This was sent to me, and I thought to pass it on to those who might be interested:
Dear Friends of the Cold War Museum,
A lot of developments have happened lately with the Cold War Museum and you can read about our progress in this issue of the Cold War Times located online at http://www.coldwar.org/text_files/November_2001.pdf. If you need a "Text Only" version, please email me and I will send you a copy by email.
However, there are several events and activities that I would like to share with you. First, a Remembrance Ceremony will be held commemorating the fiftieth (50th) anniversary of the 2nd Cold War shootdown and the loss of the crew at the No Greater Love POW/MIA Tree and Stone adjacent to the amphitheater at Arlington National Cemetery. The ceremony will take place on Tuesday, 06 November 2001, at 11:00 AM.
No Greater Love and the Cold War Museum will co-host this remembrance ceremony in order to honor these Cold War Veterans and remind people of the sacrifices made during the Cold War. No Greater Love (www.ngl.org), founded by Carmella LaSpada in 1971, is solely dedicated to provide programs of remembrance for those who lost loved ones in service to our county or by an act of terrorism. In addition, a representative from the Cold War Border Incidences Foundation, Eugene Daymude, will be attending on behalf of his organization, which sponsored the first Cold War Shootdown anniversary remembrance that took place on April 8, 2000.
For entry into Arlington National Cemetery, please call the Military District Washington (MDW) Public Affairs office at (202) 685-4645 and they will arrange for an escort to guide you to the ceremony site location.
This incident is one of ten Cold War reconnaissance shootdowns currently being investigated by the U.S.-Russian Joint Commission on POW-MIA's.The ten-man crew, all unaccounted for, are;
1. Hodgson, Judd, Lieutenant JG, USNR
2. Rosenfeld, Sam, Lieutenant JG, USNR
3. Smith, Donald, Ensign, USNR
4. Baggett, Reuben, E-6, USN
5. Foster, Paul, E-6, USN
6. Raglin, Erwin, E-6, USN
7. Juric, Paul, E-5, USN
8. Meyer, William, E-5, USNR
9. Wigert, Ralph Jr, E-5, USNR
10. Lively, Jack, E-4, USN
Second, to kick off the release of THE SPY WHO STAYED OUT IN THE COLD, the Cold War Museum will host a Book Signing and Lecture with Washington Author, Adrian Havill, who will talk about his new book on FBI double agent Robert P. Hanssen, the most notorious modern-day American spy. The event will take place on Wednesday, November 7 from 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM at Old Town Hall, 3999 University Drive, in the City of Fairfax. Admission is free but seating is limited. Autographed copies of THE SPY WHO STAYED OUT IN THE COLD, (St. Martin’s Press, $25.95) will be available for sale at the reception. C-SPAN has indicated an interest in covering the lecture.
Third, this Veterans Day (Sunday November 11th), PBS is airing a documentary called WAR LETTERS based on Andrew Carroll's New York Times-best-selling book of the same name. (This is the book that includes one of my dad's letters from Moscow to his parents, which I read at the Library of Congress to promote the release of the book) The one-hour broadcast features previously-unpublished letters from the American Revolution all the way up to Desert Storm, along with wartime footage (much of it also never-before-seen). Kevin Spacey, Edward Norton, Joan Allen, Gerald McRaney, David Hyde Pierce, and many other prominent actors lend their voices to the film. For more information, check out: http://www.pbs.org/amex/warletters.
Fourth, during the month of November we have two Spy Tours scheduled. On Sunday, Nov 18 the museum will host a Hanssen Spy Tour that will visit spy sites allegedly used by notorious FBI spy Robert Hanssen. Cost: $45 per person, Time: 9 am -1 PM. On Saturday, Nov 24 the museum will host their original Spies of Washington Tour. Learn about espionage sites in and around Washington, DC. Cost: $45 per person, Time: 9 am -3 PM (lunch on your own at Union Station). Visit www.spytour.com for more information and to reserve tickets.
Fifth, on Monday, November 26, I will give some remarks at a ceremony to recognize and honor New York Cold War Veterans. I am grateful to Congressman Vito Fossella (R-13th Congressional District, NY) who invited me to attend participate in this ceremony, which will take place at the Williams Theater, Stanton Island, NY at 3:00 PM.
Finally, on October 26 I attended a Memorial Building Dedication in memory of Major Rudolph Anderson, the U-2 pilot shot down over Cuba on October 27, 1962 during the Cuban Missile Crisis. This anniversary event took place at Laughlin AFB in Del Rio, Texas. After 9 hours of travel time which included a two and one half hour drive from San Antonio, Texas, I had the privilege to meet two of Major Anderson's children, several former U-2 pilots, and several individuals that flew with my father during fighter training school and the U-2 Program in the 1950s.
As part of our mission to preserve Cold War history and honor Cold War Veterans, I was honored to take part in the official program. At the conclusion of my brief remarks, I presented a piece of Major Anderson's U-2 shot down over Cuba on October 27, 1962 to his family. The Museum obtained a piece of this historic aircraft from a friend of the museum who wishes to remain anonymous. However, it is my understanding that he visited the Cuban Military Museum in Havana and acquired the piece of the plane, which can now be seen as part of the Cuban Missile Crisis display at the Florida International Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Thanks for your continued support and please remember to renew your annual membership with the Cold War Museum so we can continue to honor Cold War Veterans and preserve Cold War history.
Francis Gary Powers, Jr.
REMARKS BY FRANCIS GARY POWERS, JR.
MAJOR RUDOLPH ANDERSON BUILDING DEDICATION
OCTOBER 26. 2001
LAUGHLIN AFB
DEL RIO TEXAS
Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, Colonel and Mrs. Rosborg, members of the military and their families, it is an honor to be here today. I would like to take a moment to thank Lt. Jeffries and Lt. Parkinson for their logistical support in getting me here for this ceremony today.
I was asked to speak today briefly about the Cold War. One of the great ironies of the 20th Century is that America's longest war is also its least memorialized.
We need to make sure that future generations know the events and people that influenced and shaped our American way of life. It was President John F. Kennedy who said, "A nation reveals itself not only by the individuals it produces, but also by those it honors---those it remembers."
Bomb shelters, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Berlin Wall, Vietnam, the war in Afghanistan, the 1980 Summer Olympics, President Eisenhower, Mikhail Gorbachev, Nikita Krushchev, Joe McCarthy and the red scare, missile silos, President Truman, the Rosenberg trials, President Reagan, all have one thing in common: the Cold War. It was a global conflict-the history of the Cold War has been the history of world since 1945.
James Billington, Librarian of Congress, called the Cold War "the central conflict of the second half of the 20th Century, the longest and most unconventional war of the entire modern era-an altogether unprecedented experience for Americans. We were faced for the first time with an opponent who was both ideologically committed to overthrow our system and was equipped to destroy us physically."
The most significant difference between previous wars and the Cold War is that the Cold War was a clandestine war. It was a war that only the participants knew well. We never directly fought our principal antagonist, the Soviet Union, in direct military combat. The Cold War was not fought in that sense. It was not a war in which battles and bloodshed played a major role.
Charles Krauthammer said in the Washington Post, "The Cold War did not have the dramatic intensity of World War II. But it was just as real and just as dangerous. Though often clandestine and subtle, it ranged worldwide, cost many lives, evoked much heroism and lasted what seemed like forever . Considering the stakes, the scope and the suffering, this was a struggle that surely deserves commemoration. Let us build a monument to it. let the President call for the building of a Cold War memorial. If he won't, Congress should."
The Cold War means much to me personally. As the son of a famous Cold War figure, I grew up with the Cold War. The Cold War Museum began for me as a way to honor my father, but it soon took on a greater life and purpose. I am working toward a museum that will honor all the men and women who worked for democracy and freedom during the Cold War. The museum is not about reviving old hatreds, but rather about promoting lessons learned. It's about teaching democracy and world peace.
Through the long winter of the Cold War, we stood with the free people of Europe. Today we have a historic opportunity and a challenge. To nurture those new democracies that emerged from the iron grip of Soviet domination. And we will.
At the end of an ideal story, good triumphs over evil, and those who had been in darkness find the light. We know there will always be shadows and that cold winds continue to blow.
But here, today, in this place, this is our time to honor one of those individuals who made the ultimate sacrifice, who gave his life for our country, who understood that the true meaning of life is to make a difference. Major Rudolph Anderson made a difference, and our lives and our country have been moved by his deeds.
I would like to ask the family members of Major Anderson to the podium, please. On behalf of the Cold War Museum, I would like to present to you two of our Cold War Museum patches and a piece of the U-2 aircraft piloted by Major Rudolph Anderson, which was shot down over Cuba on October 27, 1962, during the Cubam Missile Crisis.
It is a deep honor for me to be here on this day to take part in this ceremony and to share this moment with you.
Thank you.
© 2001
Francis Gary Powers, Jr.
Founder
The Cold War Museum
P.O. Box 178
Fairfax, VA 22030
(703) 273-2381
it on to those who might be interested:
