General reginald centracchio biography of donald

The September trip to South Korea was supposed to be a goodwill mission sponsored by the Defense Department. At the time, Reginald Centracchio was adjutant general of the Rhode Island National Guard and it was his honor to escort 42 veterans of the Korean War back to the place where they had served.        

“It was somewhat overcast,” he remembers. A storm was brewing to the south that day as General Centracchio was standing on the edge of the demilitarized zone with some staff members and the group of Rhode Island veterans.

“We had been invited by South Korea to experience a ceremony which they did to recognize the end of what they call the Battles of the Outposts,” the final, bloody two years of the Korean War when half of America’s casualties occurred.

The event was being held to recognize the contributions that these Rhode Island veterans had made a half-century earlier.

While the group was gathered, the security force that had accompanied them shared “there was the possibility of some unrest, or some kind of terrorism, but they didn’t say where,” Centracchio remembers. “There was a lot of chatter going on,” but he doesn’t remember feeling alarmed as they boarded their Korean Air flight for the trip home.

“We were scheduled to land at JFK Airport around 9 a.m.” on Tuesday, he remembers.  Typhoon Danas was bearing down on Japan as their plane lifted off so “we were taken off-course a little bit” but it was smooth sailing back to the United States.

As soon as the group hit California, however, Centracchio remembers, “We were told we were going to be put down.” 

They landed in Minnesota, amid confusion. The FAA had ordered a national ground stop, the first time that it had been implemented since the dawn of aviation.  All aircraft, including those operated by military and law enforcement, were grounded. 

“We were on a Korean airline so no one was speaking to us — at least in English,” Centracchio recalls. “They weren’t sharing anything with us so I insisted on speaking to the pilot. … He really didn’t know much at that juncture either.”

Using the only technology available to them at the time, Centracchio and his assistants picked up their cell phones and reached out to their office in Rhode Island. It was then they were told that terrorists had overtaken the crew of American Airlines Flight 11 and flown it into the North Tower of the Word Trade Center.

“Finally, I insisted that myself and the couple of aides that I had with me would depart the plane,” Centracchio said. 

The pilot relented but nobody else was given permission to leave for security reasons.

Members of the Minnesota National Guard picked the group of four up at the airport and brought them to their headquarters. They were shown the horrifying images of both planes hitting the World Trade Center, the wreck in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and the unimaginable devastation wrought upon the Pentagon.

Centracchio knew he needed to get back to Rhode Island quickly.

“At the same time that I served as the adjutant general, commanding general, I was also the director of Rhode Island Emergency Management,” he explains. “I was wearing several hats.”

While he knew that the state was in the capable hands of the assistant adjutant general, James Reed, “I felt anxious to get back home to learn exactly what we had to do.”

Centracchio suggested commandeering one of the Rhode Island National Guard aircraft to come pick him up but quickly learned that even military flights had been grounded.  So the crew of four from the Rhode Island National Guard borrowed a military vehicle from their counterparts in Minneapolis and began the long drive back to Rhode Island. 

“It took us about 50-some hours to do that,” he recalls. While the drive back to the Ocean State was a long and anxious one, there’s one scene imbedded in his memory.  “I can remember vividly driving just north of New York and still seeing the plumes of smoke from the Twin Towers.”

Sept. 11, 2001 changed many people’s lives, including those of the men and women who served in the National Guard.

“The [National] Guard is the only armed force in the world that has a duality to it," says Centraccio. "One is the federal mission for the President of the United States and the ability to fight a war and the second is to ensure that you have adequate support for the governor.” 

As a result of the ensuing war on terrorism, “We began to mobilize the National Guard to Iraq and Afghanistan and other places in the world. During my tenure, the entire Rhode Island National Guard was mobilized at least once from 9/11 through 2005.”

Centracchio also took on more responsibilities after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. After President George W. Bush created the Office of Homeland Security, Gov. Lincoln Almond named Centracchio the first homeland security officer for the State of Rhode Island, a job he assumed in addition to his leadership positions with the National Guard and Emergency Management. In the months that followed, he met with President Bush and made many trips between here and Washington where he represented the state in meetings at the Pentagon.

Centracchio saw many men and women join the Armed Forces as a result of the events of Sept. 11.  But now, almost two decades have elapsed since the day that changed America.

Many of today’s recruits were born after Sept. 11, 2001 — including Centracchio’ s own grandson, Luke, who will be enlisting when he graduates from high school this spring.  Many people may have no memory or faded images of that horrible day. But seeing billowing smoke rising above lower Manhattan days after the Twin Towers had collapsed is something that affected a man with more than 40 years of military experience. 

Retired Lt. Gen. Reginald Centracchio says the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks was “an eerie thing that I’ll never, ever forget.”

Calendar of events

All meetings are in person unless noted.  Please wear masks and practice social distancing.

◘ Tuesday, Family Bereavement Group, offered by the Providence VA Healthcare System. New, 10-week, virtual format now taking place Tuesdays from 1 to 2:15 p.m.  First cycle to begin tomorrow.  To participate, pre-register by calling Bill San Antonio at (401) 273-7100, x13605.

◘ Saturday, Free Winter Coat Distribution, sponsored by USA Veterans and Military Support Foundation, Ocean State Job Lot Charitable Foundation, and Operation Connect RI, 1-4 p.m., Wakefield Elementary School, 101 High Street, South Kingstown.  Registration required:  https://usa4vets.formstack.com/forms/coats4vets_southkingstown_feb13

◘ Free tax preparation assistance being offered to VA Providence Healthcare System enrollees from Feb. 16-April 15.  By appointment only.  Call (401) 273-1000, ext. 12025 for more information.

◘ Rhode Island Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) Committee, a Department of Defense program, is seeking qualified candidates for its state chair position. The three-year volunteer term will begin Oct. 1. Applicants must have demonstrated leadership in the public, private or military sectors, be available up to 15 hours per month, and possess planning, budgeting, organizational and leadership capabilities.  Applications must be submitted by March 5.  For more information, contact: riesgrvacancy@gmail.com.

Do you know a living veteran who would be willing to share their story?  Do you offer a program or service focused on serving retired military?  Are you planning an event aimed at veterans or their families?  Email Mary K. Talbot at ThoseWhoServedAmerica@gmail.com.