Cadet Chapel, West Point, September 27, 2007
The Cadet Chapel was jammed. The lower panels in the high, stained glass panels were open, but not enough to clear the air. Generals and ex-generals filled the front pews behind Wayne’s family. General McCaffrey (now an NBC news analyst) passed by along with the Superintendent, the Commandant, and the Dean. The NBC news team– Brian Williams, Lisa Meyers, Anne Curry and the video crews that had gone to Iraq</ st1:place> with General Downing were all there to pay tribute to a fallen hero and friend. Representatives from each of the Special Operations Commands were present. Most were in civilian clothes– the varied uniforms from the memorial service in Peoria were not as evident this time.
The Class of ‘62 and their wives filled almost half of the Chapel. We had come by car, bus and train from various states to attend reunion activities that were put on hold for the day. We arrived and parked at the Cavalry Plain and caught the buses to the Chapel. Wayne’s old tactical officer – LTGEN (R) Richard Trefry and his wife Jacque - sat behind us. His old cadet company (H-2) was well represented. Talk of cadet days flowed back and forth across the pews until the organ began playing as the clock reached two o’clock.
The commands
of the honor guard were muffled by the granite walls of the chapel, but we
could hear ruffles and flourishes played by the West Point band. The US Army
honor guard from Washington
brought the casket to the church door where it was then carried to the front
of the Chapel by the Ranger honor guard. Prayers and hymns were said and sung
– then the eulogies began. Jim Kimsey (’62) gave the first one, ending by
paying tribute to the loss of his best friend.
Jim Heldman (’62) talked about
Wayne as a cadet and roommate – “Wayne
was unique and never caught.” Keith Nightengale, a fellow Special Ops comrade,
talked about Wayne as a soldier and the respect and honor shown him as the
father of the modern Rangers. Wayne’s daughter, Liz, spoke from the heart and
in a choked, emotion filled voice, told us about her Dad and what his loss
meant to her and her children. Tom Brokaw (the ex-NBC news anchor) gave us a
well-crafted account of Wayne
The military took charge after the service ended. The Ranger honor guard carried his casket back to the front door, the tread of their boots echoing in the still air of the Chapel. The West Point band played ruffles and flourishes as the US Army honor guard then carried his casket to a hearse for the procession to the cemetery.
A contingent of cadets in full dress gray over white – a brigade staff and First Classmen with their swords and reds sashes - stood ready to march. Wayne’s four-star flag was carried behind the color guard from the Corps of Cadets. A contingent of Rangers, the band, the immediate family and honorary pall bearers and finally the rest of us, walked down the hill to the cemetery. The flag at Trophy Point was at half-mast and hung limply in the humid air. When we turned the corner toward the cemetery – a slight breeze made the mile long walk a little easier.
The procession halted before the gates of the cemetery as the casket was transferred from the hearse to a horse drawn caisson for the trip to the gravesite. We followed the military procession past the Old Chapel and around the care-taker’s cottage. Just on the other side of the cottage, under the spreading arms of a giant oak, the final resting place for the general had been prepared. The military contingents drew up in a semi-circle around a canvas canopy – the cadet honor guard, the Rangers, the flag details. The caisson and horses were soon led away, their tasks were finished.
We crowded around the canopied area amidst the gravestones of past graduates to hear the final words. This time, the various representatives from the Special Operations commands added their thoughts about Wayne’s dedication to the Army, to West Point, and to the country. Our prayers rose skyward under the direction of the chaplain. The flag draped over his casket was carefully folded by the honor guard.
Commands rang out! For the first time, I saw the arms of my classmates raised in hand salutes – not the cover your heart gesture that so many of us have done at Arlington – but an Army salute in respect for a fallen warrior and classmate. The cadet sabers snapped up and down, the Rangers saluted - ribbons from tens of secret campaigns emblazoned on their crisp, green uniforms. An artillery battery fired 17 guns, the measured blasts echoing off the hillsides around us. A squad of Rangers fired three precise volleys into the air. The bugler played Taps – its mournful notes flowed across the gravesite and down the hillside to the river. Emotions rose within many of us and lots of handkerchiefs were pulled from pockets when the music died away. Just as the bugler finished playing, a strong breeze blew across the gravesite as if Wayne’s spirit was anxious to be lifted away.
A reception was held at the Hotel Thayer after the services and we made our way to its terraces and ballroom where discussions about Wayne continued. We shook hands with the NBC news crew. Brian Williams soon left to broadcast “The Evening News” from West Point that night. He added a short memorial segment at the end about the passing of a warrior. We had a chance to talk with members of Wayne’s family – his mother and sister told us tales about how they always kept Wayne in his place even when he arrived in Peoria with his Secret Service detail. His sister made sure we knew that she was better in math than Wayne. Kathy Downing, surrounded by so many people, graciously accepted all the condolences.
The mountains surrounding the Academy looked down on the scene below as they have for two hundred years or more. The river below flowed past serenely quiet. A train on the far bank wound its way through fields and forests. You could almost hear the strains of Benny Havens playing in the wind. I am sure that if Benny had lived during our time he would have known Wayne Downing. Nestled in the quiet of the Hudson Highlands, West Point had laid another member of the Long Gray Line to rest.
The next morning, the Class of ‘62 returned to the Cadet Chapel for a class memorial service as we have done each reunion weekend. This time when the roll was read, Wayne A. Downing’s name stood listed with our other 84 classmates honored that day.
Be Thou at Peace!