General's gift to the Army and Fayetteville community was Airborne and Special Ops museum

Community leaders in Fayetteville and at Fort Liberty are saying goodbye to a military hero.

Retired General James Lindsay died August 6. He was 90.

Lindsay spent 38 years on active duty, rising from private to four-star general. His legacy lives in the Airborne and Special Operations Museum in Fayetteville.

The Army could have built the museum on post, but it was Lindsay who saw the value in locating it in downtown Fayetteville.

"It's really revitalized the town," said Dan Dederick, civilian aide to the secretary of the Army.

"I remember when they first built this museum. It helped the whole area and the blocks around it. The condos came in, and bars went away, and the nicer restaurants came in, and this museum had a lot to do with that."

Lindsay commanded several units including the 18th Airborne Corps and Special Operations Command, but the Airborne and Special Operations Museum was his special project.

The museum is dedicated to preserving and teaching the history of Airborne and Special Operations. It has memorabilia from just about every major conflict in which US special operators were involved during the past 80 years. It has generated millions of tourism dollars for the city of Fayetteville.

Fayetteville Mayor Mitch Colvin said, "Not only did he serve our nation very honorably, but he served this community well and we're certainly going to miss him."

On Saturday, a celebration of life will be held for a man who dove with Navy Seals, walked with presidents and jumped out of perfectly good airplanes all for the love of his country. It begins at 3:30 p.m. at the Airborne and Special Operations Museum on Hay Street in Fayetteville.

He will be laid to rest at the cemetery at Fort Liberty.