No Tifton Names on Base Naming List

Tuesday, May 31, 2022

Tifton, Georgia

478-227-7126 ~ www.tiftongrapevine.com

ARMY BASES' PROPOSED NAMES

DO NOT INCLUDE

TIFTON SOLDIERS

COL. RALPH PUCKETT JR., HAROLD COHEN NOT ON FINAL LIST

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

A federal commission has released its recommendations for renaming nine Army bases, and two Tifton men under review did not make the final list.

Retired Army Col. Ralph Puckett Jr., a Tifton native, Army Ranger legend, and Congressional Medal of Honor recipient; and the late Lt. Col. Harold Cohen, a decorated World War II hero and successful Tifton businessman, had been among the 87 people whose names were under review for renaming the Army bases currently named for Confederate generals.

Two of the bases are in Georgia – Fort Benning and Fort Gordon. The Naming Commission proposes renaming Fort Benning as Fort Moore after Lt. Gen. Hal and Julia Moore, and renaming Fort Gordon as Fort Eisenhower after General of the Army Dwight D. Eisenhower, who later became president.

Hal Moore had a 32-year Army career from 1945-1977, including deployments in Japan, Korea, Norway, and in Vietnam, where his heroism as the outnumbered commander at the Battle of Ia Drang was depicted in the best-seller “We Were Soldiers Once … and Young.”

His wife, Julia, a Red Cross volunteer in Army hospitals who had lobbied for Army daycare centers to receive better support, had convinced the Pentagon to change the way the military handled death notifications; at the time of her husband's Battle of Ia Drang in Vietnam, telegrams announcing military deaths were simply given to cab drivers for delivery. As a result of her lobbying, a uniformed officer and a chaplain now deliver the sad news.

The Moores are buried at Fort Benning in Columbus surrounded by the soldiers who died at Ia Drang, as Hal Moore’s last wish was to be buried among his men.

The Naming Commission also recommends the following new base names:

–In North Carolina, Fort Bragg would become Fort Liberty.

–In Louisiana, Fort Polk would be Fort Johnson after Sgt. William Henry Johnson, a black soldier who, during World War I became “the United States’ first hero of the Great War, immediately receiving the French Croix de Guerre for his actions.”

–In Texas, Fort Hood would be named Fort Cavazos for Gen. Richard Cavazos, whose actions during the Korean and Vietnam wars earned him the Distinguished Service Cross, two Legions of Merit, a Silver Star, five Bronze Stars, and the Purple Heart.

–In Alabama, Fort Rucker would be renamed Fort Novosel after Chief Warrant Officer Michael J. Novosel Sr., who served in World War II in the Army Air Corps, in Korea in the Air Force, and in Vietnam as a helicopter pilot rescuing more than 5,500 seriously wounded soldiers.

–In Virginia, Fort A.P. Hill would become Fort Walker after Dr. Mary Walker; Fort Lee would become Fort Gregg-Adams after Lt. Gen. Arthur Gregg and Lt. Col. Charity Adams; and Fort Pickett would be Fort Barfoot after Tech. Sgt. Van T. Barfoot. Walker was the first female surgeon in Army history in 1863 and received the Medal of Honor in 1865. Gregg, who would share the base name with Adams, enlisted in the Army in 1945 and led by example when Truman ordered the armed forces to desegregate. Adams joined the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps in 1942 and was selected to command the first unit of black women to serve overseas in 1944. Barfoot received the Medal of Honor for his actions in 1944 while fighting Nazi German soldiers.

The Naming Commission will send its final report to Congress by Oct. 1.

AUTHORITIES NAB TWO MEN

IN TIFTON ON DRUG TRAFFICKING CHARGES

Staff Reports

Authorities have arrested two Georgia men outside a Tifton hotel and charged them with drug trafficking; one of them is also facing a firearm charge, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) said in a statement released Saturday.

Jose Luis Pena-Ferraras, 35, and Ismil Rodriguez-Aybar, 43, both of Lawrenceville, were arrested May 20 after the seizure of five kilograms of methamphetamine, one kilogram of heroin, and a handgun, the GBI said.

Ferraras and Aybar were arrested in the parking lot of a Tifton hotel and charged with trafficking methamphetamine and heroin. Ferraras is also charged with possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. A search of their vehicle led to the seizures, the GBI said.

The two suspects were identified as supplying methamphetamine and heroin to multiple communities in South Georgia, including Tifton and Albany, based on a lengthy investigation by the GBI Southwestern Regional Drug Enforcement Office.

Aiding in the investigation and arrests were the Tift County Sheriff’s Office, Georgia State Patrol, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).

TIFTON OBSERVES

MEMORIAL DAY

Tiftonites gathered Monday at Jack Stone Veterans Park in Downtown Tifton to solemnly observe Memorial Day.

State Rep. Clay Pirkle, R-Ashburn, was the keynote speaker.

To mark Memorial Day, which honors those military personnel who have died, American Legion Post 21 in Tifton organized the placement of thousands of American flags on the local graves of veterans.

TRMC OPENS CHEST PAIN UNIT

On Wednesday, June 1, a new Chest Pain Unit (CPU) opens at Tift Regional Medical Center (TRMC) on the first floor of the recently opened patient tower.

The new unit is a seven-bed observational unit specializing in evaluating and caring for patients who come to the ER with acute chest pain and are considered at a low-to-intermediate risk of a heart attack.

While in the CPU, patients will receive ECG monitoring, cardiac biomarker testing, and other diagnostic tests. The unit will work closely with the Emergency Department and the Heart and Vascular Center to provide streamlined care to reduce inpatient admissions, decrease length of stay, decrease healthcare cost, and improve patient satisfaction, TRMC said.

“We are excited about this new unit and the possibilities it offers for an improved patient experience,” said CPU Nurse Manager Eric Morris. “This will help take some of the burden off our Emergency Department and may improve ER wait times. This can also help lower the amount of people we have to admit as inpatients, which will, in turn, decrease length of stay.”

TIFTON GRAPEVINE'S CAT OF THE WEEK

"Binky," a male kitty, is available for adoption at the Tift County Animal Shelter. To adopt Binky and to see other pets available, visit the shelter between 1-6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, or call 229-382-PETS (7387).

Pets of the Week are sponsored by:

Branch's Veterinary Clinic

205 Belmont Ave., Tifton, 229-382-6055

TIFTON FAIR GROUND CO.

PROPOSES CONVENTION HALL

~ JUNE 1, 1894

The Tifton Fair Ground Co., led by C.W. Fulwood, E.P. Bowen, H.H. Tift, S.G. Slack, and L.C. Maynard, met June 1, 1894, and selected a site south of Second Street and fronting Central Avenue for a proposed building that could be converted into a convention hall. The plans were for a facility with a 40- x 20-foot rostrum and capable of seating up to 1,500 people.