Colonel Cecil Floyd Hunnicutt, (US Army, Ret.)

Colonel Cecil Floyd Hunnicutt, (US Army, Ret.), 96, of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, husband of Ruth Craig Hunnicutt died Thursday, February 14, 2013. The relatives and friends of Colonel Cecil Hunnicutt are invited to attend his Funeral Service on Sunday, February 17, 2013 in J. HENRY STUHR, INC., MOUNT PLEASANT CHAPEL at 1:00 pm. Entombment will follow in Mount Pleasant Memorial Gardens. The family will receive friends at the Mount Pleasant Chapel on Saturday, February 16, 2013 from 5:00 until 7:00 pm.

Colonel Hunnicutt was born on a farm near Seneca, SC on April 24, 1916, the seventh of eleven children of Oscar and Beatrice Fredericks Hunnicutt. He graduated from Seneca High School, where he played football and was voted "Best All Around" in his senior year. He entered into the US Army in May of 1941, at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, and by 1943 was a student at the Tank Destroyer Officer Candidate School in Fort Hood, Texas. Graduating as a new 2nd Lieutenant, he was assigned to the 702 Tank Destroyer Battalion, which joined the 2nd Armored Division in England, and on to France, arriving several days after D Day. They swept through Northern France, Belgium, and Holland, where he received his first Purple Heart, and on to fight on the Siegfried Line and the Battle of the Roer Plain. On Christmas day, after a night move to Belgium, Lieutenant Hunnicutt was one of 10,000 troops that attacked Germany's best Panzer Division, which was eliminated in three days. He received his second Purple Heart and a Silver Star for his actions there, in the Battle of the Bulge. After the Bulge, the Division fought in the Roer Pocket, and crossed the Elk River and assisted in the capture of Magdeberg, the last combat seen in the war by the 702 Divisions. At the end of World War II, 1st Lieutenant Hunnicutt was selected as the Honor Guard Commander at the Potsdam Conference. Back in the United States, Lt. Hunnicutt was requested to remain on active duty and did so. He was assigned to Ft. Knox, Kentucky where he met the love of his life, Ruth Craig, of Shelbyville. They were married on April 27, 1946, and celebrated 66 years of marriage. He was a graduate of many military schools and courses including the Infantry School, Command and General Staff College, and Army War College. He was a Senior Parachutist, and a Mason. In 1953, he was assigned to Korea, where he commanded an Infantry Battalion, and after numerous duties, he was assigned to Vietnam where he served for 22 months as Senior Advisor to the National Training Center, and advisor to the RVN 25th Infantry Division. It was while in Vietnam that Colonel Hunnicutt received his third Purple Heart. His last Tour of Duty was Senior Advisor to the SC National Guard, where he was awarded the SC Meritorious Service Medal for his job performance. He retired at Fort Jackson, SC in 1971, after serving the Army for 30 years and 4 months.

Colonel Hunnicutt is survived by his wife, Ruth Craig Hunnicutt; a son, Lee Hunnicutt and his wife, Susan Mayfield Hunnicutt, a son, Edward Hunnicutt and his wife, Cathy Gaughan Hunnicutt and their children, Jennifer, Sarah, and Matthew; and one sister Mildred St. John of Jacksonville, FL.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations to a charity of one's choice.