Plans are being made for the joint 178th Boxcar and 147th Hillclimber reunion, which will be held in Savannah GA starting on August 8th, 2001, with check in at the hotel.

We have already contacted the Public Affairs Officer at Hunter AAF and are tentatively scheduled for a grand tour of Hunter AAF, part of the 3rd ID (Mech) & 1/75 Ranger Bn, beginning at 0900 on August 9th. The tour is to include a command briefing tour of the post, including the ready battalion staging area and mission, a visit to the Nightstalkers (Hercules) CH47 unit and fine dining in a modern Army dining facility. The CH47 unit has expressed their pleasure at being able to host a tour for former "Hookers". This tour is not "cast in stone" since this unit is subject to deployment dictated by world situations, but barring that, everything should go as planned.

On Friday, August 10, we hope to visit the "Mighty 8th Air Force" museum located in Pooler, GA. This museum covers the WW II period through the Cold War. The 8th Air Force, of daylight bombing fame during WW II, was formed in Savannah and the museum offers what is called "the mission experience". There are many displays and mock ups as well as actual aircraft and artifacts.

On either Friday or Saturday night, we hope to dine at one of Savannah's fine seafood restaurants. (meats, other than seafood, will be included on the menu.) The meal will be at cost for the attendees, and two of the better restaurants have expressed an interest in hosting our group at very good rates.

Saturday and Sunday will be left clear for individual attendees to do sightseeing in this historic city or visiting the beach. Savannah is one of America's oldest cities and was the first planned city in the USA. It has ties to both the revolutionary and civil wars. Savannah was captured by Sherman on his "March to the Sea", but unlike Atlanta which was burned, Savannah was presented to President Lincoln as a Christmas present due to the abundance of cotton and other commodities found in the port. Sherman's headquarters are still available for viewing on a tour of the downtown area.

Of course, there will be plenty of time to see old friends and share stories of what transpired long ago. To me, this has always been the best part of the reunions and has provided me with a peace of mind that I had not known until my first reunion in 1992. For those of you that have never attended a 178th/400th reunion in the past, put aside your fears and come on down. I doubt you will regret it. Don't forget, wives and other relatives are always welcome to attend. (We are not as rowdy as we once may have been!)

Savannah is located near the southeast coast of Georgia, just off I-95 and at the end of I-16. We are served by many of the major airlines as well as Amtrak and commercial bus lines.

Plan on attending this reunion. I believe you will enjoy it.

Steve Niedbala
Boxcar Association President