Major General Franklin J. Blaisdell is an alumnus of Syracuse University and also a military veteran. You should know his story, because it’s a Syracuse University story—one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future.

Also known as Judd, Maj. Gen. Blaisdell was born on September 15, 1949 in Clifton, Virginia. He is a descendant of Ralf Bleasdale from 1593 Hawkshead, England whose family line boasts The Blaisdell Papers—the 5^th oldest family publication in the United States. In 1971, Blaisdell graduated from Syracuse University with a Bachelor of Arts in history and as a distinguished graduate of the Air Force ROTC program.

Blaisdell launched his Air Force career at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California where he underwent basic officer missile operations training. During his distinguished U.S. Air Force career, Maj. Gen. Blaisdell held multiple commands across the U.S. at multiple levels ranging from missile squadron to two separate space wings. He was a master missileer and master space officer with more than 250 combat alerts in Minuteman II and III (intercontinental ballistic missile) systems, as well as 12 consecutive successful space lift missions. Blaisdell also continued his education throughout his military career, attaining a Master of Science from South Dakota State University and completing several advanced professional and senior executive education programs at the National War College and at Harvard, Syracuse, and Johns Hopkins Universities.

After serving as Commandant of the Armed Forces Staff College (now the Joint Forces Staff College) in Norfolk, VA, from 1998 to 2000, Blaisdell began his last assignment in the Pentagon. For four years, Maj. Gen. Blaisdell held several senior positions on the Air Staff including Director of Strategic Security and Deputy Chief of Staff for Air and Space Operations, in which he was responsible for providing policy, guidance, expertise and oversight to the Air Force nuclear, space, force protection, and homeland defense programs. Notably, during his time at the Pentagon, Blaisdell also participated in the response efforts during 9/11 and was selected by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Richard Myers to serve on the Single Integrated Operational Plan Targeting Review Committee, which would significantly alter the course of worldwide nuclear targeting requirements. Blaisdell was a firm believer in the need for space and missile defense operations. “Space assets will save lives,” he explained in a 2003 Pentagon press briefing. “It keeps [us] from putting our troops in harm’s way.”

Maj. Gen. Blaisdell retired from the Air Force in 2004, having served 33 years on active duty. Among many distinctions throughout his service, he was recipient of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal, the Defense Superior Service Medal, and the Legion of Merit. Now a private citizen and entrepreneur, Blaisdell co-founded Strativest, LLC in 2007, which provides strategic planning, financial, and human resource management consulting services.

Maj. Gen. Franklyn Blaisdell is an alumnus of Syracuse University and a veteran of the U.S. military. You should know his story.

 

Warren Bruce Rudman was an alumnus of Syracuse University and also a military veteran. You should know his story because it’s a Syracuse University story—one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future.

Born on May 18, 1930 in Boston, Massachusetts, Rudman was the son of two Jewish immigrants who boasted a hardy German, Polish, and Russian lineage. Rudman spent much of his life in New Hampshire and Washington, D.C., save a handful of spells at Valley Forge Military Academy in Pennsylvania, at Syracuse University for undergraduate studies (’52), and in the Korean War as a US Army infantryman. After returning from Korea, he earned a law degree from Boston College in 1960.

As an attorney, Rudman grew increasingly active in government in the 1960s, eventually serving as legal counsel to the Governor of New Hampshire. By 1970, he was appointed as New Hampshire’s Attorney General, a position he held until 1976. Without delay, Rudman entered politics by successfully running for a seat in the U.S. Senate. Senator Rudman served from 1980 to 1993 and built a strong reputation as “the Sledgehammer” on ethical matters in Congress and a moderate with the deeply-held belief in bipartisan compromise as a cornerstone of good government.

Senator Rudman distinguished himself on federal budget and national security and foreign policy issues. He was a key sponsor of the historic Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Balanced Budget Act of 1985. He also served on a number of oversight bodies and investigative panels, including vice chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Secret Military Assistance to Iran and the Nicaraguan Opposition—better known as the Iran-Contra Affair. He worked closely with Senator Inouye from Hawaii to uncover the fact that White House aides violated the law by selling weapons to Iran and financing anti-Communist rebels in Nicaragua with dirty money. Continuing his work in national security, Warren served as an Advisory Board member and Co-chair of the Partnership for a Secure America, a non-profit that strived to broker relationships across-the-aisle to advance interests in American national security and foreign policy.

Rudman was so widely respected among his contemporaries that, following his tenure in the Senate, Ross Perot offered him the slot as his 1996 vice presidential running mate (though he declined), Senator John McCain appointed him as his 2000 presidential campaign chair, and Senator John Kerry included him on his short list of his 2004 VP running mates. Senator and later Secretary of Defense William Cohen of Maine said of Rudman, “In two terms, he had as great an impact as any senator that I’ve known.”

In 2001, President Clinton honored Senator Rudman with the Presidential Citizens Medal to commemorate and celebrate his legislative accomplishments. Rudman later championed a team of lawyers as independent counsel to investigate the suspicious accounting practices that had been occurring at Fannie Mae from 2004-2006.

Prior to his death in 2012, Rudman sat as the co-chair of Albright Stonebridge Group, a global consulting and strategy organization co-founded by former Secretary of State Madeline Albright. He is remembered best for fighting for the middle ground, notably from President Obama who also applauded Rudman’s early efforts advocating for fiscal responsibility and a balanced budget. Senator Rudman’s legacy is honored at the University of New Hampshire Law School; The Warren B. Rudman Center for Justice, Leadership, & Public Policy is dedicated to his memory.

Senator Warren Bruce Rudman was an alumnus of Syracuse University, and a veteran of the U.S. military. You should know his story.

William “Bill” F. Allyn is an alumnus of Syracuse University and also a military veteran. You should know his story, because it’s a Syracuse University story—one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future.

William “Bill” F. Allyn is the grandson of William Noah Allyn, co-founder of the Skaneateles-based medical device manufacturer Welch Allyn. Despite being born with large shoes to fill, Bill emphatically met and exceeded the task.

Of all his business and family accomplishments, Bill Allyn served our country for three years in the U.S. Coast Guard. Following his service, he attended Dartmouth College to earn a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and then an M.B.A. from Syracuse University in 1959. He married his wife and SU alumna, Penny, in 1960. Together they raised a family of four sons and 11 grandchildren.

From 1980 to 1999, Bill Allyn served as the Chief Executive Officer and President of Welch Allyn, Inc., the family-owned holding company. While CEO, Bill led the company through incredible growth, transforming it into a competitive, global enterprise. He also founded Handheld Products, Inc. and Everest VIT, which manufacture remote visual inspection devices for boilers, jet engines, and nuclear reactors.

An unmistakable Renaissance man in the business world, Bill Allyn has served as board member, trustee, or director to numerous corporations and organizations including the John Dau Foundation, Allyn foundation, Manufacturers’ Association of Central New York, Business Council of New York, and M&T Bank Corporation. In 1999, William F. Allyn was a finalist for Ernst & Young’s New York Entrepreneur of the Year. The Business Journal quoted Allyn on his leadership philosophy stating, “My father’s favorite saying is ‘always be kind and true.’ At Welch Allyn, we strive to implement this through integrity and the golden rule.”

The Allyn family remains an active Syracuse University supporter too, for example, through the creation of Blue Highway LLC, a health-technology incubator that offers internships to SU students. The Allyn Foundation has also helped to fund The Warehouse and the IDEAS Collaborative at Syracuse University. In 2012, Bill Allyn received the Melvin A. Eggers Distinguished Alumni Award for his loyalty and service to Syracuse University as a life trustee and visionary donor.

While Bill and Penny Allyn spent the majority of their lives in Central New York, they now reside in Naples, Florida, and return home to Skaneateles during the summer. SU news highlighted that one of Bill’s fondest memories was coaching Skaneateles boys’ youth hockey for 19 years and winning three New York State championships.

William F. Allyn is an alumnus of Syracuse University and a veteran of the U.S. military. You should know his story.

Lieutenant General Charles P. McCausland, USAF retired, is an alumnus of Syracuse University, and also a military veteran. You should know his story, because it’s a Syracuse University story – one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future.

General McCausland was born 1935, in Flushing, N.Y., and graduated from Great Neck (N.Y.) High School in 1953. He then enrolled as a student in the College of Arts and Sciences at Syracuse University, and graduated in 1957. Upon graduation and completion of ROTC training at SU, he was commissioned as a 2^nd Lieutenant in the United States Air Force.

General McCausland served a long and distinguished career in the Air Force (1957 to 1992).  His career culminated with his selection to command Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), and as DLA Director responsible for inventory management of more than four million spare parts; industrial commodities; fuels and petroleum products; consumable items such as medical supplies, clothing, and subsistence; cataloging; property and hazardous material disposal; storage and distribution; and the contract administration of all military procurements. Staffing of the agency exceeded sixty thousand personnel, with an operating budget in excess of three billion dollars.

During his tenure, supply chain management was introduced and adopted at the Department of Defense. Prior to being assigned to the Defense Logistics Agency, McCausland held a variety of positions in the Air Force Logistics Command. He served as the vice-commander; chief of staff; and deputy chief of staff for plans and programs, for logistics operations, and for maintenance. He also served as the commander of the Ogden Air Logistics Center in Utah. Prior to that, McCausland served as the commander of the Defense Contract Administration Region, Los Angeles, and of the DOD Cataloging Activity in Battle Creek.

Since retirement, he has been active with industry, government and education, serving as a director and a member of the Audit Committee of the Dynamics Research Corporation, past president of the Ontario County Association for Retarded Children, a trustee of the Finger Lakes Community College and a member of the advisory Board of the H.H. Franklin Center for Supply Chain Management at Syracuse University.

General McCausland is an alumnus of Syracuse University, and a veteran of the U.S. military. You should know his story.

Bill Coghill is an alumnus of Syracuse University, and also a military veteran. You should know his story, because it’s a Syracuse University story – one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future.

A native of Latham, N.Y., Bill Coghill was the son of Genevieve and William Coghill, who attended Shaker High School, and graduated from Deerfield Academy. Bill came to Syracuse University as a highly-touted football recruit, regarded as an All-America candidate. After earning a football letter in his sophomore year, the burly lineman departed Syracuse University for the U.S. Marine Corps, and the jungles of Vietnam.

Coghill served in Vietnam from 1968 to 1970 as a combat medic, and then returned to Syracuse and rejoined the football team for the 1970 and 1971 seasons – eventually earning a degree from Syracuse University in anthropology.

Like many Vietnam veterans, friends say that Coghill rarely spoke of his war experiences, and that he never touted the fact that he volunteered to put his college football career on hold to serve as a medic in the Marines. Bill earned two Purple Hearts during his service in Vietnam, twice suffering shrapnel injuries. The second time he was hurt, he set off a booby trap and was injured by the blast – but still managed to carry to safety a fellow soldier with severe leg injuries.  Even some of his closest friends, however, didn’t hear that story until after his death.  Similarly, many were unaware that Coghill rescued a child named Ty from a Vietnam warzone, and then had him moved from the combat area to a school – and that Coghill personally paid for the child’s schooling. Bill also fed the village children with his left over c-rations and candy he purchased, and after a while the children affectionately referred to Bill as “Kim-shee – water-boo” which roughly translates to Dr. Water Buffalo.

No, Bill didn’t speak much at all about his experiences in Vietnam.  However when he returned to school in 1970, he came to campus to register for classes wearing his Marine Corps uniform, and was asked by a newspaper reporter about his wartime experience – he said only, “Vietnam is just as bad as you see in the news and on television.”

After graduation, Coghill went on to play professional football with the British Columbia Lions, worked as a field archeologist in the Western United States and South America, and eventually returned to Albany to work with his family in the contracting business. He was a man of the outdoors, most comfortable in the Adirondacks hunting and fishing with his former Syracuse football teammates, telling stories about the years he spent as a punishing defensive tackle under legendary coach Ben Shwartzwalder.

Bill Coghill was a 6-foot-3, 230-pound defensive tackle, who put life on hold to volunteer for service in Vietnam, in the midst of his breakout season as a football player.  That is to say that Bill lived life on his own terms.

Bill Coghill is an alumnus of Syracuse University, and a veteran of the U.S. military. You should know his story.

Stacy L. Pearsall is an alumnus of Syracuse University, and also a military veteran. You should know her story, because it’s a Syracuse University story – one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future.

Stacy was born into a long line of military men and women, and for that reason it was no surprise that when she turned 17, she joined the United States Air Force, signing on as a combat photographer.

In 2003, Stacy was sent to her first combat mission in Iraq. In the years that followed, she traveled to the Horn of Africa, Lebanon, and was deployed back to Iraq two additional times.  On her second deployment to Iraq, she was injured by an IED blast – and she was injured again during her third deployment. For her actions in Iraq, Pearsall received an Air Force Commendation with Valor and Bronze Star.

Now combat disabled and retired from military service, Pearsall continues to work worldwide as a freelance photographer, and is an author, educator, military consultant, public speaker and founder of the Veterans Portrait Project.

Stacy began the Veterans Portrait Project in Charleston, SC, while recovering from her combat injuries. While she sat for hours in waiting rooms, she couldn’t help but to notice the men and women around her. She reached out to hear the stories of veterans from every branch of service, generation and conflict and felt inspired to bring her camera and take their portraits, leading to the project that now fills the walls of a number of VA Hospitals across the United States.

Pearsall was one of only two women to win NPPA’s Military Photographer of the Year competition, and the only woman to have earned it twice. She’s been honored as the Air Force Veteran of the Year by the Air Force Band and PBS, presented the Trojan Labor American Hero Award, honored with the Daughters of the American Revolution Margaret Cochran Corbin Award, lauded by the White House as a Champion of Change, and holds an honorary doctoral degree from The Citadel. The release of her first photography book, Shooter: Combat from Behind the Camera, received worldwide praise as “A book of the highest levels in the annals of combat journalism.” And her second book, A Photojournalist’s Field Guide: In the Trenches with Combat Photographer Stacy Pearsall, is “a must have for every aspiring photographer out there, and even pros can pick up a few new tricks to help them become better photographers.”

Stacy Pearsall is an alumnus of Syracuse University, and a veteran of the U.S. military. You should know her story.

Floyd Benjamin “Ben” Schwartzwalder was for 25 years a teacher, a mentor, and a coach at Syracuse University.  He was also a military veteran. You should know his story, because it’s a Syracuse University story – one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future.

Ben Schwartzwalder grew up in West Virginia, and developed into a superb athlete (a standout wrestler and football player, both in high school and college).

In 1941, Ben found himself a 33 year old high school football coach, working in Canton, Ohio, on the day that the Japanese attached Pearl Harbor. Almost immediately, Coach Ben Schwartzwalder enlisted in the United States Army, earning his paratrooper wings as part of the famous 82nd Airborne Division.

By any definition, during the war Ben distinguished himself in service to the nation, and to his men.  As a paratrooper with the 82^nd, he was among the first wave of soldiers that jumped on D-Day in 1944. Dropped far behind enemy lines and miles off target, Ben, a Captain in Company G of the 507^th, organized his men, established command, and a week later delivered a large group of prisoners to the Allied lines.  For his actions during the invasion, Ben was awarded a Silver Star, a Bronze Star, a Purple Heart, four battle stars, the Presidential Unit Citation, and was promoted to the rank of Major.  He was personally decorated by the commander of the 82^nd, the legendary General Matthew Ridgeway, who recalled saying to Ben “I never expected to see you here to receive this award.”

After the war, Ben came back to coaching, and eventually found his way to Syracuse University. About coming to Syracuse, Schwartzwalder famously said: “The alumni wanted a big-name coach. They got a long-name coach.” And while maybe the alumni didn’t get the ‘big name’ coach, Floyd Burdette “Ben” Schwartzwalder gave SU its finest hours in football, becoming the most successful football coach in the University’s history.

Under Ben’s leadership, SU produced 22 straight years of non-losing football.  Coach Schwartzwalder led the SU team to an impressive record of 153 wins, 91 losses, and 3 ties, including seven bowl games, and the only National Championship in SU’s history (1959 undefeated team).  He also developed some of the most impressive running backs the game has ever seen – Jim Brown, Ernie Davis, Jim Nance, Floyd Little and Larry Csonka.

Ben passed away in 1993 and is buried in the Onondaga County Veterans Memorial Cemetery. He is part of Syracuse University history, and a veteran of the U.S. military. You should know his story.

Lorimer Rich is an alumnus of Syracuse University, and also a military veteran. You should know his story, because it’s a Syracuse University story – one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future.

Mr. Lorimer W. Rich graduated from Syracuse University in 1914 with a degree in architecture, and then immediately went on to serve with distinction as a U.S. Army infantryman during World War I.  At the conclusion of World War I, Mr. Rich continued his academic studies in Italy. However, it wasn’t long before he returned to his native New York, to join the firm of McKim, Mead & White.

After eight years at McKim, Mead & White, Rich decided to strike out on his own, and over the next five decades he became one of the nation’s most prolific designers of government buildings, post offices and court houses, college dormitories, and churches. Locally, he designed the Rome Court House, Camden United Methodist Church, and State University College at Oswego. For his alma mater, Syracuse University, he designed the E.I. White College of Law, Watson, Marion and Shaw Dormitories, and the renovated Archbold Gymnasium.

One of Mr. Rich’s most famous works is the design of the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington National Cemetery – a commission he won through national competition early in his career.  Lorimer also designed the Tomb of the Unknown Revolutionary War Soldiers, at North James and Liberty Streets in Rome, as one of his last works.

Later in his career, he became a critic in design at the School of Architecture of Columbia University, and in 1940 was awarded an honorary doctorate in fine arts from Syracuse University. He also was a critic in architectural and city planning at the Pratt Institute in New York City.

Mr. Rich retired in 1971 at the age of 80, to his native hometown of Camden N.Y.  Upon his death in 1978, President Jimmy Carter personally approved his remains to be interred in Arlington – so that he could be near the tomb he designed. Lorimer W. Rich is buried in Section 48 of Arlington National Cemetery, directly behind the Tomb of the Unknowns and the Memorial Amphitheater.

Lorimer Rich is an alumnus of Syracuse University, and a veteran of the U.S. military. You should know his story.

Eileen Collins is an alumnus of Syracuse University and also a military veteran. You should know her story, because it’s a Syracuse University story—one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future.

Eileen was born on November 19, 1956 into a family of Irish immigrants in Elmira, New York. From an early age, Eileen marveled at the wonder of flight. Her fondest childhood memories were visiting the Harris Hill Soaring Corporation and Museum and standing around the local airport with her parents to watch planes take off. This, naturally, sparked a desire to take flying lessons, so she took a part-time job at a pizza parlor to save up $1,000 for private lessons. By the age of nineteen, Collins entered the cockpit for the first time and knew instantly that she would be a pilot.

After high school, Collins attended Corning Community College. With determination and her family’s support, she quickly earned an associate degree in mathematics and a two-year ROTC scholarship at Syracuse University. As expected, Collins graduated from Syracuse in 1978 with a bachelor of arts in mathematics and economics and a commission as an U.S. Air Force lieutenant.

Eileen entered the Air Force just as the doors started opening for women pilots. She set her sights on attending undergraduate pilot training school at Vance Air Force Base in Oklahoma where she was among the first group of 120 females to apply—and one of only four women selected. Within a year, the 23-year-old lieutenant became the U.S. Air Force’s first female flight instructor. In 1983, Collins was reassigned to Travis Air Force Base in California, where she flew C-141 cargo planes and participated in numerous military and humanitarian missions overseas. Several years later, Collins taught mathematics at the U.S. Air Force Academy after earning master’s degrees in operations research from Stanford University and in space systems management from Webster University.

With two advanced degrees, over 1500 hours of flight time, and a cool-headed reputation, Collins was the second woman ever accepted to the prestigious Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base in California. Upon graduation in 1990, NASA selected her for the astronaut program. At NASA, she famously became the first woman astronaut to both pilot (1995) and then command (1999) a Space Shuttle mission. Under her command, the shuttle Columbia made history when it deployed a $1.5 billion telescope into orbit to enable deep-space exploration of exploding stars, quasars, and black holes.

Eileen Collins is an indisputable pioneer in the world of aviation—well in the company of others like Amelia Earhart and Sally Ride. She retired from the U.S. Air Force in 2005 at the rank of Colonel, ending a remarkable military career. Her list of honors and awards is long and befitting of one of our nation’s the first female pilots and astronauts. The main boulevard entrance to Syracuse Hancock International Airport proudly enjoys her name. So too does the astronomical observatory at Corning Community College. Collins is also a Syracuse University Arents Award recipient, an inductee of the National Women’s Hall of Fame, and recognized by Encyclopedia Britannica as one of the top 300 women in history to have changed the world.

Eileen Collins is an alumnus of Syracuse University and a veteran of the U.S. military. You should know her story.

Peggy Combs is an alumnus of Syracuse University and also a military veteran. You should know her story, because it’s a Syracuse University story—one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future.

Peggy (Huther) Combs was raised the eldest of four children in the tiny upstate village of Oriskany, New York. Growing up with limited means, college was not her primary ambition until a high school athletic coach, also an Army Reservist, presented the possibility. After graduating from Oriskany High School in 1981, Combs would be the first in her family to attend college, supported by a four-year ROTC scholarship at Syracuse University.

Although adjusting to life as a Syracuse Army ROTC cadet was admittedly rough at first without a strong military family tradition, Peggy adapted well. By May of 1985, she was a distinguished military graduate with a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and molecular biology and a commission in the U.S. Army as a second lieutenant.

Lieutenant Combs’ initially thought she would only serve out her initial four-year service obligation. It didn’t take long, however, for her to make a personal pact that as long as she found enjoyment and passion in her service, she would continue. That pact led to a successful 29-year (and counting) military career that includes pinning soon-to-be two stars as a general officer.

Over her career, Brigadier General (Promotable) Combs served in numerous leadership and staff positions at all levels of the U.S. Army, from tactical to strategic. Combs is also a veteran of Operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom having served as the Joint Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Operations Officer for U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) and as the Chief of Staff for the Iraq Training and Advisory Mission. She continued her education in this time too, earning advanced degrees from the University of Saint Mary in business administration and the U.S. Army War College in strategic arts.

On September 11, 2012, Peggy Combs was honored with her first star and promotion to brigadier general at Fort Leonard Wood, where she assumed the dual role as 27th chief of the U.S. Army’s chemical branch and commandant of the U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear School. But the Army had even more plans in store for her. Given her demonstrated senior leadership, in March of 2014, the U.S. Army selected Brigadier General Combs for command of Fort Knox, Kentucky and the U.S. Army Cadet Command—the first female ever to do so. She marked yet another major career milestone later this summer as she was selected for promotion to the rank of Major General.

Remarkably, Combs is the first female general officer from upstate New York and the first general with ties to Oriskany since Brigadier General Nicholas Herkimer of the Revolutionary War. But beyond her distinguished career and example set for aspiring women leaders, Combs is also a devoted military spouse and mother. Together, she and her husband and Army Colonel, Brad, have successfully raised three children through their shared journey as Army officers during a time of war. Still, BG(P) Combs’ passion for service rings clear as she once stated, “For me, soldiering is truly an affair of the heart. It really is about a love of service, a love of our country and the respect and love for our brothers-and-sisters-in-arms that serve with the same heart of service and commitment.”

Brigadier General (Promotable) Peggy Combs is an alumnus of Syracuse University and a veteran of the U.S. military. You should know her story.