Full Name: Eddie Eugene Walker          Nick Name: Gene

Address: 6114 Weaver Rd, Anniston, AL. 36206

Phone: 256-403-1845

E-Mail: eewalker1939@cableone.net

Pre Military: Birth Place and Birth Date: Ft. McClellan, AL. (Army Brat); 11/10/1939. Resided: Ft. McClellan, AL; West Point, NY; Ft. Knox, KY; Weaver, AL; Ft Hood, TX; Osaka, Japan, Camp Crowder, MO; Ft Wayne, MI; Ft McClellan, AL (again); Weaver, AL. High School: Jacksonville HS, Jacksonville, AL. I played high school football, intramural baseball and basketball. I enjoyed cruising the local drive ins and main street in my 1950 ford; A gift from Mom and Dad on my 16th birthday. Dad retired from Army in 1956 and we settled in Weaver, AL.  Weaver is a small place near Ft. McClellan and Anniston, AL. I was so accustomed to moving every year or so that I got itchy feet and had to move on. So, shortly after my dad retired from Army, I Left high school, near the end of my junior year, to join the Air Force.

Military: Enlistment: Enlisted in U.S. Air Force in Anniston, AL on 11/15/1956  5 months after my dad retired and 5 days after my 17th birthday.  Training: I was subjected to basic training at Lackland AFB, TX. After basic training, I was assigned to the AC&W (27350) technical school at Keesler, AFB, MS. I completed that school in February 1957.  Assignments: First assignment was to the 613th AC&W Sqd., Ominato AFS, Japan, in March 1957. This was a remote site, located about 80 miles north of its headquarters, at Misawa AFB, Japan. While there, I managed to get promoted 3 times in just one year. However, I also managed to got busted 3 times and departed there in March 1958 at the same rank I had when I reported, which was E1. Jim Johnson and Barney Fisher can vouch for that.   Since Jim and I were almost never one without the other, I am sure he had pretty much the same record.  But ask us if we had fun. My next assignment, in April 1958, took me to Grand Rapids, MN and the 707th AC&W Sqd. It was here that I renewed my friendships with Jim and Barney, while making many new friends, some of which I had  the pleasure of seeing in June, 2003.  When I departed for Grand Rapids I had to leave my wife of 3 days behind in Alabama but the guys at the 707th made sure that I had no time to pine. My first month there was as wild as any I had experienced the year before in Japan. It was in the enlisted club, on my arrival day, that Ron Schumacher introduced me to Singapore slings. That was just the first of many memorable times in Grand Rapids. I hope I can have opportunity to have at least one more "sling" with Ron for ole time’s sake.   A couple of months later, Joan arrived in Grand Rapids. Thank God, Joan and I are still together after 50 years and happier than ever.  Two of the many new friends we made while in Grand Rapids are Don and Sheila Schweigert.  Don and I took early discharges so we could reenlist for an assignment to Cambria AFS, CA.  We reported there in April 1959.  It was while stationed here that our first child was born. It was also here that we lost touch with Don and Sheila, shortly after they relocated to Las Vegas, NV.  We did visit them a couple of times but I was soon reassigned also and as it so often happens, we lost touch.  However, we have gotten back together after all these years, thanks to Barney.   We did get to visit with them in Houston, Tx sometime in the early 2000's  and found them happy & healthy.  We want very much to see them again, sooner the better.  After attending SAGE training, at Richards‐Gebaur AFB, MO I was sent to Norton AFB, CA. It was here that we decided to call it quits with the Air Force, and returned to Anniston, AL. This was in October, 1962; I was an E4 at the time and had been awarded Airman of the Month the month before;  Quite a change from my initial assignment, in 1957, at Ominato, Japan.

Family: I have 3 siblings: 2 brothers and a sister. I am the oldest. My Father passed in September 1982, 25 days before his 72nd birthday. My Mother passed in May 1995 3 days before her 72nd birthday. My wife’s name is Joan and, at this writing, we have been married 50 years. We were married on April 22, 1958 just prior to my arrival in Grand Rapids, MN. Joan and I are blessed with 4 great children: Lloyd Duane (Oct. 1959), Donald Raymond (After Donald Raymond Schweigert) (Nov 1960), Regina Lynne (Oct 1961), and Michael Eugene (Sept 1962). Yeah, yeah, I know, it took us a while to figure it out.  The three boys work for communication companies and Regina drives a school bus for the State of Ohio.   Three live in Ohio.  Lloyd lives in Tennessee but also has a home in Marion, Indiana. We have 10 grandchildren, at this writing: Selina and Kristy (Donald’s); Loretta, Michael, and Lloyd (Lloyd’s); James, Nichole, and Jonathan (Regina’s). Donald has a stepson , Jeffery;  Michael has a stepdaughter, Amanda. From this have come 12 great-grand-children - work in progress.

Career: 1956 - 1962: U. S. Air Force;  1962 - 1963: Monsanto Chemical; 1964‐1972: DOD (GS13);  1972 - 1974: Allis Chalmers Corp: Senior Systems. Analyst; 1974 - 1983: NCR Corp: Director, Systems Architecture and Design, Financial Systems Div.; 1983 ‐1990: Self Employed: Development Assistance Corporation (Founder); 1990 - 2005: Semi Retired; 2005: RETIRED.

Hobbies: Golf, web site design, fishing, golf, camping, golf, and golf.

Other: My dad and a friend Gladus Shaver joined the army together in Arkansas in 1937. They were both stationed at Ft. McClellan, AL as Tank Drivers. There, they met two local girls and soon got married, but to each other’s girlfriend.