Walter E.

Boomer

General Walt er Eugene Boomer (born September 22, 1938) is a retired f our-star
general and assistant commandant of the United States Marine Corps and business
executive. Boomer led all Marines in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm during
the Gulf War.[2] He was later the chairman and CEO of Rogers Corporation and retired in
2004. He is the current lead director of Baxter International.[1] Boomer is a 1960
graduate of Duke University and later earned a master's degree f rom American
University.

Biography
Boomer was born on 22 September 1938 in Rich Square, North Carolina. In 1956, he
graduated f rom Randolph-Macon Academy in Front Royal, Virginia. He earned a B.A.
degree f rom Duke University in 1960, and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the
U.S. Marine Corps. He earned a Master of Science degree in technology of
management f rom American University, Washington, D.C. in 1973.
Marine Corps Walter E.
service
Boomer
Af ter completing The Basic School,
Quantico, Virginia, in January 1961, his first
assignments were with the 1st Battalion,
8th Marines and the 2nd Battalion, 2nd
Marines, 2nd Marine Division, Camp
Lejeune, where he was platoon
commander, weapons platoon
commander and battalion training officer,
respectively, f rom 1961 to 1964. He was
promoted to first lieutenant in December
1961 and to captain in April 1965.

Boomer saw combat action f rom 1966 to General Walter E.

1967 in the Republic of Vietnam as the
commanding officer, Company H, 2nd
Boomer, USMC
Battalion, 4th Marines. During this combat
tour, he was awarded the Silver Star Medal Born September
f or valor. Returning to the US, he
attended the Amphibious Warfare School 22, 1938
at Quantico. On completion, he was
promoted to major in May 1968, and was Rich
transf erred to Headquarters Marine
Corps, Washington, D.C., f or duty as the Square,
administrative assistant and aide-de-
camp to the Deputy Chief of Staff f or North
Plans and Programs. Following this
assignment, he attended the Armed Carolina,
Forces Staff College in Norfolk, Virginia.

U.S.
In 1971, Boomer attended the Short
Advisors Course at Fort Bragg, North Allegiance United
Carolina, in preparation f or advisor duty
with the South Vietnamese Marines. In States
August that year, he returned to Vietnam
as an advisor to the 4th Vietnamese of
Marine Corps Battalion. While serving this
tour of duty, he was involved in the Americ
def ense of Firebase Sarge during the
Easter Offensive, North Vietnam's largest
assault on the South.
Service/ United
Transf erred back to the US in September branch States
1972, he attended American University,
receiving his M.S. degree in December Marine
1973. The f ollowing month, he began a
three-year tour as a management Corps
instructor at the U.S. Naval Academy,
Annapolis, Maryland. During the last year
of his tour, he was the chairman of the Years of 1960–
Department of Management. He was
promoted to lieutenant colonel in service 1994
September 1976.

From July 1977 to June 1980, Boomer was Rank

stationed in Hawaii, where he was
executive officer, 3rd Marines, 1st Marine General
Brigade, and then commanding officer,
2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines. Returning to
Unit 2nd
the mainland US in July 1980, he attended
the Naval War College, Newport, Rhode
Battalion,
Island, graduating with distinction in June
1981.
4th
He then assumed the duties as the
deputy director of the Fourth Marine Marine
Corps District, Philadelphia. He was
promoted to colonel on 1 November 1981
and became the director of the Fourth Regiment,
Marine Corps District on 17 June 1983.
3rd
During February 1985, Boomer returned
to Quantico to assume command of the Marine
Marine Security Guard Battalion. While
serving in this capacity, he was selected in Division
April 1986 f or promotion to brigadier
general. He was advanced to that grade (1967
on 2 June 1986 and assigned duty as the
director of public affairs, Headquarters Vietnam)
Marine Corps, on 7 June 1986. He held this
post until 27 May 1988, when he was
assigned duty as the commanding Commands 2nd
general, 4th Marine Division (Reinf orced),
FMF, New Orleans. On 14 March 1989, he held Batta
was advanced to major general and
promoted to lieutenant general on 8 Marin
August 1990.
Marine Sec

On 15 August 1990, Boomer was deployed Battalion

to Saudi Arabia, where he was the 4th Marine

commanding general, U.S. Marine Forces U.S. Marine

Central Command (MARCENT) and I Command

Marine Expeditionary Force during Director 4t

Operations Desert Shield and Desert Recruiting

Storm. Marine Exp

Force
On 22 April 1991, he returned to Camp
Camp Pend
Pendleton and assumed the duties of Marine Cor
commanding general, I Marine
Developme
Expeditionary Force/commanding
general, Marine Corps Base. He served in
Assist
this capacity until 6 September 1991.
Boomer reported to Quantico, Virginia, on
Comm
27 September 1991, where he assumed
duty as the commanding general, Marine
Corps Combat Development Command. of the
He was promoted to general on 1
September 1992 and assumed his last Corps
duty assignment as assistant
commandant of the Marine Corps.
Battles/wars Viet
Boomer retired f rom the Marine Corps 1
September 1994. War
Ope
Awards and Dese
honors Stor
Ope
Boomer's medals and decorations
include: Dese
Shie

Awards Distinguis
Service
Medal
Silver Star
Legion of
Merit
 Bronze St
(2)

Other work Roger

Corpo
CEO
McDermott
Internation
VP

Babco
Wilcox
Power
Gener
Group
Presid
 1st Navy Distinguished Silver Star w/ 1
Legion of Merit
Row Service Medal award star

Navy
Navy and Marine
Presidential
2nd Bronze Star w/ 1 award Corps Combat Action
Unit Citation
Row star & V device Commendation Ribbon
w/ 1 service
Medal w/ V device
star

National
Navy Meritorious
Navy Unit Marine Corps Def ense
3rd Unit
Commendation w/ 2 Expeditionary Service
Row Commendation w/
service stars Medal Medal w/ 1
2 service stars
service star

Navy Sea
Vietnam Service Southwest Asia
4t h Armed Forces Service
Medal w/ 1 service Service Medal w/
Row Expeditionary Medal Deployment
star 3 service stars
Ribbon

Ordre
Vietnam Gallantry Vietnam Armed
5t h King Faisal Award, national du
Cross w/ palm and Forces Honor
Row 2d Class Mérite,
silver star Medal, 1st class
Officer class

Kuwait
6t h Vietnam Gallantry Vietnam Civil Vietnam Liberation
Row Cross unit citation Actions unit citation Campaign Medal Medal (Saudi
Arabia)

Badges EXPERT RIFLE badge EXPERT PISTOL badge

Post-Marine Corps career

Af ter retiring f rom the Marine Corps, General Boomer was executive vice president of
McDermott International (1994–1996). He joined Rogers Corporation – an international
specialty materials manuf acturing company[3] — in 1997 as president and CEO. From
2002 to 2004, he was chairman of the board of Rogers Corporation. Boomer is currently
on the board of directors of Rogers Corporation, Cytyc Corporation and Baxter
International.[4]

See also

List of United States Wikime

dia
Marine Corps four-
Commo
star generals ns has
media
Commandant of the related
Marine Corps to
Walter
E.
References Boome
r.
1. "Walter E. Boomer" (ht
Biography
tps://web.archive.org/we portal
b/20090603050512/htt
p://www.baxter.com/about_baxter/co
mpany_profile/company_leadership/su
 b/boomer.html) . Baxter U.S. Archived
from the original (http://www.baxter.co
m/about_baxter/company_profile/com
pany_leadership/sub/boomer.html) on
3 June 2009. Retrieved 8 November
2009.

2. "Fast Facts about Operation Desert

Shield/Desert Storm" (https://web.archi
ve.org/web/20200506155553/https://g
ulflink.health.mil/timeline/fast_facts.ht
m) . Archived from the original (http://w
ww.gulflink.osd.mil/timeline/fast_facts.
htm) on 6 May 2020. Retrieved
14 October 2006.

3. "Speakers :Retired 4-Star General

Walter E. Boomer" (http://chiefexecutiv
enetwork.com/chief_executive_networ
 k_meetings_and_conferences/fall_conf
erence/fall_conference_2003_speakers.
htm) . Chief Executives Network Fall
Conference 2003. Retrieved
26 December 2008.

4. "Walter Boomer Profile" (https://web.arc

hive.org/web/20011201010806/http://
www.forbes.com/finance/mktguideapp
s/personinfo/FromMktGuideIdPersonTe
arsheet.jhtml?passedMktGuideId=1230
48) . Forbes. Archived from the original
(https://www.forbes.com/finance/mktg
uideapps/personinfo/FromMktGuideIdP
ersonTearsheet.jhtml?passedMktGuideI
d=123048) on 1 December 2001.
Retrieved 18 November 2006.
External links

"General Walter E. Boomer, USMC

(retired)" (https://web.archive.org/we
b/20110516214311/http://www.teco
m.usmc.mil/HD/Whos_Who/Boomer
_WE.htm) . Who's Who in Marine
Corps History. History Division,
United States Marine Corps.
Archived from the original (http://ww
w.tecom.usmc.mil/HD/Whos_Who/B
oomer_WE.htm) on 16 May 2011.
Retrieved 14 October 2006.

General Walter Boomer, USMC

(retired) (https://web.archive.org/we
 b/20060721084107/http://www.gene
ralboomer.com/bio-boomer.htm) ,
FWA Consultants (biographical
profile)

This article incorporates public

domain material from websites or
documents of the United States
Marine Corps.

Retrieved from
"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
title=Walter_E._Boomer&oldid=1177834634"
This page was last edited on 29 September
2023, at 21:54 (UTC). •
Content is available under CC BY-SA 4.0 unless
otherwise noted.