Big Heroes Can Come in Tiny Packages

Recollections of Sharon Swartworth, a five-foot-two giant

By CW5 (Retired) Jim Steddum

October 1, 2023 | Warrant Officer Journal, October-December 2023 Edition

Read Time: < 19 mins

In 2013, I had the honor of authoring an article for the Warrant Officers Association’s Newsliner about a remembrance ceremony held at the Warrant Officer Career College honoring Chief Warrant Officer Five (CW5) Sharon Therese Swartworth in the tenth year following her tragic death (Steddum, 2013).CW5 Swartworth was the 6th Chief Warrant Officer of the Judge Advocate General’s Corps (JAG CWOC), the first female CW5 in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps, and the most highly decorated warrant officer in the Regiment (Borch, 2020). Tragically, CW5 Swartworth died by enemy fire along with Regimental Sergeant Major Cornell Gilmore and four aircrew members from the 5th Battalion, 101st Aviation Brigade while flying near Tikrit, Iraq, on November 7, 2003 (GlobalSecurity. org, 2003). The remembrance ceremony was as somber as the day I learned she died; I remember both vividly. The difference was the feeling of honor and pride of knowing her versus the pain and grief in the days and months after her death. Now, in the twentieth year, we still remember—we will never forget.

As officers and noncommissioned officers age, few still serving knew her or Sergeant Major Cornell Gilmore. However, her legacy lives on through “Lore of the Corps” and named buildings, rooms, and awards. Retirees that aspire to reach her level of character, competence, and commitment continue her legacy by sharing their stories about her. She “made friends and brightened the lives of everyone she met” (Wigglesworth, 2013). Based on an interview with CW5(ret) Ron Prescott, the 11th JAG CWOC, I realized I was the last JAG CWOC to have served as a warrant officer with CW5 Swartworth (Prescott, 2023).

Fig 1 CW5 Sharon T. Swartworth

Recollections of Sharon’s Career

CW2 Donnie Hughes was tasked to travel to Salt Lake City and meet with CW3 Mitch Ford from the Army JAG School and Specialist 6 Sharon Mayo to create a 30-hour criminal law and law office management training for U.S. Army Reserve Legal Administrators.

When I got there on Sunday afternoon, I met Sharon and Mitch. He said, ‘Congrats, you two must put together a 30-hour block of instruction for reserve JA warrant officers.’ I looked at Sharon, and she looked at me and said, ‘Let’s get it done!’ We stayed until almost four in the morning, xeroxing information and preparing to teach. The course went great and finished on Friday afternoon—we celebrated. It was a great introduction to Sharon and her truly professional work ethic! She did not hesitate to get it done. Later, when we worked at the Pentagon together, we would run to the Capital or the US Supreme Court. She always said, ‘Come on, Donnie, you can make it!’ I used to be a marathon runner, yet I found myself trying to keep up with her. I mean, seriously, Sharon slid into home plate at the first Legal Administrator softball game in Charlottesville. I had to find some salve from my wife so Sharon could put it on her hip (Hughes, 2023).

CW5(ret) Charlie Hooah Poulton first met Specialist 6 Mayo while on temporary duty as an instructor at the first Judge Advocate Warrant Officer Basic Course at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana, in 1983. She was a new legal clerk, having reclassified from personnel specialist in 1982. She was eager to become a warrant officer and wanted to receive guidance from CW2 Poulton. He was in the middle of a long run when she pulled up next to him in a Corvette and asked to talk with him. He said he had five more miles, and she was welcome to join him. She pulled over and ran the remainder of the five miles as they discussed what she would need to do to become a warrant officer (Poulton, 2023). CW5(ret) Roger Schill first met Sergeant First Class Sharon T. Mayo, US Army Reserve, when she attended a legal clerk training course hosted by the US Military Academy Staff Judge Advocate to educate legal clerks on the changes to the Uniform Code of Military Justice of 1984. As a young CW2, Roger Schill recognized her “outstanding” work during the course and the “bright future ahead of her in the JAG Corps” (Schill, 2023). The Judge Advocate General appointed SFC Sharon Mayo as a Chief Warrant Officer Two in June 1985 (Carter, Judge Advocate Warrant Officer Chronicles, Volume I, 2018). Roger goes on to say:

Fig 2 CW5 Poulton and CW5 Swartworth

Soldier, Mentor, Mother, Innovator, Friend, and Pioneer. These are but a few titles that come to mind when I think of CW5 Sharon Swartworth. She was all of those and much more. She was a shining light that illuminated the path that led the Judge Advocate General’s Corps Warrant Officers to become force multipliers and experts in automation and technology that supported garrison operations and extended to the ever-evolving battlefield. She fought the budget battles at the highest levels to ensure funds were available to train JAG Corps Warrant Officers and ensure they remained technically proficient. Sharon loved the Army and particularly her JAG Corps Brothers and Sisters. She spent her last hours with those brothers and sisters while visiting in a hostile fire environment (Schill, 2023). Both Roger Schill and Charlie Poulton are Vietnam veterans and best of friends and neighbors to this day. They both mentored and looked out for Sharon throughout her career.

CW2 Sharon Mayo served as a Training, Advising, and Counseling Officer at Fort McCoy between 1985 and 1987. The Deputy Commandant during her assignment was CW5 Al Flores. CW4 Charlie Poulton worked for CW5 Flores when Charlie was the Commander of the 2nd Warrant Officer Company (now Headquarters and Headquarters Company, US Army Warrant Officer Career College). CW5 Flores told Charlie that CW2 Mayo was “the best he had ever seen” (Poulton, 2023). CW4 Joe Ecozque was the first JAG CWOC. He served in this position from 1987 to 1990. Joe remembers meeting Sharon at the first Legal Administrator conference in San Rafael, California, in 1988. She was a USAR Legal Administrator and wanted to go on to Active Duty. Joe remembers her as “engaged, interactive, and she asked good questions and brought up good points” (Ecozque, 2023). And despite creating some “Lore of the Corps” while in San Rafael, CW2 Swartworth converted from the US Army Reserve to the Regular Army with the help of the 2nd JAG CWOC, CW3 Luther Runyon, in 1991 (Runyon, 2019).

Fig 3 CW2 Swartworth, TAC Officer

Sharon married Captain (Dr.) William J. Swartworth, MD, US Navy, on Valentine’s Day in 1990 in Fairfax, Virginia. Soon after, she worked for the Legal Assistance Task Force/Operation Desert Storm, Office of the Judge Advocate General, Pentagon. After an assignment at the Presidio of Monterrey, California, she returned to Northern Virginia for several assignments, including her last as the Chief Warrant Officer of the JAG Corps, Headquarters, Department of the Army that began in 1999.

In addition, with her vibrant personality and tenaciousness, she inspired key Warrant Officers across all branches to embrace a united voice. This comprehensive, collective endeavor facilitated an unprecedented charter of the former Warrant Officer Leader Development Council (TJAGLCS, 2004). CW5 Swartworth spearheaded an educational redesign for Legal Administrators attending their Warrant Officer Basic and Advanced Courses by blending attorneys and paralegals into the courses. She furthered the effort to build cohesive leadership by advocating the “Foundation of Four” concept within the legal community. This initiative placed a leadership and management emphasis on the Legal Administrator without degrading legal technology services (Steddum, 2013).

CW5(ret) Michael Lanoue remembers Sharon as a “Soldier First” and always scored “300, or more, on all of her PT tests” (Lanoue, 2023). CW5 Lanoue offered CW3 Swartworth the position of running the Office of the Judge Advocate General, Information Technology Department. She told Michael that she did not know if she could do it. “Knowing Sharon as I did, I told her that she would be great at the job and that anything she didn’t know, she would learn,” Michael recalls. He said she forged relationships in the legal information technology industry that still exists today (Lanoue, 2023)!

Chief Warrant Officer Five Scott Higdon, the 9th JAG CWOC, recounted:

During our basic course, we rode in an SUV from Charlottesville to DC for her to show us around the leadership of the JAG Corps and expose us to a part of the leadership we had yet to see. It was a great introduction to our new leadership role. She also spearheaded the effort to have the legal administrators certified by hosting a Microsoft boot camp in Charlottesville. That created a solid foundation for us in managing our offices and paid huge dividends throughout our careers. It opened different areas of expertise we could apply to our offices. During that time, it was critical, as the current Army IT infrastructure needed to be there. A lot fell to individual offices to plan, execute, and maintain the computer systems at each SJA office. She created a position for me to work at the US Army Recruiting Office as a Warrant Officer Recruiter for the Army. This position soon became the branch manager and boards manager for all Officer/Warrant Officers ‘off the street’ and in-service accession boards. Because of her efforts, I was the first and only JAG Warrant Officer to have held this position. This could not have happened without her influence and leadership (Higdon, CW5(ret), 9th JAG CWOC, 2023).

CW5 Richard Johnson served as the 8th JAG CWOC. When Sharon died, he served as the senior Legal Administrator of TJAG’s Legal Center and School (currently known as the Command Chief Warrant Officer, TJAGLCS). Staff Sergeant Johnson first worked with Sharon while CW3 Swartworth was the Director of Legal Automation Army Wide Systems (LAAWS), US Army Legal Services Agency, Ballston, Virginia. SSG Johnson was planning to ETS, but Sharon convinced him to apply for Warrant Officer despite others opining he was too junior. Rick eventually succeeded Sharon at LAAWS and eventually as a JAG CWOC. Rick recounts:

Sharon Challenged everyone to exceed standards, and it was not a cliché. I recall so many leaders that made decisions on improving the JAGC and the Army, but very few of the entire scope of what that meant. Sharon invested in training when the JAGC was pivoting to support the IT role that Legal Administrators assumed. Ironically, there was pushback. Some believe we should stay focused on office administration. I recall many strategic goals during the annual leadership offsites that had no chance of success. I cannot recall one that the Legal Administrators did not meet because of her planning, investment in training, and knowledge sharing. Why is this so important? Just think about the customer we support and the expectations that are set so high. I do not know if lawyers know how intimidating and humbling it is to work for them. Sharon knew this from her experience in the private sector and during her role in such a critical time in our Nation. She was an individual that knew how powerful knowledge was through training and peer conferences. She set the tone of the JAGC’s early path into knowledge management. No disrespect to my fellow legal administrators; no one had a greater impact on the JAGC and the future of warrant officers than Sharon Swartworth. Strength in knowledge and the application of it in the right moment with the right people was her gift (Johnson, 2023).

CW5 Tammy Richmond, 12th JAG CWOC, was inspired by CW5 Swartworth during an Article 6 inspection. Sharon recognized talent, visualized a career path, and that young soldier grew up to follow the path Sharon could see before we could even imagine it. CW5 Richmond recounts:

MSG Jeff Frantz, my CPNCO in Alaska, was the one that pushed me to be a LA. I was not interested at the time. During the Article 6 inspection, MSG Frantz had arranged, unknown to me, to have CW5 Swartworth talk to me—one of the best interactions ever. As a Specialist (E4), I knew she cared about the JAGC and the WO Corps, but I could also tell she cared about me and what I wanted to do. It was already within six months of packets being due, and I had started nothing, but she had me thinking I might be able to do the job. She was honest and told me she expected to see my packet that year. She also told me that I would not be selected. Her goal was to target younger enlisted Soldiers, and she wanted to get them in front of the board. She said I would not be as competitive in my first year because of my experience (an E4 with four years in service). She promised that my waivers would be approved and my packet would be boarded. Then, she talked to me about preparing for my second packet. I had not even decided on the first one, and she was already planning my path. She was an absolute force and knew how to inspire and motivate. My CPNCO made me submit my packet that year. Sharon was right, and I was not selected the first time. I did not submit it in 2003 because I was due to give birth in November and did not think it was great timing. Sharon was killed in November 2003, and I submitted my second packet in 2004. It worked out just like she said it would (Richmond, 2023).

Author’s Experience

CW4 Swartworth visited Tripler Army Medical Center office during an inspection under Article 6, Uniform Code of Military Justice, in 1998 when I was a Staff Sergeant. Lieutenant Colonel Rose Anderson, my officer-in-charge, began mentoring me toward the warrant officer path shortly after Sharon’s visit. But it was Sharon’s contagious energy and deep understanding of everything inspired me to consider becoming a warrant officer. I finally applied, and the JAG Corps selected me for candidacy in 2000.

As a young Chief Warrant Officer Two, serving as a proponent officer, I worked indirectly for CW5 Swartworth at the Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center and School, Charlottesville, Virginia (with CW5 Rick Johnson). I vividly remember hearing that her black hawk was shot down near Tikrit on November 7, 2003. My colleagues and I waited impatiently for the official word, which did not come until late afternoon. We all went through the stages of grief—starting with denial and quickly escalating to anger. The loss of two senior leaders and their aircrew and the near loss of the entire JAG Corps foundation shook us to the core.

While attending the Warrant Officer Candidate School, I learned that my father was rapidly dying from cancer. My primary TAC Officer, CW3 Grant Haken, allowed me to talk with him over a government telephone in his final days. My father told me he wanted me to complete my training. I knew that if I left, I would not want to come back to training. When he passed, CW3 Haken strongly urged me to attend the funeral. I was not getting far in the argument to stay in training, so I asked the Fort Rucker Legal Administrator, CW2 Debbie Martin, to call CW5 Swartworth for help. Sharon did not hesitate. She called the Deputy Commandant and immediately flew to Fort Rucker to ensure I could stay in training. Then, she came back for the class reception and graduation. I remember my eight other JAG classmates and I had dinner with her the night before graduation. She was larger than life—we were all star-struck! Because of her action, I am now a [retired] warrant officer and proudly followed her as a CWOC.

CW5 Swartworth gave me a personal tour of the Pentagon about three weeks before she died. This was my last interaction with Sharon. I was extremely impressed by her knowledge of the history of “the building” and all the people she knew from every part of the Army and beyond. Her sadness about September 11, 2001, was humbling as she led me on a tour of the Pentagon and the 9/11 Memorial Chapel. Reflecting on her post-9/11 memories, CW5 Swartworth said she was preparing to move the Office of The Judge Advocate General into a new space in the Pentagon. The Army G1, Lieutenant General Maude, decided to delay the move by two weeks just before the attack that destroyed the space she would occupy. Unfortunately, LTG Maude died in the attack. Sharon received an exception to policy to serve as the Casualty Affairs Officer for LTG Maude, a duty she served with great honor and humility (Swartworth, 2003). Before we concluded the tour, she picked up a pocket bible from the chapel and asked if I thought she should take it to Iraq. All I could say was, “It couldn’t hurt.”

CW5 Swartworth, CW5 Schill, and my JAG School colleague, CW3 Brian O’Rourke, traveled to Georgia about ten days before her death to interview Mr. Gerwig, a former Judge Advocate warrant officer who had the distinct honor of transcribing and preparing multiple copies of the surrender of the Japanese during World War II on the USS Missouri in the Philippines. The recorded oral history was one of the last records of CW5 Swartworth. Hopefully, it will find its way into this Journal in the future.

Even after eight years following her passing, CW5 Swartworth’s accomplishments and implementations are still vital today. Her vision was remarkable and was matched only by her enthusiasm and ambition. From the day 17-year-old, Sharon Mayo’s father signed her Army enlistment papers, whether the JAG Corps knew it or not, she was destined for greatness (Higdon, CW5, 9th JAG CWOC (2011-2015), 2004).

The Chaplain’s Corps offered my Legal Center and School colleagues grief counseling after the news became official. However, The JAG Legal Center and School officers toasted her on November 10, the US Marine Corps birthday. We traveled to the nearest pub with our Marine counterparts and toasted the Corps and CW5 Sharon T. Swartworth, known for being both “pretty and pretty tough” (Patterson, 2003).

Few would have guessed in 1977, when she enlisted in the Army, that Sharon T. Swartworth would dramatically change the Army and profoundly improve her fellow Soldiers’ lives. But those fooled by her demure physical stature (five feet, two inches), her girlish grin, or her easy laugh would be surprised by the toughness and tenacity that sprung from Sharon’s giant heart. Rarely do we find people who love so fully and so well, their fellow man. Too often, these patriots are sacrificed to the cause of freedom. Sharon is no longer among us physically, but her spirit and example live and will inspire her family and friends to live as she did – as a perfect (Swartworth, 2003) patriot and noble friend (Higdon, CW5, 9th JAG CWOC (2011-2015), 2004).

Moving on Without Sharon

The Judge Advocate General appointed CW4 Carol Hauck as the 7th JAG CWOC a few months after CW5 Swartworth died in 2004 (Foundation U. A., 2004). Replacing a senior and widely respected officer because of the tragedy was difficult, even without the voluminous changes in the Army, the transfer to the Officer Corps from the Warrant Officer Corps, and her family challenges. Carol recounted that:

I had only seen CW5 Swartworth at annual courses and had little personal interaction with her. However, Sharon did call me while I was A CW2 Hauck assigned to Fort Lewis. We discussed the need for more formal training warrant officers received compared to regular and senior noncommissioned officers. She said she would do all she could to ensure the Army increased training opportunities for warrant officers through military and civilian channels. She made good on that promise by creating the first Legal Administrator Advanced Course at the JAG School. She also provided the means for Army and US Marine Corps Legal Administrators to attend the professional association training conferences for s LawNet (now International Legal Technology Association) and the Association of Legal Administrators (ALA). She also secured authority for the first Legal Administrators to apply and receive degree completion opportunities. She was always there to listen and did her best to make positive changes for all warrant officers (Hauck, 2023).

On November 17, 2003, CW5 Sharon Swartworth became the first female laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery from action in Operation Iraqi Freedom (Patterson, 2023). Along with many posthumous accolades, the U.S. Army Warrant Officer Career College, Fort Novosel, named the headquarters building for Sharon in 2004. The Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center and School, Charlottesville, Virginia, named a hall for her in 2011. She was inducted Order of the Eagle Rising Society in 2007 and the Army Women’s Foundation Hall of Fame 2019 in Washington, DC (Foundation A. W., 2019).

Fig 3 Section 61, Arlinton National Cemetary

As you can see, just by the stories of the JAG CWOCs that followed her, everyone that became a warrant officer during her career had been personally mentored or inspired by her to follow her path. Even the JAG CWOCs before Sharon aspire to reach her depth of character, competence, and commitment. This does not even explore the countless other warrant officers she inspired throughout the Warrant Officer Corps. Tenacious, visionary, and humble—we will always remember the unique path Sharon carved for all warrant officers with her steadfast commitment and her infectcious smile and giggle. Always rember; We will never forget!

CW5 Sharon Swartworth 20-Year Tribute

The U.S. Army Warrant Officer Career College hosted a 20-Year Tribute in honor of CW5 Sharon Swartworth on November 6, 2023. Guest from the greater Fort Novosel community and as far away as Hawaii traveled to participated in the full day of activities honoring the namesake of the College’s headquarters. Colonel Kevin McHugh hosted the events and Lieutenant General Stuart Risch (pictured top-center), The Judge Advocate General was the guest speaker. He and his Chief Warrant Officer of the JAG Corps, CW5 Tammy Richmond (pictured bottom-right), spoke about their experiences with Sharon, and the legacy she left. After a luncehon, Lieutenat General Risch helped the commandant place a wreath at her Shadow Box in Swartworth Hall. CW5 Charlie Poulton presented the College with a Yarbourough knife that Sharon, “fought tooth and nail to make sure that I was given this knife, #0211, upon retirement” (Poulton, 2023).

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