Mr Edwin "Ed" Lothair Arnold, Sr.

Edwin "Ed" Lothair Arnold, 83, a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) retiree, died Nov.14 in his sleep in Alexandria, Virginia, the place he called home for more than 52 years.

Mr. Arnold was a United States Marine Corps veteran from the Korean conflict where he served as 1st Lt. with the First Marine Division during 1953 and 1954. In 1960, he moved from Memphis Tennessee to Washington with his wife and daughter to serve as Administrative Assistant to then Indiana Congressman Ralph Harvey. Subsequently, in 1966, he joined the Veterans Administration where he championed veterans rights throughout Executive and Legislative branches of the Government. For more then 26 years, Mr. Arnold held a number of managerial positions, which also accompanied and contributed to the transformation of the independent government agency of the Veterans Administration into the existing Cabinet-level Department of Veterans Affairs.

Mr. Arnold will always be remembered as a champion for America's veterans. Throughout his career, he has forcefully advocated for all of America's Veterans, Patriots, and Heroes. Upon his retirement, he had the primary responsibility of serving as the Veterans Administration's principal point of contact in dealing with the various Veterans Service Organizations and Community Leaders across the United States.

Ed Arnold graduated from Franklin College, Indiana, in 1952 and was a proud member of the Phi Delta Theta Fraternity Alumni. Many will remember Ed as a scratch golfer; a sport he mastered since before a teen and up through to college level. Many in his Army Navy Country Club will miss Ed as a strong and professional player.

Mr. Arnold joins his wife of 48 years, Mrs. Mary Miller Arnold, who passed away in 2006, and is survived by his two children, Mary Elizabeth Arnold and Edwin Arnold Jr.