COLUMBIA - Sgt. Major Alfred Boatman Carson, U.S. Army (Ret.), died Friday, April 17, 2015. Born in Fort Smith, Arkansas, he was the son of the late Arlie Aaron Carson and Attie Raye Boatman Carson. Fort Smith, Arkansas in the 1930s was a backwater, rural southern town gripped by the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl. It was a hardscrabble life for Alfred and his brothers. From an early age, each worked whatever jobs could be found around town to help their mother Attie Raye put food on their table. When war broke out in 1941, Alfred was working the railroads as a conductor. His brothers quickly joined the Navy and served in the South Pacific. Alfred also tried to join the Navy but he had one problem: he could not swim. Instead, he joined the Army. At a time when soldiers and sailors were returning home to start careers and family, Alfred was stationed in the Italian port city of Trieste. He was assigned to the TRUST garrison (Trieste United States Troops), which was overseeing the American occupation and rebuilding of Northern Italy. He met Luigia “Louise” Babuder there in 1947. Their romance and plans for marriage were hindered by the Army which suspected Louise of being a “war bride” looking for free passage to the States. Eventually, the Army relented and Alfred and Louise were married in 1948 at Allied Headquarters located in Miramare Castle overlooking the Adriatic. They celebrated 50 years of marriage in 1998. Throughout the 1950s, Alfred served multiple tours of duty in Northern Italy. When hostilities broke out in Korea, he served at that warfront. In the 1960s he served two tours in Vietnam, volunteering for the second tour instead of another overseas assignment so that his family would not be disrupted by yet another relocation. Highlights of his military career include meeting President Harry Truman in 1961 and General William Westmoreland in 1967. In 1973 he received special exception to continue serving beyond the traditional years of service for retirement. He retired from the Army in 1976 as Sergeant Major with 30 years, numerous Armed Services awards, citations and service medals. Not yet ready for full retirement, Alfred began a second career with the South Carolina Department of Education where he developed a pilot program for automating and streamlining school bus fleet parts management and logistics. Taxpayers benefited greatly from the cost savings which continue in modern form to this day. Alfred Boatman Carson was an honorable man, an honest man, a family man, a modest man who rarely boasted of his career achievements. He was a quiet, soft-spoken man. He was devoted to Louise and to his children. To them, he was a best friend, a counselor, a confidant, an encourager, and a “number one” fan. And as a fan…he loved his New York Yankees. He travelled the world—both in service and in retirement. He was well read and informed. In retirement he completed, along with his brother, an exhaustively researched family genealogy “Carruth to Carson”. A partial list of his military service medals includes: Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, World War II Victory, World War II Army of Occupation, Korean War Service, Vietnam War Service, National Defense Service, Joint Service Commendation, Army Commendation, and Good Conduct Commendation. Surviving are his children, Linda Rebecca Carson Lieser, Deborah Jean Carson, Jennifer Jane Carson, Richard Alfred Carson, Scott Leslie Carson; three grandchildren; and two great-granddaughters. He was predeceased by his wife, Luigia Babuder Carson. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Caris Hospice, 121 Executive Center Drive, Suite 131, Columbia, SC 29210. Services will be private. Dunbar Funeral Home, Devine Street Chapel is assisting the family.
SHARE OBITUARY
v.1.8.18