More detail on this person: Ernie Leroy
Greening died Tuesday, January 12, 2016, at age
78, at Hospice of the Hills House in Harrison
after a 25 year battle with Parkinson's disease.
Ernie, who was born in Stoutsville, Missouri June
8, 1937, finished high school in 1955 and
immediately began his career in the U.S. Army that
same year.
Ernie went on to serve 28 years in the military,
retiring as a chief warrant officer (CW4). During
his service, he was assigned to 2 tours in Vietnam
as a helicopter pilot and was decorated 64 times.
Ernie completed 6290 hours in rotary wing aircraft
and 2133 hours in fixed wing aircraft during his
military career. To commemorate his service in
Vietnam, a toy company called Corgi created a
die-cast model helicopter to replicate Ernie's
UH-1C Huey Gunship, 227th AHB as part of its
Unsung Heroes collection. He retired from the Army
in 1985 and moved his family to Arkansas, where
he could continue to fly airplanes.
In Harrison, Ernie was an adult probation officer
for 10 years and worked for Boone, Newton, and
Marion counties. In his retirement he enjoyed
hunting, especially with his mules, and getting on
the computer to share his military stories and
find his Vietnam friends.
Ernie was preceded in death by his parents, Emmet
and LaFern; his brother, Lowell; his first wife,
Karin, and his eldest son, George. Ernie is
survived by his wife Kris; his sisters, Cleva Lew
(George) Roth and Cheryl Davidson; his brother,
Dewayne (Anita) Greening; his children, Heidi
(Erik) Anderson, Tom (Lisa) Greening, Erin
(Thomas) Tabor and Rebekah (Eddie) Powell; his
grandchildren, Jamie, Brandi, Gunner, Hanna,
Karina, Connor, Parker, Ethan, Emma, and Elin;
and his great-grandchildren, Kamryn, Karson,
Nadia, Zane, Tate, and Dayson.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to
Hospice of the Hills, PO Box 1927, Harrison, AR
72602, or Branson Bible Church where he was a
member.
Memorial service will be Saturday, January 16,
2016, at 2:00 PM, in the North Arkansas College
Center Campus Durand Center. There will be an
informal gathering one hour before the memorial
service to view photos and visit with friends and
family.
Full military honor burial will be at Fort Riley
Kansas at a later date.
Burial: Kansas Veterans Cemetery at Fort Riley,
Manhattan, Riley County, Kansas, USA
From Rebekah Powell, his daughter_Dad passed
away peacefully last evening with mom by his side.
A Memorial Service will be held Saturday in the
Durand Center at North Arkansas College in
Harrison. There will be an informal gathering
beginning at 1:00pm, with service at 2:00. Full
Military Honor Burial will be held at Fort Riley
Kansas at a later date.
Again, I can't express how thankful we are for all
of your love and prayers. We find great solace in
knowing he is walking with God, free of pain and
suffering.
This information was last updated 11/06/2012
Please send additions or corrections to: HQ@vhpa.org VHPA Headquarters
Return to the Helicopter Pilot DAT name list
Return to VHPA web site
Date posted on this site: 03/10/2024
Copyright © 1998 - 2024 Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association