Arthur Paul “Irish” Ireland Jr. was raised in an Army family. His father was an Army lawyer who served in the 10th Mountain Division in World War II and later as a judge at the Nuremburg trials. Paul and his brother Robert would both provide the nation with a career of military service in keeping with their family tradition. Paul was no stranger to West Point as he spent his grade school years there when his father was the command staff judge advocate. He attended high school in Monterey, CA, was a good student and competed in swimming and water polo. As a cadet, Irish enjoyed military training, but academics were a challenge, especially during plebe year when his mother was dying from multiple sclerosis. He dabbled in mountaineering, scuba, and riding clubs but found his niche in the Dialectic Society. It was an outlet for his creativity not fully appreciated in the other academy programs. The 100th Night Show in particular offered him a sanctioned opportunity to irreverently poke fun at all things “strict, tough, military and proud!” Irish was a card-carrying member of the 4th Regiment and occupant of the lost 50s. Despite his attempts to appear counter-cultural at times, he listened and learned, later citing Schofield’s Definition of Discipline and other plebe poop as keys to his understanding of leadership, and teaching it through word and action to his subordinates.
Paul branched infantry and initially served consecutive overseas tours in Germany, Vietnam, and back to Germany during tumultuous times. He remembered that things weren’t so good then, but he saw the army improving so he stayed. His service pattern could only be called non-standard as he commanded an intel detachment and an infantry company, served as an S1, as a training manual author, and as an S4. The logistics assignment and his night school masters in business changed his professional path as he served the rest of his career in positions of increasing responsibility as a logistician. Paul served in the 7th ID as a brigade S4, DISCOM S2/3, Deputy G4, and DISCOM XO. He was selected as one of the first forward support battalion commanders and was the division G4 in Korea. He also spent a tour in Lebanon helping our important allies there establish a repair parts system. Paul’s final posting was as the director of logistics at West Point, retiring where it all began.
After retirement Paul served as logistics trainer at the National Training Center and then worked in the Monterey County Emergency Services until 2010. Ever the infantryman, Paul and his best friend, Lisa, enjoyed backpacking and camping in California and across the west, including hiking the Grand Canyon and scaling Mount Whitney. They traveled all over Europe, exploring the continent, visiting every US cemetery and monument they could, and even retraced his father’s wartime service in Italy.
Classmate, Tom Ramos captured this phase of Irish’s life well when he wrote: “Paul and I didn’t know each other well as cadets but we made up for lost time during the last few years of his marvelous life. He had settled down in Carmel, had an attractive Danish girlfriend named Lisa, and seemed totally content with his life. When I sent out a message calling for classmates to join me on a bicycle ride across America as a way to get to our 45th reunion at West Point, Paul immediately wrote to tell me that he wanted to join the trip.
“When I asked for volunteers, I was sure to say that riding a bike across America wasn’t a requirement, we just needed some trustworthy comrades to share the journey, especially to drive a car to carry our gear. Paul was the man. He got himself totally involved in every detail of the plans. When I told him that I had never done this before and had little idea how we were going to do it, Paul purchased some software that allowed him to map out a route. Often, the two of us went up to my place near Lake Tahoe, NV and spent the weekends on computers, planning each day’s ride across America. Paul was a wizard at picking out routes, rest stops, and places to spend each night.
“When trip planning was done, Paul wanted to do a route reconnaissance. I couldn’t join him, but that didn’t seem to matter, and Paul made the drive across the country. It was early spring, and he once was trapped for hours in a blizzard. When he got back to California, he couldn’t wait to tell me about all he had seen. He purchased a camper trailer to carry our gear. I once told him that the biggest thing I would miss while I was riding was a cold glass of draft beer fresh from my ‘kegarator’ at home. So, Paul put in an electrical hookup so we could bring the beer with us.
“Planning for that trip seemed to work wonders on Paul. You’d have to be blind not to see the glow in his face as he talked about the upcoming adventure. One day at work, however, I got a call that Paul had passed away in his bed at home. I will always miss my friend and buddy especially his cheerfulness and his funny stories. I know I missed him for two solid months as I biked across America without him.”
Paul felt deep affection for West Point and his class. The stone in his class ring had been damaged by a bullet in Vietnam. Paul says the ring saved his life and he never had it repaired. He asked that the ring be donated to the Ring Melt for the Class of 2019. Indeed, Paul has honored his class and alma mater with his life of selfless service.
— Robert J. St. Onge ’69