[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 116 (Wednesday, August 17, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[Congressional Record: August 17, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
TRIBUTE TO MAJ. GEN. JOHN G. SMITH, JR.
Mr. DeCONCINI. Mr. President, I rise today to enter into the
Congressional Record a eulogy for an Arizona citizen, outstanding
soldier, and American patriot.
Maj. Gen. John G. Smith, Jr., served his country, his State, and his
God with unswerving devotion and dedication. As the adjutant general
for the State of Arizona, his record was one of excellence and
commitment to the public welfare. His untimely death is a loss for
Arizona and the Phoenix community.
I ask unanimous consent that a eulogy given at General Smith's
funeral by Gen. Curtis A. Jennings be included in the Record at this
point.
There being no objection, the eulogy was ordered to be printed in the
Record, as follows:
Gen. John Grady Smith, Jr.--Eulogy Presented by Curtis A. Jennings at
His Funeral on July 11, 1994
We are here today to honor the memory of our colleague and
friend LTG John Grady Smith, Jr. It is impossible to render a
proper eulogy to Gen. Smith in a few words and capture the
full and rich tapestry of his life and a complete catalogue
of his accomplishments. He was an extraordinary individual
who had a lasting impact upon the Arizona National Guard, the
community and State and his friends and acquaintances. His
passing leaves a void in the lives of all those who knew him.
On behalf of the officers and enlisted persons of the Army
and Air National Guard, both active and retired, Gen. Smith's
friends and acquaintances, I convey deepest sympathy and
profound condolences to Mrs. Jane Smith, their three children
and their families.
John Smith was born on November 19, 1919, in Statesboro,
Georgia, where he grew to manhood. He attended Georgia
Southern College in Statesboro where he met, in 1940, his
future wife Norma Jane Simpson, affectionately known to all
of us as ``Jane.''
His military career began in April of 1938 when he enlisted
in the Georgia National Guard. In November 1940, his Guard
unit was called into Federal Service due to the winds of war
which were sweeping over Europe and the concern that the
United States would soon be involved. He was in a coast
artillery unit and received training at and was assigned
to Camp Fisher, Fort Stewart and Fort Bragg before being
commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant Infantry in August 1942
through the Officer Candidate Program at the Infantry
School, Ft. Benning, Georgia. He was assigned to the 104th
Infantry Division nicknamed the ``Timberwolf'' Division
which had been activated and was in training as a combat
division at Camp Adair near Corvallis, Washington.
After a period of courting as only a southern gentleman can
court, he won the hand of Jane, and they were married on
April 4, 1943. Jane says he kept asking her by letter,
telephone and in person so she finally said ``yes.'' Clearly
they must have both meant the vows they exchanged since they
celebrated their 51st wedding anniversary last April. He
enjoyed telling the story that after he and Jane were married
and were traveling across the country as a very young couple,
they would stop at a motel or hotel and he would tell the
clerk to register him as John Smith. The clerk would look at
Jane and say, ``and I suppose you are Jane Smith,'' and she
would answer, ``that's right,'' much to the hotel clerk's
amusement. Jane is an outstanding ideal of an officer's lady.
She followed her soldier from camp to camp until his unit was
deployed overseas, and then waited to join him when he
returned.
In the fall of 1943 the 104th Infantry Division moved from
Camp Adair, Oregon, with its wet and rainy climate, to the
dry desert of Camp Hyder, Arizona. The division's encampment
was known as Camp Horn, and the location was described as in
the Arizona Desert on the Southern Pacific Railroad somewhere
between Phoenix and Yuma, Arizona. Then Lt. Smith and his
lady Jane found a rooming house in Phoenix where they rented
quarters from a couple who became lifelong friends, Guy and
Esther Gaston. Here they spent weekends when Lt. Smith was
not in the field on maneuvers. Having bought their first car,
Jane learned to drive on the dusty unpaved streets and roads
of west Phoenix, Gila Bend and Hyder. This was their first
experience in Arizona, and they must have liked it since they
returned after the war.
From Arizona, the Division went to Camp Carson, Colorado,
and then to Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, for overseas deployment.
In late summer 1944, the Division landed in Cherbourg, France
and was transported soon thereafter to the Belgium/Holland
area where it was committed to combat attached to the First
British Corps of the First Canadian Army. Its mission was to
assist in clearing the approaches to the Port of Antwerp.
Jane, of course, stayed in the United States, where she bore
their first daughter, Norma. John did not see his daughter
until he returned from Europe in the summer of 1945 after
V.E. Day.
The 104th Infantry Division had an outstanding combat
record in Europe, serving continuously in combat for 195
consecutive days. It served under British and Canadian
command, as well as under the First and Ninth United States
Armies. It inflicted over 18,000 casualties and captured
2,000 towns and communities, including the great cities of
Cologne, Eshweiler and Halle. It took 52,000 prisoners in the
great sweep across Germany to the Elbe and Mulde Rivers where
it met the Russian forces on April 26, 1945. It also
liberated two Nazi concentration camps where, in addition
to the stark reality of combat, Gen. Smith saw and
experienced some of the worst examples of man's inhumanity
to his fellow man.
During these campaigns, Gen. Smith was awarded the Combat
Infantry Badge, the Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster, and
the French Croix de Guerre with Palms. MG Terry de la Mesa
Allen, Commanding General of the 104th Infantry Division
specifically commended him and other officers for the fine
performance in the European Theatre of operations. As most
combat veterans, he spoke little of his wartime experiences.
In June 1945, after V.E. Day, the Division moved to Camp
Lucky Strike near Dieppe and La Havre, France, and then
sailed to New York for redeployment to the Pacific Theatre of
operations. After leave, the men of the Division reassembled
at Camp San Luis Obispo, California, on August 1, 1945, for
combat refresher training and deployment in the Pacific.
Through the use of its nuclear power, the U.S. compelled the
surrender of Japan on August 15, 1945, and the Division, no
longer needed in the Pacific, was thereafter deactivated.
Gen. Smith was separated from active duty as a Major in
November 1945, and he, Jane and Norma journeyed from Camp San
Luis Obispo, California, to Statesboro, Georgia. After seeing
family and friends, he went ``job looking,'' as he put it,
and found that Georgia was not a good place to find a job. He
contacted his friend Guy Gaston in Phoenix, Arizona, and
through contacts with the American Legion, he became a
contact officer for the Veterans Administration and settled
his family permanently in Phoenix where his second daughter
Sharon and son Guy were born.
He was in the organized reserve following his separation
from active duty until May of 1949 when he joined the Arizona
Army National Guard. He remained employed with the Veterans
Administration until 1952, when he became Executive Officer
of the National Guard serving under Adjutants General Frank
Frazier and later J. Clyde Wilson. I first met Gen. Smith on
one of his trips to Washington with Gen. Wilson in 1957 when
they came to see Senator Carl Hayden from whom I was working
at the time.
In June of 1960, Gen. Smith became the U.S. Property and
Fiscal Officer for Arizona, and served in that position for
the next 15 years, with Adjutants General J. Clyde Wilson,
Joe Ahee, Jackson Bogle and Charles Fernald.
In July 1975 he was appointed Adjutant General of Arizona
by Governor Raul Castro and promoted to Major General. He was
reappointed twice by Governor Bruce Babbitt and retired in
November 1983, at which time he was given his third star and
promoted to Lieutenant General.
He was an enthusiastic and cheerful individual with a ``can
do'' attitude. During his tenure as the U.S. Property and
Fiscal Officer, it operated smoothly and efficiently,
providing the troops with all logistical needs. As Adjutant
General, he presided over a major expansion of the Arizona
Army National Guard that almost doubled its troop strength
and placed new units in a number of Arizona's rural
communities. A number of new armories and facilities were
started during his tenure. He also supported major
expansion and new missions for the Air National Guard.
While Adjutant General, he convinced the Pentagon to put
the Arizona National Guard in command of the Navajo Army
Depot near Flagstaff and to operate the munitions storage
facility with Guard troops. This was the first time an
active Army installation came under control of a state
National Guard.
General Smith had outstanding characteristics of
leadership. Unlike so many of his contemporaries who chose
Patton as their model, Gen. Smith chose to emulate General
Omar Bradley. He was a soldier's General--a diplomat,
courteous and compassionate in even the most difficult
situations. He was honest and sincere. He never played a
part; he was always himself. He made ordinary people feel
good and that they were important. He always had time for
anyone who wanted to talk to him. As Adjutant General, he
established an ``open door'' policy that was followed
throughout the command. He got along well with private
soldiers, generals, senators and cabinet members.
When he was Adjutant General and I served as his Troop
Commander, I would go to see him on some difficult policy or
personnel matter, and when we were through, he would always
thank me for coming to see him. This always surprised me.
Jane tells me that it was his habit to thank her and the
children for the smallest thing, like passing him a glass of
water. This character of southern gentleness--one might say
almost chivalrous conduct--made him stand out as if he were
from an earlier and more noble time. This manner earned him
the loyalty and respect of his peers and subordinates alike.
He was well respected and highly regarded by his fellow
Adjutants General and the officers with whom he worked in the
National Guard Bureau. Every Arizona Governor with whom he
worked had the highest regard for him, including Governors
Pyle, McFarland, Williams, Fannin, Goddard, Castro Bolin,
Babbitt and Mofford. The Arizona Congressional Delegation
always looked to him for advice on military issues and
reserve and national guard matters. Even with his abilities,
he could not have succeeded without the help of others. In
this regard, I know he would have wanted special mention made
of three ladies who took care of him as his assistants and
secretaries during his service in the Guard and of whom he
thought so highly. These ladies are: Helen Glenn, Marilyn
Pomerenke and Anna Kroger. Another friend of long standing
whose acquaintance with General Smith goes back to their days
with the 104th Division in Germany is now retired Sgt.
``Pinky'' Martinez. Mention should also be made of
individuals who have gone before him and on whom be counted
during those busy years. Special mention should be made of
General Bob Pettycrew, Sam Krevitsky, Norman Erb and Dr. Mark
Westervelt.
During his years as Adjutant General when a crisis would
arise, General Smith would assemble a small staff to advise
him, which he would call his ``crisis staff.'' Although
others might be involved, depending upon the issues, always
there was Gen. Jay Brashear, this eulogist and Bob Pettycrew,
in whom Gen. Smith had such confidence and on whom he always
relied.
Even though he had a busy career, he always had time for
his family. He was a loving husband and father. His children
recall his playing ball and other athletic events with them.
They recall picnics and his love of a backyard barbecue and
cookout. Although they mention that sometimes the meat was
cooked a little too well, he would tell them that was the
southern way. He took his family on trips and taught them the
history and heritage of our state and nation. He was a firm
believer in the biblical commandment to honor thy father and
mother. We have all heard him speak of his family in Georgia,
especially his mother whom he worshipped. He was faithful in
his pilgrimage to Georgia every year or so to see her until
her passing a few years ago.
General Smith also found time for civic activities. He was
Chairman of the Arizona State Fair Commission, a member of
the Phoenix Urban League, Federal Executives Association,
Arizona Emergency Services Association, and Military Affairs
Committee of the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce. He was also a
lifetime member of the Timberwolf Association, the
Association of the United States Army, American Legion and
National Guard Associations of Arizona and the United States.
He enjoyed life. When I last saw him just before he went into
the hospital, he told me ``I have had a good life. I have
enjoyed all of it.''
General Smith did have a fine and successful personal and
military career. In addition to his combat decorations
previously mentioned, he was awarded the Distinguished
Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, Army Commendation Medal,
the Arizona Distinguished Service Medal, and many other
medals and decorations. He was inducted into the Infantry
Hall of Fame at the Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia.
General John G. Smith passed away on July 6, 1994. In
describing him and his career, I think of the words duty,
honor, loyalty and integrity. He will be sorely missed.
Although he has answered that final bugle call, he will not
be forgotten. As the poet Angelo Patri said:
``In one sense there is no death. The life of a soul on
earth last beyond his departure. * * * He lives on in your
life and in the lives of all others that knew him.''
And so it will be with General John Smith. This kind and
gentle man left the world a better place than he found it. He
touched all of our lives and we are all richer for having
known him.--Curtis A. Jennings, Brigadier General (ret.)
Arizona Army National Guard.
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