National Infantry Museum Gulf War 20th Anniversary Media Coverage
May 25 – 28, 2011
Media Schedule
Wednesday May 25
· 5:00 PM – ABC National Radio Interview of Gen. McCaffrey and Col. Camp by phone from National Infantry Museum
· 5:15 PM – CBS National Radio Interview of Gen. McCaffrey and Col. Camp by phone from NIM
· 5: 30 PM – Gen. McCaffrey Interview in person on site with Richard Hyatt – Columbus Ledger-Enquirer as recommended by Ben Williams
· 6:00 PM – VIP Reception (included TV invited to interview multiple VIP’s)
Thursday May 26
· 6:45 AM – CNN National Radio interview of Gen. McCaffrey and Col. Camp – by phone from National Infantry Museum
· 7:05 AM -- LIVE interview with Gen. McCaffrey and Col. Camp – Georgia News Network (117 stations) and Clear Channel via Atlanta WGST The Talk of Atlanta —by phone from NIM
· 8:30-9 AM -- Sidebar TV Interviews stage side at NIM (interviewed multiple VIP’s)
· 9-10:30 AM – National Infantry Museum main event ceremonies including full event taping by C-Span for broadcast
· 10:30-11 AM – stage side TV interviews (Interviewed multiple VIP’s) at NIM stadium
· 2:20 PM – WLTZ/NBC – TV LIVE Interview of Gen. McCaffrey and Col. Camp on Dee Armstrong Show in-studio: 6140 Buena Vista Rd. Columbus, GA 31907.
Regional TV Nielson Report
Report Generated:2011/05/31 11:10:36.062 (CT)
Total Regional TV Story Count:35
INDIVIDUAL RADIO AND TV INTERVIEWS AND PRINT COVERAGE INCLUDING LINKS TO SEE AND HEAR STORIES:
WLTZ-NBC COLUMBUS, GA, MARKET RANK: 127
MAY 26 2011 2:00PM ET
THE DEE ARMSTRONG SHOW
Link to Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6br8pya0WKc
WGST-AM: The Talk of Atlanta (Clear Channel and Georgia News Network 117 Stations)
Link to Audio: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2rqjJ_Mh2I
ABC Radio National Interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGtkVTdFZFY
CBS Radio National Interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rY0m9NVc5x8
Video of WRBL Newscast: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2HQhCvreec
Link to original and video: http://www2.wrbl.com/news/2011/may/26/gulf-war-remembered-national-infantry-museum-ar-1894006/
ByRAQUEL RODRIGUEZ
Published: May 26, 2011
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COLUMBUS, Ga. --
After 20 years, Gulf War veterans will have a place to go to remember their service. The memorial at theNational Infantry Museumis the first official recognition of all Gulf War men and women who died in service.
Nearly 400 soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines were killed in the gulf war conflict.
“A major explosion killed the person directly in front of me and I always felt like he took the shrapnel and I couldn't get there fast enough so there is a lot of blame, I don't know if you ever get over it,” saidGulf War Veteran Adam Larmore.
Larmoresaid he was a 21 year old CombatEngineerduring the Gulf War. The Gulf War veteran said he took the trip to theNational Infantry Museumto see the memorial so he could find some closure.
“It’s about time we've waited 20 years, I've never known of a Desert Storm memorial and recently I even talked to other guys where's our memorial at?” saidLarmore.
Retired Four-Star GeneralBarry McCaffreywasa division commanderin the Gulf War and was part of the ceremony.
“It was a 30 day air campaign and four days of ground combat that freedKuwaitand ended the war,” said U.S. ArmyRetired GeneralMcCaffrey.
The retired Generalsaid the197th Separate Infantry BrigadefromFort Benningplayed a pivotal part in the war.
“Took part in the famous left hook attack that got behind the Iraqi forces and really unhinged the lines,” said U.S. ArmyRetired GeneralMcCaffrey.
Gulf War veteran,Dan Stevens, said he wasa Squad Leaderin the 43rd Engineers out ofBenning. Stevenssaid even though the war days were numbered, it still is a war to be remembered.
“I appreciate people remembering Desert Storm it’s kind of hard to remember a conflict that happened 20 years ago especially when it was over so quickly,” saidStevens.
Link to original and video: http://www2.wrbl.com/news/2011/may/30/memorial-day-national-infantry-museum-ar-1906935/
ByMEREDITH ARMSTRONG
Published: May 30, 2011
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FORT BENNING, Ga. --
The pavers honor soldiers past and present.Major Preston Jacksonwas recently promoted and his wife,Erika, wanted to surprisehim. At the dedication ceremony when those being honored were asked to stand,Jacksontold her husband to join those already standing.Erika Jacksonsaid, “He just recently got promoted to Major, and I thought it would be a good way to kind of celebrate the promotion. We he first got in we never knew he would make it this far so we're very very proud ofhim.”
Retired Staff SergeantCharles Idenalready has a paver withhimname on it, and one for his brother. But when his wife died last July, he decided to honor her publicly. SSG (Ret.)Idensaid, “Where everybody could see and understand these bricks. After you serve you understand what I had put on there for my wife. “
TheMemorial Daypaver dedication honors more than 200 soldiers and civilians. Some say it won't be the last paver they dedicate. SSG (Ret.)Idensaid, “I guess before the next one comes around, I'll have another one for somebody.”
Major Jacksonsaid he and his family have been stationed atFort Benningtwice before, but this time he's glad there's a memorial to honor those he works alongside.MAJ Preston Jacksonsaid, “when we got back here in 2009 and this was actually built, and as much dedication and work that was put into this to make it special, I truly and proud. I am almost speechless.”
FormerFort BenningCommander, retiredMajor General Walt Wojdakowski, chose a quote fromGeneral George Pattonto memorialize the ceremony. MGWojdakowskisaid, “It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died, rather we should thank god that such men lived.” It's the living and the dead who will be honored at the national infantry museum's heritage walk.
If you would like more information on how you can dedicate a paver ContactLauren Patwikat (706) 685-5813
Interview with local ABC
Link to video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uklmll6PcNY
Posted on Fri, May. 27, 2011
About 2,500 attend Gulf War memorial service at National Infantry Museum & Solider Center
BY BEN WRIGHT
Becky Bates had to see her husband’s name for herself.
Staff Sgt. Donald R. Bates died of a massive heart attack during Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, and his name is etched into one of the granite paving stones on Heritage Walk at the National Infantry Museum & Soldier Center.
“I really would have been upset if I had missed this,” said Bates, who clutched the soldier’s picture as she knelt at his memorial stone. “I think it is beautiful.”
Bates, of Hampton, Ga., was among the crowd of about 2,500 gathered outside the museum Thursday to remember 382 soldiers on the 20th anniversary of the 1991 Gulf War. The event followed the graduation of 200 armor soldiers from basic training in the 2nd Battalion, 46th Infantry Regiment, 192nd Infantry Brigade.
“I think it is a good combination to have this 20th anniversary congruent with Memorial Day,” retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey said. “It reminds us of the ongoing sacrifices of hundreds of thousands of U.S. forces who are deployed abroad today.”
McCaffrey was commander of the 24th Infantry Division, including the Fort Benning-based 197th Brigade (Mechanized), which played a key role in the left-hook ground attack on Feb. 24, 1991, against an Iraqi army that had refused to leave Kuwait.
McCaffrey said former President George H.W. Bush, commanding some 700,000 troops assembled from 34 nations, took decisive action in response to injustice and a challenge to American interests.
Retired Col. Greg Stone, who served with McCaffrey as chief of operations in Desert Storm, said the unit didn’t know what kind of fight they would face from the Iraqi army.
“We knew the fourth largest army was north of the frontier,” said Stone, who now lives in Columbus. “We didn’t know what was going to happen as far as the fight they were going to put up.”
Adam Larmore of Hickory, N.C., came to the ceremony to remember fallen soldiers from the 197th Brigade. He was a 21-year-old specialist during the Gulf War.
“A lot of us felt like it’s about time,” said Larmore, who was wearing a camouflage jacket with his name on it. “To be right there at Fort Benning is a special thing for us.”
Larmore said he was about 50 feet away from a trailer that exploded near Basra on March 2, 1991, killing a soldier in his unit.
Maj. Gen Robert Brown, commander of the Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning, said he couldn’t think of a better way to honor fallen soldiers on Memorial Day.
“We bring in brand new volunteers to the military and recognize legends who fought 20 years ago,” he said.
The ceremony to remember the fallen soldiers ended with the playing of taps and the unfurling of a special flag bearing maps of Iraq, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
Link to original: http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/2011/05/27/1595021/20th-anniversary-of-desert-shielddesert.html
Posted on Fri, May. 27, 2011
Richard Hyatt: Retired General says Benning Crucial to National Security
His son and daughter wear the uniform so Barry McCaffrey has sat in the bleachers where parents of young soldiers sat on Thursday watching Charlie Company graduate from basic training. He knows how those mothers and fathers felt when they didn’t physically recognize the magnificent creatures their kids had become.
McCaffrey is a retired four-star Army general. His father was a lieutenant general and his son is a colonel on active duty. He has been to war and he has seen war. His feelings differ from the proud parents that braved a breezy morning at Patriot Field.
“The difference may be that I know where they are going,” McCaffrey said.
He knows where they are going because he has led them there, leading troops on four combat tours in Vietnam and Iraq. He was at Fort Benning on the eve of Memorial Day weekend to honor the 382 soldiers who lost their lives 20 years ago in Desert Storm.
It was a conflict that renewed the bond between the American people and the military after a severe disconnect following the Vietnam War.
“In times of peace, the military doesn’t fall out of favor but it does fall out of value. That’s the nature of democracy. Really, it is the generals and admirals that fall in and out of favor -- not the soldier,” he says.
Desert Shield and Desert Storm restored public faith in the military and McCaffrey admits even he was surprised by how decisive that action was. He prepared to face what was seen as a world-class army.
“We hit it, and it disappeared,” he says.
McCaffrey, 68, served as drug czar during the Clinton Administration but people know him best as a military analyst for NBC -- sort of a John Madden in Army green. He once thought he would die peacefully if he became a battalion commander so being a media darling never crossed his mind.
He puts that role in simple terms: “I’m not neutral. I’m on the side of the United States.”
He is also an outspoken advocate of Fort Benning -- a post he has known since childhood. His father was Secretary of the Infantry School in 1950 when he got orders to the Middle East.
“We drove him to LaGuardia and saw him two years later,” he recalls.
His roots here go even deeper. His wife, Jill, also a product of an Army family, was born in Columbus. She was a year behind him at a Fort Benning elementary school -- the same one their grandchildren later attended.
McCaffrey believes relocation of the Armor School strengthens Benning’s role though he cautions that the light infantry must be protected. Sounding like a 4-star salesman, he says it’s more important to the nation than Harvard, IBM or the government of Montana.
“The survival of American democracy depends on Fort Benning and Quantico,” he says. “Without them, this country would perish.”
Link to Original: http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/2011/05/27/1595144/benning-crucial-to-security.html
Posted on Thu, May. 26, 2011
Gulf War memorial service today at National Infantry Museum & Soldier Center
BY BEN WRIGHT
Retired Army Gen. Barry R. McCaffrey will be in Columbus today as the National Infantry Museum & Soldier Center hosts Desert Storm/Desert Shield 20th Anniversary to honor soldiers lost in the Gulf War.
“The Gulf War was a decisive military action,” McCaffrey, a division commander in the Gulf War, said in a statement. “Anyone who comes to the Infantry Museum and sees the powerful exhibits from all of America’s wars will understand how appropriate it is that the Gulf War commemoration be hosted here.”
Other commanders attending the event are retired Air Force Gen. Charles Horner, retired Admiral Stanley Arthur and retired U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Gen. William M. Keys.
Events begin at 9 a.m. with the graduation of C Company, 2nd Battalion, 46th Infantry Regiment. The Gulf War ceremony will follow with the laying of commemorative granite paved stones to each of the dead during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm.
Retired Lt. Gen. Carmen Cavezza, chairman of the Infantry Foundation and former commander at Fort Benning, said the event is a long overdue tribute to the sacrifices soldiers made to enable a clear victory by the United States and coalition forces.
“This will be the first official recognition of all Gulf War men and women who died in service,” Cavezza said.
Thousands are expected for the event. Traffic on Benning Boulevard will be reduced to one lane from the entrance to the Infantry Museum to the access control point.
For information, call 706-685-5800.
Atlanta Journal Constitution
Retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey will lead the first official tribute next week to the servicemen and servicewomen killed in the Gulf War.
The National Infantry Museum is hosting the event which will include laying a granite paved stone for each of the 382 men and women who died in the war, which recently had its 20th anniversary. Cyndy Cerbin is seeking pictures and information about the war dead. Contact her at or 706-685-5808.