Page 2 - Marching Along Fall 2013
P. 2
Beta in the Sky
at the time. Claudine was a sorority sister Force planes in the missing-man formation,
of the girlfriend of the Beta who introduced and a 21-gun salute. The duty of the escort
them and both girls were visiting Gainesville offcer is to travel with the remains to the
when Doug and Claudine met. burial site, help make funeral arrangements,
Doug’s frst post in the Air Force was as and attend to the needs of the families of
a nuclear weapons offcer in Minot, North the servicemen. At one particularly moving
moment during his Dad’s ceremony, Doug,
Dakota. He actually convinced Claudine to
visit him there, and recalled picking her up representing the United States government,
presented the American fag to his mother
at the airport in Bismarck in the middle of
a blizzard. His second assignment was in and younger sister. After more than 25 years,
these two American heroes had come home.
Space Operations, fying satellites in Denver,
Colorado. One morning while stationed Doug completed a 22-year career in the
there in 1997, after ending his night shift, Air Force in 2011. His last assignment was
he received a call at home from Air Force with the Special Operations Command at
Mortuary Affairs. His Dad’s remains and MacDill Air Force Base. Today Doug is a
those of the pilot, Captain Harris, had been Certifed Financial Planner and lives with
located by a joint military US-Vietnamese his wife and children in Brandon, Florida.
search and rescue team and were being So we shine our Alumni Spotlight on two
transported home. He was asked if he would Betas, a father who paid the ultimate price
like to serve as the escort offcer for their and the son who brought his dad home.
Dennis holding Doug. return. Naturally he eagerly accepted this
(Continued from Page 1) honor. He met the Air Force plane carrying
Harris. They were fying a CAT mission – the two fallen warriors at Dover Air Force
base in Dover, Delaware. He traveled with
short for Combat Air Control. The purpose them to Arlington National Cemetery
of these missions was to eliminate enemy where each was given a separate burial
fghters and clear the way for U.S. Air Force with full military honors. This included
bombers. Their plane was shot down by a being taken to the gravesite on a horse-
MiG-19 over Vinh Phuc province, North drawn caisson, a fy-over of three Air
Vietnam, on May 10th, 1972. It erupted in
fames, exploded and crashed. No parachutes
were sighted. Sadly neither aviator survived. The 1969 Pontiac Lemans.
Doug grew up in Ft. Walton Beach where
he was friends with fellow Betas ... the car
Ed Thompson ’87 and Spike “
Thompson ’89. While at UF has a
Doug not only followed in his
Dad’s footsteps as a Beta, he certain
also was in ROTC and was
commissioned a Lieutenant sentimental
in the United States Air value ...
Force upon graduation.
While in college another
Beta had introduced him to “
the girl he would later marry,
Claudine, who was a student at FSU The 1969 Pontiac Lemans
Update
omment about the historical group
Cphoto published in the spring: John
Dulaney ’52 & ’56 - “We were a zany
bunch. I can remember when those pics
were made. Hard to believe that it was
60 years ago. Where do the years go?
The days at Gamma Xi were some of the
best days of my life. Still keep up with
some of the guys. Beta was one of the
best things that have happened to John
D. I am still proud to be a Beta. Thanks
for sending the pics on. I still have one
of the shots in my desk.”
2
at the time. Claudine was a sorority sister Force planes in the missing-man formation,
of the girlfriend of the Beta who introduced and a 21-gun salute. The duty of the escort
them and both girls were visiting Gainesville offcer is to travel with the remains to the
when Doug and Claudine met. burial site, help make funeral arrangements,
Doug’s frst post in the Air Force was as and attend to the needs of the families of
a nuclear weapons offcer in Minot, North the servicemen. At one particularly moving
moment during his Dad’s ceremony, Doug,
Dakota. He actually convinced Claudine to
visit him there, and recalled picking her up representing the United States government,
presented the American fag to his mother
at the airport in Bismarck in the middle of
a blizzard. His second assignment was in and younger sister. After more than 25 years,
these two American heroes had come home.
Space Operations, fying satellites in Denver,
Colorado. One morning while stationed Doug completed a 22-year career in the
there in 1997, after ending his night shift, Air Force in 2011. His last assignment was
he received a call at home from Air Force with the Special Operations Command at
Mortuary Affairs. His Dad’s remains and MacDill Air Force Base. Today Doug is a
those of the pilot, Captain Harris, had been Certifed Financial Planner and lives with
located by a joint military US-Vietnamese his wife and children in Brandon, Florida.
search and rescue team and were being So we shine our Alumni Spotlight on two
transported home. He was asked if he would Betas, a father who paid the ultimate price
like to serve as the escort offcer for their and the son who brought his dad home.
Dennis holding Doug. return. Naturally he eagerly accepted this
(Continued from Page 1) honor. He met the Air Force plane carrying
Harris. They were fying a CAT mission – the two fallen warriors at Dover Air Force
base in Dover, Delaware. He traveled with
short for Combat Air Control. The purpose them to Arlington National Cemetery
of these missions was to eliminate enemy where each was given a separate burial
fghters and clear the way for U.S. Air Force with full military honors. This included
bombers. Their plane was shot down by a being taken to the gravesite on a horse-
MiG-19 over Vinh Phuc province, North drawn caisson, a fy-over of three Air
Vietnam, on May 10th, 1972. It erupted in
fames, exploded and crashed. No parachutes
were sighted. Sadly neither aviator survived. The 1969 Pontiac Lemans.
Doug grew up in Ft. Walton Beach where
he was friends with fellow Betas ... the car
Ed Thompson ’87 and Spike “
Thompson ’89. While at UF has a
Doug not only followed in his
Dad’s footsteps as a Beta, he certain
also was in ROTC and was
commissioned a Lieutenant sentimental
in the United States Air value ...
Force upon graduation.
While in college another
Beta had introduced him to “
the girl he would later marry,
Claudine, who was a student at FSU The 1969 Pontiac Lemans
Update
omment about the historical group
Cphoto published in the spring: John
Dulaney ’52 & ’56 - “We were a zany
bunch. I can remember when those pics
were made. Hard to believe that it was
60 years ago. Where do the years go?
The days at Gamma Xi were some of the
best days of my life. Still keep up with
some of the guys. Beta was one of the
best things that have happened to John
D. I am still proud to be a Beta. Thanks
for sending the pics on. I still have one
of the shots in my desk.”
2
