Commemorate Veterans Day with 'bios of the banner brave' on Daniel Island
Editor’s Note: The following continues an ongoing series of biographical briefs celebrating those named on the Exchange Club of Daniel Island’s “honor banners” around the island. We wanted to feature a couple more profiles ahead of Veterans Day. Please watch for more bios in future issues.
Spouses share many things in life, to be sure, but few are professionally honored in tandem. Daniel Island residents and husband and wife military team Colonel William (Bill) McArdle and Colonel Emily Desrosier are an esteemed exception: they each occupy one side on a Daniel Island Exchange Club honor banner. Emily is currently serving in the Air National Guard, a department of the Air Force, and Bill retired in 2013 after serving for over 36 years in both the Air Force and the Air National Guard.
Previously assigned to the 106th Rescue Wing, Westhampton Beach, New York, Colonel Emily Desrosier served in various roles including Medical Administrative Officer, Logistics Readiness Officer, and Wing Executive Officer. As the Airfield Support Coordination Officer for the NASA Space Shuttle mission, she was tasked with coordinating an emergency landing site for all Shuttle missions in the event the spacecraft’s launch was forced to abort.
Among Colonel Desrosier’s overseas deployments were several missions in Germany and the United Kingdom, as well as an assignment in Incirlik, Turkey in support of Operation Northern Watch. Her numerous Air Force installations in the U.S. included a support role following the TWA Flight 800 disaster and assistance in leading a site security team at Ground Zero days after the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center in New York City.
Colonel Desrosier continues to serve faithfully and proudly. She is currently assigned to the 107th Airlift Wing out of Niagara Falls, New York, and is the commander of the wing’s medical group. At a top level, she is charged with leading and managing the 107th medical professionals to ensure its military members are “fit to fight.” With a focus on strategic planning and establishment of policies and procedures, Colonel Desrosier aims for effective health care services, budget formulation, and the establishment of critical health care committees, boards, and councils.
Colonel Bill McArdle’s served multiple heroic deployments, including support of Operation Southern Watch at Ali Al Salem Air Base, Kuwait, as well as to the Helmand Province of Afghanistan as the first USAF Colonel assigned to the Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) mission. He was the Air Force Central Command “boots-on-ground” lead at Camp Bastion/Leatherneck, Joint Operating Base, where the 2,400 casualty evacuation missions for which his unit was responsible resulted in over 750 lives saved. He was also a responder in support of the 9/11 attacks in New York City.
Colonel McArdle’s final assignment prior to retirement two years ago was as Vice Wing Commander of the 106th Rescue Wing in Westhampton Beach, New York, where he served as the Chief Operating Officer and directed all aspects of a modern combat rescue Wing equipped with HC-130 fixed wing aircraft and HH-60G helicopter aircraft.
Bill and Emily credit the Air National Guard with bringing them together, as they were both assigned to the same base in New York. Neither would have imagined that years later, he would surprise Emily with a banner in her honor, and she would surprise Bill right back by having him honored on the other side of it.
Today, the couple lives on Daniel Island, enjoying Lowcountry life and the freedoms that they themselves have helped to secure. Bill is a member of the Daniel Island Exchange Club, and they are both mentors for senior class members at The Citadel. Their daughter Jacqueline attends the College of Charleston and daughter Kristyn is an English literature teacher in Oklahoma.
Interested in paying tribute to a military or first responder loved one with a Daniel Island Exchange Club honor banner? Details and order information can be found at http://bit.ly/Honor-Banner1.
Veterans Day Parade Salutes Lowcountry Veterans
The Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center’s Veterans Day Parade will include multiple marching bands, historic military vehicles, motorcycle groups, and Veterans service organization floats. The parade is set for Saturday, Nov. 7 at 10:30 a.m. in the Charleston Market District. Please see attached map for details. The purpose of the parade is to honor and thank Lowcountry heroes of every generation, who selflessly served in our nation’s military during times of peace or times of war. This parade is but a small token of our community’s gratitude and appreciation. This year’s grand marshal is Colonel James W. Shumard III, a 32 year Air Force Veteran. He is an avid volunteer for activities that aid and assist military veterans. He is an active member of Star Touring and Riding Association Chapter 264, the motorcycle group that has led the parade for the last 10 years with the 50 state display. Recently Col. Shumard was in a motorcycle accident and unable to head up that display. From his hospital bed, he coordinated the event for this year’s parade to ensure the parade was not lacking. Being unable to ride now, he is being honored for his contributions to the Veterans Day Parade. The parade will be followed by a VetStory presentation to William Brinton at the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center.