George Patrick O'Toole

West Point, 1965

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by Bob Frank, L-1 & B-1 on January 26, 2008:

Being in the 1st Regiment, I did not have a lot of contact with Pat my first two years as a cadet. Then, we were both assigned to the same infantry battalion in Schweinfurt for Cadet AOT (Army Orientation Training). Pat and I were neighbors in the BOQ as well. We spent a lot of time together over the 30 day period of AOT. He would go out for a run everyday, spend some time in the O-Club and plan for the next day's activities. He was serious about the training, but he also knew how to have a good time. His attitude was always upbeat and positive - a great guy to be around. I admired him immensely, as did the soldiers and NCOs of his summer-time company. Several years later, we were in the same area in Vietnam. He was a Special Forces officer with a CIDG unit in the Plain of Reeds; I was an adviser to an ARVN (Army of the Republic of Vietnam) infantry battalion. The day he was killed, I heard his voice on the radio trying to coordinate air support and artillery support for the small group that had survived the initial ambush and assault on the patrol he was on. Pat remained calm on the radio, knowing that his situation was dire. Despite the air and artillery support, his small band could not hold off the Viet Cong unit that was closing in. Pat remained on station, doing his duty to the very end. I still recall his cheerful demeanor during my time with him in the Summer of 1963, and his calm, dedicated manner in the stress of close combat in 1967. He epitomized all that General MacArthur had spoken about in May of our Plebe year.

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