THE WALL OF FACES

I was a sports writer at The Forum in Fargo and reproduced Cushman's letter to the youth of Grand Forks following his fall in the final Olympics trials. His letter became a yearly column that was appreciated by many at The Forum. Thanks, Cliff.

i wore your pow bracelet for years until i went though my general surgery rotation in medical school(1981) . i had to choose safety / potential infection over my need to hold you close. i even ticked off a friend because i wore it in her wedding.
i went to georgetown med school so i was there when the vietnam memorial was unveiled. i looked for you, found you and visit you every time i go back. i hope to take my granddaughter to see you. you were a very important part of my young adulthood and brought me closer to my dad. he was retired army. by the way i always assumed you were african american...from the east coast...boy was i wrong. the best to your family..God bless them and you...and God bless America. your heart, always , diane

I would often see Cliff at the track meets we both competed in in North Dakota.
What a guy, just about the most outgoing, helpful, nicest, person you'd ever meet.
With a great big smile, he would actually give tips to his opponents on how to hurdle.
I tell you there was something magnetic about the guy and, had he lived he would have become nationally known as a politician, for which he was ideally suited. Combine JFK and Bill Clinton, and you have what I think he would have become. I could go on, but It's enough to say no one who ever met Cliff ever forgot meeting him.
I'm sure of it.

I did not know him but have had his POW MIA KIA bracelet since 1970. I would very much like to contact his family and get the bracelet to them

His father and mine were on the UND faculty, so our families were friends, although I was many years younger. We used to see him running along the railroad tracks by our house on First Ave North, training for his track career. He was a role model, first in athletics and then in his heroic service to his country.