Teh One Who Knocks
12-30-2011, 01:37 AM
Written by Caroline Dipping - San Diego Union Tribune
http://i.imgur.com/D44UB.jpg
Marshall Ward was commander of the destroyer Barry on its covert mission during the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962, when he pulled within 100 yards of the Soviet freighter Anosov for a visual inspection of her cargo. His daring maneuver was witnessed by American UPI reporters and a subsequent newspaper article praised then-Cmdr. Ward for “handling the Barry like a dodge ’em car in an amusement park.”
Capt. Ward’s 32-year naval career was spent mostly at sea. In addition to the Barry, he held six commands including the patrol craft 798, the destroyer Joseph K. Taussig, Landing Ship Flotilla One, and the missile cruiser Fox.
“He was such a consummate mariner,” said friend Jose Garza. “He prided himself on the way he handled a ship.
“He had a seaman’s eye, which meant he was very good at eyeballing the currents, wind and rain and he knew how to engage to keep his ship and crew safe.”
Capt. Ward died of prostate cancer Dec. 5 at his home near Morley Field in San Diego. He was 89.
When he was not skippering destroyers, Capt. Ward worked in his second favorite arena: communications. He commanded the Defense Communications Agency Southeast Asia Region and the Defense Communications Agency Southeast Asia Mainland, where he was instrumental in getting all branches of the United States military to agree to standardize their communication networks.
Among his many communications posts, he was liaison officer in the Pentagon for the Naval Communications System Command, communications assistant chief of staff for the head of U.S. Naval Forces in London, England, and assistant deputy commander of Naval Telecommunications Command in Washington, D.C., his last active-duty post.
Marshall Douglas Ward was born Sept. 10, 1922, in Mount Airy, N.C., the second oldest of five children to Irvin Ward and Irene Marshall. As an undergraduate at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1940, he was first in line to join the newly formed NROTC on campus.
On July 1, 1943, he was placed on active duty. In February 1944, he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in history, and was commissioned.
Capt. Ward’s military decorations included the Legion of Merit with Gold Star, the Bronze Star, the Joint Service Commendation Medal, as well as several theater and period medals and ribbons. He retired from the Navy in 1974.
He came to San Diego to work as a civilian contractor for Computer Sciences Corp. at Camp Pendleton. There, he was primarily involved in developing a Joint Interoperability Program for Command and Control systems.
In the late 1970s, he turned his hand to real estate, working for Century 21. He served as director of the San Diego Board of Realtors, was active in the California Association of Realtors, and was chairman of the Greater North Park Community Planning Committee.
Retiring for good in 1992, he traveled around the country to visit family and attend Navy reunions. He was active in several military groups including the local chapter of the Military Order of the World Wars (MOWW), the Hammer Club, POETS, Tin Can Sailors, Fleet Reserve Association, and Old-Time Communicators. He was also one of the original “plank owners” of the USS MIDWAY Museum.
“Marshall was very serious, very outspoken, a man with strong integrity,” said retired Air Force Col. Clark Kholos, commander of the local MOWW. “He always spoke straight and true and political correctness be damned.
“He had strong beliefs. He was unbending in his patriotism.”
Capt. Ward is survived by his daughter Susan Ward Lapping of San Diego; son Mike Ward of Clairemont; sisters Vernell Robinson of Emporia, Va., and Ruth Brown of Henderson, Nev.; and half-sister Bea Gold of Williamstown, N.J. He was predeceased by his wife of nearly 50 years, the former Louise Muldon, in 1997.
A celebration of life will be at 2 p.m. Jan. 14 at the Veterans Museum and Memorial Center in Balboa Park. Inurnment will be at Arlington National Cemetery in the spring.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to the San Diego Humane Society and SPCA or any charity that benefits military members and their families.
http://i.imgur.com/D44UB.jpg
Marshall Ward was commander of the destroyer Barry on its covert mission during the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962, when he pulled within 100 yards of the Soviet freighter Anosov for a visual inspection of her cargo. His daring maneuver was witnessed by American UPI reporters and a subsequent newspaper article praised then-Cmdr. Ward for “handling the Barry like a dodge ’em car in an amusement park.”
Capt. Ward’s 32-year naval career was spent mostly at sea. In addition to the Barry, he held six commands including the patrol craft 798, the destroyer Joseph K. Taussig, Landing Ship Flotilla One, and the missile cruiser Fox.
“He was such a consummate mariner,” said friend Jose Garza. “He prided himself on the way he handled a ship.
“He had a seaman’s eye, which meant he was very good at eyeballing the currents, wind and rain and he knew how to engage to keep his ship and crew safe.”
Capt. Ward died of prostate cancer Dec. 5 at his home near Morley Field in San Diego. He was 89.
When he was not skippering destroyers, Capt. Ward worked in his second favorite arena: communications. He commanded the Defense Communications Agency Southeast Asia Region and the Defense Communications Agency Southeast Asia Mainland, where he was instrumental in getting all branches of the United States military to agree to standardize their communication networks.
Among his many communications posts, he was liaison officer in the Pentagon for the Naval Communications System Command, communications assistant chief of staff for the head of U.S. Naval Forces in London, England, and assistant deputy commander of Naval Telecommunications Command in Washington, D.C., his last active-duty post.
Marshall Douglas Ward was born Sept. 10, 1922, in Mount Airy, N.C., the second oldest of five children to Irvin Ward and Irene Marshall. As an undergraduate at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1940, he was first in line to join the newly formed NROTC on campus.
On July 1, 1943, he was placed on active duty. In February 1944, he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in history, and was commissioned.
Capt. Ward’s military decorations included the Legion of Merit with Gold Star, the Bronze Star, the Joint Service Commendation Medal, as well as several theater and period medals and ribbons. He retired from the Navy in 1974.
He came to San Diego to work as a civilian contractor for Computer Sciences Corp. at Camp Pendleton. There, he was primarily involved in developing a Joint Interoperability Program for Command and Control systems.
In the late 1970s, he turned his hand to real estate, working for Century 21. He served as director of the San Diego Board of Realtors, was active in the California Association of Realtors, and was chairman of the Greater North Park Community Planning Committee.
Retiring for good in 1992, he traveled around the country to visit family and attend Navy reunions. He was active in several military groups including the local chapter of the Military Order of the World Wars (MOWW), the Hammer Club, POETS, Tin Can Sailors, Fleet Reserve Association, and Old-Time Communicators. He was also one of the original “plank owners” of the USS MIDWAY Museum.
“Marshall was very serious, very outspoken, a man with strong integrity,” said retired Air Force Col. Clark Kholos, commander of the local MOWW. “He always spoke straight and true and political correctness be damned.
“He had strong beliefs. He was unbending in his patriotism.”
Capt. Ward is survived by his daughter Susan Ward Lapping of San Diego; son Mike Ward of Clairemont; sisters Vernell Robinson of Emporia, Va., and Ruth Brown of Henderson, Nev.; and half-sister Bea Gold of Williamstown, N.J. He was predeceased by his wife of nearly 50 years, the former Louise Muldon, in 1997.
A celebration of life will be at 2 p.m. Jan. 14 at the Veterans Museum and Memorial Center in Balboa Park. Inurnment will be at Arlington National Cemetery in the spring.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to the San Diego Humane Society and SPCA or any charity that benefits military members and their families.