The History of the Philippine Scouts Heritage Society
“The Philippine Scout Heritage Society was formed to preserve their distinguished history. Unless the sons, daughters, grandchildren, friends and associates take a positive and active role as members of the Philippine Scouts Heritage Society, the heroic legacy of these elite Filipinos will die. As an old soldier waiting for final roll call, I urge you to remember this.”
- Brig. Gen. Royal Reynolds, Jr., Co-Founder & First PSHS President
Brigadier General Royal Reynolds, Jr., former CO of the 1st Battalion, 57th Infantry Regiment (PS). Co-founder and First President of the PSHS.
Lt. Col. Loyd E. Mills, former CO of C Company, 57th Infantry Regiment (PS). Co-founder and First President of the Mills Chapter of the PSHS.
Col. John E. Olson, former adjutant of the 57th Infantry Regiment (PS). Co-founder and First Historian of the PSHS.
Col. Melvin Rosen, formerly of Battery E, 88th Field Artillery Regiment (PS). Co-founder and First Counselor of the PSHS.
Sen. John A. Patterson, nephew of Medal of Honor Awardee, 1st Lt. Alexander Nininger, Jr. of the 57th Inf. (PS). Co-founder and President Emeritus.
In the 1980s, a number of former Philippine Scouts began to talk about creating an organization that would bring together their old comrades on an annual basis. The first reunion was hosted in 1984 by Jim and Mary Coleman in Grand Junction, Colorado. It was a beautiful place for the first formal gathering of these warriors. There was an impressive array of Scouts, some of whom had not seen each other since 1942!
On April 5, 1989, former Philippine Scout officers Loyd Mills, John Olson, General Royal Reynolds, Mel Rosen and Rhode Island State Senator John Patterson (nephew of Medal of Honor Awardee, Lt. Alexander R. Nininger, Jr), founded the Philippine Scouts Heritage Society. The Society's mission is to help preserve the history and legacy of these outstanding soldiers. It was a move long overdue since there are so few individuals in the United States who are aware of who the Philippine Scouts were or what they did. The Society has active chapters in Tacoma, Washington and San Antonio, Texas. Its members reside in half the states and several foreign countries.
Today the sons, daughters and grandchildren of the Scouts are taking over the Society, as only a few of the men are left. Almost half of them died in the merciless hands of their country's enemy. Advanced age has further depleted their ranks. In recent years, at the closing dinner of the Society's annual reunion only a handful of former Scouts and their spouses line up across the dance floor, with graying hair and an occasional cane or wheelchair momentarily pushed aside. In the darkened room with cameras flashing and background music, they receive the applause of their families and admirers.
The challenge for the Philippine Scouts Heritage Society in the future is to keep alive the history, heritage and legacy of these former U.S. Army soldiers. Through annual gatherings, links with the U.S. Army Museum at Ft. Sam Houston, the modern communications of a website and newsletter, the involvement of the next generations of sons, daughters, grandchildren, nieces and nephews and anyone who is interested in furthering the Society's goals, these men will never be forgotten.