Local News
Army Security Agency Veterans Enjoy Fellowship at Monthly Luncheons
The history of Military Intelligence in this country originates during the American Revolutionary War with spies, scouts, informants, and such. Since then, technology has dictated just how intelligence on the enemy is collected, where today, spy satellites are used extensively – in addition to the continued use of “spies, scouts, and informants.”
Over the years, the U.S. Army Security Agency (ASA) was a very significant player for the nation in collecting intelligence on actual and potential adversaries by intercepting radio signals. The ASA existed between 1945 and 1977 and was the successor to the Army Signals Intelligence Service/Agency, with operations that date to World War I. Initially, this involved the interception of radio transmissions used by enemy forces communicating, sometimes by happenstance, but this capability evolved to very sophisticated collection means as technology improved, to include virtually all types of electronic signals.
Tens of thousands of ASA soldiers have been employed over the years to conduct these operations, playing a significant role in WW I, WW II, the Korean Conflict, and Vietnam, and during peace time, significantly contributing to the winning of the Cold War. Following WW II (with compelling contributions to the breaking of German and Japanese communications codes), the Army established a direct link between the Army Security Agency (ASA) with the newly created National Security Agency (NSA) when it was created in 1952. Note also, that the Navy and Air Force later developed their own “signal interception” capabilities and organizations.
With an Army Intelligence reorganization, the ASA was integrated into the U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM) organization in December 1976. While the ASA disappeared as an organization beginning in 1977, there continued to be “some” ASA designated units as the reorganization was completed. And today, there remain many Veterans still alive and well (mostly) throughout the country that chose to identify as proud “ASA Veterans.”
The comradery of this group of men and women is strong. Much of what they did over the years serving our country was highly classified but is now declassified, at least in part, and they are now able to discuss some of what they did and are reconnecting with fellow service members. This is therapeutic in many ways, especially for those of the Vietnam era, never welcomed home and never able to discuss the very highly classified work they performed for our nation. Now all should be recognized for what they accomplished, and not just in Vietnam. Note that during Vietnam, the ASA units had the “cover name” of Radio Research units, and all major tactical units were assigned such support – technically, ASA was “Never officially in Vietnam,” however, ASA was the first into Vietnam and among the last to leave. During ASA’s 12-year tour of service there, ASA units were awarded more than 120 U.S. decorations and 60 foreign citations.
The United States military is truly a brotherhood and sisterhood. Because military men and women are required to make sacrifices well beyond anything expected of their civilian counterparts, it is understood that the friendships established may also be much stronger. The reality is that the needs of the armed services come first, and personnel change duty locations at the direction of the military. During an individual’s time in the service, there are always fellow military members to rely on for support. Military families have a unique understanding of the challenges and can relate in ways that civilian support systems cannot.
Those who serve together form a common sense of purpose and devotion to duty. These military friendships last forever. But when people leave the military, they often lose touch with those dear old friends.
Across the country, groups of these Veterans are gathering, to the benefit of the individuals wanting to reconnect with fellow members of the ASA of years past. These groups include those that made a career in the military, those that served their four years and returned to civilian life, and both enlisted and officer ranks. One such group is the Winchester/Northern Virginia ASA Luncheon Group that meets for lunch once per month.
Pre-COVID, fellow ASA members, Bill (“Jake”) Jacobson (residing near Leesburg) and Harry Newman (Stephens City) connected via an ASA Facebook Group, the National Army Security Agency Association (NASAA), and met for lunch one day. During discussions, it was realized that many more ASA Veterans were probably located in the area, and they needed to get together. So, it was decided that they would try to organize a monthly gathering, a lunch, perhaps. A notice was put out on the NASAA Facebook Group, and it was astounding how many of this relatively unheralded group of Veterans responded and joined the luncheons.
Today, there are 38 members that periodically join for lunch, sometimes five, sometimes as many as 18, depending on individual schedules. More than simply getting together to “share war stories,” these gatherings have more to do with demonstrating the bond of this mostly obscure group of intelligence professionals with a “shared CLASSIFIED experience and history,” that few outside of the military can understand.
Members of this lunch group include individuals exemplified by such as Jake Jacobson, living near Leesburg, VA. He was drafted in 1967 as a Private after a stint at Montana State College. After the “normal” battery of tests for new recruits to determine their strengths and aptitudes, Jacobson was offered (by a “special” recruiter) an opportunity to avoid the draft status by enlisting in the ASA for four years. Note that most recruiters of the time had no clue what the ASA’s mission was, because it was so classified. Enticed by the prospect of learning a marketable trade/skill, he joined, and following Basic Combat Training, Jacobson attended a lengthy school at Fort Devens, MA to learn and copy Morse Code along with Special Identification Techniques and radio direction finding.
Although ASA was not technically in Vietnam, that is where he was deployed following school for the needs of the Army. Jacobson was assigned to a “Radio Research” unit (the cover name for ASA there! It was classified that ASA was in Vietnam, and all major tactical units were assigned such ASA support units) in the field intercepting low powered radio Morse Code and locating Viet Cong (VC) units. One had to be “close to the enemy “to hear the enemy.” Jacobson is remembered as mentioning that one day he and his team heard Vietnamese voices on the other side of a tree line as they were deploying and determined it was the very same VC they were intercepting at the time. He is fond of saying, “I’ve never had friends like the friends I had in Vietnam!”
Like the majority of Vietnam Veterans, Jacobson returned to the U.S. with virtually no recognition except from family and friends. Assigned to Fort Bragg, NC and then Vint Hill Farms, VA, he met his future wife and extended his enlistment two years until she graduated from Nursing school – of course, with the “needs of the Army” intervening, he was deployed to Germany and a border intelligence collection site for almost two years. Jacobson separated from the Army as a Specialist Fifth Class in 1973, and after getting married, he returned to Eastern Montana College (now Montana State University, Billings) for a teaching degree in 1976. He completed a 43-year teaching career in 2020. He is a member of the National ASA Association Board of Directors and continues to push for more recognition of these unheralded Army Intelligence warriors and bring together groups such as this lunch group. Further, Jacobson is actively involved in having an ASA memorial established at Arlington National Cemetery.
Another member of this lunch bunch is Robert (Bob) Chase, from Manassas, VA. Chase, a 17-year-old from Tennessee, enlisted for four years with the ASA in 1961 as a Private and became a Warrant Officer at age 24. His overseas assignments during 20 years in ASA included Vietnam (twice, plus several temporary assignments there), Thailand, the Philippines, and Germany. Those assignments in the U.S. include Fort Devens, MA; Fort Huachuca, AZ, Fort Hood, TX, Fork Polk, LA, Fort Bragg, NC, Fort Meade, MD, and Vint Hill Farms, VA. His experiences include being the duty officer at the Headquarters US Army Europe when terrorists detonated two 500 lb. car bombs at that compound that killed three soldiers. Chase married a German lady, and he became a Chief Warrant Officer at 25 years old, retiring as a Chief Warrant Three (CW 3) in 1981. Interestingly, his first beer as a new Warrant Officer at the officers’ club was bought by Charles Schulz (creator of Peanuts cartoons).
Ernest Puls, from Hanover, Maryland, enlisted in ASA in 1961 as a Private, retiring 23 years later as a Master Sergeant. Puls was a TV repairman, taking an electronics course when he enlisted, and the recruiter, when he saw his test scores, told him he had the perfect job for him. His 23 years with ASA repairing electronic equipment will attest to that! Following Basic Combat Training at Fort Jackson, he attended school at Fort Devens, MA, then on to Menwith Hill, England. There he met and married his wife and reenlisted (beginning that 23-year career). Returning from England, Puls was assigned to Vint Hill Farms, VA, followed by an unaccompanied tour in Sinop, Turkey. Afterward, Puls was sent back to Fort Devens for further schooling and became an instructor for a year. Then three years in Germany and four years at Fort Meade, MD. Then it was back to Turkey for a year, followed by an assignment to Fort Meade where Puls retired as a Master Sergeant and spent 17 years as a civilian DOD employee, and five years as a DOD Contractor at Fort Meade. Puls is also a member of an ASA lunch group in Maryland.
Harry Newman, from Stephens City, enlisted in ASA in 1966 as a Private, knowing nothing about ASA (or Army intelligence, for that matter) but was convinced by a recruiter that it would be interesting. As it turned out, this was so true. Newman signed up for school at Fort Devens, MA to become an Electronic Warfare specialist, decided to apply for Officer Candidate School (OCS), was accepted, and attended Infantry OCS at Fort Benning, GA. Following the Basic Officers Course at Fort Devens, he spent 18 months in Vietnam, mostly in the field as a platoon leader of an ASA unit supporting an Infantry brigade of the 4th Division. Newman was also assigned to the 5th Special Forces Group Airborne School, completing the course, and being awarded both the U.S. and Vietnamese jump wings. He returned to the U.S. in 1969 to Fort Bragg, NC, serving in the Airborne ASA battalion supporting the XVIII Airborne Corps, met his future wife, married her, and was reassigned to the Military Intelligence Advanced Officer Course at Fort Holabird, MD. Following this nine-month course, he was back to Fort Devens for ASA training and then to Mount Saint Mary’s College (Emmitsburg, MD), completing his undergraduate degree in Political Science under the Army’s Degree Completion Program. Afterward, Newman was assigned back to Fort Bragg to be an ASA Company Commander in the 82nd Airborne Division for 18 months. Newman has said this assignment, commanding a company of over 200 soldiers, was the best assignment he had in the Army.
Interestingly, demonstrating just how small the ASA community was and is, Newman’s First Sergeant, Charles W. Smith (Big Smithy, as he was called behind his back) was also the first Sergeant of a member of this lunch group, Jake Jacobson. Although the two missed being assigned together by a few months in the 1970’s, both have fond memories of Big Smithy. Newman remembers Smithy saying there was no way he would jump out of a perfectly good airplane, while never acknowledging that there was not a parachute harness large enough to fit him! He was 6’ 3” and over 320 pounds! But both Jake and Harry agree that there was never a finer first sergeant in the ASA.
Newman’s following assignments included Germany, as an intelligence analyst in a Joint Intelligence Fusion Center; Fort Sill, OK, as a Special Security Officer (SSO); South Korea as Chief of Intelligence in a Combat Support and Coordination Team supporting the First Republic of Korea Army, and multiple assignments in the Army’s Training and Doctrine Command. He also attended the Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC) while completing his Master’s Degree in Military Arts and Science in 1979. Newman served more than 20 years in the Army, retiring in 1986 as a Lieutenant Colonel. Retirement from the Army was followed by 15 years with a defense contractor. He continues to seek out those of ASA he served with over the years. As with Jacobson, Newman is a member of the National ASA Association Board of Directors and is also working to establish an ASA memorial at the Arlington National Cemetery.
The plan is to receive approval to establish an appropriate memorial within Alington National Cemetery (ANC) as agreed upon by the Secretary of the Army and ANC. At present, there are several dozen monuments and memorials, of various types and designs, that commemorate individuals, groups, military units, and battles.
While considered the Winchester/Northern Virginia Area ASA lunch bunch, ASA Veterans from Virginia Beach, Ashland, Richmond, Woodbridge, Front Royal, Manassas, Stanley, Emmitsburg, MD, Falling Waters, WVA, and even Fairfield, PA, have joined the group to share lunch and “stories from the past.” Friendships have been established, and in some cases, renewed – one of those, “I wondered what happened to you” moments.
The luncheon group meets the first Friday of each month at 11:30 a.m., alternating between Winchester’s Mission BBQ and the Purcellville’s Smokin Willy BBQ.
For more information regarding the monthly luncheons, and the ASA Memorial, contact Harry Newman at harry.newman@comcast.net or Bill Jacobson at wmjake01@gmail.com.
Chamber News
Front Royal Welcomes CBM Team of Supreme Lending with Enthusiasm and Optimism
Front Royal, Virginia, celebrated a significant business merger that marks a promising future for local economic development. The CBM Team, a longstanding local business entity, has officially joined forces with Supreme Lending, expanding its reach and capacity to serve the community more effectively.
Nike Foster, Executive Director of the Front Royal/Warren County Chamber of Commerce, and Mayor Lori Cockrell welcomed the CBM Team to our community. The event underscored a vibrant community spirit and the potential for economic growth. Byron Biggs, Chairman of the Chamber, highlighted the merger as a symbol of positive evolution in the local business landscape. It is now poised to extend its influence beyond Virginia.
Mayor Cockrell shared personal anecdotes, reflecting on the profound local ties and the exceptional character of the individuals involved, particularly noting the entrepreneurial spirit of Cory Michael, a former student of hers and now a regional manager for Team CBM. Her words painted a picture of a community that values deep personal connections and collective growth.
The merger promises substantial benefits to Front Royal, bringing enhanced services and opportunities for home ownership that were previously out of reach for many residents. This union is a merger of two companies and a fusion of cultures and aspirations, aiming to enrich the local community while maintaining the cherished CBM brand identity.
Attendees left the event with a sense of excitement and anticipation for the future, confident in the continued prosperity and communal strength of Front Royal.
Local News
Congratulations to Warren County High School Seniors – Class of 2024
Royal Examiner presents the Warren County High School Class of 2024. Congratulations to these wonderful seniors on their hard work and deserved accomplishments! We wish you the best in your next big endeavors. Photos courtesy of Victor O’Neill Studios and Tolliver Studios, LLC.
If your Warren County senior is not listed, please send in their Name and Senior Picture to news@royalexaminer.com.
Local News
Fairfax Police Officer, Son of WC Deputy Jim Williams One of This Year’s Fairfax Valor Awards Recipients
At the Thursday, April 11 Fairfax County Valor Awards ceremony, Fairfax County Police Officer Cody Williams, son of Warren County Sheriff’s Office Deputy and Bailiff Jim Williams, and two colleagues were among the 2023 honorees. We asked proud father Jim about the incident late last year that led to his son and fellow officers’ recognition. This is what he told us:
“On December 25th, Christmas Day, at 9 p.m., members of the Fairfax County Police Department Reston District Station responded to a shot person call. According to his wife, the homeowner had accidentally shot himself while cleaning his handgun. Officers Cody Williams, Andrew Craven, and Anthony Galindo arrived on the scene to find the homeowner unresponsive. The gunshot wound was to the victim’s left calf, resulting in an extreme loss of blood. Williams and Craven applied two tourniquets, and Galindo performed CPR. The victim was transported to the local hospital. He was able to make a full recovery.”
We were also informed of comments by Fairfax Police Chief Kevin Davis, who made an analogy to his officers’ Christmas Day call and the 1947 Hollywood movie classic “It’s a Wonderful Life” starring Jimmy Stewart. As fans of that great and timeless film will recall, it had its own Christmas day event of a somewhat miraculous nature involving a Guardian Angel. And indeed, it will be “a Wonderful Life” for the injured man and his family moving forward due to the prompt actions of their “guardian angels” Officers Williams, Craven, and Galindo, among others at the scene.
We found this background on the Fairfax Valor Awards website:
“The Fairfax County Valor Awards recognize the remarkable achievements in service of our community’s dedicated first responders. Since 1979, members of our police, sheriff, fire and rescue, and public safety communications have been honored for exceeding the call of duty with their lifesaving acts. The Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce is proud to host this prestigious event.” In attempting to get photos of the Christmas Day “guardian angels” from even sponsor the Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce, we were informed individual shots were not taken due to the number of recipients from the past year. This year, a total of 240 awards were presented, including 84 Lifesaving Awards, 131 Certificates of Valor, 22 Bronze Medals of Valor, and 3 Silver Medals of Valor.
Congratulations to Officers Williams, Craven and Galindo for a Christmas Day first response well done, and one that at least two Reston residents may remember as their very own Christmas miracle, circa 2023.
And thanks to our own WCSO Deputy Jim Williams for alerting us to this nearby Happy Ending Christmas story. And also a nod toward our own first responders in Warren County and the Town of Front Royal for all they do daily for us. You’re ALL Valor Award winners to us!!!
Community Events
Valley Chorale Announces Upcoming Spring Concerts in Middletown and Front Royal
The Valley Chorale presents “Wishing On a Song – Music in the Key of Hope”, a spring concert exploring aspirations of love, home, spirituality and compassion that unite and uplift us all. With styles ranging from light classical and sacred to vocal jazz, spirituals and pop, The Valley Chorale strives to capture the hopes that unite us.
The Valley Chorale is known throughout the Shenandoah Valley for innovation and excellence, with piano, cello and percussion accompaniment, and their concerts are often a heart-warming experience for all. They welcome babies and tots, so no need to hire a babysitter.
Tickets can be purchased on their website TheValleyChorale.org — $15 for age 21+ (free under age 21) or at the door for $17.
SATURDAY, MAY 4, 3:00 – 4:15 PM
Belle Grove Plantation (Bank Barn), 336 Belle Grove Road, Middletown, VA
SUNDAY, MAY 5, 3:00 – 4:15 PM
First Baptist Church, 14 W. 1st Street, Front Royal, VA (Community Reception to follow)
For further information, visit the website: TheValleyChorale.org: follow them on Facebook; email them at TheValleyChorale@gmail.com or call at 540-635-4842.
(From a Release by The Valley Chorale)
Local News
Gifted and Exceptionally Motivated Former Students of Mountain Vista Governor’s School Inducted into Foundation Hall of Fame
On the evening of Saturday, April 27, beginning at 5 p.m. in the cafeteria at Warren County High School, the Mountain Vista Governor’s School Foundation hosted a donor reception followed by an induction of two former MVGS students into their hall of fame. In the names of those former students, two scholarships will be awarded in the amount of two hundred dollars each to students in need.
One of nineteen regional governor’s schools in Virginia, Mountain Vista Governor’s School for Math, Science, and Technology, is present at two locations, on Laurel Ridge Community College’s Warrenton campus and the Middletown campus. MVGS draws and actively seeks out gifted, exceptionally motivated students from the thirteen base schools it serves in Clarke, Frederick, Warren, Culpeper, Fauquier, Rappahannock, and Winchester. Splitting their time between their base schools and MVGS, these students, in Middletown or Warrenton, depending on the counties in which their base schools are located, are given a chance to take advanced courses, including ones in humanities that, if they opt for dual enrollment, may help them skip the first two years of college. Government funding allows MVGS to welcome students into its tuition-free program. But if the students desire dual enrollment in connection with Laurel, wherein they receive college credit for their courses, then tuition becomes necessary. Attendance at MVGS involves an application, and there is a limit to the number of student places that can be filled in during any given school year.
Saturday evening was a showcase of rising talent in the MVGS system, as well as testimonies to the caliber of its program as two former students who benefited from MVGS and have gone on to have brilliant careers were given the opportunity to speak about how much they value their educational history at the governor’s school and how it uniquely prepared them to excel. The Foundation, separate from the school itself, is concerned with fundraising on behalf of the school so that students can be supplied with the tools and other resources they need to receive their education. Because of those assets made accessible by the Foundation, the two students who spoke were effusive about what a great foundation they had for future success. The rigor they underwent prepared them to maximize the challenges ahead.
A good example of the type of excellence students are encouraged to achieve in the program is the artificial intelligence project undertaken by Tamara Otten, which was displayed at the event. Tamara will soon take her project to an international competition in Los Angeles. She is exploring the possibility that AI could be trained to detect filtered images. This has ramifications for mental health as young people would then be able to discern that many of the images that they are being bombarded with on the Internet are not genuine. Therefore, they should not compare themselves to those unrealistic standards. In Tamara’s mind, this is just the beginning.
The evening also featured an auction of student-created artwork and a bag raffle. The members of what was an intimate gathering went home with leftovers of Devin Smith’s culinary art. Smith is an expert chef known for his involvement with Reaching Out Now, another organization reaching young people, specifically in Warren County.
Local News
As Opening of Youth Center Draws Near, the Reaching Out Now Family Looks to the Past for Inspiration
As Samantha Barber and Toby Hire sat, side by side, holding hands on April 26 in a yet-to-be-furnished room of the Raymond E. Santmyers Student Union and Activity Center in Front Royal, Virginia, there was a very real sense of water, which is stopped by nothing. “Water is my serenity,” Samantha said in this conversation with the Royal Examiner. It maneuvers its way around any obstacle in its path, if not eroding the obstacle altogether, and that is precisely what the Reaching Out Now (RON) family, of which Samantha is the president, has done in its endeavor to provide Front Royal and the wider Warren County region with a youth center, opening soon, where students can come to play, relax, have fun, develop strong bonds of friendship, and explore what they want to do with their futures.
The youth center is necessary, and the stakes are life and death. The brilliant lives and tragic early departures of Harlee Hire and Nathan Jenkins, the first to suicide and the second to a boating accident, inform the RON family of their mission to reach young people. There is this awareness that life is incredibly fragile, and the only way to face it is through community. It is as simple as asking: “Are you okay?” That is precisely what RON intends to do through the youth center so that young people in Harlee’s position do not fall through the cracks.
Harlee loved water. And by all appearances, she could overcome any obstacle. Through tears, “She was a great friend,” her mother Toby said as Samantha gripped her hand. Harlee practiced radical encouragement. It was not uncommon to hear her yelling shameless compliments like: “Your butt is looking fine today!” And even in the early months of 2022, after her friend Nathan’s boating accident in January and before she attempted suicide on May 10 and officially passed on May 11 and the Honor Walk donation of her organs on May 13 at UVA, she clung tenaciously to life. “I am going to do this, Miss Sam,” she told Samantha at a fashion show RON was hosting. And she walked down the runway.
“It is a sacrificial gift,” Samantha said of the youth center. “Nathan would have loved this,” Susan Jenkins said, standing outside the Santmyers building in May of 2023, and as soon as she said it, it began to rain. Indeed, a little fall of rain can hardly hurt me now, to quote the musical production of Les Miserables. There is a very real sense that both Harlee and Nathan continue to live through the youth center as the RON family remembers them and strives to reach young people in their position. Especially Harlee’s. While it is impossible to predict an accident like the one that occurred for Nathan, Samantha, and Toby both feel strongly that intervention is possible in the case of young people who are struggling with mental health issues.
In fact, May will be Mental Health Awareness Month for RON as they host three different athletic events in memory of Harlee and Nathan through their Safe at Home program. On May 9, a varsity girls’ softball game will be held at Skyline High School at 6 p.m. They will host a community baseball day on May 11, between 10:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. at the Bing Crosby Stadium. And on May 25 at Skyline High School from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., they will host a community softball day. In order to get tickets, go to reachingoutnow.org
There is no need to be perfect. Samantha is frank about the impact this trauma has had on her health. “You have rheumatoid arthritis,” a doctor told her. He explained that she had internalized so much psychological pain that it had a very real manifestation in her physical health. But this is just one more obstacle that can be overcome through the support of friends offering real, physical comfort. You can be broken, Toby said. It is okay. It is the broken kids that RON wants to reach. If you are in trouble at school, we understand, Samantha emphasized. If you have weed in your backpack, we understand. This is not a matter of selecting the crème de la crème of students who are already gifted and exceptionally motivated. It is a matter of reaching all the kids and helping them understand their potential.
In the unfurnished room at the youth center, a room named in honor of Nathan and intended to be a game room, the Nate (DAWG) Game Room, Samantha, and Toby agree wholeheartedly that there is nothing wrong with just playing games if you are not playing them alone. Toby said this is the most connected yet disconnected age. The goal of the youth center is to help young people connect authentically.