Salute to veterans: Wayne Wallingford, Seth McKee, Charles Weber make Missouri Vets HOF

Three local men, including a current state official, were among seven people inducted Friday, Oct. 27, as the 2023 class of Missouri Veterans Hall of Fame.

The induction ceremony was held in the rotunda of the Missouri State Capitol building in Jefferson City.

Local honorees

Retired Lt. Col. Wayne Wallingford of Cape Girardeau is one of seven people named to Missouri Veterans Hall of Fame's class of 2023. Wallingford is the current director of the Missouri Department of Revenue.Southeast Missourian file

Retired Lt. Col. Wayne Wallingford of Cape Girardeau is one of seven people named to Missouri Veterans Hall of Fame's class of 2023. Wallingford is the current director of the Missouri Department of Revenue.Southeast Missourian file

Retired Lt. Col. Albert "Wayne" Wallingford of Cape Girardeau, Missouri's state revenue director and former Missouri legislator, served in the Air Force from 1968 to 1993 as a navigator and electronic warfare officer.

Wallingford, 77, told the Southeast Missourian it came as "a total surprise" to be notified of the achievement.

"When Air Force Maj. Gen. Cassie Strom called me to tell me I'd been selected, I was floored," said Wallingford, who had service in Vietnam and in Operation Desert Storm and Desert Shield.

According to biographical information prepared by event organizers, Wallingford flew on more than 300 combat missions in five tours of duty in Vietnam; he also pulled six tours of duty in the Middle East.

Active in legislative efforts to improve benefits and programs for fellow veterans, Wallingford served 10 years in the state Legislature before being appointed director of the state Department of Revenue on Dec. 29, 2021.

Wallingford acted as emcee for all previous Hall of Fame inductions dating back to their inception.

"(Friday) was the fourth of these Hall of Fame inductions and, ironically, I was master of ceremonies for the first three in 2020, 2021 and 2022. I've sort of felt like Bob Hope at these (previous) events — being a presenter but not a recipient — announcing the winners and reading their biographies. I've been fine with that. It's a true honor to be chosen alongside the other recipients this year," he said.

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Gen. Seth McKee, a Cape Central graduate seen in this Aug. 22, 1973, photo, has been named to the 2023 class of Missouri Veterans Hall of Fame. McKee died in 2016 at age 100.Southeast Missourian file

Gen. Seth McKee, a Cape Central graduate seen in this Aug. 22, 1973, photo, has been named to the 2023 class of Missouri Veterans Hall of Fame. McKee died in 2016 at age 100.Southeast Missourian file

Gen. Seth McKee was a 1934 Cape Central High School graduate who attended Southeast Missouri State University and who died in 2016 at age 100,

McKee earned four general stars during his 38-year military career in Missouri Army National Guard, Army Air Corps and Air Force.

After completing flight training in 1939, McKee logged more than 190 hours flying 39 World War II combat missions in a P-38 Lightning and was among the pilots who provided air cover for ground forces who invaded Normandy on D-Day, June 6, 1944.

Among McKee's leadership roles was as commander of North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, prior to his 1973 retirement.

McKee's likeness was added to the Missouri Wall of Fame at Cape Girardeau's riverfront in 2017.

He is the subject of a book, "Seth: The Life and Journey of General Seth Jefferson McKee", written by Jerry Ford and Frank Nickell.

McKee was named an honorary inductee to the Hall of Fame.

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Charles WeberCourtesy Perry County Lutheran Historical Society

Charles WeberCourtesy Perry County Lutheran Historical Society

Capt. Charles Weber, who emigrated with his family from Germany to Perry County, Missouri, served in the Union Army during the Civil War, becoming Perryville's first mayor.

Enlisting in 1861, Weber organized Company G 4th Regiment Missouri and was elected captain by his peers.

Vocationally, Weber was a county clerk and probate judge. At his death in 1906, the local newspaper wrote of him, "This was the closing scene in the life of a good man of whom it can be said the world is better by him having lived in it."

Weber, according to historical accounts, helped form Perryville Difani Post No. 273 of the Grand Army of the Republic, which functioned as a "powerful lobby" for veteran interests.

In civilian life, Weber was said to have used his roles to guard the interests of widows and orphans and to help secure pensions for war veterans.

Other inductees

• Ray A. Carver, Army, World War II, from Pierce City;
• Johnny J. Glenn Jr., Marine Corps, Vietnam, from St. Louis.
• Lowry A. Finley-Jackson, Army, completed tours in Korea and Europe, from St. Louis. Finley-Jackson was this year's only female inductee.
• Nolan Randal Moody, Marine Corps, Vietnam, from Springfield.

For information about nominating someone for the 2024 class of the Missouri Veterans Hall of Fame, visit www.mvhof.org or email missourihalloffame@gmail.com.

According to MVHOF, inductees require a Missouri connection plus honorable military service and must have contributed exceptionally to the community, the state and/or the nation.