Veterans History Museum of the Carolinas Advisory Committee

Lt. General John Brown III
Lieutenant General John M. Brown III, US Army (Retired) commanded combat arms units in peace and war in the continental United States, Europe, the Middle East, the Balkans and the Indo-Pacific Theater. He served as the Chief of Staff/Dean of Administration of the National Defense University and the Deputy Commanding General for Transformation of the Army’s Training and Doctrine Command. His final assignment was Commanding General, US Army Pacific.

Dr. John Buford, LtCol, USMC
Dr. John Buford, LtCol, USMC (Retired) served as an enlisted Marine in the 4th MARDIV and as an infantry officer in the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd MARDIVs and 11th and 22nd MEUs on many deployments around the globe. He served multiple assignments as a faculty member at Marine Corps University. Dr. Buford is an author, retired college professor of leadership and ethics and now serves as a leadership coach and consultant.

Larry Chapman, Transylvania Commissioner
Larry is a native of Transylvania County and was first elected to the Board of Commissioners in November 2010, office, a position he currently holds. After graduation from Western Carolina University, he entered the U.S. Marine Corps and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant Infantry officer. He remained in the Marine Corps Reserves, retiring as a Colonel with more than 30 years’ service. Larry worked at the former Ecusta paper mill for more than 27 years in manufacturing supervision and marketing management. He retired in 2017 as Vice President of Sales.

General Richard Clarke
General Richard Clarke retired from the military after nearly four decades of leading complex and diverse organizations at every level, including more than 15 years internationally and with over 12 combat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. This culminated in his assignment as the Commander of U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) where he led a joint force of 75,000 military members consisting of Army Rangers, Special Forces, Navy SEALs, Air Force Commandos, and Marine Raiders.

Major General Joseph Taluto
Major General Joseph Taluto retired in 2010 after 44 years of military service in the Unites States Army. Prominent assignments included: Commander of Military units in New York City in response to the terrorist bombing of September 2011; Army Division Commanding General for the 42nd Infantry Division in Iraq during the period from 2005 to 2006; and Adjutant General Of New York State from 2006 to 2010.