General Walter Eugene Boomer (born 22 September 1938) is a retired four-star

general A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

and

assistant commandant Assistant Commandant is a title often given to the second-in-command of a military, uniformed service, training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations, and in some countries it may be a military or police rank. ...

of the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

and business executive. Boomer led all Marines in

Operations Desert Shield The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

and

Desert Storm The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

during the

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...

. He was later the chairman and CEO of Rogers Corporation and retired in 2004. He is the current lead director of Baxter International. Boomer is a 1960 graduate of Duke University and later earned a master's degree from American University.

Biography

Boomer was born on 22 September 1938 in Rich Square, North Carolina. In 1956, he graduated from

Randolph-Macon Academy Randolph-Macon Academy (R-MA) is a coeducational private boarding school with an elite Air Force JROTC component. R-MA serves students in grades 6-12 and maintains 100% college acceptance rate every year with each class averaging over $14 million ...

in Front Royal, Virginia. He earned a B.A. degree from Duke University in 1960, and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps. He earned a

Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast t ...

degree in technology of management from American University, Washington, D.C. in 1973.

Marine Corps service

After completing

The Basic School The Basic School (TBS) is where all newly commissioned and appointed (for warrant officers) United States Marine Corps officers are taught the basics of being an "Officer of Marines". The Basic School is located at Camp Barrett, Quantico, Vi ...

, Quantico, Virginia, in January 1961, his first assignments were with the 1st Battalion, 8th Marines and the

2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines (2/2) is a light infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Also known as "The Warlords", it consists of approximately 1,300 Marines and sailors an ...

2nd Marine Division The 2nd Marine Division (2nd MARDIV) is a division of the United States Marine Corps, which forms the ground combat element of the II Marine Expeditionary Force (II MEF). The division is based at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Caroli ...

Camp Lejeune Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune () is a United States military training facility in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Its of beaches make the base a major area for amphibious assault training, and its location between two deep-water ports ( Wilming ...

, where he was platoon commander, weapons platoon commander and battalion training officer, respectively, from 1961 to 1964. He was promoted to

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a ...

in December 1961 and to captain in April 1965. Boomer saw combat action from 1966 to 1967 in the

Republic of Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam ( vi, Việt Nam Cộng hòa), was a state in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975, the period when the southern portion of Vietnam was a member of the Western Bloc during part of t ...

as the commanding officer, Company H,

2nd Battalion, 4th Marines 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines (2/4th Marines) is an infantry battalion of the United States Marine Corps. The battalion, nicknamed the ''Magnificent Bastards'' from the Vietnam War, is based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California and ...

. During this combat tour, he was awarded the Silver Star Medal for valor. Returning to the US, he attended the Amphibious Warfare School at Quantico. On completion, he was promoted to major in May 1968, and was transferred to

Headquarters Marine Corps Headquarters Marine Corps (HQMC) is a headquarters staff within the Department of the Navy which includes the offices of the Commandant of the Marine Corps, the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps and various staff functions. The function, ...

, Washington, D.C., for duty as the administrative assistant and aide-de-camp to the Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans and Programs. Following this assignment, he attended the

Armed Forces Staff College The Joint Forces Staff College (JFSC), located in Norfolk, Virginia, was established as the Armed Forces Staff College in 1946 and incorporated into the National Defense University in August 1981. It educates and acculturates joint and multina ...

in Norfolk, Virginia. In 1971, Boomer attended the Short Advisors Course at

Fort Bragg, North Carolina Fort Bragg is a military installation of the United States Army in North Carolina, and is one of the largest military installations in the world by population, with around 54,000 military personnel. The military reservation is located within C ...

, in preparation for advisor duty with the South Vietnamese Marines. In August that year, he returned to Vietnam as an advisor to the 4th Vietnamese Marine Corps Battalion. While serving this tour of duty, he was involved in the defense of

Firebase Sarge Firebase Sarge (also known as Firebase Dong Toan or Hill 552) is a former U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) firebase in Quang Tri Province, central Vietnam. History The base was established on Dong Toan Mountain east of Hig ...

during the

Easter Offensive The Easter Offensive, also known as the 1972 spring–summer offensive ('' vi, Chiến dịch Xuân–Hè 1972'') by North Vietnam, or the red fiery summer (') as romanticized in South Vietnamese literature, was a military campaign conducted b ...

, North Vietnam's largest assault on the South. Transferred back to the US in September 1972, he attended American University, receiving his M.S. degree in December 1973. The following month, he began a three-year tour as a management instructor at the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland. During the last year of his tour, he was the chairman of the Department of Management. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in September 1976. From July 1977 to June 1980, Boomer was stationed in Hawaii, where he was executive officer,

3rd Marines The 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment is a regiment of the United States Marine Corps that is optimized for littoral maneuver in the Indo-Pacific Theater. Based at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, the regiment falls under the command of the 3rd Marine Divi ...

, 1st Marine Brigade, and then commanding officer,

2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines (2/3) was an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Marine Corps Base Hawaii consisting of approximately 1000 Marines and sailors. The battalion fell under the command of the 3rd Marine Regim ...

. Returning to the mainland US in July 1980, he attended the

Naval War College The Naval War College (NWC or NAVWARCOL) is the staff college and "Home of Thought" for the United States Navy at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. The NWC educates and develops leaders, supports defining the future Navy and associ ...

, Newport, Rhode Island, graduating with distinction in June 1981. He then assumed the duties as the deputy director of the Fourth Marine Corps District, Philadelphia. He was promoted to colonel on 1 November 1981 and became the director of the Fourth Marine Corps District on 17 June 1983. During February 1985, Boomer returned to Quantico to assume command of the

Marine Security Guard A Marine Security Guard (MSG), also known as a Marine Embassy Guard, is a member of the Marine Corps Embassy Security Group (formerly Marine Security Guard Battalion), a brigade-sized organization of the United States Marine Corps (USMC) whose de ...

Battalion. While serving in this capacity, he was selected in April 1986 for promotion to

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

. He was advanced to that grade on 2 June 1986 and assigned duty as the director of public affairs, Headquarters Marine Corps, on 7 June 1986. He held this post until 27 May 1988, when he was assigned duty as the

commanding general The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitud ...

, 4th Marine Division (Reinforced), FMF, New Orleans. On 14 March 1989, he was advanced to

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

and promoted to

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

on 8 August 1990. On 15 August 1990, Boomer was deployed to

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

, where he was the commanding general,

U.S. Marine Forces Central Command The United States Marine Corps Forces Central Command is headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida. The Commander, U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Central Command (COMUSMARCENT), is designated as the Marine Corps service component comm ...

and

I Marine Expeditionary Force The I Marine Expeditionary Force ("I" pronounced "One") is a Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF) of the United States Marine Corps primarily composed of the 1st Marine Division, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, and 1st Marine Logistics Group. It is ...

during Operations Desert Shield and

. On 22 April 1991, he returned to

Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton is the major West Coast base of the United States Marine Corps and is one of the largest Marine Corps bases in the United States. It is on the Southern California coast in San Diego County and is bordered by O ...

and assumed the duties of commanding general,

/commanding general, Marine Corps Base. He served in this capacity until 6 September 1991. Boomer reported to Quantico, Virginia, on 27 September 1991, where he assumed duty as the commanding general,

Marine Corps Combat Development Command Marine Corps Combat Development Command (MCCDC), located at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Prince William County, Virginia, has the mission of supporting the development of future operational concepts and the determination of how to best organize, ...

. He was promoted to general on 1 September 1992 and assumed his last duty assignment as assistant commandant of the Marine Corps. Boomer retired from the Marine Corps 1 September 1994.

Awards and honors

Boomer's medals and decorations include:

Post-Marine Corps career

After retiring from the Marine Corps, General Boomer was executive vice president of

McDermott International McDermott International, Ltd is a global provider of engineering and construction solutions to the energy industry. Operating in over 54 countries, McDermott has more than 40,000 employees, as well as a diversified fleet of specialty marine co ...

(1994–1996). He joined Rogers Corporation – an international specialty materials manufacturing company — in 1997 as president and CEO. From 2002 to 2004, he was chairman of the board of Rogers Corporation. Boomer is currently on the board of directors of Rogers Corporation, Cytyc Corporation and Baxter International.

References

External links