Extremely well said, Mike. General Stackpole was truly a humble warrior and a servant leader without peer.

Continuing the story of Operation SEA ANGEL, I was a captain in the Navy Medical Corps and deployed from Okinawa to Bangladesh in November 2007 with elements of the same III Marine Expeditionary Force (III MEF) that General Stackpole commanded in 1991. Bangladesh had again been ravaged by a ferocious tropical storm that again caused considerable death and destruction. Our humanitarian assistance / disaster relief mission was named Operation SEA ANGEL II, in a tribute to the historical successes and lessons learned from the previous SEA ANGEL mission.

But wait, it gets better! I had been the CJTF Surgeon for SEA ANGEL II, but left Dhaka a few days before the redeployment officially started in order to go to Honolulu and serve as non-medical attendant during my wife’s chemotherapy treatments at Tripler Army Medical Center. While Vicki dozed under the energy-sapping effects of her treatment, I began to collect my thoughts for input for the SEA ANGEL II after action report, which was due in just a few days.

But who was sitting next to me on the side opposite my wife? None other than Lt.Gen (Ret.) Hank Stackpole, who was also at Tripler receiving chemotherapy. He had overheard Vicki and me discussing my recent deployment to Bangladesh, and he perked up from his own chemo treatment and graciously introduced himself. After shaking his hand and exchanging a few pleasantries, I pulled out several reference documents from my backpack, including the after action report from the original Operation SEA ANGEL, signed by Hank Stackpole himself. He was astonished that I had that document with me, along with several others in which he was prominently featured discussing the successful 1991 mission, and we chatted up a storm (no pun intended) over the next two hours about the similarities and differences between the two SEA ANGEL missions.

But wait, it gets better! Quite fortuitously, I was selected as Deputy Commander for Clinical Services at Tripler, and reported for duty about 6–9 months later. General Stackpole was literally the first non-Tripler staff member on my calendar my very first day on the job. He simply wanted to congratulate me in person. The visit further solidified our nascent friendship, and we met regularly in my office to discuss whatever was on his mind — which was usually something to improve the experience of care for all patients at Tripler, especially the wounded warriors in Tripler’s Warrior Transition Battalion.

But wait, it gets better! My next assignment after Tripler was as Command Surgeon, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Pacific, at nearby Camp Smith. I took 30 days leave between Tripler and MARFORPAC, and after 2–3 days on the job, we had our first weekly Commanding General’s Update Brief, or CUB for short. After the meeting, the Chief of Staff called me aside and said the CG would like to see me in his office at 1100. When I arrived in the CG’s outer office at 1045, who was there to greet me? Again, none other than Hank Stackpole himself! He was meeting with the CG at 1100 to discuss humanitarian operations, and he wanted to use the meeting as an opportunity to both mentor me and to cement the bond between my new 3-star boss and me. General Stackpole stopped by my office frequently while I was the MARFORPAC Surgeon, and we also met for lunch several times at the Honolulu Club, where he was member.

But wait, it gets better! During my tour at MARFORPAC, the Government of Bangladesh and the U.S. Embassy in Dhaka decided to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the first Operation SEA ANGEL, and MARFORPAC was tasked to put together a delegation, and it initially included the CG, the Deputy CG, a few other senior officers at MARFORPAC, and me (since I had been deployed in support of SEA ANGEL II). The trip was the topic of the CUB later that week, and the CG was looking for ways to make the visit truly meaningful for the Bangladeshi participants, and also do more than just pomp and ceremony for the three days in Dhaka. I immediately blurted out “take General Stackpole with you!” I also suggested he spend a few hours at The International Center for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDRB), a world class research and clinical center in the heart of Dhaka. The CG loved the first idea, and MARFORPAC arranged to issue General Stackpole invitational travel orders. The CG wasn’t so keen, however, on visiting the ICDDRB. It nevertheless stayed on the CG and General Stackpole’s itinerary.

Well, of course the commemoration was a complete success, and Hank Stackpole was welcomed back to Bangladesh as the hero that he was. And much to my surprise, the CG raved publicly at the next CUB about the fantastic visit to the ICDDRB.

Rest in Peace General Hank Stackpole.