Members of the New York Wing’s Vanguard Composite Squadron participated online in the annual Doolittle Raiders Memorial Toast to mark the 83rd anniversary of the historic World War II mission.
The Air & Space Forces Association Doolittle Leadership Center hosted the event on YouTube in conjunction with the grand opening of its new headquarters in Pentagon City, Virginia. The session featured U.S. Space Force Gen. B. Chance Saltzman, Space Force chief of space operations, as keynote speaker, and U.S. Air Force Gen. David W. Allvin, chief of staff of the Air Force, as toastmaster.
The toast is conducted in tribute to the Doolittle Raiders’ bravery and the unwavering spirit of the Air Force.
Air Force Gen. James Doolittle, AFA founding president, and his team of Raiders began the tradition in 1945 when they gathered for a reunion to celebrate the Tokyo raid three years earlier. Every year, crew members would raise a toast to honor those who had died during the previous 12 months. The last surviving Raider, Air Force Lt. Col. Richard Cole, died in April 2019 at age 103.
The toast tradition was carried on by the AFA’s Central Oklahoma Gerrity Chapter, then streamed worldwide via YouTube starting last year.
The ceremony lasted 45 minutes, during which Vanguard squadron cadets enjoyed a pizza party. AFA members toasted with glasses of cognac, Doolittle’s preferred drink, while the squadron members used nonalcoholic sparkling cider.
Participating were:
Lt. Col Sean Neal, commander
Maj. Susan Neal, deputy commander for seniors
2nd Lt. Clara Cordato, public affair officer
2nd Lt. Joseph Cordato, emergency services officer
Cadet Lt. Col. Kyle Golden
Cadet 1st Lt. Cameron Grant
Cadet 2nd Lt. Gabriella Coons
Cadet 2nd Lt. Caden Yorks
Cadet Chief Master Sgt. Anthony Cordato
Cadet Chief Master Sgt. Joseph Cordato
Cadet Chief Master Sgt. Matthew Cordato
Cadet Chief Master Sgt. Mikayla Myers
Cadet Master Sgt. Lucas Pietrak-Winslow
Cadet Tech. Sgt. Randall Albertson
Cadet Airman 1st Class Gavin Frick
