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more from<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="http://www.newspaperarchive.com"></a>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.newspaperarchive.com">http://www.newspaperarchive.com</a>,
to which I am not subscribed -- <br>
<br>
Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, Sunday, August 21, 1949<br>
<br>
" The plane whose wreckage was found accidentally by a hiker day
carried air force Col AY Smith 49 San Francisco army <em>COL Walter W
Hodge</em> 45 San <b>..."<br>
<br>
</b>And from a bio on the the United States Military Academy tribute
page for his son, below,<b><br>
<br>
"</b><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">COL
Hodge was killed in April 1949 on an official flight to Portland, OR,
when his plane crashed into Mt. Hood. He was laid to rest in the
Presidio of San Francisco with full military honors, and the largest
office building in Alaska was named after him in 1956. "</span><br>
<b><br>
-----<br>
<br>
</b>Obituraries for<b> </b><font face="Verdana" size="2"><font size="2">Walter
William Hodge Jr. -- from <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.aogusma.org/class/1961/hodge.htm">http://www.aogusma.org/class/1961/hodge.htm</a><br>
<br>
Biography:<br>
<br>
</font></font>
<p align="justify"><font face="Verdana" size="2">Walter William Hodge
"Herky" was
born 15 Apr 1938 in St. Louis, MO, a son of Willie and Walter Hodge. He
graduated from West Point in 1961 and served in the Army in Thailand
and
Vietnam. In 1963, he took one of the first groups of combat troops to
Vietnam and
returned with no casualties. He received the Air Medal with oak leaf
cluster
and the Vietnamese Expeditionary Medal for his service. </font> <o:p></o:p>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">After
leaving the Army, Walt taught GED classes at Phoenix College and was a
veteran's counselor during 1974-78. In 1979 he founded Career
Exploration Academy and worked for the Bureau of Indian Affairs in
Kayenta, counseling Navajo students, unntil1991. While working at
Shonto Boarding School, he was president of the teachers union. Walt
also was superintendent of Paloma School District and taught at
Coconino Community College in Page. He later was a counselor at Desert
Shadows Middle School in Nogales, where he wrote the manuscript for a
book, "What Do You Want to Be, Now That You Are Grown Up?" </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"> His
wife Nancy wrote a short time after his death: <i>"Words cannot
express my feeling of gratitude and appreciation for your support and
prayers during this time. It has been overwhelming and at the same time
comforting to hear how much Herky was loved, respected and missed by
his classmates and fellow servicemen, even though many years have
passed since seeing one another. It was very emotional for me to read
the cards and letters received from all of you. 1he special lift-long
bond that was shared with Herky and all the other men is phenomenal and
beyond my expectations. </i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-style: italic;">"Although
Herky did not stay in the service .... he frequently made reference to
his tour of duty in Viet Nam. After the service, Herky continued to
utilize his outstanding leadership qualities throughout his career in
the field of education." </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Walter
and Nancy were married in 1981 while working at a resident school on an
Indian Reservation in northern Arizona. He was the head counselor and
supervisor of the boy's dorm where Nancy was teaching. In 1990 Walt had
the opportunity to fulfill a dream and move to Page, AZ, to accept a
faculty position at the community college. The Hodge Family, grown to
three over the years with the addition of a son Dane, moved to Page,
near Lee's Ferry on the Colorado River, where Walt loved to fish. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">When
Walt began to have frequent bouts with pneumonia due to his lung
condition, the doctor recommended that he move to a lower altitude. In
2002, he moved to Arizona City in southern Arizona, and after a long,
courageous battle with lung cancer, Walter Hodge departed this world on
10 Mar 2004, dressed in old battle fatigues with the Arizona National
Guard firing a final salute. Walter is survived by his wife Nancy; son
William Dane; and sister, Judith Lundin, of Phoenix, AZ. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Herky
was raised in a military family, moving from post to post with his dad,
COL Walter W Hodge '25, mom, Willie, and sister Judy. COL Hodge was a
native of Chicago and held military posts in Panama, Ft. Lewis, WA, Ft.
Douglas, UT, the Presidio of San Francisco and also was stationed in
Manila after the war. He was a member of the Alaska Road Commission in
1930, and he, another engineer, two Indian guides and a cook made a
30-day trip by pack train to survey the highway route. COL Hodge was
killed in April 1949 on an official flight to Portland, OR, when his
plane crashed into Mt. Hood. He was laid to rest in the Presidio of San
Francisco with full military honors, and the largest office building in
Alaska was named after him in 1956. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">After
COL Hodge's death, the family moved to Tucson, AZ. Walt attended Tucson
High School and then graduated from Brown Military Academy in Glendale,
CA. Being from a military family, Walt entered both Sullivan
Preparatory School and West Point with a reservoir of knowledge gained
over 20 years of living on Army posts throughout the world. He knew
more about military history and leadership than anyone in my life when
we met at Sullivan's. Walt was an early leader who wanted to help
others and was not concerned about himse1£ He was a recognized leader
among the Class of '61, and as his good friend and Sullivan classmate,
Mike Maloney, wrote, "He was the only one of the boys to make rank." He
was a cadet officer, but more important was the way Walt helped and
treated others during very difficult times for him personally and the
military in general. He was my very good friend throughout my life. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">A
memorial was held for Walter Hodge on 9 Jul 2005 at a gravesite on the
family property near Williams, AZ, to dedicate a new headstone. It was
a gravesite that Herky had selected and loved, in the mountains of
northern Arizona. It was a lovely, clear, cool Arizona afternoon. Those
present included Gary Lord, Jerry and Connie Zingsheim, Paul DeVries,
Gus and Charlotte Stiehl, Jim Lynch and grandson James, Bruce
Dalgleish, Gabe and Susie Gabriel, and Mike Brady and Colleen. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Prior
to the service, we viewed pictures and documents of Walt's life. It
brought back memories of Sullivan prep school, the Academy, Ft.
Benning, GA, and IOBC, Jump School and Ranger School, our first
assignments and, of course, Viet Nam. The ceremony included a review of
his life, wherein each classmate lit a candle and said a few words
about him. There was a short video tribute with pictures from childhood
to senior citizen. Nancy saw a part of Walt that she had missed. It is
hard for the wives who came into our lives later to relate to the
relationships that we have, the difficulties we overcame together, the
joys of conquering Ranger School, the shared triumph and sorrows. Nancy
deeply appreciated the opportunity to see Herky through our eyes, from
our words and to feel our caring for her. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">May
He Rest in Peace, God Bless for a Job Well Done. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-style: italic;"><font
size="1">-Love, Nancy, Judy, and Dane </font></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><font size="1">
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">TAPS MAY/JUNE 2008</span></font></p>
<br>
<font face="Verdana" size="2"><font size="2"><br>
<br>
</font></font>
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