Gerald Harrison Putman

MG (Retired) Jerry Putman was born in Cuero, Texas and attended Texas A&M. He graduated A&M in 1962 and absolutely loved the Aggies, especially Aggies Football. He loved football of any kind, but if the Aggies were playing you knew where Jerry would be; if he had fried chicken while watching football, Jerry was a happy man. After serving over three decades in the Army, he worked for Raytheon, L3 Communications, and did private consulting work. Jerry is survived by Mecky, his wife of 54 years; their daughter Robin and two grandchildren Michaela and Nicholas; a sister Susan Orsak, and her sons Michael and Patrick; nephews John and Alex Putman; and niece Elizabeth Putman Ulrich. Jerry was preceded in death by his parents Harry and Evelyn Putman, his brother Doctor Donald Putman, sister in law Beth Putman, and his best friend Danny Adams. Jerry had a lifelong love of fishing, which included trips to Rockport, Texas to see his childhood friend, Danny Adams, as well as his wife Betty Mae. MG Putman served his nation and fellow Soldiers honorably for over 33 years, initially in Vietnam, then Germany, where he met and married Mecky. He mid-career assignments included the US Army Air Defense Command (ARADCOM), and the 82d Airborne Division at Ft Bragg, NC. He commanded at Battalion thru Theater / AADCOM level: 3-67 ADA, 3ID, 11th ADA Brigade, 3rd Army & ARCENT; 32nd Army Air Defense Command (AADCOM), 8th Army/US Army Europe, and the US Army Personnel Command (PERSCOM). MG Putman retired in 1994 while serving in the Pentagon as the Army’s Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations. Throughout his career he was respected and admired as a tough leader and effective trainer. He set high standards for himself and for his soldiers. He embedded the warrior’s spirit in all of his units and transformed the 32nd AADCOM from a Cold War European mindset into a mobile, deployable command focused on warfighting support of maneuver forces. Clear evidence of his training standards was the consistently successful performance of US Army Patriot units during Operation Desert Storm in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Turkey and Israel. MG Putman’s vision and perseverance created Army Air Defense capabilities so essential to Army missions today. A Funeral Service will be held at Fort Myer Memorial Chapel, Fort Myer, VA on Wednesday February 12, 2019 at 1:00 pm with Interment to follow at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, VA.