Hank Stackpole

Stackpole was a graduate of Notre Dame High School in West Haven, Connecticut. He graduated from Princeton University with a B.A. in English, and held master's degrees from George Washington University and Stanford University.[1] He entered the Marine Corps in 1957,[2] and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1958.[1]

In 1966, Stackpole was company commander, Company I, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines, 1st Marine Division in South Vietnam when he was hit in the leg by a .50 caliber bullet.[2]

From August 1970 to June 1973, Stackpole was assigned as commanding officer, executive officer and marine officer instructor, Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC) Unit, Stanford University. As a colonel, he was commanding officer of 7th Marine Regiment from August 7, 1981, to February 16, 1983.[3] Other commands he held included Joint Task Force Sea Angel during the humanitarian relief mission in Bangladesh, Director of the Plans and Policy Directorate, United States Atlantic Command, Norfolk, Virginia, and commanding officer of the 17th Marine Amphibious Unit.[4] [5] Stackpole was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general on 23 July 1991 and was deputy chief of staff for plans, policies and operations, Headquarters Marine Corps in Washington, D.C., in 1991, followed by assignment as commander of Marine Forces Pacific and Fleet Marine Force, Pacific from July 1992 to 1994.[1] He retired from the Marine Corps on September 1, 1994.[4]

His military decorations included the Defense Superior Service Medal, Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Purple Heart, and the Order of the Rising Sun.[1]

Stackpole was the president of the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies from 1998 to 2005. He died on May 29, 2020, in Hawaii.[2]