Leonard Matthews Finley

West Point, 1975

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by Ronald Janowski on February 20, 2019:

Matt was a significant friend and though I haven't seen him in many years, I already miss him. Matt and I were Artillerymen together in Germany. He was my battery commander and I was his XO. It was Matt's first command in the spring of 1979 but his natural leadership seemed to deny his need for a conventional learning curve. Although I never saw Matt play lacrosse at the Academy, where he was a year ahead of me, I can easily visualize his moves on the field simply by remembering his command style: gliding, focused, and suddenly -- almost violently -- direct when the goal was near. I can also see him maneuvering and constructing an innovative action while on the move and seamlessly directing others into a successful attack. As Matt had preceded me as the XO of the same battery, there was the reality for me that he knew my job far better than I did in the beginning. Yet Matt allowed for me to work my way into the role, all the time teaching and leading me in my own leadership growth. Supremely confident and demanding, he nevertheless always had a sense of humor just below the surface ready to break the tension. I recall his briefing me on the battery's expected actions if we faced being overrun in our Fulda Gap wartime position. He soberly outlined how a single howitzer would remain in position to provide covering fire as the bulk of the unit would flee the area. The reality of the covering fire was stark as the M109's muzzle velocity in direct fire mode against Soviet frontal armor would, at most, give nothing more than headaches to the swarming T62s. As we both mulled over the rather bleak scenario, Matt suddenly brightened and said that on the plus side my job as XO would be significantly simplified in the event of a Russian onslaught. Caught off guard, I asked why that would be. "Because," he grinned, "You would be in charge of the cover-fire howitzer!" I left Germany the following summer and never saw Matt again. Yet the examples shown and the lessons learned while serving with Matt have sustained me to this day, and I am, I believe, a better person for it. I truly mourn Matt's passing and I sincerely send condolences to his family. But I also believe that I am not alone in my debt to Matt and that viewed in whole all of us who served with Matt cannot help but be a legacy both significant and worthy of his memory. Godspeed, Matt, and be thou at peace. - Ron Janowski, USMA '76

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