Longest-Serving General And African American Retires

Photo: Maj. Gen. Alfred Flowers

Defense Dept.’s Longest-Serving General And African American Retires -- Washington Post

When Al Flowers was born, his grandmother brought him home in a shoe box and sat all night by the wood stove to keep him warm.

When he was 10, he went to the tobacco fields with the adults, “cropping” leaves by hand and dumping them in a cart drawn by two gray mules.

He lived in a tin roof house with no running water and bathed in a No. 10 washtub.

Coming of age, he thought: There must be something more.

There was.

This month, Maj. Gen. Alfred K. Flowers, 63, retires from the U.S. Air Force as the military’s longest-serving active-duty general.

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Update: DOD's longest-serving general retires after 46 years -- Stars and Stripes

My Comment: He must have some great stories to tell for his 46 years of service.