September 2014
(From the Bonus Content of Checkpoints Magazine)

April 2014

Forgive me for imposing on your memories . . . but, if you are like me, sometimes it is good to give them a jolt. As you all know, 2014 marks the 60^th Anniversary of the Academy. At least, that is the conventional thinking out here in Colorado. Anyway, the anniversary has keyed several to begin to think about history and some of the events that have occurred over the past 60 years..

Steve Simon '77, Director Graduate Relations, has taken on the awesome task of putting together a compendium of all the notable events that can be tied to a specific day in the calendar. He is collecting memorable events such as the first day that Jack's Valley was used and, each month, publishing a chronology of the month's notable events.

My request: If you can think of any notable event (by your standards) that can be documented, Steve would appreciate your contact: Steven.Simon@USAFA.af.mil.

During some of his previous research, he has uncovered some amazing things, and a few that uncommonly defy understanding. For example, he found the Comm Shop has done a shabby job of documenting past history. Specifically there does not appear to by a copy of our early Cadet Regulations book anywhere. Or, and even more disappointing, there is no known copy of Form O-096, the cadet Food Acceptability Report (Fast, Neat, Average, Friendly, Good, Good).

My point: If you are clearing out your archives and you happen to run across any like item, before you throw them out, please contact me or Steve. Or if you recall any classmate that might have "hoarded" like items from the 50s, let them know the Academy Library is looking for them.

We, the older grads, are their last best hope in finding and preserving anything like that.

Thanks,

Andi

4 March 2014

DIPLOMA PLAQUE REPLACEMENT

by Art Lewis

The name of the company is "MTM Recognition" (formerly Midwest Trophy Mftg): The contact person is Eddie Mann. (800) 324-5997, ext 6908 Emann1@mtmrecognition.com. The full information is: 3405 SE 29th, Del City, OK 73115; Phone: 405-609-6908; Facs: 405-672-0964;. Business hours: Mon-Thurs 7:30-5:30 Fri - 7:30 - 12:30 CST

I learned of this repair or replacement opportunity in a recent AOG ZoomiENews email and decided to check it out. It costs about half the price of a new one for them to try and polish the blemishes out of the old one and they have varying results. I sent Eddie Mann a picture of my original plaque, and he told me it was unlikely that it could be repaired, although he said they would be glad to try. The price for a new one was reasonable ($120 plus tax and shipping), so I ordered one. It took only a week to get mine by FedEx ground. The plaque was wrapped in a plastic sleeve and packaged in a blue storage box. The blue storage box was well packaged with an outer shipping carton. It arrived in perfect condition.

As you can see from the side-by-side photo comparison, there are some minor differences in the bold font size (a little smaller on the new one). I think it was in an effort to slightly increase the margin of the printed matter and outer edge of the metal plate. Also, the wooden crest-style base is made of solid walnut, instead of black painted wood. The new one weighs a little less as well, probably due to the density of the wood and the fact the nickel silver shield plate is not bolted through the wooden mount, as the original was. There is a horizontal key hole slot on the back for wall mounting. The artwork is exactly correct as far as the text, signatures. etc. I thought anyone who orders one should be aware of the minor differences.

I am pleased with the quality, and now I can mount it on the wall. As you can see by the photo of the original, it was in pretty bad shape to display.

Eddie Mann of MTM Recognition provided some additional information for those interested in buying a new diploma plaque, based on some questions I asked after I purchased mine::

1. The new metal plate is attached to the solid walnut wooden crest base via a very strong adhesive tape. Our original crest plate is bolted to the black wooded base. If retaining the original black base is important, Eddie says the purchasers can order just the metal plate and adhesive tape (the cost for the plate is $75.00 plus tax and shipping) and affix it to the old black base themselves. Just to see how the process would work, I disassembled my original plaque by removing the three recessed nuts on the rear of the black base. If some of the bolts are loose and jiggle within the recess, they have become unsoldered from the back of the plate and are not holding the plate. In my case two bolts were loose, and I only needed to remove one nut. Once the nuts are removed from any soldered bolts, the plate pulls off with no resistance. The new plate will cover the same footprint as the old, so a swap is possible.

2. Other 1960 classmates who wish to purchase a new crest should send their full name (first, middle, last, and suffixes, like Jr. II, III, etc.)--as displayed on the original plaque--and any degree specifics on their original plaque that vary from the standard, "BACHELOR OF SCIENCE"--as shown on the pictures above. MTM Recognition has the setup for the Administrators and logos, but not all the names of the graduating cadets from our class.Eddie Mann will discuss unique issues to be sure the text on the new plaque is an exact match to the original. Or a digital photo of the original can be provided by email to clarify any non-standard issues.

. . . for Ring and Diploma Refurbishment check HERE.