As a Georgia high school football player, retired Col. John Thompson dreamed of attending Georgia Southern University and playing for Erskine "Erk" Russell, who built the program into a national powerhouse.
"In my senior year, I blew out my right knee and that all but destroyed any chances of playing football beyond high school," Thompson said.
His mother, Hilda Withers, then suggested he consider the University of North Georgia (then North Georgia College), where she had met Thompson's father. The couple graduated in 1962 and married that same year.
Thompson agreed to attend UNG for at least two years, with the thought of transferring to a larger school. But he became immersed in the UNG's culture as a member of the Corps of Cadets.
"By the end of my sophomore year, the school environment along with the Corps of Cadets took hold of me personally and professionally, and it made me grow up," Thompson said.
He signed a contract with the U.S. Army, following in his father's footsteps. Robert "Bo" Thompson was a helicopter pilot, serving in the U.S. Army. He was shot down and killed in the Vietnam War during his second tour when Thompson was only 2 years old. But his father still had an everlasting impact on his choice of profession.
"What really set my feet on a path toward military was a letter my father had written to me on my second birthday," Thompson said, noting the letter was mailed to his mother. "She didn't give it to me until I was 16 or 17 years old."
Thompson said the letter did not encourage him to join the military, but to find his ambition in life.
"He put into a series of eloquent words that he hoped I would choose a profession that would benefit others and not look at my own individual wants and desires," he said. "I used that advice in his letter and have reflected on it often throughout my life."
Thompson has used his father's words of wisdom well. He commissioned as a second lieutenant upon graduation in 1987 and finished the Aviation Officer Basic and flight school at Fort Rucker, Alabama, in 1988.
Thompson was initially assigned to the 4th Squadron, 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment, in Feucht, Germany. Since then, he served and commanded in a variety of conventional and special operations aviation assignments. Throughout his 30-year career, Thompson has more than five years of combat experience in Desert Shield/Storm and Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom.
"The units I served in and the flying I was fortunate to do was both humbling and rewarding, but I don’t miss getting shot at," Thompson said with a smile.
Now he believes he will find his new job at Cox Enterprises just as rewarding, but in a different kind of way. He retired from the Army in June 2017, and is looking forward to spending more time with family and friends.
