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William Childs Westmoreland
West Point, 1936
Be Thou At Peace
Posted by Stan Graff on May 28, 2025:
In the 90s I was travelling much of the time and would be put in 1st Class on Delta. One trip before taking off I was sitting across from some old man who was wearing a West Point ring. I went over to him and said, "Sir, I think you and I graduated from the same school. (I was class'72) He smiled looking up at me and said, "Hello, I'm William Westmoreland," sticking out his hand. He then added, "Why don't you sit next to me."
For the next hour I sat there talking to him like we were old friends. He was so kind and forgave me my "Brave-before-June" attitude.
I told him at one point that I had recently read Thunderbolt, by Lewis Sorley, about General Creighton Abrams. I added that he (Westmoreland) wasn't described in a very positive light. General Westmoreland laughed...and added, "Well Stan, there are always two sides to every story." He informed me that I should get his autobiography which would be coming out soon. What a great sense of humor.
I asked him where he was headed. He said he had been requested to give a talk to a Veteran's group. He added, "You know, I feel I owe it to the troops to join them whenever they would like me to visit."
Prior to that airplane ride, I was not impressed with General Westmoreland. By the time we landed, I had an entirely different point of view. He was a nice person, a Great Captain, and a great American. It was an honor to spend those few minutes getting to know him, something I shall never forget.
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