Ty Wetzel died in an automobile accident on July 4, 1976 just outside of his hometown of Austin, Tx. He was 25 years young at the time of his passing. Despite his diminutive stature (around 5’6") Ty was a giant among our crowd. President of the Ramstein Jr. High School 1966 ninth grade class, he lead us in everything from organizing pep rallies to putting together what has become legend among military dependents worldwide: i.e., the Jungle Juice Party of 1965. Jungle Juice was Ty’s brainchild. It was: orange juice diced with a bunch of cut up fruit and lots and lots of vodka. Ty’s reasoning regarding the juice/alcohol, vis-à-vis girls, was that since the women wanted to stay sober, they would eat the fruit rather than drinking the juice. But, since fruit acts as an alcohol absorbent, by eating the fruit the girls would end up on their pretty little sixteen-year-old butts, while us boys, who guzzled the juice and ignored the fruit, would remain of sound mind and firm hand. And, it worked. All of the babes who attended the JJP of 65 fell victim to Ty’s genius, and the Vodka’s dizzying magic. And, yes, several of the guys scored a feel. Unfortunately, I (who will go nameless) wasn’t one of them. The girl I ended up with (who will go nameless except for her maiden initials of SV) did in fact get toasted but, being of sounder mind than the rest of us guys, had the pre-party forethought to have one of her friends crimp her bra strap hooks down with a pair of pliers, thereby befuddling my (expert and well proven) attempts to unfasten said bra and tip-toe into, what was for me back then, a much anticipated and long awaited promised land.

Gordon Larson

Ty was an incredible friend to me -- we had several classes together and he always made the time pass quickly with his quick wit. He once helped me get back on base after curfew when I stayed too late at at K-Town carnival. The Teen Club trip to Austria was another standout in my memory with Ty. And then there was the trade we made for helping him get an "A" on a German test...Someday, I'll share the details....too funny! Ty is sorely missed.

Rod Foster

I had no idea that Ty lived in Austin until one of our later Houston or
Dallas reunions when you mentioned his death. I know he was living in
Austin when all of you guys visitied me at Randolph AFB....but lost track
after the visit. When I met Carol Madeley in San Antonio a couple of years
ago, she told me that she was working as a waitress at a restaurant in
Austin and she couldn't believe that Ty came in. They talked for quite a
bit after she quit her shift and she told me that she never saw him again,
until she saw his obituary within a few days of his visit.

I wonder what the odds are of two USAF dependents, living on the same
military base in Germany, living in the same stairwell, running into each
other at some restaurant in Austin nine years later. Carol told me she was
stunned to learn of Ty's death, she couldn't believe it!

Ron Ricks