tration (mostly associated

with academics) into the wall,

bringing it down quickly.

After all of the dust had set-

tled, D3 finally had their own

full length dayroom.

Painting quickly followed the

demolition of the wall. After

painting a primer over the

walls, D3 was ready to move

onto the next stage of the

renovation; creating a paint

scheme that matched our new

mascot. After deciding what

colors the wall would be and

purchasing all of the paint, D3

started to paint the new day-

r o o m c o l o r s c h e m e .

(Continued on Page 2)

A couple of years ago, a wall

was constructed in the middle

of the D3 dayroom. This wall

effectively cut the dayroom in

half, only giving our company

half of the room. Luckily,

early last semester, we were

given permission by USCC to

tear down this wall and ex-

pand the dayroom once again.

Around the same time that

this was happening, company

D3 was undergoing another

change as well. Formerly

called the D3 Devils, we de-

cided to adopt a new mascot;

the Dragoon. This new

change, along with the per-

mission to tear down the wall,

gave D3 an opportunity to do

something it had not done in a

while; completely renovate

the dayroom. After finalizing

all of the plans and safety

considerations, the first step

we had to take was to get rid

of the wall. Using a sledge-

hammer and an ax, a group of

Dragoons released their frus-

Cadet Kyle Forward, the

Company MWR Officer,

spent this semester organizing

and conducting an ambitious

service project. Our Company

adopted the 3-2 Air Defense

Artillery Battalion currently

deployed to Turkey on the

border of Syria in support of

NATO peacekeeping. Cadet

Forward wanted the company

to do something to help this

BN out, however did not want

to send the normal care pack-

age of food and supplies

which would be consumed a

few short weeks later. Instead,

Kyle communicate with the

commanders to determine

what would be a better thing

to spend our money on to

send. Cadet Forward ulti-

mately reached the decision

to send sports equipment.

(Continued on Page 3…)

D3 Cadet Company Com-

mander Giancarlo Salazar

prepares to knock down the

wall in the D3 dayroom.

Tearing Down Walls: A “New” Company Gets New Dayroom Article By: Cadet Nick Rose

Goon KSL 2

CPRC 3

Academics 4

Class Events 5-8

Dragoons Send Sports Equipment to Deployed Units

DRAGOON

TRIBUNE May 2013 V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 2

The Dragoon Trib-

une is a bi-annual

newsletter pub-

lished at the end

of every semes-

ter. Inside is a col-

lection of stories

and information

from the duration

of the semester

designed to keep

both current and

former D3 grads

involved in what’s

going on in our

company.

D3

I N S I D E T H I S

I S S U E :

Trek 9

Drill Team 9

Pictures 10-11

Dragoon His-

tory

12

Come Visit Us! 12

P A G E 2

“Being selected to

serve as Buckner

Regimental

Executive Officer is

an honor, and I am

looking forward to

working hard this

summer to make

Cadet Field

Training a Success!”

Cadet Glockler inspects a

portion of the wall to be

removed

Cadet Kostich Selected as KSL

Dragoons Slay SAMI Twice

Dragoons Reclaim Their Dayroom

…(continued from front page).

After many days of hard,

back breaking work of

painting, the walls were

finally painted and the

structural renovation of the

dayroom was finally com-

plete.

While the wall in the center

of the room is gone, and the

color scheme of the room

reflects the new mascot, the

full renovation is not yet

complete. Even though we

managed to acquire a pool

table and a foosball table a

few pet projects for the day-

room still exist. In the fu-

ture, we hope to build two

more things. The first is a

large conference table that

would provide a place for

people to sit down and

gather for dinner. The sec-

ond is a bar-top island that

would provide a place for

company dinners to be held.

While these projects are

still in the work and will not

be completed for a while, it

does not matter because for

the first time in a long time,

D3 has their dayroom back

and we can be proud of the

hard work that went into

making it a centerpiece for

our company. See page 10

for more photos of our

newly renovated dayroom!

ness in the Corps, along with

attention to detail and disci-

pline. This semester, the Dra-

goons beat out seven other

companies in Third Regiment,

placing second for both SAMIs.

Cadet First Sergeant Landan

O’Ban credits the success to

the Dragoon’s SAMI Prep Plan.

Each day of the week leading

While many of the rumors

among old grads are based on

how soft the Corps has gotten,

we can assure you that the

intensity of the Saturday AM

Inspection has likely increased

since you were here. Twice a

semester the Corps of Cadets

performs a Brigade wide SAMI

to promote health and well-

up to both SAMIs, the Com-

pany focused on a specific area

in our rooms to clean and have

in SAMI condition for AMI: the

beds, the sinks, the wardrobes,

et cetera. This prevented us

from having to clean our entire

rooms on Friday night, and

allowed us to focus on the

smaller details.

ment, and finally the Brigade

level. These boards ask ques-

tions about vision, leadership

qualities, military knowledge,

and character. The results of

these boards, coupled with the

candidates Cadet file, lead to

the selection of those rising

Firsties who will be in charge

of summer training. Cadet Ted

Kostich Jr., Dragoon Class of

2014, was selected to be the

Cadet Field Training Regimen-

tal Executive Officer, and will

serve as this from June 21—

July 26 this summer. Upon

completion of summer details,

another round of Key Leader

Selection boards occurs, this

time to fill the key Cadet lead-

ership positions of the Corps

during the Academic Year.

Wishing Ted the best of luck

with this summer!

Every year during the Spring

Semester the Brigade Tactical

Department undertakes the

long and arduous process of

determining who will be the

next leaders of the Corps of

Cadets upon graduation of the

Firstie Class. This process,

called Key Summer Leader

Selection, puts candidates

through a series of selection

boards at the Company, Regi-

D R A G O O N T R I B U N E

P A G E 2

Cadet Forward Organized Care Packages

P A G E 3 V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 2

…(Continued from front page)

This equipment included lacrosse sticks, footballs, soccer balls, Frisbees,

rugby balls, basketballs and nets, kickballs, dodgeballs, and a baseball

plate. In order to make this happen, Cadet Forward asked for donations

from members of our Company, and collected over $500.00 to support his

endeavor. Sending sports equipment instead of perishable items served

two purposes: first, the equipment allowed for recreation and a way for the

deployed soldiers to enjoy themselves while deployed, and second the

equipment helped the BN create a more diversified PT program while they

were deployed. The BN Commander was so thankful that he sent a personal note of thanks

to the Superintendent for the work of Kyle Forward and the rest of the Dragoon Team, and

included the following link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0X4Ij9fFoII&feature=youtu.be

to be profoundly humbling as he stood on the ground where

thousands fought and died. In addition to this stop, CDT Muhs

attended the West Point Society of Paris’s Founders Day dinner

at the “Ecole Militaire” in Paris. “This semester abroad experi-

ence has been the most rewarding and enriching opportunity I

have had since coming to West Point,” he noted. CDT Muhs

hopes to use his newly gained

knowledge of French language

and culture to benefit the military

relations between France and the

United States in the future.

Ethan Muhs spent his last semester

studying in Lille, France at the Lille

Catholic University, taking classes in

French, Economics, and International

Relations. During his downtime, Ethan

was able to travel across Northern

France, stopping at the Normandy D-

Day Beaches. One of his most favorite

locations he visited while over there,

Ethan felt a strong connection with the

D-Day beaches due to their historical

significance. He found this experience

pate in the Hometown Visit pro-

gram. This program selects eligible

Cadets (GPA 3.0 or higher) and

sends them to local high schools in

their hometown to talk to students

interested in attending West Point.

This outreach also allows the Ca-

dets to gain a few extra days of

leave, since the Hometown Visits

only occur before Thanksgiving and

Spring Leave. During her CPRC

Leave experience, Cadet Jen Ditt-

mer (2013) visited four high schools

in the central Florida area, meeting

one-on-one with candidates who had

accepted their appointments. She says

“They ahd a lot of questions about

life at the Academy. I felt confident in

the future of the Corps as I met with

these young men and women.” To

learn more about the CPRC Program,

contact the USMA Admission's Office

or go online to the Admission’s web-

page.

The Cadet Public Relations Council

(CPRC) is a Cadet Run program

out of the Admission’s Office. The

program has four different

branches: Candidate Escorting,

Groups Visits, Parent Briefs and

Tours, and Hometown Visits. Ca-

det Kostich was recently selected

to take over as President of the

CPRC Program for AY 14. But,

ahead of this event happening the

Dragoons had two Cadets partici-

Left: Cadet

Kyle Forward,

who organized

the Dragoon

donation of

Sports Equip-

ment

Cadet Public Relations Council

Cadet Muhs, Class of 2014, Studied Abroad

Right: Cadet Ethan Muhs

crouched in the catacombs in

Lille, France. He was selected

to study there for the Spring

Semester.

Dragoons Jen

Dittmer and

Mitchell Binger

participated in

CPRC Leave on

Spring Break to

talk about West

Point to High

Schools in their

hometowns.

Dragoon Academic Successes

P A G E 4 V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 2

Superintendent’s Award for Excellence

Superintendent’s Award for Achievement

Distinguished Cadet Award

The insignia for the Superintendent's Award for Excellence is a gold star encircled by a

gold wreath; it is presented to the top 5% of cadets in each class based on the Cadet Award

Score. The following Dragoons received the Superintendent’s Award for Excellence this

semester:

Cadet Alexander Cheng, 2013 Cadet Kevin Fleming, 2014

Cadet Cody Cuvillier, 2014

The insignia for the Superintendent's Award for Achievement is a gold wreath; it is pre-

sented to the next 15% of cadets in each class based on the Cadet Award Score. The follow-

ing Dragoons have the Superintendent’s Award for Achievement this Semester:

Blake Bucknam, ‘14 Katherine Collins, ‘14

Michael Lesmeister, ‘14 Ethan Muhs, ‘14

Ryan Hunton, ‘15 Michael Regan, ‘13

Rachel Burdick, ‘14 Sean Fullam, ‘14

Robert Mayville, ‘14 Camille Runyans, ‘14

Kevin Sanchez, ‘15

Distinguished Cadets are those cadets who demonstrate academic excellence by achieving

a YQPA or CQPA greater than or equal to 3.67. The insignia for a Distinguished Cadet is a

gold star. The following Dragoons earned the Distinguished Cadet Award this semester:

Alexander Cheng, ‘13 Rachel Burdick, ‘14

Cody Cuvillier, ‘14 Sean Fullam, ‘14

Matthew Hughes, ‘14 Michael Lesmeister, ‘14

Robert Mayville, ‘14 Ethan Muhs, ‘14

Kiefer Ragay, ‘14 Daniel Glockler, ‘15

Taylor Goucher, ‘15 Nicholas Rose, ‘15

Christopher Wink, ‘15 Melissa Yasnowski, ‘15

Spring Semester Class Events

Class of 2013-100th Night By Cadet Victoria Joye 100th Night is a night that cadets look forward to since their arrival at the academy and the completion

of Cadet Basic Training. It’s a night to be remembered, cherished, and held high among the many great

memories we make here at the Academy. This year it was the Class of 2013’s turn to experience the

100th Night festivities. From the inspiring speech at the 100th Night dinner, to the 100th Night show,

this experience solidified all of the accomplishments and memories we have had to date as a class and

apart from when we have graduation, this memory ranks in my top three.

Not opposed to the usual, the D3 Dragoons made an amazing showing at all the events planned for our

100th Night. Goon Firsties frantically tried finding dates and making plans for significant others to at-

tend this momentous event in every cadet’s life. Much to the underclassman’s dismay those Firsties that

tried did indeed find dates (pictured below). This being the first and only occasion cadets are allowed to

wear anything to dinner other than a cadet uniform, the Goon’s of 2013 looked sharp and snazzy in their

three-piece suits and evening/cocktail dresses. Everyone was on their best behavior escorting their dates

around campus and showing the place off. Making memories, having a blast, and spending the time

with good friends! That’s what the Dragoons do best and 100th Night was no exception.

P A G E 5

Spring Semester Class Events

Class of 2014-500th Night By Cadet Ted Kostich Jr. The Class of 2014 had the privilege of celebrating 500th Night on Janu-

ary 25-27, 2013. 500th Night weekend represents yet another milestone

in the long list of them that occur throughout our Cadet careers. I can

still remember being a Plebe and the Class of 2012 having their 500th

Night Banquet, so it was overwhelming for it to finally be our turn.

500th Night to the Cow class is our last big class event before we take

on the leadership of the Corps as Firsties, and begin the many events

that pepper Firstie Year like Ring Weekend and 100th Night. This year

the speaker for 500th Night was LTG John F. Mulholland Jr, the Deputy

Commander of Special Operations Command. LTG Mulholland im-

parted a variety of advice to us as a class during his remarks, but the

piece that stuck with me the most was his guidance on working with

NCOs in the future. LTG Mulholland talked about listening to NCOs

and taking what they have to say to heart. He advised that when we first

get to our platoons to watch and observe for a little while before making

any changes in how things are done. In addition, LTG Mulholland

talked about one of the qualities of leadership being that you truly care

for your soldiers and that you show this in everything you do.

Our Class thanks LTG Mulholland for his words of advice, and also

West Point for providing us with this awesome weekend to socialize and

celebrate yet another milestone on the way to graduation!

P A G E 6

Spring Semester Class Events

Class of 2015-Yearling Winter Weekend By Cadet Chris Ochs The Class of 2015 celebrated their second class weekend together, Yearling Winter Weekend, Febru-

ary 1-3. It was a great way for the yearlings to celebrate the completion of their first three semesters at West

Point. Dates from all over the country came to celebrate this occasion. Cadets were released Friday, 1 Feb,

after their last duty. Many cadets rented houses or stayed in a hotel with a group of friends in New York City

or West Point’s surrounding towns. All cadets had to return to West Point on Saturday for the Yearling Win-

ter Weekend Reception and Banquet. The Mess Hall was filled with the Class of 2015, their dates, company

TACs, high-ranking officers, and honorary guests. The guest speaker for the Class of 2015’s Yearling Winter

Weekend was the honorable Antonin Scalia, currently the Senior Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.

Scalia pressed upon our class that we must look closely at the profession we chose and, after we take it, al-

ways remember the oath we will take to support and defend the United States Constitution. He went on to

assert, the U.S. Constitution is the crux of our entire military profession and although today’s society under

appreciates it and its purpose we must possess an understanding of how much it means to our nation. Our

founding fathers fought hard to create this document and it is so special because it is “a living, breathing

document,” carrying a right to change as situations in society arise. Scalia ended his speech asserting, the

oath the Class of 2015 will take, when they return from their rising-cow Summer, will be one of the most

important decisions in their life.

The Class of 2015 was excited to share this weekend with their loved ones and is looking forward to

committing to service to the United States military and the United States Constitution in August 2013. Class

of 2015. For Those We Lead.

P A G E 7

Spring Semester Class Events

Class of 2016-Plebe Parent Weekend By Cadet Blake Bequette

This year’s Plebe Parent Weekend was a great success. It was a great opportunity for parents to see

daily cadet life and for the Class of 2016 to enjoy long-awaited (though temporary) fallout privileges. On

Friday, families met up with their plebes where they left them on R-Day: Eisenhower Hall, for a welcome

brief by the Commandant and Dean. Later, parents had the opportunity to see plebe classes including demon-

strations of Plebe Boxing and the IOCT.

Saturday morning, the regiment of plebes staged a parade on the Plain’s apron. Parents were also in-

vited to eat lunch in the Washington Hall to experience the history and tradition of the Corp’s mess hall. The

D3 plebes gathered in Thayer Hall for a company brief, presented by Captain Perrin and the company’s

plebe leadership. Justin Hall was D3’s commanding officer and Jeremy Schwartz was our commanding non-

commissioned officer over the course of Plebe Parent Weekend. With all the upperclassmen gone, many

plebes were put into leadership positions for the first time.

Saturday evening, cadets and their families attended a formal banquet in Washington Hall. The

Commandant, General Clarke was the guest speaker. After much anticipation, the Class of 2016 crest was

also unveiled. A picture of the new crest is below. The Plebe Parent Weekend festivities concluded with a

receiving line and a hop at Eisenhower Hall. Overall, the class weekend was a great opportunity for parents

to see day-to-day cadet life, and for plebes to enjoy more freedom, all at the beginning of a long-awaited

spring break.

The Dragoons had a large number of Plebes participate as Chain of Command in Plebe Parent Weekend, in-

cluding: Blake Bequette (CSM), John Harvey (CO), Justin Hall (PL), and Jeremy Schwartz (PSG). These

Cadets were selected by the TAC Team for their outstanding conduct and their ability to lead their Peers.

P A G E 8

P A G E 9

Left you can see the

Trek For Our

Troops Logo. The

Logo uses the tradi-

tional yellow

“Support Our

Troops” ribbon in a

new way.

Dragoon Takes Command of Drill Team

Dragoon Starts Non-Profit for Troops with PTSD

Cadet James Long, Dragoon Class of 2013,

started a not for profit organization, Trek

For Our Troops, that is taking off and ex-

periencing huge success in the Veteran

world. Trek For Our Troops (TFOT)

through mountain climbing, mentoring, and

community events, helps veterans transition

from military to civilian life and return to a

sense of normalcy.

Cadet Long said, "We're dealing with psy-

chological issues PTSD, drug addictions as

they try to cope, physical ailments, and loss

of limbs so there's this desire to say what

now?" James said he wants to help veterans

find their personal missions. Last year, Ca-

det Long climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro

and helped an Iraqi veteran who lost both

arms. From the Trek website, one can see

that climbing was chosen because it helps

veterans develop an identity apart from that

of soldier (coach, climber, etc.) and regain their sense of purpose; it expands

dialogue around the challenge of veteran reintegration; and builds a diverse

community to provide social and psychological support for veterans.

If you are interested in learning more about Trek, please visit their website at:

http://trekforourtroops.wordpress.com/

Norwich University, as

well as another National

Championship at Tulane

University.

Assuming the position in

March of 2013, CDT

Hughes as already com-

manded in various per-

formances for Boy Scout

events and the 2013 Re-

tiree Review. The picture

to the left shows CDT

Hughes at the West Point

Troop’s Blue and Gold

Ceremony.

Other goals CDT Hughes

has for this new season is

to expand the 12 man

CDT Matthew Hughes, a

member of the class of

2014 and a Platoon Ser-

geant in D3, has been se-

lected by his team to com-

mand the USMA Black

Knight Dri l l Team

(BKDT) for the academic

year ’14. As a three year

member of the team, CDT

Hughes has held positions

as the A/S4 and A/S3. He

is looking forward to lead-

ing his team to a fourth

straight first place finish at

the Cornell University In-

vitational Drill Meet, beat-

ing teams from Navy and

block to a 16 man block

as well as archiving the

team’s history since its

humble beginnings in

1986. If any past mem-

bers of D3 have been a

part of this organization,

feel free to contact CDT

Hughes to provide testi-

monies, pictures, or vid-

eos.

CDT Hughes is a native

of North Carolina and an

Operations Research Ma-

jor with Honors in the

Department of Mathe-

matical Sciences.

D R A G O O N T R I B U N E

P A G E 9

Above: Matt com-

manding the drill

team at the West

Point Boy Scout

Troop’s Blue and

Gold Ceremony

P A G E 1 0 Some Dragoon Photos From This Semester…..

Our newly renovated Dayroom!

Sandhurst Competition and more! P A G E 1 1

The Dragoon first appeared in France toward the end of the 17th century. Originally deployed as mounted infantry, Dragoons developed into a hybrid unit. They could fight from horse-back, or dismount and form lines of conventional infantry. Ac-accordingly, they were armed with a carbine and a straight saber, as opposed to the lighter, curved swords of hussars and other light cavalry. As the 18th century progressed and cavalry began to make resurgence in Western warfare, the Dragoon became popular across Europe as an adaptable form of me-dium cavalry, deployable under many conditions. While warfare at the time was dominated by linear infantry regiments exchanging volley fire, Dragoons proved invaluable in pursuing enemy troops, turning the flanks of opposing armies, and breaking the lines in massed charges. They were also used in a reconnaissance role, scouting ahead of the main body of an army. They were immortalized as leaders and role-models on the field of battle – always ready to LEAD THE CHARGE! We trace our lineage back to the American Dragoons who were essential to the early American struggle for independence. Up to the year 1777, the Continental Army was entirely without regular cavalry forces. In that year, General George Wash-ington raised four regiments of light Dragoons. These units became the elite forces of the Continental Army, acting as the personal bodyguard of George Washington and conducting raids on British positions on Long Island. They also participated in nearly every major battle of the war. As was the rest of the Continen-tal Army, these first four regiments were disbanded in 1783. It was another 50 years before Congress officially organized the United States Regiment of Dragoons, otherwise known as the American Dragoon Regiment. The American Dragoon Regiment became the First Regi-ment of Dragoons in 1836 after congress raised the Second Regiment of Dragoons. The 1st and 2nd Dragoons saw extensive action on the western frontier through the 1830’s up through the advent of the civil war. Dragoons prided themselves on using nonconventional stealth tactics in combat, dismounting to surround and “tighten the noose” around enemy positions.

Captain Kristopher Perrin

Kristopher.Perrin@usma.edu

COMPANY D-3, USCC

West Point, NY 10996

Are you interested in seeing all the work that Com-

pany D3 has been doing this semester firsthand? The

Dragoons would love support from our Old Grads

when you come back to visit West Point next. We

can take you on a tour of the company area, allow the

Firsties to ask you The Days, show you your old

room, and eat with you in the Mess hall. Please con-

tact the TAC Team if you would like to visit and re-

live all the memories you made as a member of com-

pany D3. But trust us when we tell you: the barracks

haven’t changed (besides our awesome new day-

room) since you were here!

TAC Officer

A Brief History of the Dragoons...

SFC Eric Williams

Eric.Williams@usma.edu

Visit us at https://www.facebook.com/D3Dragoons

TAC NCO

P A G E 1 2