Soldier Honored: James W. Harrison Jr.

Army Colonel James W. Harrison Jr., 47, of Missouri died May 6, 2007 at Pol-e-Charki prison in Afghanistan of wounds suffered from small arms fire. He was assigned to the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

James Harrison was a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy in 1981. He served as an inspector general at Fort Belvoir, Virginia and as a strategy/policy officer at Joint Forces Command in Norfolk, Virginia. COL Harrison served as a detention policy expert with the Combined Forces Command Afghanistan. Prior to his deployment, COL Harrison was assigned to Fort Leavenworth as director of the School for Command Preparation at the Command and General Staff College as well as commandant of the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth.

COL Harrison was a devoted husband and father to three sons. He valued integrity and truly lived everyday according to the institution’s motto of “duty, honor, country.” Those who worked with Harrison said he was constantly looking out for his soldiers, and many referred to him as mentor. He had planned to retire, but being the kind of man he was, he pulled back the retirement paperwork when it was clear his expertise was needed.