Joseph Charles Liberti

Joseph Charles Liberti was born to Helen and Dominic Liberti in 1941 in Washington, D.C,. His mother, Helen was an English teacher, while his father, Dominic was fluent in several languages and would subsequently serve as a medic and translator in Patton’s 3rd Army as they liberated Europe in World War II. Joe was later joined by his sister Ellen. He attended St. John’s College High School in Washington D.C. and graduated as an English Major from the Virginia Military Institute in 1963.

After graduating from VMI, he was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the US Army, and he married his high school sweetheart, Ms. Wardlee Kennedy, also from Washington, D.C. and a recent graduate of the College of William and Mary. He was assigned to Ft. Sill, OK where he learned the finer points of artillery, and Joe and Wardlee welcomed their daughter Helen Lee in 1964. In 1965 he completed the counterintelligence course at the US Army Intelligence School, then at Ft. Holabird, MD, and was awarded MOS 9666 (counterintelligence (CI) officer).

Joe served two tours of duty in Vietnam, first in 1965-1966, then in 1968-1969. In his first tour, he served as the operations officer for the 524th Military Intelligence (MI) Detachment in Saigon, performing CI missions. In his second tour, he was Chief of the Counterintelligence Section for the US Army Intelligence Detachment with the 23rd Infantry Division (Americal). He would go on to serve as District Senior Advisor for Ba To District, Quảng Ngãi Province where his responsibilities included everything from coordinating between the US Government, the RVN Government, and local leaders, to managing fire support and air capabilities, and supporting with the special forces. During his deployments in Vietnam, he earned the Combat Infantry Badge, the Aviator Badge, and he was awarded the RVN Gallantry Cross with two stars, the RVN Campaign Medal, and the Vietnam Service Medal, among other honors. He earned the Bronze Star for his distinguished service. In a respite between deployments, he served as the operations officer for the 116th MI Group in Washington, D.C. Also during this period, their son, Joseph Jr. was born. Wardlee managed the home front with two small children single-handedly while Joe was deployed.

After returning from Vietnam, Joe served as a staff officer in the CI Directorate in the Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence (OACSI) at the Pentagon (1969-1971). The family moved to Kansas in 1972, where he earned a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from the University of Kansas and attended the US Army Command and General Staff College at Ft. Leavenworth. From 1973-1977, as a Major, he served as senior MI instructor at the US Army Infantry School at Ft. Benning, GA. He also completed paratrooper training, jumping from C-130s, earning his Airborne Badge. He coached his kids’ softball, football, and T-ball teams in his spare time.

From 1977 to 1980, Joe, Wardlee, and the kids were stationed in Germany. They were briefly stationed in Pirmasens (Joe was with the 2nd Military Intelligence Battalion, with the ominous motto, Oculi Cultus Secreti) before transferring to Fulda where Joe became the Regimental S-2 (Intelligence Officer) for the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, serving on the cold war frontier between East and West Germany. The modern cavalry is a fast-moving, lethal combination of armor and air power, and here he was responsible for planning defenses and surveilling the Fulda Gap, the most likely point of attack for a potential overwhelming invasion of Western Europe by the tanks of the much larger Soviet 8th Guards Army. There were perhaps some tense moments; however, the invasion didn’t come to pass, and when he wasn’t busy keeping tabs on the intentions of the Soviets across the border from the vantage point of an AH-1 Cobra attack helicopter, he completed the NATO Electronic Warfare school in Anzio, Italy, he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel, and he and his family traveled around Europe, learning to ski (he would later very much enjoy skiing, but his first instructor advised him to stop looking at his skis, and “look toward Garmisch”) and enjoying hot chocolate at the Winkelmoos.

Joe and his family returned to the US in 1980, settling in Fairfax County, VA. He was appointed to the position of Garrison Commander of Arlington Hall Station where he served for three years. Though small in size compared with many Army posts, Arlington Hall had a storied past -- once known as the “girl’s school” referencing its pre-war role, it had served as the US counterpart to Britain's Bletchley Park during World War II, and it was the former home of the National Security Agency and the Army Security Agency. Under LTC Liberti’s tenure, Arlington Hall was home to both the US Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM) and the Defense Intelligence Agency, During this period, he also completed studies at the US Army War College.

From 1983-1985, he served the Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Joint Reconnaissance Center (where he was the Reconnaissance Operations Officer) and the National Military Command Center, the nerve center of the Pentagon. Here he was tasked with monitoring and coordinating reconnaissance from hotspots around the world in real time. In this role, he was responsible for conveying extremely time-sensitive world-wide reconnaissance information and status across agencies and services, as well as to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Senior DoD officials, and the National Command Authority.

After serving his country with honor and distinction for over twenty years, he retired from the Army as a Lieutenant Colonel. Subsequently, he served in senior positions with entrepreneurial companies from 1986 to 1998 focusing on advanced technologies related to security, intelligence, and defense. These included Polaris (later called Sector Technologies), where he was Vice President for Security, as well as OmniSec International, and USATrex International Corporation. This work took him around the world, including to the Middle East and Asia, with a return to Vietnam in the 1990s, this time on business. He was a Certified Protection Professional, a licensed Private Investigator, and a member of the National Association of Chiefs of Police.

After retiring for good, Joe and Wardlee relocated to Haymarket, VA, and Joe focused on his hobbies -- he was an avid reader and an expert on military history (Civil War history in particular) -- and Joe and Wardlee enjoyed taking cruises and other trips overseas. Joe was a devout Catholic and was active in his church, serving as a Eucharistic Minister He was also a lifelong Washington Redskins fan, and he watched every game that he could with his family, although he would need his faith to sustain him during the team’s less successful years after the early-1990’s.

Joe was challenged with lasting health issues stemming from his service in Vietnam, which he faced with the same “aggressive, yet congenial manner” as noted in his Bronze Star citation, with which he previously faced a more tangible adversary. Before his health declined, Joe enjoyed a good hamburger, the occasional chocolate-covered cherry, biscuits and gravy, and a fine single-malt scotch.

We will always remember Joe as a patriot, but also as a dedicated father who made Christmas mornings magical and who stayed up all night on a Christmas eve in 1977 to put together an elaborate train set for his son. He was also the man who, when his daughter badly broke her leg while skiing, moved heaven and earth to have her transported by helicopter to the best possible care in 1970’s Germany. Later on, he was the father who, despite his health issues, traveled to New Jersey and struggled through the emotions to read a beautiful Irish prayer at the rehearsal dinner for his son’s Jewish wedding.

Joe, or “Pa Joe” to his five grandchildren, is remembered and loved by his wife Wardlee and their children and their families, including his daughter Helen and her husband Doug, and their children Mackenzie, Caroline, and Alex (along with her husband Todd), as well as Pa Joe’s son, Joe Jr., his wife Alisha, and their children Ari and Max. Pa Joe is also remembered by his sister Ellen, and her husband, Louis. His dog, Chaz, misses him dearly.

Joe will be laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers memorial contributions can be made to www.vmialumni.org - select “give” or https://www.willingwarriors.org.