Posted by Vic Robertson (USMA 79) on May 28, 2023:

I can't believe that I'm the first to post a eulogy here for this great man. I would have done this long ago, but I just found this eulogy site yesterday. He was a Firstie when I was a Plebe, but I didn't know him at West Point. GEN Odierno always supported me, helped me, and gave me some of the greatest compliments I ever received. That is not a comment on me--it's a comment on his leadership. How could you not bust your butt for that man? I met GEN Odierno in 1997, when I was assigned as the G3 Chief of Plans for V Corps and he was COL Odierno, Chief of Staff for the Corps. He and I arrived a V Corps HQ at Rose Barracks about the same time. He and GEN Hendrix led V Corps with firm, steady, calm, and smart hands. I loved working for and with COL Odierno. Phone rings: "Vic, come up to my office," meant I and my planners were in for some long days. The colonel, GEN Hendrix, and I would sit down in the CG's office, I'd receive instructions for a new plan, like invading Iraq (yes, a few of years before 911), get guidance from them both, and head back to the planners' SCIF. I'll never forget the confidence that he showed in me. I'd had a rough time during the previous five years in Germany, and his confidence in me motivated me to work all the harder. Other specific memories: When I was new in the job, he asked me what our planning process was. It had been five years since SAMS and this was my first assignment as a planner. I gave some sort of vague answer. He could have blown me away. Instead, he took out a planning guide from III Corps and loaned it to me,"Take a look at this." It was a great help! At one point we were working on two significant plans simultaneously--I think it was a draw down in strength for Bosnia and the attack on Iraq. COL Odierno checked in and said, "I really like what you're doing here." Such a simple thing to say. It meant the world to me. Again, encouragement. That was his constant style. As I type this, my eyes are going wet just thinking about it. He could have criticized--I certainly didn't do everything perfectly--but he appreciated hard work and always chose to support, encourage, and lead. On a helicopter, sitting side by side, over the headsets he asked me what I thought about an officer who wanted to be the next Chief of Plans (I was departing soon). AGAIN, showing confidence, seeking input, thinking carefully about staffing, considering personalities, looking for the optimum course of action. I can still hear his strong deep voice and laugh. In his presence, you knew you were talking to a man of character. You instinctively trusted him--maybe because he trusted you. Or maybe because his personality was so genuine, so sincere, so transparent, so solid. Nothing hidden. He gave you no reason to worry about what he really thought. It was all in the open, and it was always exactly what you needed and wanted. These are just brief windows into the mind and ways of a great officer and leader. I will always be proud of having served with him. He passed way too soon. We would all be better off if he were still with us.

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