With the U . S . entering World War II , Heaton went on to serve in both Pacific and European stations after being promoted to Lieutenant Colonel on Feb . 1 , 1942 . During his service as Executive Officer at Woodrow Wilson General Hospital in Staunton , Virginia from November 1942 to March 1944 , he was promoted to Colonel on Jan . 13 , 1943 . Colonel Heaton was then assigned as Hospital Commanding Officer of the 160th General Hospital , in Atlantic City , New Jersey , before moving the unit to Stowell Park , England in April 1944 . After D-Day , June 6 , 1944 , Colonel Heaton was appointed Commander of the 802d Hospital Center in Blandford , England .
In July 1945 , Colonel Heaton returned to the U . S ., serving at the Surgeon General ’ s Office ( July 1945-September 1945 ) and Walter Reed General Hospital ( September 1945-November 1945 ) in Washington , D . C ., before being assigned to Letterman General Hospital in San Francisco , California . Following the end of World War II , he attended the Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth , Kansas where he graduated with distinction in 1947 . During his almost 10 years at Letterman General Hospital , Heaton served as Surgical Officer ( November 1945-July 1946 ), Chief of Surgical Service ( July 1946-June 1948 ), Director of Professional Services and Chief Surgical Service ( June 1948-July 1950 ), and Commanding General ( July 1950-March 1953 ). He also received several promotions during this time , becoming Brigadier General ( one star ) on May 10 , 1948 , and later Major General ( two star ) on April 11 , 1950 .
On April 1 , 1953 , Major General Heaton was appointed Commander of Walter Reed Army Medical Center , which included the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research , Walter Reed Army Hospital , Armed Forces Institute of Pathology , Army Central Dental Laboratory , and Army Prosthetics Research Laboratory . Despite his significant responsibilities as Commander , Heaton continued to practice surgery . Perhaps most famously , he successfully operated on President Eisenhower on June 9 , 1956 , for a severe case of ileitis . This initial encounter was the beginning of a friendship between Heaton and Eisenhower . Other notable patients included Secretary of State , John F . Dulles , General Douglas MacArthur and General George C . Marshall .
Gen . Heaton was appointed Surgeon General of the U . S . Army by President Dwight D . Eisenhower on June 1 , 1959 . Eisenhower was not only his Commander-in-Chief , but also a close personal friend . General Heaton and his wife , Sara , remained lifelong friends with President Eisenhower and his wife , Mamie . Leading the expansion
( top ) President Eisenhower ( front ) playing golf with Arnold Palmer ( left ), Masters Chairman Cliff Roberts ( middle ), and Lt . General Leonard Heaton ( right ). This photo was taken days after Arnold Palmer won his second championship at the 1960 Masters Tournament at Agusta National . Image courtesy of James D . Mayson .
( bottom left to right ) General Leonard Heaton , Sarah Heaton , Mamie Eisenhower , President Dwight Eisenhower . Celebrating the Eisenhower ’ s 40th wedding anniversary on July 1 , 1959 . Photo courtesy of James D . Mayson .
and deployment of Army medical services during the Vietnam War , General Heaton strongly advocated for the increased use of helicopters for medical evacuation operations .
Retired vascular surgeon and University of Louisville School of Medicine graduate ( 1964 ), Dr . Joseph Marshall , recalled his encounter with General Heaton while serving in Vietnam as a Captain in the U . S . Army Medical Corps . With a desire to pursue surgery , Dr . Marshall wanted to transfer to a new “ Mobile Army Surgical Hospital ” units , or MASH units , in order to gain more advanced surgical experience . He recalled , “ I flew to Saigon … we were in the air hanger for some shade … and that ’ s when I saw the ( continued on page 20 )
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