The Old Guard Association

(3d U.S. Infantry Regiment)

22Dec20

Dear Old Guard Soldiers, Vets, family, and friends,

Several things come to mind as I write to you this holiday season. I’ll try not to dwell on the hurdles of 2020 too much. That’s not what I want this message to be about. But truth be told, it’s been a factor for all of us. I hope you’ve been able to navigate the challenges with minimal difficulty.

You can imagine how hard it’s been for COL Roddy and CSM Brooks this year to keep the Regiment mission-ready while also keeping the Soldiers safe with social distancing and the rest.  Adding to the mix was the civil unrest in DC and now the Inaugural approaching. There are many other examples of how they had to respond or pick up the slack. For example, did you know they placed 250,000+ wreaths in ANC recently? I heard that made Flags In seem like a party by comparison. Our Regiment has always answered the call but I say “Hooah!” for the efforts this year under extraordinary circumstances. I also want to take this opportunity to thank RSM Brooks for his many years of service as he prepares to transition into civilian life. We’ve been so fortunate to have him as a senior leader the past two years. We’ll miss him. And, welcome to RSM Whittington!  We wish him all the best.

TOGA has already been making plans for the 2021 Reunion. We intend to launch registration in January. Keep an eye on our website at www.oldguard.org for the latest information. Put September 15-19 on your calendar. Contact your TOG buddies and get them to attend too. We’ll share details soon. Join us!

Active-duty Soldiers of the Regiment: Please also keep an eye on our website. The TOGA Board of Directors recently approved a new and exciting program to directly support you.

Speaking of our website, TOGA is looking for a volunteer to manage our website content. We have a great webmaster for all the technical aspects but need someone who can keep the site fresh and assist with the dissemination and posting of information. Use our contact us link if you can help. https://www.oldguard.org/contact-us/

On behalf of the TOGA Board of Directors, our volunteer Action Officers, and staff, I wish you all a blessed holiday season, a Merry Christmas, and a very Happy New Year.

Old Guard,

Flip Godfrey, President

The Old Guard Association
(3d U.S. Infantry Regiment)

Members of The Old Guard Association:

On 8 August 2020, the TOGA Board of Directors made the difficult, but prudent decision to cancel this year’s TOGA reunion.  Because that also meant we had cancelled the in-person Annual General Meeting (AGM), we had to make a decision about how to deal with board member elections that would have been held at the AGM.

After carefully consulting our bylaws, having several meetings and multiple discussions on the topic, and after having considered a wide variety of options, we decided to delay this year’s election until the next reunion when we can execute it as our bylaws require—as part of the in-person AGM.  The board asked that I announce this decision, speaking for the board and explaining our process.

These are truly unique times.  Our nation and the world find themselves in circumstances none of us could have forecasted and for which none of us planned.  The Association’s controlling documents don’t provide guidance on how to address this situation.  There were no easy answers.

As we approached this, we embraced the spirit of our bylaws, focused on the values and character of our Association, and considered how to ensure TOGA’s vitality into the future.  We developed a wide variety of options, some of which were fairly complex and expensive.  We then spent a significant amount of time talking through how we should make our decision.

The board first agreed that cost and difficulty should not be part of our decision; we would focus on what would be best, not what was easy.  An entire board meeting—with some very spirited discussion—was devoted to going through the options.  After discussing the pros and cons of each alternative, whether to combine aspects of certain options with aspects of others, and whether any of the options should be eliminated from consideration, we voted to delay the election.

It should be no surprise that all the board members would prefer that we were able to follow the same process we’ve followed over the years, using the annual in-person AGM for these elections.  However, circumstances beyond our control prevented us from following this straightforward and clear approach.  Our decision represents the best option available to us at this time.

That’s not the end, though.  We need to consider updating our bylaws so that they spell out contingency options in the future if we are ever again unable to hold our annual in-person AGM.  We ask for your suggestions as to how we amend our bylaws so that we have contingency options. Use the “Contact Us” link on www.oldguard.org to send us your comments or submit ideas about revising our bylaws.

America’s Regiment!
Colonel Joe Buche, US Army Retired
TOGA Board Member and 77^th RCO

The Old Guard Association

(3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment)

July 29, 2020

Members and Friends,

Sadly, I must report that the TOGA Board of Directors voted unanimously to cancel our 2020 Reunion.  It was both an easy and a very difficult decision to make. I trust you understand why but let me share some of the reasons that led to the decision.

• The health and welfare of the attendees is our highest priority.
• Review of credible COVID tracking websites at Johns Hopkins University and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation clearly forecast that infections in DC and VA will either remain at the current levels or begin trending up in advance of the reunion. Forecasting of social distancing restrictions shows the same trend.
• The Board has previously determined that current social distancing restrictions are not conducive to a successful reunion.
• We have received a strong indication from the Regiment that the wonderful support we have come to enjoy will not be possible this year due to Army and DOD COVID restrictions.
• The Association would be exposed to other potential and new expense and liability issues if we were to execute the Reunion.

The difficulty of course is that we’re very sensitive to the importance of this gathering for you. We truly hoped we could find a way. I’ve received many comments about how much people were hoping things would work out. To be honest, I wasn’t fully aware of how much it also means to our active duty brothers and sisters of the Regiment. I’ve been told time and again throughout this process that they value the relationship with you highly. I believe they will miss it too.

If you registered and paid for the reunion, keep an eye out for an email from me that will explain the refund procedure. If you made a hotel reservation, call Sheraton at 800-325-3535 to cancel your room.

Finally, know this, our reunion in 2021 will be the best yet!

Old Guard,
Flip Godfrey, President

The Old Guard Association
(3d U.S. Infantry Regiment)

June 11, 2020

Members and Friends,

I know you all want to know more about the upcoming reunion. Here’s the latest information. The TOGA Board of Directors met last night and voted unanimously to continue planning for our Reunion in September, but we will reexamine that decision in early August. In the meantime, we’ll constantly monitor COVID restrictions in the hope we can make a final call sooner. We spent a lot of time considering this decision. Here are just some of the discussion points:

• Current restrictions do not allow for the camaraderie of a reunion that we’ve come to enjoy. That interaction is one of the great benefits of our gathering. We want to spend time with each other and today’s Old Guard soldiers. It is particularly important for our teammates who are older or who need our support.
• We must be prudent about any hazard we expose our teammates to. We know that some of our population are particularly susceptible to the COVID virus. We care about you and take that responsibility seriously.
• The leadership at the Sheraton Hotel has been very helpful to us.  They haven’t scheduled any other events during the period of our reunion.  More importantly, they agreed that they will apply our deposits for this year to the 2021 reunion if we have to cancel.  This is a key point—we won’t lose any of the money we’ve given to the hotel if we have to cancel.
• Six weeks out, in early August, is a timeframe that gives a reasonable amount of time for people to make travel plans and for TOGA to concentrate on the detail of producing the reunion.

Like you, we want to make it happen, but we have to wait and hope the restrictions are lifted before we can make the call. Keep up your enthusiasm! Contact your pals and encourage them to attend with you. Remember, there is no penalty. TOGA will refund your fees if we have to cancel. Send your questions to togareunion1998@gmail.com. Thanks for your patience as we work through the issues.

Old Guard,
Flip Godfrey, President

June 9, 2020—Ft. Myer, Virginia—Today, the Old Guard Association (TOGA) honors the service of Colonel James J. Tuite, departing Old Guard Regimental Commanding Office (RCO), as Colonel Patrick Roddy assumes command. A ceremony on June 5, saw TOGA past president CSM Kerry Kolhof, Ret. present Colonel Tuite with a parting gift plaque inscribed as follows:

Old Guard RCO James J. Tuite
Thank you for your leadership of the Regiment
and your support of our Association.
Presented June 2020 by The Old Guard Association

Colonel James J. Tuite is a native of Long Island, New York. He commissioned as an Infantry Officer from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1995. He has held numerous command and leadership positions from platoon leader through battalion commander throughout 23 years of service.

He served a combat deployment to Herat, Afghanistan, where he was Deputy Commander for the NATO Train, Advise & Assist Command – West. His other notable operational assignments include service with the 1^st Ranger Battalion, the 82^nd Airborne Division, the 4^th Infantry Division, the 1^st Infantry Division and two tours with the 25^th Infantry Division out of Hawaii.  He has three combat deployments in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom, New Dawn, Freedom’s Sentinel & Resolute Support.

Colonel Tuite has also held numerous institutional assignments focusing mainly on leader development. He served as an Assistant Professor in the Behavioral Sciences & Leadership (BS&L) Department at West Point. He also served as the Professor of Military Science & Department Chair at Providence College. Following battalion command, Colonel Tuite served as a Special Assistant to the Army Chief of Staff as the Director of the Army Strategic Leader Development Program that provided executive education for the Army’s general officers.

Colonel Tuite holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from the College of William & Mary’s Business School ’04 and he was the Army’s 2016 Fellow at the United States Institution of Peace in Washington, D.C., where he studied economics, state fragility and positive psychology.

TOGA wishes to express its sincerest gratitude for the support that Colonel Tuite has shown the Association during his service with The Old Guard and wishes him all the best in his continued service with the Army.

The Old Guard Association
(3d U.S. Infantry Regiment)

May 18, 2020 – The family of Major General Donald C. Hilbert announced today the passing of General Hilbert. It is an extraordinarily sad day for the 3rd Infantry Regiment and The Old Guard Association. Don was the 62nd Regimental Commander serving in that capacity from 1977 thru 1979. He was TOGA Life Member 0061. If you attended a TOGA Reunion you were likely to see him sharing a smile and a good word. He led the TOGA element of our Pass In Review on many occasions. The TOGA contingent stood a bit taller when we marched with him. 

May 2020 marks 62 years of his affiliation with The Old Guard. The General is the only officer to have served as both the Regimental Commander and the Commanding General of MDW.  In 1995 he was made a Distinguished Member of the Regiment and was the first and only Honorary Colonel of the Regiment. His legacy will live on in the Regiment and TOGA forever. 

Old Guard Sir!

RIP