Linn, you should get all the "credit" if that's the right word for my trip back. I've been wanting to do it for years but after seeing your pictures of Woodbridge town, and some of the base I just couldn't get it out of my mind.

I was able to go to the part of the base where the housing is located and took pictures of the barracks I lived in for 2 years and 8 months but wasn't allowed on the other side of the base but from what I could see, there was very little that was the same as it was in the 60's.

Seeing the barracks was more important to me and if you get a chance to take some more pictures I think more of us from the 60's relate to that area than to the flight line due to the changes.  Too bad a bunch of us can't go in and buy one of the barracks and set it up as a B&B.  I know I would have chosen that if it had been available.

I will try to do the high points of our trip this week - it was very memorable.   [oh yes..thanks for telling me what that structure is. I wondered all the time I was there] ps: GI's were not allowed motorcycles when I was there. I guess things changed.

Just a quick note to say hello. Joe Hanania, the former owner and operator of Big Ben Travel at RAF Bentwaters, and a former teacher for many dependents at both Bentwaters and Woodbridge is in America, thanks to your efforts, to attend a reunion of RAF Woodbridge American Junior High School students that was held in Las Vegas, Nevada last weekend.

Here is an interesting tie for you. You graciously had put the cottage I lived in when I was at RAF Bentwaters/Woodbridge on the web under your memories section. I lived at Corner Cottage in Tunstall during my tour (12/77-7/81). My landlord of Corner Cottage was Joe Hanania. I also knew Joe because of the incredible tours, in the UK and throughout Europe he ran on the bases. His office, Big Ben Travel was in the same Quonset hut as the Base Recreation center on the RAF Bentwaters domestic site. The Big Ben office was in the back, across the roadway from the small AAFES cafeteria, in another Quonset hut. Joe was also involved in the base drama group and we had done productions together. The name of the drama group was called Studio 7. All of the productions were done at the Base Recreation Center or RAF Woodbridge High School.

Anyway, Joe arrived with his wife, Jacqueline about a fortnight ago and I picked them up at San Francisco International airport after their intercontinental flight. The stayed with me in Sacramento and I was able to show Joe and Jacqueline your site on the Internet. They both could not get over seeing Corner Cottage on the Internet and I have the photo of the Tunstall cottage as my wall paper on my computer! Joe said you had rung him up to tell him that several of the RAF Woodbridge students were looking for him. I told him we had conversed through e-mail several times and he couldn't get over the interconnection! Anyway, Joe will stop by to visit you and thank you for making so many connections with his ex-students in America, as well as putting Corner Cottage up for the world to see.
Cheers Linn!

Chuck Dalldorf
81st TFW, 81st FMS 1977 through 1981

It's probably a good thing you missed our reunion. There was entirely too much laughing and partying going on. I would have loved to have captured the looks on all our faces though when we accidently ran into each other in the hotel lobby at Harrah's. We absolutely went nuts when we realized who each other was. It was pretty funny. In fact, I had to check to make sure it was my best friend Judy by pulling up her pant leg to make sure she had on her Texas cowboy boots!!

We took our teacher, Joe Hanania and his wife Jacqueline out to dinner. They met us at Harrah's the first night. He looked and acted the same after 30 years. I was disappointed though when we kept missing him the next day.

We had a great turn out and really had a great time...much of it is still a blur to me, I hope the maid enjoyed all the liquor we left behind for her to drink up!!

Thank you to you, Linda Hammer and Linn Barringer for all your encouragement the last few months. We are looking forward to the next time we can meet. These are the best bunch of people I could ever hope to know.

Regards, Pam Patrick

Woodbridge Jr. Hi. 1965-1968. Class of 1971!

By the way -- some of us former military brats connected over the internet and your homepage and are having a reunion in Las Vegas at the end of this month. Some of the people coming have contacted you i believe i.e. Bill Dorman who is trying to get the plaque from the football field at Woodbridge -- it was in memoriAm to his Dad who was killed in VietNam and was the Base Commander at Bentwaters at one time.

See above

...Yes, I found Mike Miller, he was an old boss, and we communicate... Thankyou

Ronnie rspaine(a)visionet.org

Linn, Just wanted to drop you a note to thank you and also to let you know that I was able to contact my friend William Carson thanks to the telephone numbers which you sent to me.
Looking forward to hearing from you again,

Greg Novak

Linn, Just wanted to say hi and thanks again for your webpage. I have not seen Eric Piazzoni in 12 years or so. His parents still teach up at Alconbury. It is pretty amazing that since your webpage came about, it has linked up possibly dozens of old friends that are not even counted on your Successes page. Eric and his family owned a house down Gromford Lane in Snape, the lane just cross from the Crown Inn.
Regards

Ron and Pam

Some more comments from "The Joe Hananiah Story":

Linn:
Thought I would forward this on to you. It’s just one of many touching stories I’m sure we’ll receive. My sincere thanks to you for your participation in making this all happen on a larger scale. Wish you could join us at our reunion also!
You may want to call Joe and get his reactions to the power of the "Net".
Sincere thanks and regards
Pam (Lupo) Patrick

To: LTC William C Dorman
I got a nice letter from Joe Hanania yesterday . He said that he remembers all of us and provided a little evidence in written form from his memory. I believe him. He said , "Yes , I loved all of you . Those were fine days indeed ." He also said that he just might pop in at our reunion.
Joey Meyer

Reply to: Joey Meyer
I hope he does remember us... fondly would be nice, but some of the memories might be less than pleasant... imagine how many young people he touched and the positive impact he’s had on us and by extension, our families... I hope he truly knows that and I hope he can manage to get to Vegas (Seattle).
Phil passed on a good story about M Hanania and Kenny. First day of class in math, M Hanania gives a 30 question pop quiz... Kenny finishes only seven questions... gets the highest score in class... got all seven right... M Hanania was extremely proud of Kenny for that. Speaks volumes about both guys.
LTC WILLIAM C. DORMAN wdorman(a)NMSU.Edu

Almost unbelievably, I received an enquiry from Pam Patrick/Lupo saying "Joe Hananiah taught (or tried to teach us) French and even took 10 of us to Paris for 10 days in the spring of 1968. What I was wondering is if you could help find an address for him. We would really like to communicate with him as he made a big difference in our lives."

Why is this 'unbelievable'? See the item below!

I put Wayne Dixie Huber back in touch with his former Tunstall cottage landlord, Joe Hananiah, who also used to teach French and run visits to European destinations.

Linn Barringer

Spoke again to Eve Abbott this morning. Am going to send her printouts of a few of my pages since she cannot access the net. She thought that would be great. Thanks again for helping me find her and husband Bunny.

Jim Tansey

This is at least Ron's fifth success at reaching people through this web site!

We just had an email from a girlfriend of Pam who she hasn’t seen in 40 years. They saw our name on your page... We just got off the phone after talking an hour and a half with Ed and Heather Mahoney. Heather went to school with Pam in Snape. ... it is really funny now since all these Snape girls all married Yanks from Bentwaters and now they can get in contact via email.

Thanks Linn for a super dooper webpage. I think you should at least get on the Queen’s Honours List for fostering Anglo-American relations.

Regards
Ron and Pam Burrell Denver, Colorado

We found John Ottley!!   Just wanted to let you know....
He called this morning. It had been 52 years since my husband had seen or heard from him. It was a very joyful reunion...
None of this would have been possible without the internet and the help of people like you.

Thank you so very much.
Raymond Snowden, Palm Springs, California

You have done it again!
We just got off the phone with my cousin J. G. Alexander.  We are excited and found out as you suspected, he does not have email.  He also has a brother (Bill) who has Email so maybe I can contact him also. Thanks again for your extra effort in locating him.

Donald Alexander

Thanks to your web site I found another long lost friend. Greg Novak and I played American football for the Bentwaters Phantoms in 1969 and 1970. It was good to hear from another friend I hadn’t heard from in over 25 years.

Hopefully you will be meeting the first buddy I found through your web site, John Lechman, when he visits East Anglia in August. Unfortunately, I could not come with him.

Best regards,
Dile Holton

Dile,

Really sorry you weren't with 'PJ' when I met him and his wife Laura on Saturday 15 July.  Maybe some other time?

Linn Barringer

 

30 July 1998:

My name is Greg Novak. I just wanted to drop you a note to let you know that I got in touch with Dile Holton,one of my old mates from the Phantom Football teams of the late 60s. Thanks for maintaining this site.
Greg Novak

I found my old roommate Bill Smith (81^st TAC Hospital 1959-1962) through your site.  Keep up the good work.

Dick Howard

Ron (Jarrett) Burrell - AGAIN!

... I just had a email note from the Mum of Jaime Spaine who has a entry somewhere on one of your pages. Her husband Bill Spaine was stationed at Woodbridge base, retired from the USAF, then stayed over there selling insurance. I bought a life insurance policy from him and it is still in force. Anyway, this is another link up via email thanks to Linn Barringer.

Ron Burrell does it again!

"Isn’t it amazing what Linn Barringer’s webpage has done. I cannot believe it!!!! I talked to my ol' buddy Al Berning last night on the phone. He lives in Indiana with Lea who is originally from Scotland.

To my surprise, they just returned from a three week holiday in England and Scotland. Even went to Woodbridge and Snape and drove by our old house.

Bye Ron "

That note was prompted by an email from another of Ron's compatriots, Jim Clark...

Hi Ron;

Hey, thanks for the email! Great to hear from you and surprised as I thought you were still in England. I remember Al Berning quite well as he played football and I played for one year (1963). Jerry Slater was the first guy I met ... took me to the Anglo-American (Rendezvous) Club... He then met Diane... they got married in the early summer of ‘94. I haven’t seen Jerry since 1965.... I lived just about across the hall from you guys, Scottie Bailey (Engine Shop), Mitch Lancaster and I roomed together until Bailey’s wife came over. The Electric shop in those days had an NCOIC by the name of Smsgt. Hutchins (replaced by Tsgt Wilton) and some of the guys were Tom Bareford, Jon Barrie, Ron Brooks, Gene Walker and Don Mayo just to name a few.

I remember Pam quite well from the Dry Cleaners and if I am not mistaken your marriage took place in the fall of ‘63... I can’t recall Don Snapes though.

Presently I am a school superintendent here in Lynn Lake and with an eight year old daughter you know where I’ll be till the age of 65 *grin*. It seems I’ll be handing her a high school diploma with my retirement package in my back pocket...she’ll go on to university and my wife and I will head for Belize.

Anyway, I’d better get moving so I’ll just say thanks again for writing and let’s keep in touch..

Jim Clark

81^st FMS Electric Shop 63-65

Jim also has an entry on my US-UK Search page