Posted by BGen Ramon M. Ong (Ret) on May 6, 2006:

Bob was a star man. One of my goals at West Point was to be his classroommate, meaning to sit in the same classroom or Section as Bob. Sitting in the same Section automatically meant that my grades were similar to Bob's for that subject. I rarely achieved that goal because Bob was always 1st Section and I was usually 2nd Section. But I made 1st Section enough times to be able to know what Bob looked like. Except PE Class. Bob and I were in the same size category so we were often pitted against each other. But he outweighed me by 20 lbs and had a much longer reach. Suffice it to say that our intimate moments together in the boxing ring are not part of the happiest memories of my stay at West Point. His quick jab was almost as good as his right hook. If there is anything I distinctly recall about Bob was his eagerness to study and learn more. Some star men I know studied rarely. They were smart enough to devote little time to books and still ace all the exams. Not Bob. He was always studying and reading something, as if he really wanted to absorb as much knowledge as he could. I am sure that trait stood him well in later life. Bob and I parted ways on Graduation Day and we never saw each other again. He served his country and I served mine. I never learned what happened to him until I got hold of a copy of the Register of Graduates 2000 and his name was there among those who had left us. Goodbye, Bob! Be thou at peace. Ray Brigadier General Ramon M. Ong (Ret) Armed Forces of the Philippines

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