Erwin Herbert Schiff – Colonel, United States Army

Erwin Herbert Schiff, 84, an Army Colonel who later became a military aide-de-camp to the governor of Virginia, died of cardiomyopathy August 15, 2008, at Inova Alexandria Hospital, Virginia.

A quartermaster and veteran of two tours in Vietnam, Colonel Schiff in retirement was named by then-Virginia Governor Mark Warner as a military aide-de-camp, which carries the honorary rank of Brigadier General.

Colonel Schiff was born in Brooklyn, New York, and volunteered for the Army at 18. He served during World War II in the Pacific, becoming a quartermaster, a specialist in supplying and provisioning troops.

In the late 1950s, he served in Japan as the technical adviser for the armed services in the Far East and operations officer for the largest military petroleum facilities in Europe and the Far East.

After graduation from Command and General Staff College in 1960, he was an instructor at Fort Lee in Virginia. He graduated from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and served a tour in Vietnam in 1965.

Two years later, he worked in the Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff as air munitions officer until 1969, when he received his master’s degree in personnel administration from George Washington University.

Colonel Schiff retired from active duty in 1977 and became director for procurement operations for what became the National Defense Industrial Association. He retired from the association in 1998.

Among his military honors were two Legion of Merit awards and three Bronze Stars. He volunteered with the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Survivors include his wife of 57 years, Charlene Schiff of Alexandria; a son, Dr. Stephen F. Schiff of Barrington, Rhode Island; a sister; and two grandchildren.

ERWIN H. SCHIFF (Colonel United States Army (Retired) On Friday, August 15, 2008 of Alexandria, Virginia. Beloved husband of Charlene Schiff; loving father of Stephen F. Schiff and his wife, Sharon Perry Schiff; brother of Hannah Van Wart; proud grandfather of Perry Tyler and Morgan Daniel.

Funeral service will be held at Congregation Agudas Achim, 2908 Valley Dr., Alexandria, Virginia, on Wednesday, August 20 at 10:30 a.m. Interment Arlington National Cemetery Friday, October 31, 2008, at 1 p.m. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Schiff Holocaust Memorial Fund, c/o Congregation Agudas Achim or the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.

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