tour of Duty at SINOP. Thanks Ernie
COUVILLON, Lanny, E3-E4, 058, Det
27, OC62-AP64, (Jackie), 51 Oak Ave., Novato, CA 94945,
415-897-7933, rcouv@jps.net
Chuck--that photo submitted is of the 1963
Trick 3 "Wolfcocks". John Hall was the coach and I
forwarded the photo with the names that I had last year to Elder.
Along with that I forwarded the 1963 Post team photo as well.
Hall did not coach the post team. Lanny Couvillon
CRANE, Jim, 2LT-1LT, 05225154, FC, Det 27, 65-66, (Lisa), 1490 Lago Mar Dr., Viera, FL 32940, 321-242-2404, jcrane3@cs.com [edited] I have gone thorough all my Det 27 pictures (not slides) and have found 13 pictures of various sports teams at Manzarali plus a newsletter. I have listed names where I have them and used "?" when I did not have a first or last name. I still remember the time I scored 50 points in a basketball game and I'll be damned if Jim Hatmaker didn't score 51 points in the very next game. He was quite the athlete. I will send you a CD-RW containing the pictures and you can copy and either include in the DOOL or the Memory Book. I have retired from the business scene, but continue to teach tennis. [I received the photo's and am in the process of adding them to the Memory Book and have added about 15 new names to the Det 27 Master Roster.]
DESCOTEAUX, Donald A., 05K, Det 4, 68-69, (Julia), 24300 Ironwood Ave., Moreno Valley, CA 92557, dj_mck-descot@msn.com - I am a alumni of TUSLOG Det 4 from 1968-69 as a 05K20 Sinop and would like to hear from others.
DODD, Jim, DOB: 20SE40, E4-E5, 72B, Det 4, JL61-JL62, 13480 W Richardson Rd., Skiatook, OK 74070, 918-396-0241, okie2k@earthlink.net. - Just a note of information. My 2nd cousin Dwaine Dodd was the loadmaster on that C-17 that carried Jessica Lynch to Ramstein.. He was shown on a few of the newscasts. Just something I'm proud of..
EBERLY, Steve DOB: 8AU49 E5 Det 4, SE76-SE77, (Lisa), 1006 Ross St., Aliquippa, PA 15001, 724-378-0966, ebercom@attbi.com (cable). Steve enjoyed his year on the hill. He enlisted for the ASA, took basic at Fort Dix, New Jersey, then on to Ft Gordon, Georgia for ATT. Steve reenlisted after his Tour of Duty at Sinop for duty in the Medical Field. Retired as a Master Sergeant E-8 in 1983.
FORD, Chip DOB: 30JL49 RA11750995 E4 05K/05D Det 4, MR69-JA60, PO Box 1418, Edwards, CO 81632, 970-926-3488, no email. Chip is a ski instructor in Colorado and promised to send me some photo's and a BIO in the near future.
FRICKEY, Norm, O4, CO, Det 4-4, JA70-JL71, (Sharon), 816 West St., Fort Morgan, CO 80701, 970-867-5364, nfrickey@kci.net - [edited] Hi Elder...... I HAVE A CONCERN. Maybe its the COMSEC/ SIGINT ghosts. Maybe it's all the hype about stolen identities in the news these days. ...maybe it's nothing. HERE'S MY CONCERN. I did not realize the Days of Our Lives were posted and available on the Web. For me making a connect with the Turkey ASA bunch has been nice and brought back some memories and allowed me to re-connect with some old acquaintances. This is a common tale of most who respond and chat in DOOL . THAT IS GOOD. But, having those thoughts and comments posted and available on the WWWeb is disconcerting. Some of the information provided by participants is fairly personal including telephone #s , service #s, spouses names, sometimes addresses, etc. -- not to mention a lot of commentary ranging from fact to fantasy. While those of us who were there might understand, there are others who might not. For example a simple "Google" name search turned up several hits on my name alone and with a click of the mouse I could access my postings and postings of others including pictures, etc. With ease I could also access almost any of the DOOLs published and I could read all the good, bad and ugly. As a minimum I think DOOL respondents and participants should be made aware of the fact that all available DOOLs are posted and accessible (several of which, if my memory serves me, included a Members Roster). I don't mean to be an alarmist...but I think that everyone should be informed that what they say or have said is accessible to anyone with a modicum of "web knowledge." If it were a "members only" web site that would be something different and maybe that is an option. Maybe this should be a discussion item on the next DOOL. Best Regards,
[It, indeed, is a matter that we considered from the very beginning when the newsletter was in its infant stage. We concluded that the INTERNET is a universe unto itself and dang near everything about anyone can be found therein. For one to steal one's identity is for the most part an easy task for the unscrupulous individuals. I have amended the disclaimer statement in an attempt to remind all subscribers that conscienceless people might be eavesdropping on the DOOL website..... But what good would that do? Most vet's simply scroll past it without giving it a second look. The job of putting the weekly DOOL together is a major task that takes a lot of my free time. If I'm late or miss a week - a lot of the subscribers want to know why or if they missed it. I certainly do not want to sanitize anything. I will be most pleased to receive your comments regarding Norm Frickey's concern- - -gH]
FULTON, Donald G., RA19889202, E4, 05H2HS3YA, Det 4, JA67-DE67, (Linda), Walnut CA 91789 310-606-9572 dgfulton@earthlink.net. - Hey does anyone know the whereabouts of a guy named Beau Stark. He was on the Hill in 1967 and I roomed with him, but have no idea of what state he was from or where he went afterwards.... if anyone has a clue please let me know...Thanks, [There is two Beau Stark's listed on switchboard.com, but neither was at Sinop..... There was also a NAVDET Beau Stark at Sinop, 1968-69.- - -gH]
GILMAN, Frank DOB: 25AP33, 058, US Embassy Istanbul & Ankara, 56-57, PO Box 1660 Dolan Springs, AZ 86441, 928-767-3200, fugawi@dolanspringsnet.com. Hi Greenie weenie. Been many gigabites of h2O over the dam. Yep, FUGAWI Frank remembers hunting with you and Virgil Rearick in Vermont, softball at Ft Devens, etc. Had a stroke in 1988 and am still in a wheelchair. Was at US Embassy in Istanbul 56-58 where son Mark was born. Copenhagen 3 years, then to Cairo, Ankara, Bern, Vietnam at Phu Bai, 1SG Shalinko AFB/ASA Ops Company, Taiwan, TRRS 1SG Ops Company. Discharged 1971. Joined National Guard and became a Major 04. Married to Jacquie Klinger (Shell Lake, WI girl when she was a CWO in Guard with me) My Best, Frank Gilman. Frank maintains a website at: http://www.infinitevistas.org/supergroup/
GLASER, Gerald, (Jerry), DOB: 11NO40, RA15612661, E3-E4, 056, Det 4, 60-61, (Joan), 1211 Lakerise Overlook, Gallatin, TN 37066, 615-822-3672, geraldglaser@aol.com - A while back I sent an email saying all prayers would be appreciated. Our son is a Company Commander in Baghdad with the 2nd Brigade 3rd Infantry Division. Received a call from him over the weekend. He is OK. Thanks for all your prayers, keep them coming, it is not over yet. Thank you Joan and Jerry Glaser.
HANNAH, Jim (Pappy) Det 4, 74-75, NC hannahma@juno.com. - Noticed the ASA Turkey reunion you will be having Labor Day weekend in Burt's newsletter. I was in Sinop with Det 4 in 1974 and am interested in attending one of your get togethers. Could you send me more information? Hoping to hear from you soon. Wishing you a Happy Easter. Jim Hannah in Western North Carolina Was good to get your reply. We don't do the internet so can't look up the sites you suggested. Would enjoy receiving your newsletters on ASA Turkey if you could e-mail them. Thanks, Jim Hannah
HATMAKER, Jim, DOB: 10OC46,
RA13844153, E3, Clerk, Det 27, 65-66, (Deborah), 142 6th St.,
Coaldale, PA 18218, 570-645-2497, tophats@ptd.net. Jim, like many of the better athletes,
was very cocky. His hero's were Joe Namath and Ali. Remembers the
feats of Jim Crane. Said that he once scored 61 points in a 32
minute game at Manzarali Station. Has trouble with his fingers
nowadays, but plans to attend the 2003 reunion.
IRWIN, Gary H., DOB: 12JL37, RA17455642, E4, 988RU, Det 4,
JL58-AP59, (Gloria), 12261 180th St., Little Falls, MN 56345,
320-632-8044, ggirwin@littlefalls.net - Contacted on 24 April 2003. Gary enlisted for the
ASA. Took test and was qualified for ditty bop or language
school. Took the language test. Thought that he flunked the test
but instead passed. Attended Russian language school with Joe
Burch and were assigned to Bad Aibling, Germany together. Told me
that Joe Burch is a spitting image of David Brinkley. Shortly
after the Lebonese crisis began he and Joe found themselves on
orders to Turkey. More later about Gary Irwin.
MURRAY, Nelson (Butch), DOB:
5JA38, RA17548390, E3-E5, 059, Det 27, JN60-JL62, (Sandy), 18126
Dove Field Ln., Cypress, TX 77433, 281-855-4255, nmurraymx@hotmail.com
I was fresh out of college with no ROTC and couldn't get a job
because of my age and the certain upcoming draft, so I decided to
join the army and get that behind me. I enlisted in the ASA and
took basic training at Ft Hood, Texas. There I met Chuck
Teschker, and we both went to Fort Devens and attended the same
059 course and then went to Turkey together. Like many other
BIO's I've read, my first memory of Turkey was from the back of a
deuce and ½ at night, stopping twice for livestock crossing the
road. I did enjoy my Tour of Duty at Manzarali and now in my old
age enjoy trying to remember the names of those who were part of
my life in the early 1960's. I sorta recall that the first
commander at Det 27 was a Lt Col and that he was replaced by a
Full Colonel who was a Bataan Death March Survivor. The Full
Colonel had a boot fettish or so it seemed to us. He held one
inspection where we had to stand on one foot, then the other one,
so that he could inspect the condition of our combat boots. One
of the Trick Officers was a ROTC 2nd Lieutenant named Freddie
Frye. I remember playing basketball against Freddie one night and
he took exception to the style of play we all seemed to enjoy.
Elbows were not supposed to be part of the game I guess. He was a
good sport about it any-way. The gym had just been built and
teams were being formed. Somehow I recall playing a pick-up game
with a Phil Kelly who played for the Hq team. I believe that the
shift NCO was a E5 Sgt named Bob Barlow. One time we told him we
were having trouble receiving and thought it might be birds on
the wires in the antenna field. I was told later that he went out
to the antenna field to investigate our excuse! I remember a 058
from Missouri that had cut a tendon on one of his hands, but he
could still pound the mill. Classmate Charlie Kinderman, me and
another guy whose name I can't recall drove two cars from St.
Louis to Ft. Devens in 33 hours non-stop one Christmas and just
made it to class Monday morning. Other guys that I remember
working with were Don Norris from Silver Springs, MD., George
Myrick (from Mississippi), Harvey Vlack, Harold Robins, Jim
Spinney (from Ipswich, MA), Jim Krogstad (from Minnesota), Vic
Pryor and my wild boar hunting buddy - Bob (Turk) Armstrong. Turk
had a handlebar mustache and was always twisting it. Turk and I
hunted together for about 16 months and killed enough Russian
black boar during that period to open a meat market (actually
Armstrong and I can't come up with a total number as it's been
too long ago), and very little of the meat was ever wasted. We
had BBQ's and always had a list to whom we could give the meat to
and they were always eager to get on the list. We got to know the
area quite well and the local farmers were always glad to see us
as the hogs were pests to their crops, especially the sugar
beets. Once we ran out of money and needed gas for the deuce ½
to get us back to Manzarali. One of our Turk acquaintance got in
touch with the local banker and he loaned us enough lira to get
back and we re-paid him on our next trip. On our very last
hunting trip we killed 17 boar. Our friend Mr. Kennedy was kind
enough to extend my stay at Manzarali an additional six months,
so many of us that helped open the operations facility were able
to end our military career when we arrived back in the U.S. at
the end of our hitch. After signing all of the final papers and
getting my final pay, we all went our separate ways. I've lost
touch with most of those guys. Has anyone heard from Ken Chittim
who was assigned to Sinop (originally from Newcastle, WY I think)
or Don Norris from Silver Springs, MD? After my discharge on 4
July 1962 I went back to Missouri to visit my folks for a few
weeks, then on to Denver where I had planned to work and live. My
first job was with Montgomery Wards, but I soon started a career
in the oil business, initially with Exxon in Montana and North
Dakota. After being caught out in a blizzard and having to
attempt driving about 30 miles without seeing the hood ornament
on my car, I left good ole North Dakota and moved my family to
Kansas City where I began a 25 year career with Conoco in St.
Louis, Missouri as a sales representative, then moved to the
Houston, Texas headquarters for a 14-year stretch and several
different positions, all in Marketing. In 1989, my wife Sandy and
I were transferred from Houston to the Denver area where we lived
in Castle Rock, Colorado. We both worked at Conoco in South
Denver until I got an early retirement package in June 1992.
Sandy
continued working for Conoco. In order to stay busy, I started an
ad specialty business which kept me out of trouble for a few
years. Then, in 1998, Sandy decided to end her 23-year career
with Conoco, so we sold our home and moved to the Mexican village
of Ajijic, 40 minutes SE of Guadalajara, for three years. This
was a marvelous experience, and we were reluctant to leave, but
we had been receiving a lot of pressure from our two sons to
"come home." So May 1, 2002, we left Mexico and
purchased a new home in Cypress, Texas so that we can be close to
our family. We have enjoying catching up on the activities of our
busy sons, nieces, and their families. It looks like we will be
here for a while, so it would be great to hear from any of the
guys I worked with at Det 27 before leaving in July of 1962.
Thanks for sending the ASA patch and the XL teal golf shirt. We
had hoped to make the 2002 reunion at Hershey, but had just moved
from Mexico to Houston and were recovering and setting up a new
homestead. I've had several heart operations and presently am
undergoing prostrate testing, etc.. I would really would like for
us all to get together at 7 Springs and set up a tape recorder so
that what we remember can be reported in the DAYS OF OUR LIVES
and inserted into the Memory Book. I'm sure that such a
get-together would cause each of us to remember long ago
forgotten parts of our aging lives. I would like to get a copy of
anything that you put together, especially contact names and
info. Hope to see you in the future. Thank you for all that you
are doing to make this happen.
RIEDY, Richard D., DOB: 5OC36, RA19549080, E-4, 965.1676 (Turk Interpreter), Det 4, OC57-MR59, 260 Gensen Drive SW, Los Lunas, NM 87031, 505-865-3874, burada@earthlink.net - Elder Green: Great talking to you yesterday. RE: DOOL #112: Marshall Stockstill remembers the guardhouse being on the left side of the road and for a very good reason, whereas I remember it on the right. Perhaps there was really one on either side of the road which makes even better sense. But what really puzzled me is the dispensary, of which I thought I had absolutely no memory. Stockstill, however, having spent time there, would have an all too real memory and incontrovertible evidence of its existence. But I now recall an incident having to do with the EM club that did involve medics (see below). Even so, the curious thing about this is that we had two Turkish professionals on contract and call: one was Dr. Nejati at the Sinop Province State Hospital, the other a dentist whose name I've blotted from memory.. During my time at Sinop I was involved in several medical emergencies, including one of my own. The worst of these was a PFC from the motor pool who had a horrible case of hemorrhoids. I was called in the middle of the night to get hold of Dr. Nejati. When he arrived we were taken to a Jamesway hut where this PFC was writhing with pain. I and one of the guy's hut mates had to hold him down while Nejati examined him. I've never seen anything like that before or since. A mass of these things were protruding like inch to two inch stalagmites. Nejati had to push them back in one by one with the poor guy screaming and shouting. In my own case, I had severe bronchitis that apparently went into walking pneumonia, and I was treated downtown at the hospital. Also it was Dr. Nejati who took care of me when I came close to a nervous breakdown and he arranged to have me sent to the USAF hospital in Ankara for a "rest." I don't recall the gorgeous 1st Lt. nurse Stockstill mentions, but I wonder if he or anyone remembers that incredibly beautiful Turkish nurse, Gulhan, a dead ringer for Elizabeth Taylor. I proposed to her every day for the week I was there. She just laughed. I was in the ward for the "walking wounded," so to speak, mostly alcoholics, some of whose wives snuck them in bottles of vodka. Which they shared with the rest of us. It was the biggest hoot I ever had in a hospital. My experience with the dentist in Sinop has never been forgotten. I had an impacted wisdom tooth that was killing me so bad I couldn't wait until they could get me up to Ankara. The dentist was a short, fat man of Armenian origin whose office was on Sinop's main street. His equipment was right out of the 19th century, consisting of a chair like a barber's chair and a rickety Rube Goldberg drill that was made go by a series of cords attached to a huge flywheel pumped by foot. Having examined me, he took dental pliers and started pulling. No novocaine. When he couldn't get the tooth out, and I was bleeding all over myself, believe it or not, he got up and knelt on my knees in order to get better leverage and managed to break the tooth and get most of the fragments out. Also damaging a tooth next to the one that came out (with consequences several years later) and chipping a front tooth in the process. He stuffed some "pamuk" (cotton) into the hole, and that was it. I was never called on to escort anyone else to the dentist, so possibly mine was a unique experience. At least I hope it was. As I told you on the phone, I was never in the NCO club. But I was pretty involved with the EM club (I still have my membership card, signed by David Collins, Secretary) and got to know the Turkish contractor, Mr. Kerestecioglu from Samsun, when the club was rebuilt in 1958. Kerestecioglu was a real character and an expert in so-called mosaic floors, which turned out to be nothing more than gravel thrown into the concrete and then ground off smooth. We had a lot of trouble with the rebuilding as the subcontractor in Sinop tried to foist off low grade uncured lumber and other materials on us. Some of the trusses for the roof were so warped all we could was laugh when they were unloaded off the truck. And the guy still insisted they were perfectly good and could be used. I became good friends with Dave Cross, from Dallas, Texas, who was the manager of the club. If you were a friend of Dave's, you could stay on at the club after it closed and party in his office. NCO's were, however, in and out of the EM club. I particularly remember one occasion, some holiday. That afternoon some NCO's brought a huge soup pot down from the mess hall and filled it with a very high proof alcohol (denatured?) and grape soda. Mugs were dropped into it and you had to stick your hand in and pull a mug out. Somebody shouted not to drink that stuff, you'd go blind. But a lot of guys did drink it; I did. When I left the club, I saw a couple of guys lying passed out face down on the ground. Dave Cross told me that one guy had gone temporarily blind and was found stumbling around outside, and the MEDICS had to grab him. And that's the only reference I can make to medics at Det 4.
SPINNEY, Jim, DOB: 28JA39, RA-can't remember!, E3-E5, 059, Det 27, AP60-JL62, (never married), 15 Middle Rd., Ipswich, MA 01938, 978-356-2346, viviane@attbi.com (cable).