________________________________________________________________TROOPER DOWN Leland Tabb
MSG (Retired) Leland Tabb passed on to Fiddler’s Green after a tough battle with brain cancer. Leland served 17 and a half years in the Blackhorse Regiment. The funeral service will be held in the small town that Tabb was born in, called Cobbs Creek, VA at Ebenezer Baptist Church, 3601 Buckey Hall Road. The services are scheduled for 14:00 this coming Saturday, the 4th of September. The name of the funeral home is Forest Brothers Mathews Chapel on route 198, Hudgins, VA 23076. … The following was sent to us by Kenneth O. Preston, a long time friend of Leland’s: Sir, In addition to Leland running the in-processing center for the Regiment, which coincidentally was a couple of buildings down the street from the Anvil Troop Headquarters, he was instrumental in organizing many of the sporting and athletic programs and competitions. From intramural softball, football and bowling, Leland was very involved in making these events a huge success for the command. I have no doubt his personal involvement as a coach and referee greatly contributed to the quality of life for the troopers and Families of the Regiment. Because of his longevity in the community, Leland was the perfect volunteer to maintain the continuity of these vital moral building programs during the high operational pace of the Regiment on the former East/West German border, while maintaining a high level of combat readiness. With the Ironhorse Squadron deployed for weeks at a time, Leland was the one individual who managed the team schedules to accommodate the rotational forces in and out of the community, so no unit or trooper was disadvantaged or missed an opportunity to participate due to a deployment.
As a personal friend and a fellow member of the Wednesday Night Men’s Bowling League, Leland and I were members of the five-man team known as the "Fulda Vice." For the three years I bowled with Leland, the Fulda Vice was a dynasty among the men’s teams. It was Leland’s positive attitude, his spirit of competition and sportsmanship, and his leadership that bonded all of us together. Even in retirement, Leland continued to support Soldiers. With the closing of Downs Barracks, Leland made the daily journey from his retirement home in the Fulda area to work in Hanau at the gymnasium on Pioneer Kaserne. As the division CSM in 1st Armored Division and then the V Corps CSM, Leland was always eager to show me some new idea he was executing to improve the quality of service and quality of life for our Soldiers. I will miss him. v/r Ken Preston Kenneth O. Preston Sergeant Major of the Army 203 Army Pentagon (3E677) Washington D.C. 20310-0203
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