George Edward Loikow – Sergeant Major, United States Army

Courtesy of the Military Order of the World Wars:

Sergeant Major (SGM) George Edward Loikow, 93, who served Military Order of the World Wars for 19 years, as the Chief Administrative Officer, died in Fairfax, Virginia, Saturday, September 22, 2001, of a heart attack. He lived in Falls Church, Virginia. He had retired from MOWW in 1988 at the age of 80.

Sergeant Major Loikow was the United States Army’s last World War II glider serviceman to leave active duty and the first enlisted man to serve as Administrative Assistant to the Chief of Staff of the Army. Loikow was the Chief Noncommissioned Officer (NCO) to three successive Army Chiefs of Staff and served as acting Sergeant Major of the Army pending formal establishment of that office in 1967 at Loikow’s suggestion. In 1968, at age 60, he retired from the Army.

George Edward Loikow enlisted in the United States Army in 1924 at the age of 16. He served in the Army until 1929 at which time he was discharged so he could assist his father in a delicatessen business in New Jersey. After Pearl Harbor, he reenlisted in the Army. In April 1943, he transferred to the Headquarters of the 69th Infantry Division to become Division Sergeant Major at Camp Shelby, Mississippi. Following this assignment he was transferred to the newly created First Allied Airborne Army in Europe. He participated in airborne operations until VE day. Loikow spent the last eight years of his Army service as the Chief NCO to the Chief of Staff of the Army. For his service in the Army, Loikow received the Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster and Bronze Star along with numerous additional U.S. and foreign decorations.

Loikow was a member of the Fighting 69th Infantry Division Association and, although not an officer, a Special Companion in the MOWW, a special status awarded specifically to him in recognition of his many contributions to the Order.

Sergeant Major Loikow is survived by his wife of 54 years, Frances Darby Loikow of Falls Church, Virginia; his son, John Darby Loikow and his granddaughter, Elizabeth Darby Hume Loikow, both of Washington, D.C.

He was buried in Arlington Cemetery with full military honors.

Contributions can be made to the “George E. Loikow Memorial Fund of the MOWW” and should be sent to the Military Order of the World Wars, 435 N. Lee Street, Alexandria, Virginia 22314.

Michael Robert Patterson

Michael Robert Patterson was born in Arlington and is the son of a former officer of the US Army. So it was no wonder that sooner or later his interests drew him to American history and especially to American military history. Many of his articles can be found on renowned portals like the New York Times, Washingtonpost or Wikipedia.

Reviewed by: Michael Howard