Thro’ the years of a century (and a half) told, the Association of Graduates has been preserving the memory of the Corps of an earlier day.

This practice began in 1870, in the first AOG Annual Reunion. Reverend Roswell Park, Class of 1831, was the first of 17 graduates remembered in that publication’s “Necrology” section. Since then, AOG has published more than 14,000 memorial articles, or one for approximately 60 percent of all deceased graduates. Written by classmates, spouses, children, or, in some cases, the graduates themselves, these personal narratives chronicle the amazing lives of service that members of the Long Gray Line have lived.

AOG retired the archaic title “Necrology” in 1935 and began grouping memorial articles under the label “In Memory” when ASSEMBLY magazine began publication in 1942. This changed to “Be Thou at Peace” in the 1958 Spring issue and remained as such until January 2004, when memorial articles were given their own supplement publication, TAPS. “As graduating classes grew larger and the ranks of living alumni swelled to over 40K, the need for additional pages for memorial articles also grew,” wrote Lieutenant Colonel Julian Olejniczak ’61 (Retired), TAPS’s first editor. Fifty-nine graduates were memorialized in that first issue; 335 had an article in the 2021 edition of TAPS.

The mission of TAPS is to honor and record the legacy of the Long Gray Line through the personal life stories of its members. As the six sample articles (shown below) demonstrate, while those memorialized have become part of the “ghostly assemblage,” the strength of their “grip” is still “strengthening the hearts” of the Long Gray Line.

In a 90th birthday tribute to Phil, the West Point Association of Graduates wrote that his “years at West Point were a time of achievement and dedication and were spent working steadily and conscientiously. In addition to preparing for his studies, Cadet Gage participated in swimming, track, lacrosse, pistol, pentathlon, fishing club, Camp Illumination, and the 100th Night Show.”

Dave was unassuming, warm, and had such an infectious smile. He would always go out of his way for others as he had done for me by staying after graduation to be a sword bearer in my wedding. It’s hard to comprehend losing him so soon after graduation. Most of us never got to say a final goodbye. But Dave knows that he will forever be in our hearts and remembered as a special friend and part of a lasting history of the Class of 1966

Those who knew Lynn truly understood his comments in an Army-Navy Game football interview: “If anyone asks me if I played football? Yes. Was Army any good back then? We shut out Navy in 1969. Were you any good? I helped shut out Navy. Did you do anything else? I didn’t need to.”

With an ease due to her own natural grace and intellect, Becky excelled at the Academy. Besides her father, three of Becky’s brothers are also West Point graduates, in the classes of ’77, ’81, and ’84.

She embodied “Pride and Excellence,” and we say, “Well Done; Be Thou at Peace.”

Captain MacFarland was extremely confident in Rudy, selecting him to be in charge of OP Alpha in the Fulda Gap, a critical observation post to warn of a Warsaw Pact attack during the Cold War. The other units, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, didn’t make it easy for Rudy as he was an outsider from the 3rd Armored Divisional CAV unit. Rudy remained calm and did a great job with his platoon and it reflected well on the whole Troop.

“If it weren’t for the rocks in its bed, the stream would have no song.” This pithy statement, commonly attributed to American singer-songwriter Carl Perkins, perfectly sums up Matthew Brian “Matt” Friary. Like a rock, he presented an imposing physical presence, a gentle giant who dwarfed all those around him. And like a boulder in a stream, Matt brought out the best in others as their lives passed around his.

This article was originally published in the Summer 2022 edition of West Point magazine. View the archive of past issues here.