© Official Site Of 555th Parachute Infantry “Triple Nickle”. 2008
555th Parachute Infantry  555th Parachute Infantry  555th Parachute Infantry 1944 - 1947 1944 - 1947 1944 - 1947 TripleNickle.com TripleNickle.com TripleNickle.com Roger Walden Roger Walden Roger Walden
Pioneering paratrooper Roger Stanley Walden was born on May 21, 1922 in Des Moines, Iowa. Attending St. Anselm's School in Chicago and Barber Intermediate School, Munger School, and Chadsey Schools in Detroit, Walden graduated from Eastern High School in 1941. A tool apprentice at Ford at the onset of World War II, Walden enlisted on December 7, 1942. Assigned to the 365th Infantry Regiment, Walden volunteered for the first black test platoon of 20 paratroopers. At Parachute School in Fort Benning, Georgia, Walden and fifteen others earned their parachute wings as the Sweet Sixteen in February of 1944, becoming the first African American paratroopers in United States military history. Promoted to sergeant in the 555th Parachute Infantry Battalion, Walden and his group were transferred to Camp Mackall, North Carolina. Walden received his commission as a second lieutenant of infantry in March of 1945 when he finished Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning. After receiving special training to combat Japanese balloon bombs at Camp Pendleton, Oregon, the 555th was soon deployed as Army fire jumpers. Shipped to Gifu, Honshu, Japan in 1949, Walden served as commander of Company A of the 24th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division of the Far East Command. In 1950, Walden as a captain commanded Company F in Pusan, Korea and he was made a Battalion S4 before being rotated back to the United States. Promoted to Major, Walden served in Europe from 1957 to 1960 with the 3rd Armored Rifle Battalion, 51st Infantry, 4th Armored Group. Earning his B.A. degree in social studies from San Francisco State University under the Army's Bootstrap Program, Walden was promoted to lieutenant colonel. He taught military science at Central State University until his retirement in 1966. Walden worked as manager of the City of Detroit's Vacant Housing Rehabilitation Program until 1984. Walden is married to Wendy Brierly and has two sons and three daughters.
During World War II, a time when segregation was still a part of everyday life, a group of 17 brave men took the plunge to serve their country and become the first all African-American paratrooper unit known as the Triple Nickles. The battalion’s original goal – to join the fight in Europe – was thwarted when military leaders in Europe feared racial tensions would disrupt operations. At about the same time, the U.S. Forest Service asked the military for help to minimize damage caused by balloon bombs launched by the Japanese across the Pacific Ocean with the intent to start forest fires in the western U.S. during World War II. In the end, few of the incendiary devices reached U.S. soil, but the Triple Nickles were instrumental in helping the Forest Service fight naturally-caused fires. They became history’s first military smokejumpers who answered 36 fire calls and made more than 1,200 jumps that summer of 1945. On Jan. 6, Lt. Col. Roger S. Walden, who passed away on Sept. 17, 2013, was remembered and given full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery. Walden holds a special place in U.S. Forest Service history. He will be remembered for his bravery, sacrifice and groundbreaking achievements in wildland firefighting. During a time of war and social prejudices, the commitment to serve his country through wildland firefighting was challenging and unique. “Lt. Col. Roger Walden was one of the original 17 test platoon members of the 555th Parachute Infantry Battalion – hence the nickname Triple Nickles – who contributed to fighting wildfires in the Pacific Northwest during World War II led by Gen. James Gavin,” said Joe Murchison, president of the 555th Parachute Infantry Association Inc. “He will be sorely missed by all who knew and loved him.” Born in Des Moines, Iowa, Walden attended schools in Des Moines and Chicago. While working at Ford Motor Company at the onset of World War II, he enlisted in the U.S. Army on Dec. 7, 1942, one year after Pearl Harbor. In 1943, at Fort Huachuca, Ariz., he volunteered for paratrooper training at Fort Benning, Ga., and received his wings in 1944. Walden was promoted to sergeant in the 555th and later completed Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning, receiving his commission as a second lieutenant in March 1945. The 555th was deployed on secret orders to become history’s first military smokejumpers, combating aerial attacks by Japanese balloon bombs across the Pacific Northwest during Operation Firefly. In honor of the paratroopers, the Forest Service recently named a conference room after the Triple Nickles in its newly renovated Yates Building, the agency’s national headquarters office in Washington, D.C. After being transferred to Fort Bragg, the 555 th became attached to the elite 82nd Airborne Division. In 1949, Walden served as commander of Company A in Gifu, Japan. He commanded Company F in Pusan, Korea, and was awarded the Silver Star for heroism during the Korean War. Walden served as a major in Giessen, West Germany, from 1957 to 1960, earned his bachelor’s degree in social studies at San Francisco State University, and was promoted to lieutenant colonel. He taught military science at Central State University in Ohio until his retirement in 1966 and then worked as manager of the City of Detroit’s Housing Rehabilitation Program until 1984. “I’m very proud of my dad’s military service,” said Rogena Ann Walden. “He certainly earned the privilege of being laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery with full honors. I’m also grateful for the example he set — he was a wonderful father.”
Pioneer African-American Sokejumper Laid to Rest at Arlington National Cemetery  Pioneer African-American Sokejumper Laid to Rest at Arlington National Cemetery  Pioneer African-American Sokejumper Laid to Rest at Arlington National Cemetery General George W. Casey Jr, former chief of staff of the Army, talks to LTC Roger Walden during a recognition ceremony at the Pentagon on March 25, 2010. (U.S. Army) An American flag is draped over Lt. Col. Roger Walden’s casket at Arlington National Ceremony.  (Stefani Walden)
Processional for LTC Roger Walden at Arlington National Cemetery. (Donna Sinclair)
By Deidra McGee, Office of Communication, U.S. Forest Service