Posted by Palmer McGrew on July 25, 2017:

Slightly foggy memory of this, but I think that toward the end of Beast or at the beginning of the academic term, a bunch of plebes were invited to meet our "Plebe Pop" in his quarters. We quickly learned that we were all sons of JAGs. If anyone knows that this is not so, please ignore it. I'll live on in my delusion. LTC John Baker was an assistant or associate Head of the law department and invited all the JAG beasts he could identify to have a warm and friendly place to go. He was a great plebe pop, as was his lovely wife, Jean, the daughter of Col Gillette of the Chemistry department. In Beast you didn't really meet anyone. Well, you did but superficially only except of your roommates. So suddenly meeting a bunch of classmates who had similar backgrounds was exciting and comforting. It was important during plebe year to know you were not fighting the battle alone. Ash and I were two of that group. I don't remember everyone in it, but Ash, being about 8 feet tall, was unforgettable. We continued to take advantage of the Bakers' quarters, which was always open to us. We watched football games in TV, for example. Jean was always fattening us up with delicious stuff from her kitchen. Over time we needed less babying and had other outlets so we drifted away from the Bakers and each other, but every time I came into contact with one of them we both realized we were part of the Baker team. And I was in the same half regiment with Ash so we had many classes together. Ash was a gentle giant, and it was my privilege to know him and share good times at the Baker quarters.

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