| Ed Scholes |
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Born in Copperhill, Tennessee, and raised in McCaysville, Georgia, Ed Scholes was the son of Marie and Alvin Scholes who grew up in the mountains between three states, an experience that would afford him an advantage when he was enrolled in the US Army Ranger School. He was a Distinguished Military Graduate of what is now the University of North Georgia in Dahlonega, Georgia, marrying his wife of 63 years, Elva (Bussey) Scholes, the very day he was commissioned as Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He was inducted into the Ranger Hall of Fame in 2007 and the Georgia Military Veterans’ Hall of Fame in 2015. Major General (Ret.) Edison E. Scholes served 35 years in U.S. Army key leadership positions from platoon leader to deputy commanding general of XVIII Airborne Corps, Third U.S. Army, and a major NATO command. He has served in Infantry, Airborne Infantry, Special Forces, and Ranger units, to include four combat tours in three conflicts. Primary theater of interest since 1980 has been Middle East. As Chief of Staff, Joint Task Force–South, and Chief of Staff, XVIII Airborne Corps, he would lead the deployment of Corps elements to Panama in preparation and implementation of Operation Just Cause. Months later, Scholes led the deployment of the XVIII Airborne Corps elements into Saudi Arabia for Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. After returning home from Saudi Arabia he lead the XVIII Airborne Corps Task Force who responded to the devastating CAT 5 Hurricane Andrew that cut through the heart of Florida in 1992. Retired from active military in 1996 as Major General to assume position as Program General Manager of Army supervised contract to provide training and support to Saudi Arabian National Guard. Since June 2002, worked as private contractor for several U.S. firms, which involved defense related work in Iraq, Afghanistan, Jordan, Algeria, Columbia, Peru, Bolivia and USA. |
