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Where Eagles Roost
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Where Eagles Roost
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Famed four-star Gen. Charles "Chuck" Horner, who attained international recognition for leading the air campaign in Desert Storm, has served as a military expert on numerous documentaries and TV news programs. With his high-visibility role in retirement, Horner may be known to some of his neighbors in Shalimar on Florida's Emerald Coast. But many residents may not be aware of just how many retired military veterans, including many top officers, reside on the Panhandle coast. Horner, it turns out, is one of 37,000 veterans living in Okaloosa County, a group that makes up more than 20 percent of the county's population. As a result, Okaloosa has the highest percentage of retired veterans in Florida. Accordingly, this area is thought to have one of the highest concentrations of retired senior officers in the nation. Beatrice Love-Moore, director of the Okaloosa County Department of Veterans Services, views the retired military population as one of the area's greatest assets. "They bring a lot of experience, different experiences and a lot of different skills to the area," Love-Moore said. "It adds to the economy, and it benefits the community because they tend to do a lot of volunteer work." Horner, who retired in 1994 as the commander of the United States Space Command, said the high volume of military retirees in the region provides local employers and civic organizations a major boost. "The retired military provide the local community an invaluable source of labor who have unique work and leadership skills," said Horner. |
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Four-star Gen. William Kirk has been retired since 1989. His last
assignment was as the commander of all U.S. Air Force units and personnel in
Europe during the Cold War. "Living in a community with a relatively high
military population, both retired and active duty, is having the best of both
worlds," Kirk said. "I enjoyed my 38 years of active duty but my
association with non-military people during those years was not as extensive as
we would have sometimes liked. Here in Northwest Florida, we have a very
congenial and wholesome mix, which is most enjoyable."
Kirk resides in the military-heavy enclave of Blue Water Bay in Niceville. More than half of the 60 retired generals in Okaloosa County live in Niceville. Kirk and his wife, Nancy, are never far from the military or retired military personnel. "I haven't lived in that many non-military communities but I don't know of a finer one than the Emerald Coast of Northwest Florida," he said. "I like the easy life, the friendly people and weather." But like many top retired military officials, Kirk never really retired. "Since retirement from active duty, I have been involved in consulting, primarily with the aerospace community," Kirk said. "I am also somewhat involved with the Fort Walton Beach Chamber of Commerce and its military affairs council." |
Blue Water Bay resident Gen. Gordon "Gordy" Fornell, a retired three-star general, lives just a few hundred yards from the Kirks. Fornell set his sights squarely on Blue Water Bay as a residential destination after retiring in 1993. "There is pride taken in everyone's community, which I believe stems from our military experience," he said. "We try to leave a place better than we found it, which helps all."
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The Fornells and the Okaloosa County Economic Development Council
created a program called the Defense Support Initiative. The program was
established to help prevent Eglin Air Force Base, Hurlburt Field and Duke Field
from being closed by the federal government as it seeks ways to save money and
downsize the military. Fornell was appointed to the BRAC (Base Realignment and
Closure) advisory council by Gov. Jeb Bush.
Their work, their lifestyle and the beauty of the coast have made Fornell and his wife, Bobbie, feel ecstatic about life along the Emerald Coast. "After traveling to most ends of the world, I really love it here," he said. "Our home is our dream house in a great place." Fornell enjoys the closeness of the military family. "I like the heavy population of military people in the local area. We share common values and concern for each other, which makes it a much closer relationship. There is a good mix of other backgrounds here as well, which makes for an interesting and diverse community." |
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One-star Gen. Harry "Heine" Aderholt is another retired officer who loves to travel. But in terms of his military background, Aderholt is far more unconventional. His early advocacy for the special forces combat group has proven prophetic in recent campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq.
While flying in the Korean War, Aderholt commanded a special troop carrier squadron responsible for covert air support in special operations. Following his Korean tour, Aderholt was assigned as the commander of the air training branch of the CIA. During this period, he helped develop tactics for aircraft to fly low at night to penetrate the most sophisticated air defense systems. When he retired in 1976, Aderholt was the commander of the United States Military Assistance Command in Thailand.
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In the close-knit special operations community around Hurlburt
Field, Aderholt is known as "Air Commando One." This moniker is also
the title of a book about his career "Air Commando One: Heinie Aderholt and
America's Secret Air Wars" by Warren Trest. The fraternal special
operations community has become Aderholt's post-retirement family. "Most,
if not all, of my friends are military - it is my family."
As the owner of Far East Interiors Inc. in Fort Walton Beach, Aderholt continues to have close ties to Asia. He often travels abroad for work and pleasure, but he continues to call the Emerald Coast his permanent home. Aderholt shuns recreational pursuits for humanitarian activities. "My spare time is spent supporting humanitarian projects, most notably the McCoskrie/Threshold Foundation," he said. Aderholt serves as the president of the foundation, which has shipped more than $300 million in medical supplies, clothing and other goods to Asia, Central America, and other areas of the world since 1962. |
Retired two-star Gen. Don Litke and his wife, Kay, live near the Kirks and Fornells. In his 30-year Air Force career, Litke flew 27 types of aircraft ranging from B-25s to F-16s. He oversaw the Defense Logistics Agency, which has 51,500 employees and a $2 billion annual budget. After a 10-year run with a successful consulting business, Don decided to retire in Niceville.
Like so many retired military personnel, the Litkes had plenty of places to choose for retirement. "I have been in 77 foreign countries and all 50 states we could have retired anywhere," he said. 'We were stationed at Eglin in 1958-59 so knew about the beaches and weather. Our decision to locate here was based on being close to military facilities, being in a small town environment among people with similar interests and values, and no snow."
Litke enjoys traveling with his wife as well as working on his collection of 40 autos. His passion for restoring London taxicabs is, admittedly, unusual. However, like so many senior officers, he loves boating on the Choctawhatchee Bay and Gulf of Mexico.
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"When we settled in Niceville, I drastically reduced my
consulting activity so that I could spend more time with my
wife and my hobbies" Litke said. "However, I became concerned that I
was growing mentally stagnant and not
using the invaluable experience I had gained over the
years." To combat that, Litke joined the Institute for Senior Professionals
at Okaloosa-Walton Community College.
Often, these retired generals are considered ambassadors emeritus by their community. In fact, Eglin Air Force base regularly invites retired generals for briefings. "As retired military in our communities, we are constantly asked penetrating questions relating to military operations throughout the world," said Kirk. "The more current and informed we are, the better we are able to respond with the true facts." The retired officers keep tabs on the needs of active local commanders so they can support those goals with people they know in Washington. "For example, I serve on the Defense Policy Board that meets with the Secretary of Defense from time to time, and I can forward concerns or good ideas that the Secretary may not be familiar with but needs to know," Horner said. While their stature in military circles is known and respected, many people don't know the histories of the retired officers in their neighborhoods. Still, in many cases, it seems the respect they have garnered over the years continues to travel with them. "There is some acknowledgement of previous rank when involved in some activities," said Fornell "It is nice to just blend in, however, and not have to deal with the pomp. There is honest respect apparent since most of us know each other or are familiar with their experiences." |
Horner said retired officers don't receive any unwarranted perks due to their military pasts. "You carry your retired rank with you, but it really has no meaning other than the amount of retired pay you receive," he said.
Litke said the Emerald Coast can hold its own when it comes to having a high percentage of retired military personnel living in the region. San Antonio, San Diego and Washington D.C. are other areas with high concentrations of retired generals, he said. Other regions with a lot of military retirees include Tampa, Colorado Springs, Phoenix and Montgomery, he said.
Horner said he is glad he retired on the Emerald Coast even though he weathers an occasional hurricane. "Blue water and white sand, a beautiful place. I have never regretted a day retiring in this area even given Hurricane Opal."
| Scott Jackson MindLace Media & Photo scott@mindlace.com 850-217-7994 |
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