David Drew Gilpatrick

West Point, 1955

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by James E. Drummond on December 22, 2011:

Dave was easily the smartest guy in F-1; consequently, the "make list" took him away from us and put him on the Brigade Staff as a first-classman. He was a super company mate, always ready to help those in academic trouble and a superb mentor. I deeply admired his intellect, his leadership and his military acumen. Following graduation, the next time I ran into him was in Saigon. We were both majors; he was in the G3 shop at MAC-V Headquarters, working for MG Bill DePuy and I was a District Advisor in the IVth Vietnamese Corps and in the city for a supply-scrounging mission. He wanted badly to get out of the headquarters and into a recon unit, preferrably in the "Big Red One", 1st Division (when his boss, General DePuy, took command. Unfortunately, to get that assignment which was a real plum, he had to extend for six months.) Well, he did stay in Vietnam but it was costly and he was badly wounded. He took me to the top of the Rex Hotel for dinner that night. It turned out the Rex was the "Royal Court" of all the unhappy captains and majors who arrived to fight the war and then got pulled, screaming, kicking and biting, into staff assignments in Headquarters jobs. I didn't see him again for nearly twenty years when he was doing studies and analyses for a Beltway Bandit. God Bless you, Dave; you were a faithful warrior.

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