Posted by Dick Stephenson on May 27, 2003:

Flay goodswin was an Army football teammate, a West Point, Class of 1957 classmate, and a very solid man. Not a man of many words, yet a man of most impressive deeds, both on and off the football fields of the early 1950's. His quiet demeanor always put the noisiest of us ill at ease,thinking, if not knowing, that Flay was way ahead of us on whatever the topic of conversation might have been. I remember a particularly grim day in Ann Arbor where a not great University of Michigan football team pretty much tossed the Army team out of the stadium. Flay and I were on the defensive line and in pursuit of a play toward the opposite end of the line of scrimmage, when Terry Barr, a michigan halfback, broke loose and scored almost as if there had been no opposition at all. Flay looked at me and I looked at him and we both said, pretty much in unison, "...how the hell did that happen...". This was bad enough, in itself, but we repeated it to each other about ten times under very similar circumstances that very day. When the game finally came to a merciful end, we once more looked at each other and again, said those six words. Flay then said,"... well, I guess we will learn the answer Sunday morning when we see the film...", adding, "...I really don't want to see the game film, the game itself was enough!" Not too many words, but they cut to the quick of the moment. The Goowin family's loss is one we share with them. When Flay came back for the annual football golf outing and cook-out a couple of years back, it meant a lot to those of us that had not seen him for some time. We encouraged him to return, and actually play the next year, but he demurred, saying that he had been to one, had had fun visiting, but would not be back again. Again to the point. The few remaining football lettermen of the Class of 1957 offer our sincerest condolences, sympathies, and the continued blessings of life we all shared with Flay Goodwin, and that we will share until our days have come and gone as well. Well done, Flay, and God's Speed!

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