Keynote Speech for 24th Infantry Division Memorial Dedication National Memorial Cemetery of The Pacific, July 25, 2007
by BG (retired) Irwin K. Cockett, Jr.
Aloha, Aloha Ka Kou, and a very special aloha to our comrades who
have traveled a great distance to memorialize their fallen comrades.
As is our custom, I begin by offering my respect to Ke Akua, the
Great Spirit who has made this special Day, and all other days; and
to this special hill of Sacrifice, a place for ancient and modern
Warriors, and also to our ancestors, yours and mine, who have given
us life and the wisdom of the Ages.
President John F. Kennedy once said that “A nation reveals itself
not only by the men it produces, but also by the men it honors, the
men it remembers.”
And so we are here today, to honor and remember all of those brave
and gallant soldiers of the 24th Infantry Division, who were first
to fight and who, now rest in the bivouac of the dead. Glory
guards them with solemn dignity, these brave warriors who made the
supreme sacrifice.
“Keia make aole; he make makahewa!” “These dead shall not have
died in vain!”
The history of our country is written in red in the Unit logs of our
Army’s regiments. It is captured on flimsy streamers that fly from
regimental colors remembering the fire fights that define the best
and worst moments in the lives of so many American soldiers in the
last 230 years.
And so today we pay homage to the 24th Infantry Division, which was
initially activated here on Oahu at Schofield Barracks on March 1,
1921, as the “Hawaiian Division.”
The history of the three infantry regiments of the 24th Division are chronicled with accounts of valor, courage, need, and unparalleled generosity.
Valor and courage are what the 24th Division is made of, and how they distinguished themselves in World War II, Korea, and Iraq.
The 21st Regiment is the oldest regiment of the 24th and dates
back to the war of 1812, where it distinguished itself at the Battle
of Lundy’s Lane.
The 19th Regiment was activated in the early days of the Civil War
and saw action in such famous battles as Shiloh, Chickamauga,
Gettysburg, Cold Harbor and Chancellorsville. The unit took
part in many other battles and in 1922 was ordered to Hawaii.
The 34th Regiment was originally an element of the 7th Infantry
Division during World War I. On December 7th, 1941, it was
enroute to the Philippines but was diverted to Hawaii and became
part of the 24th. During World War II, the 34th fought at
Leyte, Luzon, Corregidor, and Mindanao in the Philippines.
After the war it was sent to the main island of Kyushu, Japan, as an
occupation force where it pulled garrison duty from 1945 to 1950.
Many young soldiers from Hawaii enjoyed duty with the 34th during
this occupation period.
Life was very good, but all would suddenly change.
June 25th 1950, like December 7th 1941, will live in infamy, among
the people of the Republic of South Korea. At 0400 hours on
that date, the North Korean Peoples Army launched an unprovoked,
massive attack across the demilitarized 38th parallel.
Preceded by a long and intense barrage of artillery and mortar fire,
Russian-made tanks of the enemy’s armored divisions, lunged forward
with frightening speed, smashing headlong into totally unprepared
and gravely ill-equipped units of the Republic of South Korean Army.
It was the beginning of what is often called “The Forgotten War!”
Following President Harry S. Truman’s orders for U.S. ground
forces to support the Republic of Korea, General Douglas MacArthur
instructed General Walker, commander of the Eight Army, to order the
24th Infantry Division to Korea at once.
General Walker gave Major General William F. Dean, Commanding
General, 24th Infantry Division, verbal instruction which took the
form of a scratch unit designated, “Task Force Smith” named after
Lt. Col. Charles F. Smith, Commander, 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry
Regiment.
His orders were to “Advance at once upon landing with a delaying
force, in accordance with the situation, to the north by all
possible means, contact enemy now advancing south from Seoul towards
Suwon and delay his advance.”
Much easier said than done, as the enemy forces raced south to
over-run the entire peninsula and capture the important port of
Pusan.
Ill-equipped, in a poor state of readiness, and with under strength
rifle companies, the 406 men of Task Force Smith were sent in harms
way and landed in Korea on July 1st, 1950.
The battlefield was in total chaos, with thousands of South Korean
soldiers and refugees cluttering the roads as they retreated south.
Friendly air strafed friendly forces and rocketed South Korean
trains loaded with ammunition.
Task Force Smith’s delaying action at Osan took a heavy toll on his
forces and by July 6, only 5 days after landing, his unit had been
decimated from 406 to 250.
Here in Hawaii, we are especially proud to have two /three living
members of Task Force Smith who survived that living hell, were
captured, and suffered the long ordeal as prisoners of war.
Goichi Tamaye and Tomio Tadaki (Susumu Shinagawa) are not well and
could not be here with us today, but send their best wishes.
The Division would go on to fight on other foreign battlefields and
continue its distinguished history until its colors were cased on
Aug. 1, 2006, at Ft. Riley, Kansas.
Today as you walked up this path, called Memorial Walk, one cannot
but feel the pride of those who cared so much for their Unit and
Fallen comrades, that they were compelled to erect a lasting
monument to their memory.
And so it is fitting that the monument you dedicate today, be laid
here in Hawaii, home of the 24th.
A project of this magnitude takes dedication, time and money.
To Committee Chairman Dan Rickard and his committee of Bill Boyden,
Eric Diller, Billy Johnson and Ken Fentner (also Dutch Nelson and
Salvatore Schillaci) goes the kudo's for making this dream come
true.
Many helped and need to be recognized. Dan's grand daughter
Danielle designed the plaque and Professor Larry Jones and his
students at Saddleback College in California cast it.
The granite upon which the plaque is mounted was donated by the
Stone Art Memorial Company of New York and the Rock of Ages
Corporation of Vermont. This represents a gift of over four
thousand five hundred dollars. Shipping it this great distance
would have been very costly but for the gratis shipment by DHL.
Let me close with these words which are inscribed in the monument to
the right of yours.
To be killed in war is not the worst that can happen.
To be missing in war is not the worst that can happen.
To be forgotten is!
We will never forget!