If you missed it on Old Breed General, you still need to read the book; it took a village to get this done.
Here is an extended version of the acknowledgments you will find in the book.
Our book would not have been possible without the unwavering support of my co-author Don Brown.
I am also forever grateful for the encouragement and patience provided by my husband, Edwin Peacock, and my children, Bruton and Avery, over this now seven years book journey.
Mom often missed picking them up on time and making dinner at a decent hour, among other things. And Edwin had to listen to me talk about this history every night. Seriously.
My sisters, Heather Rupertus Bates and Kimberly Rupertus Robinson, were instrumental in this project. They joined me in Quantico for research, helped organize the vast intel in the family trunks filled with historical treasures, read my drafts, and provided insightful feedback and mental mojo.
Kimberly went above and beyond, conducting extensive research at the National Archives and Quantico and archiving our combined data online to enhance my ability to access and save the information.
I would also like to thank Heather’s husband, Rich Bates, for his early support of our family’s military history and keeping the story alive through the shadow boxes, preserving medals, Wikipedia, and that M-1 Rifle!
When I knew I had to get this story down, Congressman Richard Pittenger helped expedite the digitization of my grandfather’s 700-page PEP file at the National Archives. Thank goodness it survived the fires.
I am indebted to our friends Scott and Gail Syfert for their support and advice throughout the project.
And I appreciate the support of my nephews Gunner Robinson and LTC Patrick Bates, USN, and my niece Devon Bates, who took a stab at editing my early draft.
I am immensely grateful for the USMC History Division team’s help in our many oral history requests, and my developmental editor Tracy Crow for her guidance and support. And our literary agent Chip MacGregor has been a gem!
I also want to thank retired officers USN John Blackwelder, USMC WWII Marine Veterans Jim Hunter, Woody Williams, Judge Braswell Deen, Jr., William Finnegan for their valuable insights. Sadly, they all died during this book journey. We miss them.
Marines and history experts Herbert Cloud and Dave Holland provided crucial edits on the galley version of Old Breed General. You can see many here: https://www.amyrupertuspeacock.com/got-edits
And there now is a number of people to thank who supported us on our book tour 2022-2023.
All of the Marines from the Marine Corps League, friends, and others who came out to support us on the tour from our launch at Park Road Books to WTVI Charlotte, the National WWII Museum and Ronald Regan Presidential Library. Thank you to the staff and a/v teams at these locations who made it possible.
And thanks to all the podcasters:
Stuart Watson of Man Listening
Brian Jodice of Pick Up the Six
Greg Payne of Cool Grandpas
Craig Watson of the Pacific War Channel on YouTube
Vic Ruble and team at The MCA Scuttlebutt
Paul Woodage of WW2TV on YouTube
And, thanks to the members of the book’s Facebook group.
A special extra shout out of gratitude to Amy Burkett of WTVI Charlotte who provided advice on my first live filming to calm my nerves.
And, my father in law Ed Peacock, who made our talk at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library a truly memorable experience. You can see our talk here: https://www.amyrupertuspeacock.com/book-tour-secrets-of-wwii-at-reagan-library
In researching this book, I discovered the intriguing story of our grandfather, a man whom I had never met. This experience gave me a deeper understanding of our shared family history, our grandfather’s role in the Marine Corps, and the broader US history leading up to World War II.
As each chapter unfolded, I was in awe of all our ancestors’ vision, bravery, grit, and sacrifice before and during World War I, the Great Depression, and World War II.
Let us carry on with their tenacity, love, and courage.
