NORTH LITTLE ROCK, AR, USA U.S. Army SGM, COMPANY B, 1ST BATTALION, 185TH AVIATION, NORTH LITTLE ROCK, AR BAGHDAD, IRAQ 01/20/2007
Ron Treat recalled a time William T. Warren’s mother was trying to get a variance for a piece of property. When the City Council voted it down without a public hearing, Treat said his friend surprised him.
I thought I knew Tommy well, he said. But when he got up during the public comment period I was shocked at how eloquent he spoke to the council, shaming them for not giving the public a chance to be heard. His pleas were so impassioned that the council immediately retracted what they had done and gave us a chance to be heard.
Warren, 48, of North Little Rock, Ark., was killed Jan. 20 in a helicopter crash in Baghdad. He was a 1976 high school graduate and was assigned to Camp Robinson, where he was an aircraft technical inspector. He logged a total of 27 years of military service.
Warren and his wife, Doris, celebrated their 24th wedding anniversary three days before he died. He also is survived by five children: Zachary, Jordan, Denise, Dorreen and Desire; and 13 grandchildren.
For Christmas, he sent a letter to Jordan, telling him how proud he was of him. That letter now hangs framed over Jordan’s bed.
He served on active duty in the United States Army with the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), from February 9, 1977, to July 18, 1983, where he achieved the rank of Sergeant. He joined the Arkansas National Guard on August 3, 1983. After spending several years in the 1st Battalion, 114th Aviation Regiment, he transferred as a Master Sergeant to Company B, 1st Battalion,185th Aviation Regiment in North Little Rock, Arkansas, which became Company C, 1st Battalion,131st Aviation Regiment, in April, 2006, for mobilization in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Since August, 2006, he has served as the company’s First Sergeant.
Military Awards and Decorations: • Bronze Star Medal • Purple Heart • Meritorious Service Medal• Army Commendation Medal with Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster• Army Achievement Medal • Army Good Conduct Medal with 1 Knot• Army Reserve Components Achievement Medal with 3Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters • National Defense Service Medal with Service Star • Iraqi Campaign Medal• Global War On Terrorism Service Medal • Armed Forces Reserve Medal with ‘M’ Device• Army Service Ribbon• Overseas Service Ribbon• Arkansas Commendation Medal • Arkansas Service Ribbon • Master Aircraft Crewman Badge• Combat Action Badge