Retired Lt. Col. Henry H. (Herb) Sennett Jr.
Lt. Col. Herb Sennett was commissioned into the Infantry upon graduation from Arkansas State University in May 1968. Arriving in Vietnam less than 10 months later, he was assigned as assistant team leader for MAT Team IV-97, tasked to work as an adviser and instructor to South Vietnamese Regional and Popular Forces in Vinh Long Province. Due to the intensity of the mission, then Lt. Sennett earned the Combat Infantryman Badge within 90 days.
Following redeployment, he moved to Augusta, where he served as a high school English and speech teacher. He then attended seminary then served as a pastor in Dublin, Ohio, from 1979-83. Returning to Arkansas in 1983, he became pastor of Trinity Baptist Church in Searcy and was sworn into the Arkansas National Guard as a chaplain for the 39th Infantry Brigade.
In 1985, Sennett joined the faculty of Palm Beach Atlantic University and transferred to the Army Reserves, serving as the chaplain for the 7/9 Field Artillery Battalion (155mm-Nuclear). His follow-on was with the 478th Civil Affairs Brigade as chaplain and religious affairs officer.
In 1989, he joined the Chaplain Team of the 3220th U.S. Army Garrison in West Palm Beach. Following receipt of orders to active duty in support of Operation Desert Shield, he was assigned as the installation chaplain at Hunter Army Airfield (HAAF), Fort Stewart, Ga. While serving as one of only eight installation chaplains during the 24th Infantry Division’s deployment, Chaplain Sennett developed the post’s Mass Casualty Response Book and was instrumental in organizing an emergency response group of the local Savannah clergy.
During nine months of active duty, Chaplain Sennett counseled hundreds of family members left behind by their service member, was part of the greeting party for President George H. W. Bush’s visitation, and then aided the Department of the Army in a total rewrite of the Family Support Plan for Mobilization, which was used Army-wide. Chaplain Sennett aided in the recognition of a new religious group allowing its member soldiers special accommodation.
In 1995, he joined the 377th Theater Support Command in New Orleans, where he worked in strategic planning and logistical support for religious activities worldwide. As a senior level chaplain, he advised the command regarding the impact of religious issues on troops while deployed. His input was later used to inform units that deployed in predominantly Muslim areas after 9/11. He retired from the Army in 2004 and from his college professorship in 2016.
Lt. Col. Sennett received numerous military decorations including Combat Infantryman’s Badge, four Meritorious Service Medals, Army Commendation Medal with “V” Device, two National Defense Medals, Vietnam Service Medal with three bronze service stars, and Republic of Vietnam Campaign Meda
