Earlier versions of this obituary for Lawrence Franklin Skibbie incorrectly reported his military rank. He was a lieutenant general. This version has been corrected.
Obituaries
Obituaries
Thursday, January 4, 2007; 11:00 AM
Lawrence Franklin SkibbieArmy Officer
Lawrence Franklin Skibbie, 74, a retired Army lieutenant general whose assignments included deputy commander for research, development and acquisition of the Army Materiel Command, died Dec. 10 at his home in Arlington County. He had cancer.
Gen. Skibbie, who was born in Bowling Green, Ohio, graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., in 1954 and received a master's degree in mechanical engineering from New Mexico State University in 1961.
He also attended the Command and General Staff College, the Industrial College of the Armed Forces and artillery and ordnance schools.
Gen. Skibbie held a variety of command and staff positions during his 33-year military career, including commanding general of the Army Communications-Electronics Command in Fort Monmouth, N.J., commander of the Rock Island Arsenal in Illinois and associate professor of ordnance engineering at West Point.
In 1968 and 1969, he served in the Vietnam War as commander of the 63rd Maintenance Battalion.
His military decorations included two awards of the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star and four awards of the Meritorious Service Medal.
Gen. Skibbie retired from active military duty in 1987. He then became president and chief executive of the American Defense Preparedness Association, as well as its successor organization, the National Defense Industrial Association.
He retired again in 2001 and focused on volunteer work, including as vice president of the National Military Family Association, which advocates for military families.
He was a member of the board of defense industry firms, the Boy Scouts of America, the National Science Center and the Easter Seal Society.
He was a member of the Washington Institute of Foreign Affairs, an inductee of the Army Ordnance Corps Hall of Fame and a parishioner of Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Alexandria.
His pastimes included gardening and tennis.
Survivors include his wife of 52 years, Nancy Joan Skibbie of Arlington; four children, Dana Best of Wheaton, Michael Skibbie of Hopkinton, N.H., David Skibbie of Takoma Park and Mark Skibbie of Bethesda; a brother; and six grandchildren.
