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Whoever WorldHistory.com is, they lifted that article directly from Wikipedia. I know it's original to Wikipedia, because I wrote it. (I also wrote the Donovan and Jedburgh articles. Or course, they have been edited by many hands since).

Aaron Bank was an incredible, incredible man. Someone wondered why he was allowed to enlist at an older age than is now used - I can only assume that the Army was more flexible then. Of course, in the War, with 12 million men under arms, the services needed everybody, but before the war, before the draft was even reinstated, the Army was tiny. I can only assume that some personnel officer had a really good nose for talent.

Aaron Bank wrote two works that I know of. One of them is his history of the establishment of SF, "From OSS to Green Berets," and the other is a short allegory on how Special Forces came to be accepted in the Army (which some would argue it did not do until the incredible Unconventional Warfare blitz of October 2001 to January 2002 in Afghanistan, where a nation's conventional military supported by international volunteers and tribal militia, was defeated by tribal militia alone, with SF and airpower acting as force multipliers).

A lot of people wonder why such a talented man never became General Bank. I think there were three reasons: one, his unconventional education, which set him apart in a small peacetime Army where everyone had a military academy or university background; two, his fascination with irregular warfare, which seemed like "cheating" to many peacetime officers and even to war heroes who were unaware of what OSS accomplished (the information only trickled out years after the war. Some of it is still trickling); and three, a lingering prejudice against Jews in the Waspish officer corps. (I was surprized when I heard that... not because I didn't believe it, but because I hadn't known the Colonel was Jewish).

In 2000 the Special Forces Association convention was in Boston and a friend of mine, who had served the Colonel on active duty, was assigned to take care of him. At this time Col. Bank was showing the first signs of dementia. "Where are we going, Bill?" he would ask, and Bill would tell him, "to the elevator... to the hospitality room." only to be asked again. Anyone who has known an Alzheimer's or microstroke patient knows what I mean. But the Colonel's memories of the forties and fifties were as clear as ever.

There is a picture of Col. Bank in his office in Bad Tölz that illustrates the power of the man. You would never know that he is fifty plus years old in the picture; he looks strong and youthful, with a square jawline; and yet you can see that he is loving life and having fun, as if he's thinking, "I would pay them to command this unit, and the dumb clucks are paying ME instead!" I'll see if I can find it online.

When I joined SF I was inspired not by Aaron Bank, but by John Wayne, Barry Sadler, and Robin Moore. Once I got in (a challenge on a paperwork level that rivaled all the usual challenges you hear about, which were pretty much just like you hear about 'em) I found out that, no disrespect to those men intended, I had all the wrong heroes. I learned about Aaron Bank, about "Splash" Kelly and Charlie Beckwith and Arthur "Bull" Simons. I learned about legendary NCOs like CSMs Bill Edge, Billy Waugh, and MSG Ed Sprague, and about heroes like Bob Howard. Jon Cavaiani, Roger S. Donlon, and many others. You could say I got my brain-housing group recalibrated, to Army standards.

It was a bit intimidating. I trained under Howard briefly, I worked for Cavaiani on an exercise, I got to meet "Jake" Jakovenko and another Son Tay Raider, Paul Poole, tried to teach me to shoot a .45 pistol (and gave up). Each one taught me something (even if it was only "when you are down to your pistol get help.") But none of these guys would have come together if it hadn't been for Col. Aaron Bank, USA (Ret).

Of my three original SF inspirations: John Wayne died of lung cancer. Barry Sadler shot himself in a taxicab in Tegucigalpa, somewhat the worse for alcohol; and Robin Moore, who's just trucking along at 79 years of age with a new book out, had a scotch on the rocks with me at the Hanscom AFB O club last night.

Of course, we drank to the memory of the Colonel. Rest in peace, great American.

d.o.l. <- and by now most of you will have sussed out the meaning of this...

Criminal Number 18F

Special Forces Members:

As most of you are probably now aware, COL (Ret.) Aaron Bank passed away
Thursday 01 April, at his home in Dana Point, CA.

There will be a public viewing at:

Lesneski Mortuary
640 S. El Camino Real
San Clemente, CA 92672
949-492-1717

Date: Sunday, 04 April
Time: 3:00pm - 8:00pm

The funeral will be held at:

Riverside National Cemetery
22495 Van Buren Blvd. (Just off Rt. I-215, directly across from March AFB)
Riverside, CA 92518
909-653-8417

Date: Monday, 05 April
Time: 1:00pm

After the funeral service, there will be a reception at Hap Arnold on March
AFB. .

Feel free to get in touch, if you have any questions.
--
Adrian

Adrian Silva (D-6625)
Special Forces Association
Chapter 75 - Vice President
San Diego, CA
760-945-7480 Home
760-631-4535 Office
760-419-6083 Cell
E-mail: tutor@wintutors.com
Website: www.sfachapter75.org

"All men dream: but not equally. Those who dream by night
in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find
that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous
men, for they may act their dreams with open eyes, to make it
possible.
- T.E Lawrence, "The Seven Pillars of Wisdom"

Special Forces Association
PO Box 41436
Fayetteville, NC
28309-1436 email: sfahq@aol.com
Telephone 910-485-5433 website: www.sfahq.org
Fax 910-485-1041

Of my three original SF inspirations: John Wayne died of lung cancer. Barry Sadler shot himself in a taxicab in Tegucigalpa, somewhat the worse for alcohol; and Robin Moore, who's just trucking along at 79 years of age with a new book out, had a scotch on the rocks with me at the Hanscom AFB O club last night.

Captain Larry Thorne, in my case. Everyone in 10th Group had told me so much about him, like the eccentric family uncle who nevertheless has done good, becoming a millionaire in Vegas and marrying a Hollywood starlet. I was looking forward to the meeting that probably eventually would have happened, had he not been KIA.

And of course, FReeper RANGERAIRBORNE was no doubt holding a seat at Valhalla's Hall of Heroes for Aaron Bank when he arrived, as well as any number of SF legends at the banquet. We may run across them again someday, if we follow their examples of the way they conducted their lives and concluded them.

It seems Aaron Bank took his final journey very near the same time as Rock-and-Roll and surf music luminary Jan Berry of Jan and Dean. Though very different individuals, both were unique and driven individuals who excelled at the careers they loved, and it's not difficult to imigine the two of them as acquaintences now.