LAURINBURG — A member of Scotland High School’s graduating class of 1998 has earned the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army.
Williamson “Joe” Parker, III has served in the U.S. Army since 2002 when he was commissioned in the Quartermaster Corps out of Wake Forest University Reserve Officer Training Corps.
The Scotland High School alumni earned his B.A. from Wake Forest University, a M.A. in procurement and acquisition management from Webster University, and a Masters of Military Arts and Science in operational art and science from the United States Army Command and General Staff College.
Parker currently serves as a logistics Plans Officer in the Special Operations Command J45 Strategic Plans Division at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa.
After deployment in Operation Iraqi Freedom and in Afghanistan Parker served as the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team executive officer during redeployment in Afghanistan. He was selected to serve as the executive officer to the assistant deputy chief of staff, army G4 in the Pentagon from 2015-2016.
The highly-decorated serviceman’s awards include the Bronze Star, Meritorious Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal and the Combat Action Badge.
He is the son of William and Terry Parker of Mason’s Crossroads.
Parker is married to Danielle Parker, and they have three daughters, Abigail, Emily, and Isabelle.