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Peggy Combs is an alumnus of Syracuse University and also a military veteran. You should know her story, because it’s a Syracuse University story—one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future.

Peggy (Huther) Combs was raised the eldest of four children in the tiny upstate village of Oriskany, New York. Growing up with limited means, college was not her primary ambition until a high school athletic coach, also an Army Reservist, presented the possibility. After graduating from Oriskany High School in 1981, Combs would be the first in her family to attend college, supported by a four-year ROTC scholarship at Syracuse University.

Although adjusting to life as a Syracuse Army ROTC cadet was admittedly rough at first without a strong military family tradition, Peggy adapted well. By May of 1985, she was a distinguished military graduate with a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and molecular biology and a commission in the U.S. Army as a second lieutenant.

Lieutenant Combs’ initially thought she would only serve out her initial four-year service obligation. It didn’t take long, however, for her to make a personal pact that as long as she found enjoyment and passion in her service, she would continue. That pact led to a successful 29-year (and counting) military career that includes pinning soon-to-be two stars as a general officer.

Over her career, Brigadier General (Promotable) Combs served in numerous leadership and staff positions at all levels of the U.S. Army, from tactical to strategic. Combs is also a veteran of Operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom having served as the Joint Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Operations Officer for U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) and as the Chief of Staff for the Iraq Training and Advisory Mission. She continued her education in this time too, earning advanced degrees from the University of Saint Mary in business administration and the U.S. Army War College in strategic arts.

On September 11, 2012, Peggy Combs was honored with her first star and promotion to brigadier general at Fort Leonard Wood, where she assumed the dual role as 27th chief of the U.S. Army’s chemical branch and commandant of the U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear School. But the Army had even more plans in store for her. Given her demonstrated senior leadership, in March of 2014, the U.S. Army selected Brigadier General Combs for command of Fort Knox, Kentucky and the U.S. Army Cadet Command—the first female ever to do so. She marked yet another major career milestone later this summer as she was selected for promotion to the rank of Major General.

Remarkably, Combs is the first female general officer from upstate New York and the first general with ties to Oriskany since Brigadier General Nicholas Herkimer of the Revolutionary War. But beyond her distinguished career and example set for aspiring women leaders, Combs is also a devoted military spouse and mother. Together, she and her husband and Army Colonel, Brad, have successfully raised three children through their shared journey as Army officers during a time of war. Still, BG(P) Combs’ passion for service rings clear as she once stated, “For me, soldiering is truly an affair of the heart. It really is about a love of service, a love of our country and the respect and love for our brothers-and-sisters-in-arms that serve with the same heart of service and commitment.”

Brigadier General (Promotable) Peggy Combs is an alumnus of Syracuse University and a veteran of the U.S. military. You should know her story.

 

John T. Connor is an alumnus of Syracuse University, and also a military veteran. You should know his story, because it’s a Syracuse University story—one that speaks to our past, our present, and our future.

A native of Syracuse, New York, John (“Jack”) T. Connor was born on November 3, 1914 to Michael Joseph and Mary Vivian Connor. Connor began his educational pursuits at Syracuse University in 1933. While attending Syracuse, he joined the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity and was a student manager for the football team, for which he later earned a Letter Winner of Distinction award from the Varsity Club. Conner graduated in three years in 1936 with a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree and then went on to Harvard Law School.

After law school, Mr. Connor moved to New York City to work for the law firm of Cravath, de Gersdorff, Swaine, and Wood. Connor married the former Mary O’Boyle the following year and she would stick by his side for six decades. After three years working in a New York law firm, Mr. Connor became the general counsel and researcher for the Office of Scientific Research and Development, a federal agency that conducted scientific research for the military, including finding cures for infectious diseases. His research was focused on penicillin production and procurement.

By the height of World War II in 1944, Connor was given a commission in the United States Marine Corps as a Marine air combat intelligence officer, though he mainly worked as a Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Navy, James V. Forrestal. Two years after the war, Mr. Connor entered the pharmaceutical industry and began his decade-long climb within Merck & Company, starting out as a general attorney and moving up to President and Chief Executive.

Connor entered politics in 1964 as co-chairman of the Johnson-Humphrey presidential campaign and, within a year, President Lyndon B. Johnson selected him as the 16th Secretary of Commerce. In his tenure, Connor helped settle an East Coast dock strike and a General Electric employees’ strike. Mr. Connor resigned, however, just two years into his term due his disagreement the President over the Vietnam War and its effects on the U.S. economy.

Secretary Connor returned to pharmaceuticals and became the President, Chairman, and CEO of Allied Chemical Corporation, later named Allied Signal. By the 1970s, Mr. Connor also led the Committee of Business Executives against the Vietnam War for two years and served on the Rockefeller commission that investigated CIA intelligence collection activities within the United States. After stepping down from Allied Chemical in 1979, Mr. Connor spent the next eight years as nonexecutive chairman of the New York operation of Schroders, a London-based merchant banking firm.

During his extensive career in pharmaceuticals, law, and politics, John T. Connor was one of the few who could say he was the head of two Fortune 500 companies. Mr. Connor has since passed from Leukemia at age 85 and is survived by his two sons, John and Geoffrey, and daughter Lisa.

John T. Connor is an alumnus of Syracuse University and a veteran of the U.S. military. You should know his story.