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Ed Wheeler
Old fashioned, humble,
romantic, compassionate all around gentleman
and good guy. That best describes
General
Ed
Wheeler
. Yes, GENERAL Wheeler.
Our own CHS grad who was only one of 21
to graduate of 230 who began Officer Candidate School (OCS) in
1959 at
Fort Hood
,
Texas
, and who was commissioned
a Second Lieutenant in the
Oklahoma
Army National Guard in 1960.
Yes, he went on to become a Brigadier General in command of a 2,000-man
Task Force in the Persian Gulf War of 1991. After
he returned all 2000-troops home safely, he
hung up his uniform ending a 35-year
military career which he began as an 18-year old private.
Yes he started as a Private, became a Private First Class, but was busted
back to Private TWICE. Wow … busted
twice back to Private and then went on to become a General.
Hey … now that’s an enlisted man’s GENERAL!
Hats off from a fellow Oklahoma Army National Guardsman who spent 7 ½
years in the same 45th division as a PFC!
Yes, this bio will be a little longer than usual, but we have a true hero in the
eyes of many here. However,
Ed
says he is nothing near a hero. He
says classmate John Getgood is a true hero.
John
graduated from
West Point
in 1960, served in
Viet Nam
won two Silver Stars and five Bronze stars from two separate tours in
Viet Nam
. We have got to find and get a bio
on CHS hero
John
Getgood
!
Ed
’s best days at CHS centered on other people, especially Sally Plumer who was
the first girl to ever notice him, and
Bo
Map
es
who flew across the auditorium stage on a rope dressed in tights.
Sally
was his first love and he said he married a girl just like her (what a
romantic!). As in Sally’s bio, he
says the relationship was entirely spiritual and would you believe
… they both saved their first kiss for their spouses (yea sure … we
believe you). By the way,
Bo
has promised a bio soon.
Bo
is a church administrator in
El Paso
,
TX
.
Gads … Ed’s worst moments is what we fear most … appearing on stage at CHS
during a poetry assembly and forgetting the poem, but having the nerve to make
one up right on the spot, even if it did not rhyme (yes, Ed we all remember this
and promise to make fun of you at the next reunion).
Perhaps we remember that
Ed
was in the rifle club at CHS. He
received a scholarship to
Texas
AM because he was such a great shot and actually qualified for the Olympic
Team. With his Army career he has
attended many service colleges, and has a BA, MS and MA.
Ed
retired from two corporations as a corporate official and now teaches History,
Government and Geography at
Tulsa
Community College
. He did not advise us in his notes
but many of us remember that he was a professional speech writer for members of
both political parties at one time. Was
Ed
political? Darn right.
He was once President of the Young Republicans at TU … before it was
popular to be a Republican in
Oklahoma
!
He says his wife was a member of CHS class of 1958 and they met while students
at TU. He and
Marcia
Jane
Largen
wed in 1963 and were married for 33 years until cancer took life on
November 4, 1996
, 25 days before her 56th birthday.
They had one son, Brian, who graduated
from
West Point
, Class of 1990; OU Law, Class of 2000, spent two combat tours in
Somalia
,
East Africa
and recently returned from
Iraq
.
Hey
Ed
… any hobbies? Why yes, Fred,
combat rifle and pistol target shooting, white water rafting, skydiving, scuba
diving, mountain climbing, weightlifting, horseback riding, gun collecting,
motorcycle riding, rodeos, writing books and articles for publication and
teaching.
What have you done in your spare time
Ed
? Well
Fred
, I just wrote a book entitled “Doorway
to Hell: Disaster in
Somalia
.”
How is your health
Ed
? “Great, Fred,
because its against Army regulations for me to get sick,” he laughed.
Is Ed a hero in CHS terms. That is
only for you to decide. Tell him
what you think at the 50th reunion.
Last updated
01/06/16