Our historian, John McManus has a new book getting ready to come out. September Hope: The American Side of a Bridge Too Far will be released on 5 Jun 2012.

At the end of August 1944, the Allied world was filled with hope. The Allies had just experienced what was, for them, the greatest month of the war. In the Pacific, the Americans had just taken the Mariana Islands and the Japanese were in full retreat everywhere. In Europe, Soviet armies had annihilated more than twenty German divisions and had pushed the hated enemy from Russia. Indeed, Soviet forces were deep inside Poland, at the edge of Warsaw. In the West, General Dwight D. Eisenhower’s burgeoning armies had liberated Paris, along with the rest of France. Flushed with victory and the possibility of an imminent end to the war, British, Canadian and American armored columns plunged into Belgium, Holland and Luxembourg. Rumors swirled that the war would end any day now and that everyone would be home for Christmas. The Germans were in disarray, overwhelmed on all fronts, losing soldiers by the thousands, even as Allied bombers pulverized their cities. For the Third Reich it seemed the end was near. At least that was the hope. Then came September and Holland.

Eisenhower wanted to invade Germany on a broad front but, by September, his supply situation was so perilous that he could only make a major effort on one part of his front. He now made a momentous decision that decided the future course of the war. Spurred on by British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, he chose to launch a major attack in Holland. Together they unleashed Operation Market-Garden, an ambitious airborne and armored operation designed to knife through Holland, capture key bridges and invade Germany from the north. The ultimate goal (or hope) was to dash east to Berlin and end the war by the time the leaves began to fall. This is the story of that tragic battle, told from the perspective of those Americans who experienced it. SEPTEMBER HOPE is a World War II epic, carrying on in the tradition of A BRIDGE TOO FAR.

Unfortunately I just received word that the Cottonbaler Birthday Dinner has been put on hold. No new date has been selected.

Happy New Year!

In addition to the New Year, we are also celebrating the 200th Birthday of the Regiment with a Birthday Dinner on 13 January at the Hyatt Regency Savannah, Savannah, GA. Both 2-7 and 3-7 IN will be there.
I hope you all will be able to attend this celebration.
Please RSVP to LT Zachary Fenn (757-778-7003) ASAP!

3-7 IN Change of Command will be held 19 Sep 2011.
Here is your invitation:

Please RSVP to CPT Bell via e-mail or 912-435-7685 (Office) or 727-501-2818 (Cell) NLT 15 Sep.
Hope to see you all there.

Joe Carrasco graciously sent me his copy of the 1963 1/7 IN Cottonbalers Yearbook.
I have scanned in each page and created a Photo Gallery for the book. It can be found in the Photo Gallery section of the web site.

I have posted some photos from the 2011 Reunion. They can be found here.

Well the 2011 Reunion was 10 days ago and I'm still excited by the wonderful time we all had. If you missed it, you missed a great reunion. Spending Friday touring the Gettysburg Battlefiled and seeing where Cottonbalers fought and died was very moving. We were able to stop at the Monument to the 7th Infantry along with stopping at the cemetery. Standing where President Lincoln gave the Gettysburg Address and seeing the graves of the fallen soldiers, to include Cottonbalers, was equally moving and impressive. We all relaxed on Saturday with a tour to Choclate World in Hershey, PA. The Regimental Dinner was very nice and Chaplain (COL) Carter gave a great talk on leadership.

I'm working on the photos and I should have some posted in the next couple of days.

Memorial Day 2011
A time to remember.......

The 3-7 Infantry Battalion Tour Book is in the works. The book will begin with the 7th Infantry Regt Reunion in May 2010 where we honor the history of our unit and will continue through the Iraq deployment. It will include soldier and family events as well as the history of the unit. This is a wonderful memento of your time in the unit which can be shared with family and friends. It includes 2 full page history of the unit, written by John McManus in color as well as photos from the reunion. The rest of the book is filled with the units and families over the past year.

We are selling Yearbooks for $40 to offset the cost of our ball. If someone purchases a tour book they need to select ship to an address not ship to unit as we will be unable to ship any books from the unit. The ship to an address option allows the Yearbook to be shipped directly to their home. Order here: http://store.entourageyearbooks.com/product_p/3-7-infantry.htm

Also we are selling Advertisements. Full Page color Ad is $100, 1/2 page is $50, 1/4 page is $25. These can be an ad for a business. It can be a welcome home Cottonbalers, pictures from way back when. Send us the info and pics and we can make an Ad. Email: yearbookad37@yahoo.com

Photo by Jim Beckworth
Jim Beckworth (1/7 INF and 4/7 INF), LTC Todd Kelly (2-7 IN Commander) and Henry Burke (5/7 INF) at the Reception following the 2-7 IN Change of Command.

2-7 IN Change of Command

LTC Todd Kelly assumes command of 2-7 IN from LTC Greg Sierra
LTC Greg Sierra and staff LTC Kelly and COL Crider in front of LTC Sierra and the Company Commanders LTC Greg Sierra, COL James Crider and LTC Todd Kelly in front of the Colors, the Regimental Flag, the Company Commanders and the Company Guidons LTC Todd Kelly receiving the Regimental Colors from COL Crider during the Change of Command

We want to wish LTC Sierra and his family the best of luck in his next assignment.
We want to welcome LTC Kelly and his family back to the Cottonbalers.

2-7 IN Change of Command Invitation

Hope to see you there.

Eugene Daniel (Sam) Guy

I just received the following e-mail:

As most of you have already heard, Sam Guy passed away so very peacefully at 1:28am on Saturday the 4th of December, 2010. He was at home (“I want to be in my OWN house when I go“) in his favorite room and with people that truly cared for him. As he and I said to each other on many occasions, “It has been one heck of a ride! “ The past four months have been quite an experience. He knew that all his tasks had been completed and it was OK for him to move on to the next step. And he did so with grace. The 7th Regiment meant quite a bit to him (served with them in Korea as the American Red Cross Field Director) and he has collected funds and various material donations that he sent to the troops in the Middle East. So, in lieu of flowers, he would prefer a donation to the American Red Cross or the 7th Infantry Regiment in his name.
We will have a celebration at the American Legion, Post 66, located at 30 Covington Road in Avondale Estates, Georgia on Thursday, 9 December, from 1pm to 4pm. Come hoist a few in his honor and swap funny stories (you KNOW there are many to be shared). Food and full bar will be provided. We will have graveside services on Friday at 11am at Melwood Cemetery located at 5170 East Ponce de Leon Ave in Stone Mountain, Georgia. He will be laid to rest next to Mary and Mom. If you have any questions let me know; or if you just want to say “Hello “, please do. Warmest Regards,
Dan
Eugene Daniel Guy, Jr
4172 Summit Way
Marietta, GA 30066
(404) 307-1441

He will be missed.