Former National Guard Bureau chief dies

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Former National Guard Bureau chief dies




By Holbrook Mohr - The Associated Press
Posted : Thursday Dec 13, 2007 7:32:56 EST

JACKSON, Miss. — Retired Lt. Gen. Emmett H. “Mickey” Walker, a decorated World War II veteran who later served as chief of the National Guard Bureau in Washington during the Reagan administration, died Wednesday after a lengthy illness. He was 83.
Walker was born in the Abbott community of Clay County on March 16, 1924. He spent 42 years in uniform during a military career that took him from foreign battlefields to Washington D.C.
“If people had the opportunity to meet him, they loved him. He was a very principled person but he wasn’t overbearing — a true Southern gentleman,” said Walker’s 45-year-old son, John.
Maj. Gen. Harold A. Cross, Mississippi’s adjutant general, said Wednesday in an e-mail from Iraq that Walker “was a true champion for the National Guard and dedicated his life to serving the state of Mississippi and the nation.”
“He was a soldier’s soldier in every respect,” Cross said. “He meant a great deal to all of us and will be dearly missed.”
Mickey Walker was a platoon leader with the 95th Infantry Division during World War II and earned the Silver Star for braving enemy fire during the Battle of Metz in France. Walker also fought in the Battle of the Bulge and the Rhineland Campaign and was awarded the Bronze Star. He served in the Far East Command liaison group in Japan during the Korean War.
After returning to the United States, Walker climbed the military ranks and was assistant adjutant general for the Mississippi National Guard from 1972 to 1976.
He was chief of the National Guard Bureau under President Reagan from 1982 to 1986. During that time, Walker worked closely with his friend, the late Rep. G.V. “Sonny” Montgomery, in crafting the Montgomery GI Bill.
The bill, passed by Congress in 1984, increased educational and other benefits for soldiers and gave a needed recruiting boost to the all-volunteer military.
John Walker told The Associated Press that U.S. Sen. Trent Lott called him Wednesday after hearing of the death.
“Trent Lott said, ‘Well, a giant has fallen.’ And he was a giant, but to us he was just Daddy,” John Walker said.
Lt. Gen. H. Steven Blum, the current chief of the National Guard Bureau, said Walker guided the Guard through a period of “tremendous growth and modernization.”
“He was a fine gentleman who will be missed by all who knew him, including me,” Blum said.
After retiring from the military, the Jackson resident turned his energy toward preserving history. He was the driving force in establishing the Mississippi Armed Forces Museum at Camp Shelby near Hattiesburg.
Walker told The Associated Press during a 2005 interview that it was important to make sure that future generations never forget the sacrifices and struggles that shaped Mississippi, the United States and the rest of the world.
“I am so interested in all the children seeing what happened to us during their momma and daddy’s lifetime,” Walker said.
The museum was dedicated to Walker in 2005. At the time, he said that was a highlight of his life.
“I am tickled to death with it and this is to me a very high honor,” Walker said.
Chad Daniels, the museum’s director, said Walker remained active after his retirement, serving as president of the museum’s board of directors and advising government officials.
“Governors would call on him,” Daniels said. “Everybody knew who he was.”
Walker wanted the museum opened at Camp Shelby rather than in Jackson, the state capital, so it would be close to soldiers in training, Daniels said.
Walker was just one of more than 100,000 soldiers who trained at the sprawling 136,000-acre base during World War II. Nearly 50,000 soldiers have trained there since 2004 for missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“He was a general officer of great rank and prestige, but he could always talk to the soldiers. He was just charismatic that way,” Daniels said. “If you were going to serve under somebody, you would want it to be Mickey Walker.”
Walker’s wife Elizabeth “Tuta” Walker passed away last November. The couple had three daughters and one son.
Visitation will be held at Christ United Methodist Church in Jackson on Friday at 5 p.m. Funeral services are scheduled for 2 p.m on Saturday at the church.





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