"O God, our Father, thou Searcher of Men's hearts, help us draw near to Thee in sincerity and truth. May our religion be filled with gladness and may our worship of Thee be natural...
If ever the sacred words of the Cadet Prayer were totally ingrained in a soldier, scholar, athlete, father and husband, this man would have to be be Joseph Adrian Bishop. He lived a life of dedicated purpose, interjected with a specially patented sense of humor, from his childhood days in Georgia through his final journey into Southeast Asia, where he died defending the honor of his country.
Joe "Bish" was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on 11 January 1935. From his childhood days in Atlanta, throughout his thirty-three years of buoyant full life, all those fortunate enough to have shared some of these rich and fruitful years will always remember the wife and family he loved and cherished, the deep friendships he commanded, the love of God and country he exemplified, the spirit of victory he projected, the sincere respect he rendered and received, the highest of goals he continuously pursued and attained and the individuality and raw courage he possessed.
“...Strengthen and increase our admiration for honest dealing and clean thinking, and suffer not our hatred of hypocrisy and pretense ever to diminish. Encourage us in our endeavor to live above the common level of life...
In the rich sunshine of Georgia, Joe attended grade school in the Atlanta area. After settling in College Park, Georgia, he spent five memorable years at College Park High School. Of all the memorable experiences Joe accumulated throughout these five wonderful years, none was more rewarding than the beginning of a courtship with the one and only girl in his life, Patricia Ann Wallis. It was here that Joe excelled in academics, athletics and numerous other extracurricular activities, while also developing his exceptional leadership qualities. Prior to his graduation in 1952, he was elected President of the Senior Class, received membership in the National Honor Society, was selected Reserve Officers Training Corps Cadet Colonel and graduated in the upper five percent of his class academically. He earned three varsity letters each in football, basketball and track while demonstrating and developing his intense desire to win. It was here that Joe learned that the reward of victory or the attainment of goals required considerable perseverance and sacrifice, and it was here that Joe gave of himself to achieve the high standards he set throughout his life.
He continued his preparatory schooling the following year at Georgia Military Academy in College Park, Georgia, where he continued to excel in academics, athletics and leadership. For his academic and leadership excellence, he received the Master Cadet Award for being the best all-around student, making it the first time in the history of the school that a first year student won the award.
His athletic ability was again demonstrated by earning letters in football, basketball and track. While at Georgia Military Academy, Joe attained what he considered one of the most significant goals of his life, being selected to attend the Military Academy.
“...Make us to choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong, and never to be content with a half truth when the whole can be won. Endow us with the courage that is born of loyalty to all that is noble and worthy, that scorns to compromise with vice and injustice and knows no fear when truth and right are in jeopardy...
From the day he walked through the sally port into Central Area, to the day he threw his white cap into the air, Joe set a straight upward course and never deviated from it.
The spirit of West Point, its history and tradition was instilled in Joe early in his Plebe year and remained with him the rest of his life. He found the academic climate stimulating and challenging and with astute perseverance worked arduously to graduate in the upper one hundred of his class. His desire to excel academically never interfered with his participation in numerous extracurricular activities, where he kindled his most cherished friendships. His intestinal fortitude and aggressiveness on the gridiron placed him in the highest esteem of his classmates and clearly demonstrated the famous Red Blaik axiom of "Paying the Price.”
His contributions to West Point football can never be fully measured and earned him three varsity letters. Next to maxing Written General Reviews or running over opponents on the football field, Joe loved to sing and to satisfy this love he was a member of the Cadet Chapel Choir and Glee Club. Within these major undertakings he also found time to participate in other activities, such as the Spanish Club and Dialectic Society.
“...Guard us against flippancy and irreverence in the sacred things of life. Crant us new ties of friendship and new opportunities of service. Kindle our hearts in fellowship with those of a cheerful countenance, and soften our hearts with sympathy for those who sorrow and suffer...”
Graduation from West Point signified the attainment of two highly sought goals—the first being commissioned into the United States Army Corps of Engineers and the second being the long-awaited marriage to Patty on 15 June 1957. After the greatest "Rest and Recuperation” of their lives, they set sail for Fort Belvoir and the basic Engineer course where Joe graduated in the upper third of the class. The next stop was a short stay at Fort Benning where Joe earned his parachutist wings, a prerequisite for the assignment to the 326th Engineer Battalion, 101st Airborne Division, at Fort Campbell where they remained until February 1960. Here Joe got well grounded militarily and demonstrated his exceptional ability to lead troops by serving as a combat engineer platoon leader, executive officer of an airborne combat engineer company and as the reconnaissance officer in the intelligence section of the battalion. Between jobs Joe played football for the “Screaming Eagles” in 1958 and 1959 and was instrumental in leading these teams to outstanding records. In 1959 he was selected as the most valuable lineman, an award he totally deserved.
The Continental flavor was next with a tour in Germany where troop duty continued and Joe impressed superiors and subordinates with his dynamic leadership and ability to get the job done. The work was hard, the social life abundant and the European continent afforded the opportunity to see the Old World. Before returning to the United States in September 1962, Joe served with the 8th Infantry Division as Engineer Officer, 1st Battle Group, 16th Infantry in Baumholder and as Company Commander and Operations and Plans Officer of the 12th Engineer Battalion at Dexheim. The arrival of Linda highlighted the European tour and put a gleam in Joe’s eyes.
Professional development was next with a return engagement to Fort Belvoir and the Engineer Officers Career Course in the Class of 1963 where Joe graduated second man in the class and son J. Michael arrived to make it a foursome. Joe’s academic excellence was finally rewarded and the Bishop clan headed west in July 1963 for the University of California. Here Joe earned a Master’s degree in Applied Science and Engineering. For his academic excellence, Joe was offered a scholarship by Dr. Edward Teller to continue on for his doctorate. The Corps of Engineers had other plans and it was off to Korat, Thailand, in August 1965, where Joe served with the 44th Engineer Group as a Post Engineer and with Group Headquarters.
Joe considered his assignment to West Point, as an instructor in the Department of Physics, as the best in his entire career. Here he found teaching to be extremely gratifying in his academic relationship with the Cadets and considered the learning procedure as a process of reciprocity. He applied all his previous experience and knowledge in projecting the highest degree of professionalism in his instruction and was deeply respected by the cadets he taught. The legend of the Key Chain, with the various array of teeth dangling from it, will remain a Joe Bishop trademark in the Physics Department for years to come. His love of football projected his highly developed personal characteristics into the athletic world by coaching “B” Squad football and by so doing helped the Army team through several very successful seasons. When orders were received for Vietnam, it was with a saddened, heavy heart that the Bishop family departed West Point.
He began his tour in Vietnam in July 1968 and served as Assistant Operations Officer, First Field Force in Nha Trang. His "Rendezvous with Destiny” occurred on 19 September 1968, the day Joe made the supreme sacrifice, when the military aircraft returning him from a field inspection trip crashed.
...Help us to maintain the honor of the Corps untarnished and unsullied and to show forth in our lives the ideals of West Point in doing our duty to Thee and to our country...
Joe, we who knew you shall always remember your love of God, country, family, high ideals and life itself. You knew your job and set the highest standards for those serving with you. Your quick wit, physical and moral courage, dedication to duty and complete forthright and honest approach to life will nourish our lives svhen confronting the many challenges that lay ahead. Knowing you meant we knew the best and we all know you earned your rightful place up there with the Commander-in-Chief of all men.
"...All of which we ask in the name of the Great Friend and Master of men. Amen."
—A Friend, Classmate and Teammate