Gordon Hennessy

Colonel (Ret) A. Gordon Hennessy died peacefully at home on April 25, 2025, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Gordon is survived by his wife of sixty-three years Peggy Hennessy, sons Garrett and Tim, his two daughters-in-law, five granddaughters, brother J. Garrett Hennessy and his wife Sharon of Quincy, MA. Gordon was born on February 6, 1938, in Auburn, New York. After a few years, his family moved to Peekskill, NY. Gordon graduated from Peekskill High School. He graduated from Syracuse University in 1960. He earned an active-duty Army commission as a second lieutenant through the Reserve Officer Training Corps at Syracuse. Gordon served for twenty-six years in the Army’s Medical Service Corps. He retired as a colonel.

In Gordon’s last days he said, “Don’t list my Army awards and service ribbons, list the wonderful states where I served and where we were lucky enough to live.” Gordon started at the Medical Service Corps’ home post of Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. Gordon said, “Back then San Antonio’s River Walk was a trickle.” Gordon was stationed at Fort Benning then shipped to the 25th Infantry Division in Honolulu, Hawaii. He served in Vietnam as a company commander in the 25th Medical Battalion providing crucial support in the Tay Ninh area. His Vietnam service came full circle when he returned to Da Nang, Vietnam, in 1973 to evacuate and account for the US wounded who returned home.

Gordon would then be assigned to great places like West Point, NY, and the Army’s Presidio’s Letterman Hospital in San Francisco. The family home at West Point overlooked the Hudson River. The Presidio quarters overlooked the San Francisco Bay.

Gordon wasn’t done with hospital administration upon his Army retirement in 1985. He and Peggy moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico, to be executive officer at the University of New Mexico hospital. Then Gordon and Peggy moved in 1995 to their beloved state of New York to work as director of facilities for the Veterans Administration in Jamaica, Queens, three VA nursing homes and Roswell Park Cancer Center in Buffalo, NY. Gordon was in his element doing wonderful work and covering large swaths of the Empire state.

Gordon loved his wife, family and Medical Service Corps in that order. In Gordon’s last days, he counted himself as the “luckiest guy alive” and reminded his loved ones how he and Peggy were a “team.” He never failed to acknowledge Peggy’s strength as an Army wife during their many moves to new posts, schools, doctor appointments and activities.

He loved being mentored by Army Colonels Otterstadt, Jack lanier and Jim Van Straten. He loved mentoring younger officers like Fred McLain and Jim Soule. Gordon was one of the eleven Founding Fathers of the Silver Caduceus Society (SCS). He and Peggy attended the SCS reunions faithfully and planned on attending the society’s meeting in October 2025.

Gordon enjoyed traveling, tennis, sailing, reading, spoiling his five granddaughters, entertaining, attending The Albuquerque Rotary Club meetings and being kind to everyone he encountered.

He was treated in his last weeks at Albuquerque’s VA hospital. Even then Gordon was thanking patients for their military service and staff for their attentiveness. That was Gordon Hennessy.