Graduates

THEN: NOW: R.I.P

THEN: NOW: BIOGRAPH: I took my commission after graduation and was assigned to the 3/144TH FA. A little over a year later I decided to leave federal civil service and moved to the private sector. This decision had me accept new positions over the years in Vermont, Maryland, Arizona, and finally in California. I retired from the NG prior to moving back to Cali. I served with 1/86th FA (VT), 2/11oth FA (MD), and retired from 153RD BDE (AZ) as a Major.

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THEN: NOW: RIP. Passed away.

THEN: NOW: BIOGRAPH: Army – 2004 Retired Major (24 years), Los Angeles Police Officer (six years), San Bernardino County Child Protective Services – 2021 Retired (18 years) I left California three years ago and moved to Florence, Oregon, on the coast where the forest meets the sea. It is a small retirement/tourist town that is extremely veteran oriented. There is the annual Veterans’ Day parade, Memorial Day service, Military Museum Ball, POW/MIA Day service to name a few. All the patriotic holidays during the year are marked by hundreds of full size American Flags mounted on poles lining the streets courtesy of Kiwanis International. The Elks Lodge always has an enormous patriotic/veteran themed float in the Rhododendron Festival parade. The Lodge also sponsors many veteran support events. They run a weekly Tuesday Night Dinner called the Vets Cafe’ and all monies earned go to veterans services. The American Legion conducts a Flag Day Ceremony during which unserviceable American Flags are burned. There are many drop off points throughout the community where these flags may be turned in and over 300 were correctly disposed of this past June. The VFW Post provides honor guards for the entire state. The DAV hall offers crisis support groups and has an active VSO to help work through VA claims. The Band of Brothers meets weekly for coffee with an attendance averaging 50 from all services representing wars as far back as WW II. They help each other with transport to VA appointments among other things since it is at least 60 miles over the mountains to a facility. Veterans from all the organizations come together for Memorial Day and place a flag and a wooden cross on the graves of every one of the hundreds veterans buried in the cemetery. The take away here from these few examples is that the community appreciates the service all of us here and each of you rendered to the country. It is such a change from treatment received during the Vietnam era that I’m still amazed each day. I am proud to have served with each of you.

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THEN: NOW: Chris Echeverri Memorial Website BIOGRAPH

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THEN: NOW: BIOGRAPH: Kelly remained on AGR (Active Guard Reserve) status as an SFC until an AGR officer position became available in 1987 when he was appointed a 2LT, Signal Corps and served at the 240th Signal Battalion, 40th Infantry Division (M). He branch transferred to Medical Service Corps in 1991 and continued as an AGR Officer until he retired as a Captain in Jan 1996 after 20 years of Active Federal Service. He moved to Georgia that year and served as the Contract Compliance Monitor for the Georgia War Veterans Home in Milledgeville, GA and later as the Manager of Information Systems at the home. He fully retired in 2004 when he and his wife moved to Arizona where they both serve in various volunteer positions around the community. In 2008, the Army Human Resource Command contacted him for a “Retiree Recall”. Kelly accepted and deployed to Baghdad in 2009 where he served with First Corps when it took over as the Command and Control HQ for Multi-National Corps Iraq. Kelly wrote a book about his retiree recall which was published by Koehler Books: PowerPoint Ranger: My Iraq War Logs.

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THEN: NOW: BIOGRAPH: Elton Johnson, Jr., Non-Executive Chairman of Amerivet Securities, Inc., has been a Registered Representative since 1977. He currently holds the following securities licenses: Series 4, 7, 14, 24, 27, 52, 53, 57, 63, 65, 79, and 99; a total of twelve licenses.

Elton Johnson, Jr., is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame (1976; same class as Rudy from the 1993 movie) where he was a Notre Dame Scholar, a Hall President, and Chairman of the Hall Presidents’ Council (HPC). He majored in finance, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He is currently enrolled in American Military University where he is pursuing his master’s in business administration with an emphasis on entrepreneurship.

Shortly after graduating from college, Elton Johnson, Jr., enlisted in the United States Marine Corps Reserve. He served in the 4th Marine Division as an artilleryman for two years before he obtained a conditional release and a lateral transfer to the U.S. Army in order to volunteer for U.S. Army Special Forces training (the “Green Berets”). He served in the 19th Special Forces Group (Airborne) and the 12th Special Forces Group (Airborne) where he was trained as a Communications Specialist and cross-trained as a Heavy Weapons Specialist (He spent five years in U.S. Army Special Forces as an enlisted man and five years as an officer; however, he did not complete the Special Forces Qualification Course). In 1985, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Armor Branch. He is currently a Lieutenant Colonel in the Infantry Branch in the U.S. Army Retired Reserves (USARR). After 9/11, he was immediately called up for active military service and served two tours of duty in Iraq and one tour of duty in Afghanistan (along with four deployments to non-combat zones). His military awards include the Bronze Star Medal (the fourth highest US military award), the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, and the US Army Combat Action Badge (CAB). As a US Army paratrooper, he also earned Canadian and Afghan Paratrooper Jump Wings.  He is a disabled U.S. veteran and an advocate for veterans’ rights. In 2010, he was the motivating force behind the passage of a California law that assists California citizen-soldiers in maintaining their businesses while deployed on active military duty (This law has since become known as “Major Johnson’s law”).

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THEN: NOW: BIOGRAPH: After CMA I was assigned to the Artillery. I worked my way up the chain and retired in 2003 as a Major with 24 years of service. My last position was Assistant Commander of the 40TH Division (mech) Rear Area Command Cell. (I think the longer the title, the less significant the position) The closest I got to any action was the Rodney King Riots and the Northridge Earthquake. I retired from the phone company in 2009, and that’s when I started going to Burning Man. I went for 10 years and became part of the volunteer staff as a trainer and Law Enforcement Liaison. In 2008 I got my Masters and Teaching Credential. I taught GED to inmates at Solano State Prison. Currently, I work maintenance for a skilled nursing facility that is about 5 minutes from home. My wife, Debbie, and my 2 sons work from home, so this gets me out of the house.

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THEN: NOW: BIOGRAPH: Edgar A. Terry, Jr. earned his B.S. from Charter Oak State College (2000) and is pursuing an MBA from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.  He plans to pursue a law degree and a science degree after the MBA. After commissioning as a Quartermaster (now Logistician) he transferred from the California Army National Guard (CA ARNG) to the U.S. Army Reserves (USAR).  He served with the 91^st Training Support Division as an Observer Controller / Trainer and volunteered to serve with the 3^rd Infantry Division in Bosnia-Herzegovina in 2001.  Upon return after 9/11, he was mobilized twice: once to certify and deploy USAR units, and then to stand up (then the Medical Retention Program Unit (MRPU), then Warrior Transition Unit (WTU), and now Soldier Recovery Unit (SRU) under the Army Recovery Care Program (ARCP)).  In addition, he was deployed twice.  Once to Iraq (2005-2008) and then to Afghanistan (2013-2015).  Based on an error in his retirement processing he is an advocate for veteran’s rights, which prompted the inclusion of a law degree in his lifelong educational pursuits. As a reservist after commissioning, he continued with federal civil service (USPS) until 1990.  He transitioned to his military supply chain management background (with UPS and 3M), in the early 2000’s.  He then started his own businesses (recycling and real estate), from 2008 to 2013. He currently pursues his interests in lifelong learning and some traveling when time permits.

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