John Ryan Dennison

West Point, 2004

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by Richard Chudzik on November 22, 2006:

It?s taken me some time now to collect my thoughts and digest the terrible news that I received on November 15, 2006. I still can?t believe that this is really happening. John Dennison was one of my closest friends. He was like a brother to me. I met John in the summer of 2001 at Camp Buckner. He was a member of my Buckner platoon. Little did I know that the friendship we created that summer would last us the rest of our lives. Throughout the entirety of that summer, John and I became close friends. We did everything together. We ended up being shuffled into the same company at the Academy and were together for our last three years there. John was always the glue in that company that held us together. He truly was the man who created the B-1 Boys and forged a bond with us that we will never be able to forget. Anything John did, everyone else wanted to do. I remember spending many nights with John at the Academy arguing political and religious ideologies. I remember skipping out on studying for our SOSH tests our senior year and heading down to the Fireside. I remember the fact that John should?ve been the class First Captain and everyone knew it. I remember calling him John, not Ryan. I remember sacrificing our President?s Day weekend (a big thing to do at the Academy) and trying out for Sapper School with John. I remember how John earned his IOCT tab. I remember my 21st Birthday with John in New Paltz. I remember the fun John and all of the B-1 Boys used to have at LZ Bull and how we were always afraid that we?d get caught. I remember taking care of Nuti and Dave with John after they spent too many hours at the Firstie Club. Most importantly, I remember how John always pushed me and the others around him to want to do more. John?s attitude towards life was infectious to those around him. He was a perfectionist and always encouraged us to want to be better at everything we did. John and I used to compete at everything ? from classroom work to PT. And although he will never be able to hear it from my lips, he was always better than me at everything he put his mind to. I just miss him so much. John would?ve wanted teachers like Dr. Snider and MAJ Sousa to know that they had everlasting impressions on him and that they always encouraged him to be the best. Even after the Academy, John and I stayed close. We went through IOBC together and waited for hours on end to turn in our weapons, after spending weeks in the field. Through all the time we waited in that line, John convinced me that Ft. Bragg was the place to be and I traded my slot to Hawaii in order to follow him. My most recent memories of John are the ones that hurt the most. They are the ones that make me cry when I think about him. I remember how John came all the way to Buffalo, NY to attend my wedding and how he yelled my nickname, ?meat,? so loud that you can still hear it on every wedding video I own. I remember how we spent many nights at Rustin?s house acting like we were in college again. I remember the fun we had at the Florida Gators game in Gainesville. I partially remember the night we spent at John?s house after Rustin and I returned from Iraq the first time and Rustin stained his mattress. I remember getting matching ?B-1? tattoos on our arms. It hurts me even more now to know that John will never be able to meet my child. Jill, my wife, and I are due to have a baby boy on February 16, 2007. In John?s honor, we have decided to name him Gavin Denny Chudzik. I only hope that my child will be able to live his life in the same manner as John. I hope that he, like John, is the best at everything he does. I hope that he, like John, remains humble, even though he knows he is the best. Before closing, I want to mention how much John loved Haley. There is no other couple in this world that will ever be able to understand the love that John and Haley had together. Everything John did, he did it with Haley in mind. I will never forget the acronym they lived by and that he had tattooed on his arm ? TWAS (Together We Are Strong). I love Haley like a sister and vow to be there for her through this experience and for the rest of her life. I know John would?ve done the same for me. Lastly, I just hope that everyone reading this understands how great of a man John was. Those who knew him can simply close their eyes and remember that contagious laugh that he had. For me personally, I feel as though I?ve lost a brother. I know that John would?ve wanted us to all continue on with our lives without skipping a beat. I just hope that everyone in this great country of ours realizes how thankful they should be that a great man like John was willing to sacrifice everything so that they could sleep without fear at night. John, I love you and I miss you so much. I look forward to seeing you again someday.

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