Henderson honored as ‘Soldier of the Year’

by Carol Crump
Friday, October 23, 2009 2:22 PM MDT

Spc. Clancey Henderson isn’t the only soldier in his family of five brothers and two sisters. His oldest brother Marshall is back in the U.S. after serving in Korea and Iraq and his younger brother Clell has just begun his second tour in Iraq. His little sister Lauren also served in the U.S. Army until stress fractures in her hips resulted in a medical discharge.

The difference for Clancey is that he was recently selected as Soldier of the Year and recipient of the Sergeant Major of the Army Jack Tilley Award at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. He is a soldier with the 193rd Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Manpower Enhancement Brigade, 1st Infantry Division at Fort Riley, Kan., nicknamed “the Big Red One.”

“He’s the perfect kid,” said his grandmother Nora Grierson. “He went on a mission (to Guatemala as an LDS church member) and now this honor.” She lives in Casper with her son, Clancey’s uncle Jason Jacobs. His aunt Jeanine Davis and three cousins also call Casper home.

The Henderson children grew up in Casper, moving to the community when Clancey was a couple of months old. He and his siblings started school at Bar Nunn Elementary and he went to junior high at Centennial before the family moved to Longmont, Colo. The Henderson boys always did scouting and were camp counselors at Buffalo Bill Scout Camp in Cody in the summers after they outgrew their troops.

According to his grandmother, joining the military is not as much a family tradition as a way for a family with seven children to see that all of the kids have a chance to go to college. Clancey’s father Thad is a newspaper man who left Casper to continue his career at the Longmont Times Call. His mother Christie has a master’s degree in public administration she earned while raising her seven children.

“Clancey is one of those super achieving, go-getter kids,” Grierson said. “He got that from his mother.”

Henderson serves in Korea

His grandmother remembered that Clancey always loved to run and climb and he joined the Army to go overseas. In his three years in the service, he’s served in Korea just like his brother Marshall, who he also followed into Intelligence. Grierson believes the 23-year-old would have ended up in Iraq, too, if he hadn’t chosen to take part in the Best Warrior Competition. “He still has a dream to go to Iraq or Afghanistan,” she said.

The competition for 2009 Best Warrior included such activities as combatives, board interviews, physical fitness, written exams and urban warfare simulation. During the competition against 11 others, Henderson set the PT test record, including a 10-minute, 26-second two-mile run time. He took his youngest brother, 16-year-old Garrett, to the award banquet and celebration in Washington, D.C.

“His mom and dad support all their children in whatever they do,” Grierson said. “We tell them, ‘We love you all for your own strengths.’”

Clancey also was taking classes at the American Military University toward an associate’s degree in intelligence analysis and research during the months he prepared for the rigorous Best Warrior competition. He’ll complete his degree work in December. He’ll spend the next year stateside, doing public relations work for the Army from his home base at Fort Riley.

Grierson said her grandson, who she described as a “humble young man” doesn’t like to appear in public. The prize package that goes with being the 2009 Best Warrior includes donated items, military gear, savings bonds, running shoes and a laptop computer. The honor and the prizes might make the experience a more agreeable step in what Clancey’s grandmother expects to be a long military career.

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