By Taylor Sterling
Wednesday morning John “Cheech” Richichi, President of the Nam Knights escorted John Anthony Nave to West Point on his final journey with almost 100 motorcycles from Montgomery to West Point. Many thanks to the State Police and local police and the Sheriff’s Office who closed lanes and exits to allow the escort to move together. It was a lesson in precision and done to perfection. We were honoring a hero and sharing memories for John, a graduate of the West Point Class of 1953 who earned a degree in Mechanical Engineering. However, instead of pursuing a career in engineering John chose to serve active duty in the Air Force where he flew the C-130 Spectre Gunships in Southeast Asia. He earned numerous combat awards including the Distinguished Flying Cross. John was 93 years old and was married to his wife Jane who he met when they were both stationed at the Rhein-Main Air Force Base in Germany. They were married for 56 years until his passing. John was a flight instructor after the war, and had trained hundreds of pilots and when he retired he had over 20,000 hours of flight time. The Old Cadet Chapel at the West Point Cemetery was filled with family, friends and our Nam Knights. I leave you with the Alma Mater final verse…. And when our work is done, Our course on earth is run, May it be said, “well Done: Be thou at peace.” E’er may that line of gray increase from day to day, live, serve and die, we pray… West Point for thee (1911).
