Next Drill Weekend - May 2024 Lake Geneva?

Joe Brooks and I are exploring a drill site for Det 4 in the Chicago area in May, 2024. A personal recon of the AO shows that the Grand Geneva Resort and Spa at Lake Geneva grandgeneva.com would be a suitable CP for this drill. The place has two decent chow halls and and two bars. Also has 36 holes on two golf courses, shops and a spa.

Joe is looking into area restaurants and boat dinner cruises. There is also an entertaining private league baseball team (the Milkmen) that play nearby as well as the Brewers or Cubs. Might be easier to deal with MKE traffic than Chicago. 

I’m sure that Billy Mitchell Airport in Milwaukee would be easier to fly into than ORD. The idea of using Lake Geneva is to see some of our surviving colleagues from 2/24 and its respective companies and the air types from Glencoe. I think 2/24 is now relocated but we could try to get a report from that unit.

We have a sales person wanting to work with us from the resort but we need some guidance:

(1) Is there an interest in this drill?; and, 

(2) Do the dates 10-12 May 2023 work for everyone? (The12th is Mother’s Day if that matters)  If not, do the dates 3-5 May work?

Let us know your thoughts on this.    

S/F

Joe Brooks and Larry Anderson

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Sounds good to me. I'll be there, Lord willin', and the creek don't rise.

WILKES

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Marines,

Sounds wonderful, CondiNest ranks it second in Midwest.  

(Only behind my old house in Griffith, IN.

Sarah/Sally and I are attending, The God Lord willing.

At BWI at moment, nothing conflicts in my phone.

Will check more upon getting back to quarters.

Interrogative, even though we always Drilled on weekend is there some unintended consequence(s), or problem with drilling during one of the weeks?

Love y’all.

S/F,

Ivan/Zim

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Good point, Ivan. No magic to the weekend for most of us. And some places might be cheaper during the week.  Why don't we expand the discussion to include the weekdays between the two weekends?  Either weekend and also the weekdays in between work for us. We prefer the second weekend but will come on either one and/or during the week.

This is a great location.  

S / F

Craig

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Great idea.  Being retired, every day is a Saturday and every night is Friday night.

Lynn Wardlow

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Craig/Ivan make a great point (even if they are zoomies) weekdays with kids still in school would definitely be cheaper and it's not like any of us have "critical work issues" anymore.  I vote for the week between suggested dates.

S/F Mac

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Ivan / Homan / Braun are Zoomies.

Woz, Craig Wood RIP, Eric Bennet, Jim Bailey and I are commo's and worked for a living.

We tell the grunts and zoomies what to do, when to do it, and where to go!

Craig

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So Craig are you under the illusion that we listened 

Byron

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No! No illusions that the grunts and zoomies paid any attention.

Funny story. Drew and I came up with the bright idea to tell TBS Lieutenants about the Marine Reserves. Drew and I were at Quantico for Command and Staff College. 

Most of us did not know anything about the Reserves when we were on active duty.  When I got off active duty I grew my beard and started college.  After a few months I decided to look into the Reserves and went to Glenview. I had a full beard, and I saw a Captain in the hall. I told him I used to be a Marine Lieutenant and did they have any Reserve jobs for a commo.  He said no. I had no idea there was a Comm Squadron near my home!  Almost missed my Marine Reserve career.

Drew and I contacted TBS and volunteered our services for a presentation.

The RLU Col went high and to the right. He caught us at some reception and fired us up! How dare we do this without clearing it with him! He was afraid that the active duty would think this was an effort to steal Lieutenants from the active forces to the Reserves.  Pretty stupid, but he was wound up.

I was apologizing and genuflecting.  Not Drew. He fires up the Col. Great fight!  The dispute went up to the General level, and we were permitted to make our pitch to TBS. 

The RLU Colonel told us our presentation would be closely monitored and we had better watch it. No stealing from the active duty ranks.

They added a Zoomie presentor to Drew and I. He was a CH-46 pilot with two silver stars.

The Zoomie pitched the zoomie business and Drew pitched the grunts. I talked about the air control, comm elec, and electronic warfare units. We told them about Reserve units, how to get a Reserve job, where the units were, and to consider joining the Reserves if they decided against an active duty career.

I used my line about commo's telling the grunts and zoomies what to do and where to go. Got a good response. 

I think those Lieutenants learned much more about the Reserves than we ever knew while we were on active duty. I think it likely we got some good officers in the Reserves.

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Interested but too early to say dates work.

Ken Morey,33,PP

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Larry/Joe great job...this location looks outstanding.  Either weekend works for Sue and I; Sunday Mothers Day Brunch at this location will be very busy.  We will most likely drive, but MKE is a superior option to ORD.

S/F Mac 

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Sounds good to me so far, but Mother's Day is out.

Lynn Wardlow

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Gents,

Thanks for the planning…Lake Geneva is a wonderful spot…we have both weekends on our calendar, but prefer the 10th-12th as 3rd Battalion 5th Marines reunion is the following weekend and it would be nice to wrap the trips together

Byron

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June & I are in for, during week, Grand Geneva dates…

Comments: MLK is better than ORD but be careful you don’t connect thru ORD!

Last time I played golf there rate is over $100 but Retired/Military rate was $30 cart fee 

James Homan Col USMC (ret)

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Sounds good, but I am unable to travel. 

Semper Fi

Jim Bailey

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I would love to attend in Lake Geneva, however, I cannot predict if we will be able to attend.  Jack is still recovering from pancreatitis, et al, that started 15 July 2022. Hopefully final surgery scheduled for next week. 

Thanks for the invite.

AliceMarie Joralemon-Strong

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Joanne and I are good for the first week/weekend of May. 

I get to drop off my youngest son at O’Hare tomorrow morning for the first leg of his PCS to Okinawa.  They have changed the tour length from the 12 months when I did it in ’86 to 36 months for him.

 

Semper Fi!  

 

Terry Sebold

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Hey Marines,

The 10-12 May dates would work for us but the weekdays following would be even better. We have our Grandson’s high school graduation Sunday 19 May in Wheaton, IL so we wouldn’t be able to make the Reunion if it was that weekend.

Semper Fi,

Woz & Linda

More info about the resort at:  https://www.grandgeneva.com/

Jo Ann Wilkes Rest in Peace.

Today has been the saddest day of my life. After over 8 months of battling Leukemia and fearing this day, I still was not ready for it, At 1330 hours today my Beautiful, smart, and sweet wife died in my arms.

After me surviving over the loss of my parents and all my siblings, as well as very many dear friends, I know that I will probably somehow survive this, but right now I can’t imagine how. We were married for 57 years, six months, and 10 days. I don’t know what I will do without her. Many thanks to all of you for your love and support.

All my love,

John Wilkes

Friday, June 14, 2023 at Zaagman Memorial Chapel, 2800 Burton St. S.E., Grand Rapids, MI.

Visitation 10:00 am, Funeral service 11:00 am Burial after at Woodlawn Cemetery. 

Please forward to anyone who might be interested. Obituary is on Zaagman's web site and below: www.zaagman.com

John Wilkes

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Jo Ann Westover Wilkes was born in Grand Rapids on December 5. 1946 to Ruth and Theodore Westover. She grew up attending Dickinson School, Burton Junior High, South high for a short time, and graduated from Mount Mercy Academy in 1965. 

She first met her husband John when she was only sixteen on a big sail boat in Lake Michigan. He thought she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. After her graduation from Mount Mercy, his graduation from Vanderbilt University, and his acceptance by the Marine Corps to muster into Officer Candidate School at Quantico, Virginia, they decided to marry. 

Once the decision was made, there was little time to plan a wedding before his reporting date of January 6, 1966. Consequently the wedding took place on New Year’s Day. They had a short honeymoon in the nation’s capitol before a friend of John’s took Jo Ann to the airport to fly home and then took John to Quantico making it before his deadline by minutes. The couple could not see each other for three months until she traveled to Quantico for his commissioning as a Marine 2nd lieutenant. 

Jo Ann was a wonderful military wife throughout his five years of active duty and 26 years as an active reserve officer. She was a very talented seamtress making sure his uniforms always fitted perfectly with the appropriate creases. John always claimed to be a good Field Marine, but Jo Ann always kept him out of trouble as a Garrison Marine. She even functioned as his barber. 

In the beginning, it was financially difficult on a lieutenant’s salary. During Officer’s Basic School, she had to spend every winter’s day from dawn to dark in a rundown unfurnished apartment with only John’s German Sheppard to keep her company, but she never complained, and always made the best of it. Somewhere along the line she took up embroidery, knitting, and crocheting and greatly excelled at all of those endeavors. She completed many beautiful projects many of which are framed and still hanging magnificently in her beautiful house. 

Things improved slightly when John was promoted and sent to the State Department’s Vietnamese language school. During the summer and fall of 1967, they lived in a furnished efficiency apartment on the seventh floor of a Dupont Circle high rise, but two people and a big dog were not crowed enough. She purchased a little Silky Terrier puppy, which later started a several years hobby of breeding, raising and showing, Silky Terriers. Eventually the last Silky Terrier died, but she has always been a devoted mother to John’s big dogs, a succession that has lasted up to the present with their 85 pound Dingo. This was probably facilitated by the sad realization that she was not able to bear children, and again she made the best of it. 

While John was in Viet Nam in 1968 and 69, Jo Ann took courses in history and biology at Grand Rapids Junior College and did volunteer work at Blodgett Hospital. When John returned he was accepted to Vanderbilt Law School, so they headed back to Nashville. Jo Ann immediately got a job as a secretary for the Methodist Publishing House to help pay the very expensive bills. Again she excelled at the secretarial skills needed and during the three years of law school and subsequent seven years of John’s law practice in Nashville. She had increasingly fruitful legal secretary jobs with the Tennessee Department of Insurance, one of the biggest and most prestigious Nashville law firms, and even secretary to the Governor of Tennessee for two years. Finally it was not necessary for her to work to pay the bills, and she decided to be her husband’s executive secretary. 

During her time in Nashville, she also became very active with their St, James Episcopal Church and its congregation. Fresh out of law school in 1973, John learned to fly and received a pilot’s license. Jo Ann also decided to take flying lessons. She did very well and after fifteen hours of dual training, she was released to fly solo. But she turned it down, because she said the only reason she took lessons in the first place was to be able to land the airplane if John became incapacitated for any reason. 

Around 1980, John decided to leave the law practice to take the position of general counsel of a local international airline, which initiated his new career as an airline executive. He had always maintained a side career as an active reserve Marine officer. His new career as an airline executive took them back to Michigan, then to Ireland, then to Waco, Texas, then to the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Jo Ann loved Ireland. After being there 24 months with only a couple of weeks back in the states to help care for her dying father, she was still reluctant to leave. 

Jo Ann was always ready to support John with every kind of support he needed. He never could have succeeded in all his endeavors without her unfaltering help. As they gradually became retired they both became active in the United States Sail & Power Squadron (recreational boating), and the Civil Air Patrol (US Air Force Auxiliary), both of which required a complete new set of uniforms for Jo Ann to maintain. When John decided to become an author, Jo Ann became his typist, amazingly precise proof reader, and best critic for creating his novels. 

Finally the retired couple returned to Park Township, a suburb of Holland, Michigan in 2007 to be close to their families and the beautiful summers. They lived seasonally between their two houses for several years but finally sold the Gulf Coast house when Jo Ann grew weary of traveling back and forth. 

Early in life, as it was with every endeavor she attempted, Jo Ann also became an outstanding cook. Her potato salad, for example, was legendary amongst her family and friends. She also loved to work on the grounds around her beautiful home which she kept immaculate in spite of one of her husband’s ever present large dogs. 

In recent months, with the onset of the terrible Leukemia, Jo Ann remained stoic with tremendous courage to the very last. She was, and will always be, greatly loved by her husband and siblings, all of which have survived her, and all of which say Jo Ann was her father’s favorite – sisters Kandee VanBelois of Jacksonville, North Carolina, Carolynn Maternowski of Edwardsburg, Michigan, Cathylynn Estes of Grand Rapids, Michigan, and brother, Theodore Westover of Saranac, Michigan. She is already incredibly missed by all. Visitation will be Friday July 14, 2023 from 10:00 am to 11:00 am at Zaagman Memorial Chapel, 2800 Burton St. SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546. A funeral service will follow at 11:00 am.

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John - we share your grief - May the Angels lead Jo Ann into Paradise! And May God continue to give you strength and grace to deal with your loss. We ask this through Christ- Our Lord - Amen

Love and Prayers

Larry + Medy Magilligan

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So very sorry, John.  You and Jo Ann and your family are in our thoughts and prayers.

Semper Fi

Beth and Craig Hullinger

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I am so sorry to hear that Jo Ann has passed.  Especially from such a terrible disease.

I can only express my condolences and sympathy.  

I wish for the best for you.

Tom Olsen

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John, our prayers go out for you and your family members.

Barb and Joe Brooks

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John, please accept our deepest condolences on Jo Ann. Our prayers are with you and your family.

Frank Johnson

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Very sad to hear. My condolences. 

Robert L. Hudon Jnr.

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John,

Please accept our sincere condolences on the loss of your beautiful wife. May she rest in peace 

Byron & Janet Hill

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John 

I guess Jo Ann is back on her main mission watching over you full time! You are in our thoughts and prayers, Brother!

Love 

Jim & June

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John, 

May God be with you as you grieve this loss, rest in peace Jo Ann.

Greg & Sue McLaughlin

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John, 

Kay and I send our deepest sympathy and prayers to you on your loss of Jo Ann. May she rest in peace. God Bless.

Will & Kay Holahan

Sgt Major Tomaeno - Rest In Peace - Semper Fi

I regret to inform you that SgtMaj. Joseph Tomaeno Jr., USMC (ret) passed away after a long illness on Monday, 3 Jul 2023.  SgtMaj. Tomaeno had been 1st Sgt of MWCS-48 and VMGR-234 at NAS Glenview and SgtMaj of 2/24 in Chicago accompanying them to Desert Shield/Desert Storm.  He joined out Corps in Nov 1963 and was sent to Vietnam as an engineer.  He retired on 30 Nov 1993.

Mass will be held on Tuesday 18 Jul 2023, 1000, at St. Peter Damian Catholic Church, 131 S. Crest Ave., Bartlett, Illinois.

Please communicate this information to all Marines.

Semper Fi,

Bob Dart

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Sgt Major Tamaeno was an outstanding Marine. He was professional and sharp.  He took care of his Marines. And funny and salty, in a good way. He looked great in uniform, with his hash marks nearly touching his Sgt Major Chevrons. The photo on the right is from the internet - his were closer.

He served in two wars - Vietnam and Desert Storm. And his son was mobilized for Desert Storm with him.

Sgt Major Tomaeno had a great story about tanks. He mobilized with 2/24, the Chicago Marine Infantry Battalion. His son was mobilized with him and they were soon in Iraq for the war.

Sgt Major Tomaeno saw a Marine on an Iraqi tank, and yelled "Get off of that tank. You don't know what you are doing. You will get hurt."

The Marine replied, "Son, I do know what I am doing. I am trying to get this running so we can use it." 

Sgt Major Tomaeno noted that there were few Marines in Iraq that could call him son. But the grizzled old Warrant Officer was one of them.

The Warrant Officer said, "The last time I was on one of these tanks was in Korea. But this is the last time. After this I am going to retire."

Semper Fi, Sgt Major

Craig Hullinger

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RIP Sgt Major Tomaeno

Keith Carr

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Craig, thanks for the notification. Much appreciated.

Sadly, with our advancing age these notifications will now become much more frequent.

I plan to be at St. Damian's church.

May the Sergeant Major Rest-In-Peace!

s/f

Bob Raclaw

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Thank you for this notification. We rolled into Kuwait City together a few years ago.

MGySgt Harper

Semper Fi!

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God Bless the SgtMaj., his family 
& friends.

S/F brother Marine….

Ivan Zimmer

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So sorry to hear of Joe Tomaeno’s passing. My favorite time and memory with Joe was at 29 Palms on a CAX. I was the OIC of a small MWCS-48 Detachment of about 28 Marines and Joe, then a Gunny, was my Senior SNCO.

When there was a fatal helicopter crash up on the plateau Joe happened to be at the flight line and he jumped into another chopper to assist the rescue mission anyway he could at the crash site.  That was his heroic moment.

As the year before, our supporting unit was vacating the Expeditionary Air Field (EAF) a day before were to be bussed out of the desert by commercial busses.

Joe got hotel accommodations for us at a Palm Springs motel and we got 2 CH 46 pilots to fly us out of the EAF and to the Palm Springs civilian airport a day before we were scheduled to leave the desert. Joe did an outstanding job organizing and leading the Marines through every evolution on and off the field.

I gained a lot of respect for Joe during that 2 week exercise for his initiative and dedication to duty. That was the start of a relationship we had for many years to come.

Rest in Peace and Semper Fi Marine!

Woz

Ron Wozniak

Good Night, Chesty Puller, Wherever You Are!

 

Good night, Chesty Puller, wherever you are!

Said each night at bedtime in the rack at Boot Camp at Parris Island 1967.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chesty_Puller

https://www.usmcu.edu/Research/Marine-Corps-History-Division/People/Whos-Who-in-Marine-Corps-History/Paige-Russell/Lieutenant-General-Lewis-Chesty-B-Puller/

https://www.military.com/marine-corps/5-reasons-why-chesty-puller-marine-corps-legend.html

Chesty was a 2nd Lieutenant in 1918, reverted to Corporal after the war, Commissioned again in 1924 after heroic service in Haiti. He later served in Nicaragua, China, World War II, and Korea. Awarded five Navy Crosses and One Distinguished Service Cross (Army).

Semper Fi, Chesty!

See the President?

 

So we are at Andrews Air Force Base in DC waiting to catch a flight.  We saw Secret Service everywhere outside the base in their SUV's  The President must be coming in. 

Then I saw Marine 1, the President's helicopter - photos above. I searched for where President Biden is and the internet showed his location. He is flying in from San Francisco, and should be here at Andrews in 30 minutes.  Will see him coming off the plane, I think. Then I suppose he will get on the Marine helicopter and fly to the White House.

Very tight security.  The just went through the terminal with bomb sniffing dogs. I asked a young Secret Service guy if I could take photos of the plane when he came in. He said no.

Later this evening we will board a C-17 to Travis Air Force Base in California. We were going to Germany or England yesterday but the planes were too full.  Going Space A to Europe is tough in the summer when all the kids of the active duty are traveling. They fly first before retirees. So we will try to go to California, then Alaska, then see our daughter in Washington State.

Photos of our earlier flights on a C-17.

Space A Photos

CH-47 inside of a C-17 - The Helo Coming Home From Afghanistan via Rota, Spain.  Thanks to the Army and Air Force for bringing us home. Nice trip. My wife noticed that the Helo was in very poor condition. She asked the Army NCO if they were going to junk it?  "No, he replied. We will fix it up and fly it for 25 more years."

The Head emerges

Shot from the KC-135 refueling position McChord to Travis

Det-4 History / Your Story

Now would be a good time to write your history of and put it online. Some of you other guys are not getting any younger. Your stories can be short and sweet, or the great American novel.

I will post them to https://det4.blogspot.com/ and on https://militaryveteranstories.blogspot.com/

Military Stories

We are collecting stories by and about military personnel. The stories will be posted on: https://militaryveteranstories.blogspot.com/

If you would like to have your story published email your story to Craig Hullinger craighullinger@gmail.com

Your story can be long or short. The story can cover an interesting event or your entire life. You can write about yourself or a friend or relative that you would like to honor.

Pictures are worth a thousand words. You can write the story for a relative, friend, or ancestor. You can add to your story. We look forward to publishing your story on the blog.

We can also post videos to our blog.  If you want to make a video do so and email it to me and I will post it on the blog.

Take a look at the stories to see what people have already written.​ We have quite a few of your stories on this blog - search for your name or the name of a fellow Det member.​

Semper Fi
 

​

Vietnam Was My War - Jim Homan

Recall to Active Duty, Retired Officers

"When an officer retires, their commission normally remains in force and effect forever. In return for the privilege of being legally entitled to being addressed by their military rank and getting all their retirement benefits, they basically remain an "officer of the United States" until death."

"That means that, if there is a recall, the officers can be brought back without an act of Congress or presidential recall"

https://www.military.com/join-military/eligibility-requirements/can-you-really-be-recalled-active-duty-any-time.html

You signed on forever.  And most of us would willingly go back in if needed. Of course, at our age, if the nation needs, we are all in deep trouble.