Photo by Spc. Emilie Sheridan, 196th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment
Ohio Army National Guard members gathered earlier this year at the Ronald McDonald House in Columbus, Ohio for the permanent dedication of the “CW3 Emmanuel ‘Manny’ Kidd” room, in honor of the late Chief Warrant Officer 3 Emmanuel Kidd, who died of cancer in 2015. For the past few years, each OHARNG Warrant Officer Candidate School class has raised money for the annual adoption of a room in Kidd’s name, and this year’s class raised enough funds for a permanent adoption.
Room at Ronald McDonald House permanently dedicated to former Soldier
Story by Spc. Emilie Sheridan, 196th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment
COLUMBUS, Ohio (06/20/19)
A red ribbon was strung across the door of a room at the Columbus Ronald McDonald House while more than a dozen current and former Ohio Army National Guard members waited for the permanent dedication of a room there in honor of Chief Warrant Officer 3 Emmanuel “Manny” Kidd.
As the ceremony unfolded, Kidd’s widow, Priscilla, and Col. Daniel Shank, Ohio assistant adjutant for Army, cut the ribbon to symbolize the permanent adoption of the “CW3 Emmanuel ‘Manny’ Kidd” room, which had previously been dedicated in his name every year since 2015.
Chief Kidd, formerly the Warrant Officer Candidate School (WOCS) course manager and TAC (training, advising and counselling) officer for Headquarters, 2nd Battalion, 147th Regiment (Regional Training Institute), located at the Defense Supply Center Columbus, died of cancer in January 2015. Since then, each WOCS class had raised money for the annual adoption of a room in his name, and this year’s class raised enough funds for a permanent adoption. Through diligent fundraising efforts during off-duty hours and generous external donations, they raised $10,000 this year.
“It’s a wonderful thing that the National Guard is doing,” Priscilla Kidd said. “This gives people a more personal vision of what the National Guard actually does on the homefront versus abroad.”
Chief Warrant Officer 3 Paul Pitzer, the WOCS course manager for the Ohio Army National Guard, said the room will serve as a reminder of the spirit and dedication that Kidd embodied.
“He always had a smile on his face, and he was an upbeat person,” Pitzer said, “but he could also be the stern mentor that he needed to be for his warrant officer candidates.”
Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Ohio provides low-cost or free housing daily to about 100 families of seriously ill children while they are in the hospital.
Priscilla Kidd, widow of Chief Warrant Officer 3 Emmanuel Kidd, and Col. Daniel Shank, Ohio assistant adjutant general for Army, cut the ribbon to symbolize the permanent dedication of the “CW3 Emmanuel ‘Manny’ Kidd” room at the Ronald McDonald House in Columbus, Ohio.
Priscilla Kidd, widow of Chief Warrant Officer 3 Emmanuel Kidd, and Col. Daniel Shank, Ohio assistant adjutant general for Army, smile after the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Chief Warrant Officer 3 Paul Pitzer, the Warrant Officer Candidate School course manager for the Ohio Army National Guard, addresses attendees at the “CW3 Emmanuel ‘Manny’ Kidd” room dedication ceremony.
Chief Warrant Officer 5 Jay Stuckman, Ohio Army National Guard state command chief warrant officer, addresses attendees at the “CW3 Emmanuel ‘Manny’ Kidd” room dedication ceremony.
Photos by Staff Sgt. Michael Carden, Ohio National Guard Public Affairs