WPAOG Hosts Distinguished Graduates Locke and Brown for Fireside Chat
By Jane Anderson, Editorial Manager
Two of WPAOG’s Distinguished Graduate awardees toured West Point on Tuesday, October 27 and shared insights in a Fireside Chat with cadets about what they learned both at the Academy and in their post-USMA careers.
Pat Locke ’80 and General Bob Brown ’81, Retired, each said they were impressed by the maturity and confidence of the cadets they met during their visits to Arvin Gym, the Sim Center, and Psychology & Leadership and Aerospace Engineering classes. Locke is a 2024 Distinguished Graduate honoree. Brown was honored as a Distinguished Graduate in 2026.
Brown said that the cadets they met were more than just surviving, but thriving in ways that showed they were hungry to learn. Brown—who was a 1,000-point scorer for the Army Black Knights Men’s Basketball Team under Coach Mike Krzyzewski—also spoke with the current men’s team during practice. “Wherever you go, you’ll be known as a West Point graduate and it will get you where you want to go, whatever profession you’re in,” Brown advised team members. “This is a great leadership school, and I learned a lot about building a team from Coach K.”
The Distinguished Graduates enjoyed lunch with cadets in the Mess Hall and dinner at the Herbert Alumni Center before the Fireside Chat began in the Great Hall. Brigadier General Joseph Katz ’99, commandant of cadets at West Point, and Mark Bieger ’91, president and CEO of the WPAOG, moderated the hour-long chat. Locke and Brown answered questions including what motivated them to join military service; the experiences and mentors who helped shape their officership; and what their military service asked of them and their families. They also described the enduring truths and habits they experienced that would help the current cadets on their journeys.
The 75 cadets who attended the Fireside Chat came away enlightened by the Distinguished Graduates’ words.
“It was really great to see how our successes and failures at West Point can shape the officers that we become, as well as carrying our community into the future,” said Mira Shelat ’27.
Madeline Zais ’28 noted that she and fellow cadets can apply the lessons of mentorship that Locke and Brown shared in their own companies moving forward.
Gene Kang ’27 appreciated their emphasis on continued learning: “It was super intuitive of their stories to show how their experiences shaped their lives even after West Point, and it just shows that there’s never an end to learning. You always continue to grow. You always continue to find out more. And it’s super important that you learn all those lessons.”
The Fireside Chat is the third in a series, with another potentially planned for the spring.
For a video recap of the DGAs’ tour and the Fireside Chat, visit YouTube.
For photos, visit Flickr.
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