Howard S . McGee Major General Howard Samuel McGee ( 1915 – 2005 ) was born in Port Townsend , Washington on October 4 , 1915 . McGee attended the University of Washington from 1935 to 1940 . While at the University McGee was enrolled in the ROTC program and subsequently commissioned as Second Lieutenant , Coast Artillery Corps , Officers Reserve Corps on 15 March 1940 . In May 1941 McGee entered active Federal service with the 19th CA Regiment as a Battery Officer and later served as Battery Commander . McGee was promoted to First Lieutenant in February 1942 and to Captain in November 1942 . McGee was re - assigned in May 1943 to the 3rd Battalion , 215th Coast Artillery Regiment stationed at Fort Greely , Alaska and served as S - 3 and Battalion Executive Officer . In 1944 McGee became Executive Officer of the 347th AAA Battalion stationed at Fort Belvoir , Virginia . Later McGee served as Company Commander and Battalion Executive Officer of the 1286th Engineer Combat Battalion at Camp Rucker , Alabama . In the latter part of 1944 McGee transferred overseas with his unit and served in England and Germany . McGee was promoted to Major in December 1945 and released from Active Duty in February 1946 . Reappointed Major , Corps of Engineers , ORC , in September 1946 , McGee assumed command of the 399th Engineer Combat Battalion . In October 1947 McGee was appointed Major , CAC , in the Washington National Guard and was assigned as S - 3 of the 205th AAA Group . McGee was subsequently reassigned as Battalion Commander , 240th AAA Battalion in October 1949 and promoted to Lieutenant Colonel in May 1950 . In April 1954 McGee transferred to the 205th AAA Group as Group Commander and was promoted to Colonel in November 1954 . Upon reorganization of the Washington National Guard in April 1959 , McGee was assigned as Executive Officer , 115th Artillery Brigade ( AD ) . In June 1961 McGee was transferred to the 41st Infantry Division and assigned as Division Artillery Commander . On 14 November 1961 , McGee was promoted to Brigadier General of the Line . Upon conversion of the 41st Infantry Division to the ROAD concept in March 1963 , McGee was assigned as Assistant Division Commander . General McGee served in that assignment until 16 June 1965 when he was detailed as the Adjutant General , State of Washington , and was appointed Major General on 1 July 1965 by Governor Dan Evans at a time when the country was engulfed in protests against the Vietnam War , continued unrest over civil rights and rumblings from a fledgling environmental movement . McGee held the post Washington State Adjutant General until his retirement in February 1978 . In the article " Former Washington National Guard leader McGee dies at 89 " in the January 29 , 2005 issue of the Seattle Times , Governor Evans recalled " Maj . Gen . McGee was a forceful leader and a voice of reason during a troubled time and often said , " ' We shouldn ' t be putting 19 - year - old soldiers with rifles up against 19 - year - old college students , ' . " In his later years , McGee suffered from prostate cancer and cardiovascular disease . He died January 18 , 2005 at his home in Seattle of renal failure .