Decorated World War II soldier Charles Mullikin honored with namesake thruway
By W. Thomas Smith Jr.
The late Charles F. “Charlie” Mullikin, a celebrated World War II veteran and the father of S.C. Department of Natural Resources Director Tom Mullikin, was honored Saturday, May 24, Memorial Day weekend when a road at Operation Patriots FOB, a veterans retreat near Ridgeland, S.C., was named in honor of the elder Mullikin.
The road-naming followed a Memorial Day address delivered to those gathered, primarily military veterans and their familes, by Director Mullikin, himself a U.S. Army veteran and retired two-star commanding general of the S.C. State Guard.
In his address, Mullikin made mention of the origin of Memorial Day and S.C.’s connection : “Where better to pause for this solemn observance than the state where the first Memorial Day was held – in South Carolina. Although May 30, 1868 is cited as the first national commemoration of Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery, events lead in Charleston, South Carolina, to decorate the graves of fallen soldiers occurred on May 1, 1865 were the start of this important remembrance.”
Mullikin added: “South Carolinians have given far more for far longer. The Palmetto State is the cradle of our freedom, and our families have given heroes in greater percentages than any other state.”
The address and road-naming ceremony was attended by retired U.S. Army Col. Kevin Shwedo, the current executive director of the S.C. Department of Motor Vehicles; and retired U.S. Marine Col. Steve Vitali, who – along with Director Mullikin – is an inductee in the S.C. Black Belt Hall of Fame. Other dignitaries included S.C.’s Director of Resilience Ben Duncan; Duane Swygert, vice chair of the SCDNR board, a former agent with the S.C. Law Enforcement Division (SLED) and a U.S. Army veteran; and USMC Iraq War veteran Roy Brown, founder of Operation Patriots FOB.
Operation Patriots FOB is a permanent military veterans retreat established with the goal of healing those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and other post-battle maladies in a safe outdoor environment offering shooting sports, hunting, fishing, golfing, hiking, bicycling, and other recreational activities aimed at mental and physical wellness and preventing veteran suicides.
“They do tremendous work here at Operation Patriots FOB,” said Mullikin. “And they recognize, as we do at SCDNR, the importance of the body-mind connection to physical vitality, longevity, mental-and emotional healing and the natural world. It’s all connected.”
The newly named Mullikin Road in Ridgeland is not the first Charles Mullikin namesake in South Carolina. The Charles “Chotty” Mullikin Trail spur connecting Camden with the primary spine of the 500-mile Palmetto Trail was established in June 2022.
Charles Mullikin who participated in some of the heaviest fighting in Western Europe during WWII was a member of the U.S. Army’s Roger’s Rangers.
– Pictured (L-R) Col. Kevin Shwedo, Col. Steve Vitali, SCDNR Director Tom Mullikin, U.S. Army veteran Clark Gray, and USMC veteran Roy Brown.
