Foundation Trustee Skip Palmer dies at 72

Foundation trustee Harold “Skip” Palmer participates in a leadership panel June 22, 2017, in Kansas City as part of the Foundation’s “Art of War Initiative.”

Skip Palmer, left, with his team in the 2012 CGSC Foundation golf tournament.

Skip Palmer, second from left, at the Foundation’s April 2016 outreach event in Kansas City. From left, CEO Doug Tystad, Palmer, Trustee Mike Meyer, and Trustee John Robinson.

Skip Palmer, right, with Trustee Mike Meyer, left, and friend at an Art of War reception in June 2017.

Long time CGSC Foundation trustee Harold “Skip” Palmer II, died Aug. 31, 2017, at the young age of 72. Skip fought a valiant fight against cancer and was an inspiration to everyone around him.

Skip had served on the CGSC Foundation Board of Trustees since Dec. 20, 2010. He was elected as secretary of the board June 10, 2013. On Aug. 29, 2017, he was elected as “Trustee Emeritus” during the Foundation’s annual board meeting in which he was also honored with remarks from the outgoing chairman, Lt. Gen. (Ret.) John Miller, and a moment of silence and prayer as he fought his last days.

Harold Barr (Skip) Palmer was born in Portland, Oregon, to Captain (U.S. Navy) and Mrs. Palmer in 1944. He attended the New Mexico Military Institute from 1963-1965. He subsequently attended the University of Arizona, receiving a bachelor’s in business and graduating as a Distinguished Military Graduate from the senior ROTC program and accepting a regular Army commission as a second lieutenant in the armor branch of the U.S. Army in 1967. His assignments included Fort Knox, Ky. (Armor Officer Basic School); Fort Carson, Colo. (4/12th Armored Cavalry Squadron); Fort Sheridan, Panama Canal Zone (Jungle Operations); War Zone C, South Vietnam (2nd Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment) and the staff of General William Westmoreland (Army Speakers Program). His decorations include the Silver Star, Bronze Star, two awards of the Purple Heart, Air Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry and others.

Upon receiving an honorable discharge from the Army and returning to civilian life, Skip joined Walt Disney corporation in 1970 where he served as Manager of Tomorrowland at Walt Disney World; General Manager of Disney’s Golf Resort and Hotel (now Shades of Green), and finally as director of operations for the Disney Corporation in Anaheim, Calif. In 1980, he formed the Palmer Company which eventually became Blackhorse Worldwide. The company employs veterans as project managers serving a diverse range of developments around the world. One of Skip’s passions was simulations and he was involved in development of numerous simulations for the military.

Also during his career, at the request of H. Ross Perot, Skip served as the executive director of “Welcome Home: A Tribute to Vietnam Veterans.” He was a member of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, the Blackhorse Association, the American Legion and a founding member of both the Disneyland Alumni Association and the International Themed Entertainment Association. He was inducted into the New Mexico Military Institute Hall of Fame in 2013. Skip was also an active member of the Overland Park Rotary Club and the board of directors of the CGSC Foundation.

Skip is survived by his wife Linda, their two children Scott and Kimberly, and grandchildren.

Editor’s Note: Services and interment will be held at Arlington National Cemetery; the date yet to be determined.

Read Skip’s obituary published in the Kansas City Star