SMITH JACK D

COL Jack D. Smith was a potential VHPA member who died after his tour in Vietnam on 06/27/2007 at the age of 91.5 from Stroke
Leesburg, VA
Date of Birth 01/07/1916
Served in the U.S. Army
This information was provided by SSN search 090108

More detail on this person: Jack D. Smith Jack D. Smith, 91, an Army colonel whose 34 years of service spanned from Pearl Harbor to Vietnam, died June 27, 2007 of complications from strokes at his Leesburg, VA home. Colonel Smith was born in Mountain Park, OK and joined the Army in 1936 to escape the Great Depression. He was appointed a company clerk at Fort Shafter, Hawaii and earned a commission as a second lieutenant by studying nights in a reserve program. On December 7, 1941, he was the officer in charge of loading the US Army Transport, "Haleakala", berthed in Pearl Harbor Channel, when the Japanese attacked. He sent his troops to man rooftop machine guns, and afterwards to help the wounded at Hickam Field and Ford Island. Colonel Smith spent the rest of World War II organizing the movement of vast numbers of men and equipment to where they were needed in the Pacific theater. By the end of the war he had been promoted to the rank of major and received the Bronze Star for heroism at the battle for Leyte in the Philippines for commandeering a truck in the middle of an enemy bombing attack and assisting to evacuate the wounded. Following World War II, Col. Smith became a master parachutist with the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, and a senior aviator in both fixed wing and helicopter aircraft. In 1961 he helped set up the United States Strike Command at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida. In 1964 he was sent to Vietnam as Chief of Staff, United States Army Support Command. Young soldiers were heartened to see the Chief of Staff leave his desk at night to pilot over 400 missions in Huey gunships in support of his troops. As a result of these actions, Colonel Smith was awarded six air medals and a second Bronze Star. Survivors include his son, Jack David Smith, Jr., of Basel, Switzerland; and two granddaughters, Amy Shiflet of Garfield, NJ and Amanda Smith of Alexandria, VA. A memorial service is planned for September 5, 2007 at 9 a.m. at the chapel at Ft. Myer, VA followed by internment at Arlington National Cemetery. Published in The Washington Post on Sept. 2, 2007

Burial information: Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, VA

This information was last updated 08/21/2020

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Date posted on this site: 03/10/2024