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<p><em>William Charles “Bill” Bennett</em> was born in Clarinda, IA on April 19, 1947 to William G. and Elizabeth I. (Vaughn) Bennett. Bill passed away on March 11, 2023. His beloved wife, Lan, followed him to her heavenly rest three months later on July 3, 2023.</p>
<p>Bill came to us from Eagle Grove, IA, which, as we all would learn and Bill would often remind us, is “where the tall corn grows.” He was raised in that small, north-central Iowa town where the strong Midwest characteristics of hard work and ethical behavior (for which the region is known) were imbued in his character. He attended Eagle Grove Community High School, where he was a member of the National Honor Society and in the school choir and band. He was voted “Outstanding Actor and Thespian” in his senior year. He was very proud that he attained the rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts. He attended Eagle Grove Community College for a year. Bill entered the United States Military Academy from the Iowa Army National Guard on July 1, 1966. He often joked that, since he could not make private first class in the Guard, he went off to the U.S. Military Academy.</p>
<p>At West Point, Bill was a model cadet and had various leadership positions. He helped classmates by tutoring them in English. Bruce Michalowski tells a story about Bill when he was visiting Bruce in Wisconsin. The Michalowski family and Bill went to the Wisconsin State Fair. The family was enjoying some music under a big tent at the fair. A big storm blew through and collapsed the tent! Bill was the first person to go into the tent to help get people out of the tent, and he helped with first aid—a typical way of living for Bill Bennett!</p>
<p>Upon graduation and commissioning as a second lieutenant of Infantry on June 3, 1970, Bill completed branch, Airborne, and Ranger schools. He was first assigned to Company B, 75th Ranger Regiment as a patrol platoon leader at Fort Carson, CO. On deployment to Vietnam, he served as recon platoon leader for the 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. Subsequently, he was executive officer of a mobile training team of the Forces Armee National Khmer (FANK) Training Command, a legacy Special Forces program that trained Vietnamese and Cambodian soldiers mauled by the Easter Offensive. On his return to CONUS, Bennett served as an A-team leader of a Special Forces military free fall team for 24 months. Over the next four years, Bill served in tactical operations positions and commanded three companies, including Company C, 1st Battalion, 28 Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division; CSC, 2nd Battalion, 47th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division; and HQ Company, 2nd Battalion, 75 Ranger Regiment. Promoted to major, Bill advised Special Forces and U.S. Army Reserve and National Guard Infantry units in Washington and Oregon. Following completion of the Command and General Staff College, he was assigned as XO, 2nd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group. During this period, he was awarded Forces Command’s “4th Estate Award” for an article, which was published in Military Review, on China’s civil-military relations. Bill served as U.S. Southern Command’s chief of current operations and, subsequently, Special Operations Division, Operations Directorate during the period 1988-91. He was USOUTHCOM’s primary operational planner for Operation Just Cause to depose the Panamanian dictator Noriega. He wrote the operational portion of that plan and supervised completion of all technical aspects of the plan. He wrote a professional analysis of Operation Just Cause, which was selected as the lead article for an issue of Military Review. Assigned as an action officer in the Western Hemisphere branch, Current Operations Division, deputy chief of staff of operations on the Army Staff immediately prior to the Persian Gulf War, Bill provided daily operational briefings to the Army’s senior leadership in the Army Operations Center. Escaping the Pentagon, Bill served as the deputy director of operations for a USSOCOM brigade-sized special mission unit, where he provided daily operational supervision to 60 diverse men and women involved in planning and supporting sensitive, worldwide special operations missions conducted in the interagency environment. He developed a training model whereby specified unit members received high-value training prior to deployment. In his final active-duty assignment, Bill was U.S. Special Operations Command’s deputy chief of the Training Division, director of operations. He coordinated the establishment of a SOF Fellowship Program in lieu of Senior Service College at the Naval Postgraduate School for officers of the Army, Navy, and Air Force SOF communities. After retiring from active duty, he supported USSOCOM as a contractor in several disciplines for 20 years. The highlight of this period was the year-long deployment as USSOCOM’s historian in Afghanistan.</p>
<p>After his retirement from active duty, Bill was an active member of his church, the Wesley Church in Tampa, FL. He started up a Boy Scout program at the Wesley Church, and it is still a very active program 28 years later. Bill regularly sent out a letter called “Wings of Eagles” that always had an inspirational message in it. Bill was also involved in veterans groups in the area.</p>
<p>Bill and Lan are survived by their sons: Dale, Douglas, and Dennis; three siblings: Vaughn Bennett, Glenwood IA; Colleen Gawley, Elkhorn, NE; and Marguerite Bennett, Ames, IA; and four grandchildren: Elizabeth, Robert, Michaela, and MyRa. He was preceded in death by sons David Charles and Robert William.</p>
<p>His life was one of dedicated service to his country and his family. Be Thou at Peace! </p>
<p><em>— Bennett Family and Classmates</em></p>
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