5-7-2014 Tom Logan on Jumping into Panama; District Conference Report
30 Rotarians and 5 guests heard a very memorable story today
Rotarian Andrea Wyant introduced her father, retired Air Force Lt. Col. Tom Logan, and her mother, Rochelle Logan, Associate Director of Support Services at Douglas County Libraries. Col. Logan spoke about his part in the U.S. mission to capture Gen. Noriega in Panama on 20 December 1989. As an Air Force liaison to the Army’s 3rd Ranger Battalion, then Major Logan discovered he would be parachuting from a C-130 plane rather than what he was primarily trained for: flying the F-16 fighter jet. What a story! From the secret onset of the mission, through the tightly packed 7-hour transit with very heavy packs, to the extremely dark jump into enemy fire, and through all the confusion of the fighting on the ground, we felt we were seeing the battle first hand. Noriega was captured and Americans lost far fewer soldiers and airmen than had been expected. Col. Logan got to come back to tell the story, along with a very humorous addition thanks to his Rotarian daughter’s teenage antics some years later.
Rotarian Win Pendleton reported his experience at the District 5450 Conference this past weekend, where he manned a booth about the 4-Way Test. He put together a great packet about the 4-Way Test history and teaching activities. Get one while they last!