Joseph Thomas Scepansky

General Scepansky was born at home on the 15th of February 1918 in Franklin, KS to Lillian Rae and Joseph Albert Scepansky, attended by the town doctor and his paternal grandmother, Mary Szczepanski, a Polish-trained midwife. He graduated from Pittsburg State University, then Kansas State Teacher’s College, in Pittsburg, KS in 1938 with a B.S. in Speech and Economics. He served his country for 32 years during World War II, Korea, and Viet Nam rising from 2nd Lieutenant in the Army Air Corps to Major General in the US Air Force.

Already a pilot, he joined the Army Air Corps in 1940 as Hitler was advancing across Europe, receiving his wings in August, 1941. He flew missions in support of the Allied war effort, trained the newly formed Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP), and served as director of flight training at several bases in the US. Over his career he flew over 32 different aircraft and had more than 9,000 hours of flight time.

He received his M.B.A. from Stanford University in 1949 and was next stationed in Germany where he assisted in the planning and execution of the Berlin Airlift, the original planning for the establishment of NATO, and the selection of locations for US air force bases in Europe and North Africa. He served two tours at the Pentagon, first in Air Force Plans where he was Secretary of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Matters, executive to the director of plans, and worked with the National Security Agency; later, he was Deputy Director of Personnel Planning and Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel, where he sat on the Air Force Council (advisers to the Secretary of Defense, Secretary of the Air Force and Chief of Staff of the Air Force). He was assigned to Air Defense Command, and was a graduate of both the Air War College and the National War College. From 1960-1963 he was Deputy for Operations of the Pacific Air Forces, flying with the Prince of Thailand and Generals Ky and Thieu of South Vietnam in preparation for the war. On the 1st of August 1969 he was promoted to Major General after serving a three year term as Commander, USAF Recruiting Service at Randolph AFB, TX. During his command, 150,000 men and women were recruited and he was gratified to have achieved his recruiting quota annually during the Viet Nam War era without resorting to the draft. From 1969-1972 he served in his last assignment, and second tour in Europe, as Chief of Staff, Allied Air Forces Southern Europe in Naples, Italy where he was responsible for NATO air forces from participating countries. He retired on the 1st of August 1972 to Austin, TX where he lived for thirty four years until he and Anne moved to Houston to be closer to family. He was the only regular duty Air Force retired major general living in Houston, as far as he knew. During his long career he received numerous decorations and commendations for his contributions to the US Army Air Corps and the USAF.

It was while he was at Stanford and she was at Mills College pursuing her M.A. in European History that he met his beloved wife of nearly sixty years, the former Anne Johnson of New Mexico and Texas. They were married in April 1950. General Joe’s life-long passions were his family, golf, any kind of party, and telling stories, which managed to get better with each telling. He had an uncanny ability to connect with all sorts of people, of all educational levels, from all over the world, and to elicit their cooperation in achieving a common goal. He was a student of human nature and was fond of saying that you could judge a man’s true character by playing a round of golf with him. During the 80 years in which he golfed regularly, as recently as February 2011, he shot seven holes-in-one, and he could describe every hole on every golf course he had played anywhere in the world. He was an avid snow skier until age 89, and enjoyed dancing, hunting, and fishing (especially in Alaska). In Austin, he and Anne were members of the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd, Tarry House, the Austin Country Club, and three dance clubs. They moved to Houston in 2006 as Anne’s health declined from a devastating stroke in 1994, and he cared for her with great devotion and tenderness until her death in November 2009. Never losing that famous sense of humor, he would say that he had his own personal Barbie doll to care for, and after fixing Anne’s hair would remind us that “all the girls” called him “Pierre”!

The General was predeceased by his parents, Lillian and Joe Scepansky, by his only sibling, brother, Clifford Scepansky, and by his dear wife, Anne Johnson Scepansky, Ph.D. He is survived by his daughter, Mary Katharine Roff, M.D. and her husband John Hugh Roff III, M.D. of Houston; and their sons, John Hugh Roff IV of Arlington, VA and Joseph Thomas Roff of Austin, TX. He leaves behind his sister-in-law, Alice Scepansky of Hendersonville, NC; and numerous close friends all over the world. The family would like to thank Mrs. Rosa Medrano, Mrs. Thelma Maldonado, Dr. Michelle Cunningham, Dr. Garrett R. Lynch and the staff of St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital, the Buckingham and VITAS Hospice for their attentive and kind care.

The funeral service is to be conducted at eleven o’clock in the morning on Friday, the 12th of August, at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, 717 Sage Road in Houston, where the Rev. Dr. Russell J. Levenson, Jr., Rector, the Rev. Dr. John K. Graham, Priest Associate for Spiritual Formation, and the Rev. Katherine F. Picot, Curate, are to officiate. At the conclusion of the service, full military honors are to be rendered by an Honor Guard from Randolph Air Force Base.

In lieu of customary remembrances, the family suggests donations in memory of General Scepansky be directed to St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, 717 Sage Road, Houston, TX, 77056; Pittsburg State University, P.O. Box 4005, Pittsburg, KS, 66762 for an endowed scholarship in General Scepansky’s name for a ROTC student; the Wounded Warrior Project, 4899 Belfort Road, Suite 300, Jacksonville, FL, 32256, www.woundedwarriorproject.org; or to the charity of one’s choice.