Posted by FREDERICK BOTHWELL III on April 1, 2018:

Our G-1 classmate Marcial David "Sammy" Samaniego entered West Point at the advanced age of 20; the son of the Minister of Defense of Paraguay and with three years of prior experience as a cadet at the Paraguayan Military Academy. Unlike many of us he was no stranger to daily life in a regimented military environment, which served him well in his relationship to the Tactical Department. He was to become the first officer in the Paraguayan Army to graduate from West Point, and was proud of that fact throughout his life of service to his country. During Plebe year at West Point Sam was expected to respond to upperclass inquiries that he was from "Faraway Paraguay." It was indeed far away: in distance, in culture, and in requiring Sam to meet the challenges of West Point in a foreign language. Yet he faced every obstacle at the Military Academy with humor and good grace, earning a Major A as a member of the soccer team. A teammate remembers him on the field of friendly strife as "a happy, quiet personality. Always smiling, always courteous, and a very fast runner moving the ball up field towards the goal." In his four years on the banks of the Hudson Sam earned the affection and respect of his teammates, his classmates, and the Corps of Cadets, not only as a friend with a constant smile, but as a mentor to underclassmen who were also native Spanish-speakers -- recognizing plebes from the Philippines as well as Latin America - for whom English was a second (or third) language. Those who benefited from his recognition went on to sustain his legacy of welcoming friendship to new foreign cadets long after our graduation. As his Howitzer entry notes, "Sam left the warmth of the South American sun to become a member of the cold grey line. His aggressiveness on the soccer field was carried over to his endeavors on every-day cadet life. His presence at West Point did more for Paraguay-U.S. relations than a host of diplomats could have done." Sam enjoyed a long and distinguished career in the service of his country following our graduation. Initially assigned to the staff of the Paraguayan Military Academy for a four year tour of duty, he returned to the US for graduate school and attained an advanced degree at Texas A&M University in 1969. He enjoyed the hospitality of Paraguayan-American friends in the area during his time spent in Texas. Upon completion of his studies in the United States he returned to Paraguay and was assigned to the Paraguayan Army Corps of Engineers. There he held positions of increasing responsibility for over a decade, attending the Paraguayan National War College in 1981 and ultimately attaining the position of Director of Military Industries in 1989. In his graduation address to us in 1962 President John F. Kennedy had told our class "...the demands that will be made upon you in the service of your country in the coming months and years will be really more pressing, and in maany ways more burdensome, as well as more challenging, than ever before in our history." That was as true for Sam in Paraguay as it was for those of us who confronted other demands in other places. In 1990 Sam was assigned to the most challeging responsibility of his career. While still serving in the Paraguayan Army as a Brigadier General on active duty he was named as the head of the newly created National Anti-Drug Secretariat of Paraguay (SENAD.) The agency was created with the collaboration of the United States to support an international fight against drug-trafficking. The primary objective at the outset was establishing surveillance and intelligence strategies at a national level in Paraguay. Sam held this critical leadership position in the formative years of the organization until his retirement from the military in 1993, having proudly served his country in uniform for over thirty years. As a civilian, he continued his selfless national service to his country for another year in a highly responsible position: Undersecretery of Defense. He continued throughout his life to attend West Point reunions with his lovely wife Mercedes and their chidren, renewing and retaining the bonds of friendship with classmates he had not seen in years. He also offered warm hospitality in Paraguay to visiting classmates and USMA exchange cadets attending the Military Academy in Asuncion. Sam died on March 24, 2015 and was laid to rest in the vast and historic Recoleta Cemetery in Asuncion. Full military honors were rendered by color bearers, including the Paraguayan national flag and the United States flag, escorted by U.S. military personnell and West Point alumni. In a press interview conducted in 2007, Sam said he was very proud to belong to the Long Gray Line, and that it was an honor for him and for Paraguay that he graduated from West Point. Sammy holds a special place in our hearts. We will always remember his smile and having him for a classmate, friend, and teammate -- "a very fast runner moving the ball up the field towards the goal."

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