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<p><em>Kenneth Richard “Ken” Ludovici</em> joined the ranks of Company A-2 from Pittsburgh, PA, leaving his high school sweetheart, Pat, behind. His plebe year was challenging, as his sometime desire to march to a different drummer often clashed with what upperclassmen expected. We, his Company A-2 classmates, could only marvel at the grit it took to stand his ground. His superior academic performance not only got him through this but also allowed him to serve his classmates all four years, helping them prepare for end of semester and turnout exams. It was the first sign for his classmates that he was a man of service to others. He also built his own electronic equipment, so it was no surprise that he selected the Signal Corps as his branch.</p>
<p>Upon graduation Ken and Pat were married, after being together the entire four years, and began a very full life together. The first stop was Signal Corps Officer Basic Course at Fort Monmouth, NJ and then Airborne School at Fort Benning, GA. Ken joined the 82d Airborne in November 1960. The 82d was part of the Strategic Army Corps, the strike force of the United States in a newly heated-up Cold War. Their first of three children, Wendy, was born in July 1961, just in time for Ken’s participation in Swift Strike I in the summer of 1961. Four divisions, including the 82d and the 101st, participated in the largest military maneuver since World War II. Later that year his unit deployed for winter training at Fort Drum, NY.</p>
<p>It was not the cold but rather the heat that followed next as he was assigned to Kontum, Vietnam as an advisor in March 1962. His commanding officer discovered that Ken had some accounting experience, and he was assigned as manager of the compound coop. Upon returning from Vietnam, he finished his military service with the Special Forces at Fort Bragg, NC, resigning his commission in July 1963. </p>
<p>Ken began his long career in sales by working for several manufacturing firms. It was in sales that he discovered his passion and comfort zone, and he was soon promoted to a series of sales management positions. Along the way two more children joined the family, Elaine in December 1963 and Michael in August 1968. Ken retired in 2001. At his class’s 50th reunion he reflected on the strong connection between his West Point and military experience and his career in sales. “The leadership skills that I learned at West Point served me well…I was successful both as a motivational leader and as an organizational manager. I know I helped develop the sales skills and business ethics of many young men, a result I found most rewarding.”</p>
<p>Throughout his life the one constant was his service to others. It started in high school, with Ken described in his yearbook as “always busy, likes to do things for his friends.” It continued at West Point, where he enthusiastically shared his expertise. After the Army he became an amateur (ham) radio enthusiast, not only building his own equipment but participating in the many public service events that are part of that community. And when personal computers came on the scene, he quickly mastered that technology. In all these endeavors he excelled at sharing his knowledge with and teaching others. Ken and Pat thrived on community involvement through both church and their children’s school and other activities.</p>
<p>Ken did not leave West Point behind after he graduated. He and Pat were active members of the West Point Society of Cincinnati, with Ken serving as treasurer and president. He set up the website for them and made sure that email addresses were up to date. He also worked on five of the committees to recommend a nominee for the Distinguished Graduate from his class. His greatest service came as one of the contributors to the 50th reunion yearbook, a massive multi-year project distributed at the reunion in 2010. One of the editors said this about his effort: “Ken was a terrific classmate. We never met as cadets, but we connected as part of a team of classmates willing to work on the Class of 1960 Fifty Years book. Every single page (640 pages) had Ken’s imprint in one way or another…you will be remembered for many years to come.”</p>
<p>Ken thoroughly enjoyed the many A-2 mini-reunions that began in 1995. The last two in Chicago and Seattle were especially poignant. Years before, he had been diagnosed with leukemia, and this disease had begun to take its toll. But you would not have known it by the enthusiasm and joy he projected, as his stories often took center stage. We all began to know Ken better than ever and appreciate him as a loyal member of our band of short but valiant members of Company A-2. In the last week of his life, we learned that his health was failing. The call went out, and we, the surviving companymates of A-2, called Ken to say farewell. We were rewarded with his powerful words of farewell. He was a trooper to the end.</p>
<p>At his 50th reunion, Ken summed up his life thusly: “Looking over the past 50 years, I credit West Point with much of my success and very much of what I am. I have always been thankful and proud that I was lucky enough to become a member of the Long Gray Line.” We are also proud of your life of service to your country, your family, and your alma mater. Well done, Ken; we are thankful that we knew you. Be Thou at Peace.</p>
<p><em>— Company A-2 classmates and Pat Ludovici</em></p>
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