William W. Schooley

West Point, 1951

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by Seldon B. Graham, Jr. on December 8, 2007:

Bill Schooley, Paul Niedringhaus and I were room mates during Beast Barracks. We all got to know each other very well during that ordeal. I have always thought the world of both Bill and Paul. Bill was always a little in awe about how I could predict what the upperclassmen would do next. I remember vividly one incident when I told Bill we had all better turn our coat hangers so that the hooks face inward. We had no sooner done that when: BANG! The frightening announcement that a Firstie was about to swing open the door. A Firstie from the Beast Detail came into the room, and for the first time, the occupants of our room did not get chewed out. He looked into our clothes closets and said, "Good, your hangers are O.K." and left the room. Bill asked me how in blazes did I know that was about to happen. I am not sure that I ever told Bill that my best buddy in Infantry OCS, John Olin Bates. was then a Yearling and had briefed me in detail as to what had happened to him the year before. When academics started and we moved into our permanent companies, I did not get to see or associate with Bill and Paul as much as I wanted to. Upon graduation, we went separate ways. Bill Schooley was a great guy. I regret that our paths did not cross more often.

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