An Cosantóir

| 31 37 th Cadet Class with OC Old Guard, 26 th November, 1963. sisted of the national and cadet colours being marched on accompanied by the piper. The reading of WB Yeats' poem 'The Cloths of Heaven' was followed by the playing of the same lament, 'The Mist over the Mountains', that was played at the funeral 50 years before, and the laying of a wreath by Lt Col Rod Dunne (retd) on behalf of 37th Cadet Class and the Defence Forces. The piper brought the ceremony to a conclusion with the playing of 'Amazing Grace', a favourite of President Kennedy's. The ceremony was conducted in the presence of the Irish Ambassador Anne Anderson and witnessed by many visitors to the graveside. After a short tour of Arlington the party proceeded to the Tomb of the Unknowns where Capt Tom Hickey (retd) laid a wreath on behalf of the Defence Forces. This was a rare honour normally reserved for visiting heads of state and chiefs of staff. In 1963 the cadets had flown to Washington with their Lee Enfield No.4 .303 rifles under their seats. This time Col Eoin Moloney (retd), on behalf of the 37th Class, presented a deactivated Lee Enfield (which this time had travelled in the hold of the plane) to the Arlington Cemetery Authorities as a memento of the historic event, to be displayed in the Arlington Museum, next to the main entrance to the cemetery. Later that day Ambassador Anderson hosted a reception in the Irish Embassy at which Lt Col Joe Ahern (retd) presented a framed photograph of "Kennedy's Cadets", the 37th Class Guard of Honour at the graveside in 1963. The photograph will be hung in the Embassy. The following day the party went to the Pentagon for a tour that included visiting the impact site of the 9/11 plane crash and the memorial to its victims. The group were then received by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey, whose grandparents came from Mayo and Donegal respectively. Col Brian O'Reilly presented Gen Dempsey with a Tyrconnell single-malt and a copy of the Chiefs of Staff Portrait Collection edited by Col Tom Hodson (retd) – another member of 37th Cadet Class. In reciprocation Gen Dempsey gave each member of the party a copy of his ornamental dog-tag medallion. In the afternoon the party visited Capitol Hill and were given a very interesting tour of that historic place. Col E Moloney (retd) presents Lee Enfield rifle to Arlington Authorities. Lt Col P McMahon (retd) presents a replica of 37th Class pennant to OC Fort Myer. As Wednesday was the eve of Thanksgiving no formal visits were undertaken and the members of the The group pictured with General Dempsey. visiting party were free to visit many of the US capital's wellknown sites and museums. The main body returned to Ireland the following day while some continued their trip with a visit to New York. Everyone who travelled was struck by the warmth of the reception in Washington 50 years after the original event and it was considered that the return visit was a huge success. The group would like to thank all who supported them in this venture, including the current and former chiefs of staff, the Department of Defence, the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Irish Embassy in Washington, the US Embassy and US military attaché, McKee Officers' Club, Mr WJ McCarter, Buncrana, and ARCO. www.military.ie the defence forces magazine

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