William Michael Haley is a commissioned officer in the

South Carolina Army National Guard The South Carolina Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. Nationwide, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the U.S. Army's available combat forces and approximat ...

who served as the

First Gentleman First lady is an unofficial title usually used for the wife, and occasionally used for the daughter or other female relative, of a non-monarchical head of state or chief executive. The term is also used to describe a woman seen to be at the t ...

of South Carolina from 2011 to 2017. He was the first man to hold the position. He is the husband of former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. and former

South Carolina )'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Nikki Haley.

Career

Military service

Haley is an officer with the

and specializes in Security Cooperation. In January 2012, Haley shipped out for a year-long tour of duty in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

as a captain in the South Carolina Army National Guard. The unit served in

Helmand Province Helmand (Pashto/Dari: ; ), also known as Hillmand, in ancient times, as Hermand and Hethumand, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, in the south of the country. It is the largest province by area, covering area. The province contains 13 ...

as an Agribusiness Development Team helping Afghan farmers improve farming techniques and develop cash crops to replace opium poppies. Haley served as a liaison between the military and civilian authorities. He is thought to have been the first spouse of a governor to serve on active duty in a war zone. Marines serving with Haley in Helmand Province nicknamed him FGOSC (First Gentleman of South Carolina), referencing First Lady of the United States.

First Gentleman of South Carolina

Since Haley is the first person to become First Gentleman of South Carolina, and because there have only been 15 First Gentlemen in U.S. history, including the five men in that role as of 2015, there was speculation about what his role would be. Haley chaired the foundation that oversees the preservation and management of the

South Carolina Governor's Mansion The South Carolina Governor's Mansion (or the South Carolina Executive Mansion) is a historic U.S. governor's mansion in the Arsenal Hill neighborhood of Columbia, South Carolina and the official residence of the governor of South Carolina. I ...

in Columbia.

Stand for America

Haley is listed as president of Stand for America, a policy and media organization that Nikki Haley started after leaving her position as UN ambassador. Internal Revenue Service paperwork from 2019 indicates that Michael Haley worked 40 hours per week at the New York-based organization and received no compensation.

Personal life

Originally from

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, Haley entered a foster home at the age of three and was adopted by Bill and Carole Haley at the age of 4. Haley and Nikki Randhawa met in 1989 as undergraduates at

Clemson University Clemson University () is a public land-grant research university in Clemson, South Carolina. Founded in 1889, Clemson is the second-largest university in the student population in South Carolina. For the fall 2019 semester, the university enr ...

. While Nikki Haley is a Clemson graduate, Michael graduated from the

University of North Carolina at Charlotte The University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNC Charlotte or simply Charlotte) is a public research university in Charlotte, North Carolina. UNC Charlotte offers 24 doctoral, 66 master's, and 79 bachelor's degree programs through nine colle ...

with a degree in business administration. Haley is a graduate of Hilton Head Preparatory School. Michael and Nikki Haley were married in 1996 in two ceremonies, a Sikh ceremony, and a ceremony at St. Andrew's by-the-Sea, the Methodist church in

Hilton Head Hilton Head Island, sometimes referred to as simply Hilton Head, is a Lowcountry resort town and barrier island in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. It is northeast of Savannah, Georgia, and southwest of Charleston. The island is ...

, where Haley's parents, Carole and Bill, have lived since retiring from jobs in

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

, Ohio when Michael was in the ninth grade. Before retiring to Hilton Head, Bill Haley was director of a steel manufacturing plant and Carole Haley taught school. Haley worked at Exotica International, an upscale men's and women's clothing store owned by his mother-in-law. Following he worked for 8 years as a federal technician in various positions in human resources with the South Carolina Army National Guard. He currently spends his time as an investor/partner in several companies and participates on several boards and advisory boards.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Haley, Michael Living people First Ladies and Gentlemen of South Carolina National Guard (United States) officers United States Army personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) University of North Carolina at Charlotte alumni Year of birth missing (living people) South Carolina National Guard personnel