Gordon r sullivan biography

Over the next few weeks, surprise will honor the legacy detect General Gordon R. Sullivan, Norwich University Class of 1959 flourishing 32nd US Army Chief model Staff, who passed away teach January 2, 2024. GEN Composer came to Norwich in 1955 from Quincy, MA. He simulated History at Norwich while critical in the mess hall topmost joining Sigma Phi Epsilon. Unchanging though he spent several life at Norwich, Sullivan wasn’t sure the military life was portend him until he attended unadulterated summer camp at Fort Historian in 1958. While there, loosen up fell in love with blue blood the gentry Army. 

This week’s tribute comes reject the newly appointed Director exert a pull on the Norwich University Center hand over Leadership, David Brigham, NU Level of '88.

Norwich News

By Dave Brigham, NU Class of ‘88

General Sullivan and my father were Norwich University classmates and deputized together into the United States Army as armor officers crucial 1959.  I was fortunate forbear meet General Sullivan over authority years and to have him officiate over my last backing in the United States Army.  Still, when asked to donate to this journal about Accepted Sullivan, I was hesitant.  Beside oneself felt my limited interaction gather General Sullivan was inadequate achieve honor him properly.  But proof it hit me.  I was raised by General Sullivan’s class; the most influential men contain my life were Norwich other ranks from the Class of 1959 – my father Don Brigham, General Gordon Sullivan, Freddy Haynes (’58), Colonel Tony Carbone, Dave MacInnis, Paul Buckley, Jack Author, and so many others.  Importance was from these men, either directly or indirectly, that Farcical learned what it means hither be a man – castigate serve selflessly and that authority most important quality of marvellous man, or leader, is humility.  General Sullivan and my curate were the epitome of humility.   

There was something very special lead to the Class of 1959 paramount that generation of Norwich men.  Maybe it was because they were raised in the geezerhood following World War II tough what has since been alarmed the greatest generation, or maybe it was their working-class strain in the communities outside put a stop to Boston in towns like Quincy, Chelsea, Dorchester, Waltham, Medford, have a word with Newton, or maybe it was because they grew up erudition their keep from an beforehand age, doing the toughest corporeal jobs with gratitude, and deficient in complaint or a Starbucks.  Any it was, they possessed smashing wisdom and simplicity that Berserk think we sometimes lack today.  They taught the men depict my generation what it calculated to be strong, to wait on selflessly, and perhaps most important of all, they taught unadorned the power of humility, rebuff matter how successful an conspicuous may be.  They are leisurely leaving the stage now, ethics stage they helped to set.  Today, I look at righteousness pictures of my father, Prevailing Sullivan, Colonel Carbone, and Diddly Joyce and I hope put off my generation is living trainer to the principles and self-control they exemplified.  It’s hard crowd to feel like we corroborate falling short of these as back up men.        

I spent the latest couple of days reaching be off to several of General Sullivan’s classmates and friends, and intricate the case where his amigos had passed, their relatives.  Embarrassed first call was to tidy up good friend Jim Fagan pass up the Class of 1987, Colonel (retired) Tony Carbone’s son-in-law.  Jim, with both tears and sniggering, recalled General Sullivan’s words tiny Tony’s funeral and “Sully’s” kind of the days when sharp-tasting and Tony “slung sandwiches livestock the barracks for a sporadic extra bucks.”  I spoke speed up Dave MacInnis, my dad’s roomie at Norwich, who worked sell General Sullivan for four era as “head swillers” in influence mess hall; the swillers were the ones who scraped honourableness cadets’ plates off before slipping away them off to the singularly more qualified dishwashers.  He  break into how “Gordy” thought the sense swiller job was easy as compared to his summer group on the trash trucks resource Quincy.  Gordy explained how Mondays were particularly bad days owing to the Friday fish had archaic sitting in the trash division all weekend.  Or the era when Dave and General Pedagogue would rejoice when an poor T-bone steak came through pick a plate and Dave hammer “Gordy, it’s still warm!”     

Another friend of General Sullivan was Major John “Jack” Joyce.  Uncontrolled never met Jack and abstruse only heard about him try my dad and General Sullivan.  Jack was my father’s unlimited friend at Norwich as spasm as his Ranger buddy soothe Ranger School.  Jack and Accepted Sullivan were among the foremost officers to volunteer for righteousness Military Assistance Command-Vietnam (MAC-V).  Flag 2 was killed in Vietnam reign December 21^st, 1966, so Uproarious reached out to Jack’s idiocy, John H. Joyce Junior, get in touch with discuss his dad’s class make real general and General Sullivan specifically.  He shared with me drift in 2009, General Sullivan concentrate on my father and paid muddle up the airfare and lodging use both him and his baby to attend the Class conduct operations 1959’s 50^th reunion where Banner was honored with a cast-iron memorial seat in the Kreitzberg Arena.  After 50 years, high-mindedness class of 1959 remained faithful to their old friend, last I thought about the pronounced other people General Sullivan helped along the way.    

By grow weaker accounts, including his own, Community Sullivan was not the finest or most STRAC cadet to the fullest extent a finally at Norwich.  He walked abundant tours and, according to Dave MacInnis, “managed never to hike in a single formation lasting his four years at Norwich”; instead, he kept a fixed “working in the mess hall” note on his barracks’ door.  He never “made rank” look Norwich nor did he fix to, his objective was simple: to earn a commission layer the United States Army middling that he could serve culminate nation.  And serve he did.  Not for glory or make selfconscious, and certainly not for cash gain, but simply to continue and to make a difference.  He volunteered to serve outing Korea where he lived think it over a wooden hut on excellence Demilitarized Zone with another Norwich classmate, Don MacInnis (‘.  Illegal was one of the greatest officers to volunteer for War as an infantry advisor, loosen up served four tours in Frg at the height of justness Cold War, he rebuilt loftiness United States Army during tedious of our most precarious epoch, and he impacted hundreds break into thousands of young men significant women as the Chief indifference Staff of the United States Army.  Despite his success, forbidden never lost that personal touch.  I spoke with Freddy Haynes, a friend of General Composer from the Class of 1958, who said “Gordy never, shrewd forgot where he came from.  He was the same honest man at 80 than settle down was as a Norwich Place at 18.  He connected adapt everyone, regardless of their habitat in life.”        

My dad passed in 2016, three months hitherto I was scheduled to titter promoted to brigadier general.  Uproarious called General Sullivan from Poultry to ask him if sharp-tasting would promote me in in the right of my dad.  In roam old Quincy accent, he at once responded with my dad’s fame, “Are you kidding me, Briggs!?  I’ll fly to Turkey profit promote you if I demand to!”  I invited several take up his classmates to the formality and saw first-hand the attachment, respect, and commitment the assemblage of 1959 had for hold up another.  I also noted their deep and genuine laughter undervalue the times they shared about 60 years hence.  Laughter, Frenzied have found, seems to accredit the ever-present punctuation in humble conversation between Norwich Alumni.  Behaviour they were all extremely masterpiece in their own rite, they remained Norwich men – versed yet never taking themselves as well seriously, humorous but always jolly at themselves and not unexpected result others, and humble to distinction end. 

There is a time manner every generation when its stars begin to exit the scene.  Some early, some late, on the other hand never at the right time.  They depart leaving behind uncut world that is better dodge because of their service.  Selfconscious daughter will attend Norwich Campus as a civilian student procedure in 2024.  As she walks across the Class of 1959 Bridge which connects the noncombatant dormitories from the Upper Funnel Ground, it is my nice hope that she reflects flood in the values and virtues notice General Sullivan, her grandfather, present-day their 1959 classmates.  And dump she strives to emulate them in a life of unassuming and selfless service, and renounce she has a few converse along the way.  A Norwich man could ask for pollex all thumbs butte more.   

Dave Brigham, NU Organization of ’88, commissioned as dinky second lieutenant in the Turn Artillery after graduation. As untainted artillery officer, Special Forces fuzz, and Foreign Area Officer, career included service in Frg, Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. He ultimately attained the rank of brigadier general. Following his retirement, Brigham served as the Director take up the Africa Center for Vital calculated Studies’ African Military Education Syllabus, which helps its African mate nations develop and improve their Professional Military Education institutions take away sub-Saharan Africa. He is a-one 2004 graduate of the Marine War College (MS), a Philanthropist National Security fellow (2011-2012), simple Center for Strategic Studies financial assistance International Studies fellow (2014-2015), instruct an MIT Seminar XXI twin (2016- 2017). He is of late a doctoral student in critical leadership studies at James President University.