| On Sunday, 10 March 2002, the dedication
of the memorial to all 38 of the Caribou men killed in Vietnam took
place. This day was the culmination of a Herculean effort by Bob
Dugan, Bob Markham, and Jim Collier, which took several years to bring to
fruition.
The day's events started with a brunch at the Dyess AFB Officers Club. After dining, the honorees of the dedication assembled outside for a group photo. We then proceeded by bus to the site of the Caribou display where the memorial plaque is located. Bob Dugan started off the ceremony by requesting the posting of the colors by the Honor Guard provided by Dyess. Bob Davis lead the group in a prayer, the singing of the National Anthem, and the Pledge of Allegiance. As Jim Collier and Bob Markham unveiled the memorial plaque, Bob Davis read off the names of all 38 of our fallen brothers. Don "Tiny" Malm arranged for a flyby of three WWII aircraft, which provided the traditional missing man formation. The podium was then turned over to General Eugene Habiger (Retired and one of our own), who gave a brief but very moving speech. Bob Davis then ended the formal ceremony with an equally moving closing benediction. We gathered the honorees once more in front of the aircraft for additional photos and then got the entire group to pose in front of the aircraft for photos. The aircraft was then opened to allow all to tour the inside. Finally, the local TV station in Abilene had a short piece on the 10:00 PM news in which Jim Collier became a television personality! On Saturday, 9 March, we gathered at the Lytle Ranch in Abilene for an old-fashioned West Texas barbeque, complete with brisket, beans, potato salad, cole slaw, and lots of fun. I am a little light on photos of the barbeque, so if anyone has any they would like posted, let your webmaster know. A list of the men who were honored at the ceremony can be found here. |