Legacy
The North Texas Association of Air Force Academy Graduates was founded in 1979 under the mentorship of
Tom McNeil, USMA '45 and MGen (ret) Ed Rafalko, USMA ‘45, with Jerry Smith, USAFA ‘62 serving as the first President. Since then, many Grads have served as President, Officers, Board Members and Committee Chairpersons, guiding our Chapter to being named “Distinguished Chapter” in every year the award has been presented. |
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| Past Presidents | Founding Members | Gone But Not Forgotten | ||
| 1980 | Jerry Smith, '62 | Gerald L. Ahmann '63 | Ed Rafalko '45 (USMA) | Randy Caraway '75 |
| 1981 | Mike Gibbons, '63 | T. Lance Ammon '70 | Tom McNeil '45 (USMA) | Jim Dolan '76 |
| 1982 | B J Bjorklund, '70 | Rick R. Barton '71 | Larry Jolly '59 | Calvin "Buddy" Lott '76 |
| 1983 | Bill Reemtsma, '63 | John D. Batchelor '68 |
Hal Brost '60
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Richard Murray '77 |
| 1984 | Ron Hale, '70 | Richard Bjorklund '70 | Jim Clark '60 | Larry Weaver '77 |
| 1985 | Manny Cardenas, '64 | Raymond E. Brannan '71 | Bill Flynn '63 | Vince Wilcox '78 |
| 1986 | Jerry Ahmann, '63 | David F. Brigman '71 | Mike Gibbons '63 | Paul "Sluggo" Williams '78 |
| 1987 | Ron Schillereff, '66 | Laurence L. Casada '71 | Dave Morgan '63 | Robert Skeans '82 |
| 1988 | Rick Barton, '71 | Sidney A. Cook '65 | Bill Reemtsma '63 | David Nelson '83 |
| 1989 | Lance Ammon, '70 | Robert A. Daly '68 | Wesley White '63 | Chuck Mladenka '89 |
| 1990 | Stephen Pruss, '76 | Michael F. Gibbons '63 | Bill Skaer '64 | Gaylon Richter '89 |
| 1991 | John Quincy, '70 | Charles Hamm '52 (USMA) | Leon Rausch '65 | Mark Lishman '90 |
| 1992 | Jim Kuhn, '63 | Klem F. Kalberer '63 | Bill Blitt '66 | Rory Shrum '90 |
| 1993 | H Ownby, '69 | James C. Kuhn '63 | Robert Brost '66 | MIke Schriever '97 |
| 1994 | Richard Fairlamb, '61 | Stephen P. Muller '64 | Howard Morgan '66 | Michael Morales '99 |
| 1995 | Glen Shaffer, '63 | H. Ownby '69 | Charlie Weinert '66 | Cody Hatch '02 |
| 1996 | John Kuenzel, '60 | Edmund Rafalko '45 (USMA) | Jim Davies '67 | Steve Beaulieu '09 |
| 1997 | Jeff Wilson, '80 | William Reemtsma '63 | Larry Ratliff '67 | Capt Mark Weber '11 |
| 1998 | John Dallas, '79 | Jerry L.Smith '62 | Bob Daley '68 | C4C Tim Barber '20 |
| 1999 | Frank Moore, '68 | Thomas Stites '72 | H Ownby '69 | C2C Nick Duran '23 |
| 2000 | Bill Brandt, '77 | Bill Purcell, '71 | Ava Moore '29 Appointee | |
| 2001 | Randy Caraway, '75 | Charlie Richardson '72 | ||
| 2002 | Bob Pavelko, '68 | Tom Stites '72 | ||
| 2003 | Buddy Lott, '76 | Mike Nishimuta '73 | ||
| 2004 | John Visser, '77 | Bill Casement '74 | ||
| 2005 | Ed Kirkham, '78 | Rich Estes '74 | ||
| 2006-2007 | Lev Prichard, '89 | |||
| 2008-2009 | Mike McGinnis, '76 | |||
| 2010-2012 | Kirk Bell, '76 | |||
| 2013-2015 | Mike Giles, '67 | |||
| 2016-2025 | Rick Wright, '74 | |||
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This bench was donated to the Center for Character and Leadership Development (CCLD) by our North Texas Chapter of the Association of Graduates |