Colonel Arthur James Wilson III U.S.A.F. Ret.

Colonel Arthur James (Jim) Wilson, III died July 31, 2012 at the age of 73. Visitation will be at Rabenhorst Funeral Home (825 Government Street) on Saturday, August 4th at 9:30am with services at 11:00am. A military burial will follow the service at Roselawn Memorial Cemetery, 4045 N. Street. Jim was born in Greeley, Colorado on May 9, 1939. He graduated from C.E. Byrd High School in Shreveport, La, received a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering from Louisiana Polytechnical Institute in 1962, and earned a master's degree in aerospace engineering at the Air Force Institute of Technology in 1964. He married his high school sweetheart, Hedy, in 1959. Colonel Wilson was a distinguished graduate of the Air Force Reserve Officers Training Corps and commissioned into the US Air Force in May of 1962. He served 24 years as a member of the United States Air Force and was proud to wear the uniform. He was assigned to Hill Air Force Base at Ogden, Utah as a systems engineer on the Minuteman I missile; Oklahoma City Air Material Area supporting Headquarters Naval Air Systems Command; Washington D.C. as the engineering liaison for the A-7 program; Wright Patterson Air Force Base at Dayton, Ohio supporting the Drone/RPV program, chief of the F-15 Support Equipment Division, and deputy for Aeronautical Equipment; Eglin Air Force Base in Florida as deputy director of the Precision Guided Munitions program, director of the Munitions program, and deputy for Range Systems, and Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts as deputy for Mission Support Systems. Upon retirement from the Air Force, Jim worked for Dayton Aerospace and was director of the Dayton, Ohio Northrop office in support of the B-2 program. Military decorations include the Legion of Merit with one oak leaf cluster, Meritorious Service Medal with one oak leaf cluster, the Air Force Commendation Medal with one oak leaf cluster, the Air Force Organizational Excellence Award with one oak leaf cluster, the National Defense Service Medal, the Air Force Longevity Service Award Ribbon with four oak leaf clusters, the Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon and the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award. He is also a graduate of the Squadron Officers School, the Air Command and Staff College and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces. Jim served as a youth director at Shalimar United Methodist Church in Shalimar, Florida while his children were in high school. He subsequently taught adult Sunday school at the base chapel at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, Ohio. Survivors include his wife of over 53 years, Hedy L. Deshazo Wilson; daughter, Gina L. Wilson, MD; son, Arthur J (Jim) Wilson, IV and wife, Beth; four grandchildren, Austin Wilson, Andrew Wilson, Claire Hook and Ethan Hook; brother John Morgan Wilson and wife, Edie of New Orleans and sister-in-law Donna Wilson of Shreveport. He was preceded in death by his parents, Art and Jean Wilson and brother, William (Bill) Wayne Wilson. The family extends its sincerest thanks and appreciation to Dr. Daigle and the St. Joseph's Hospice staff at Carpenter House, Dr. Romaguera and Sherry Adkins of MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Arthur J Wilson III National Defense Engineering Scholarship at Louisiana Tech. Checks can be mailed in care of Gina Wilson, 6457 Province Lane, Baton Rouge, LA 70808. Rabenhorst Funeral Home, 825 Government Street, 383-6831 in charge of arrangements.