Scott Colson Marcy was born on April 28, 1950 at Brown Memorial Hospital in Conneaut OH. His parents, Chuck and Ruth Marcy, were lifetime residents of Conneaut. The second of three children, Scott was a driven personality from an early age, an innovator and risk taker. As a teenager he began working in his father’s heating and roofing business, taking on a man’s job early in life. His team leadership emerged in high school, and by senior year Scott was captain of the football, wrestling, and track teams, receiving the Bob Smith All-Sports Award for the most outstanding athlete displaying citizenship, scholarship and leadership.
Upon graduation from Conneaut High School in 1968, Scott was accepted into the Class of 1972 at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. But by the end of his second year, Scott was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease and separated from the Academy. His classmates inscribed his yearbook: “To Scotty from the Class of ’72: He proved himself to be a worthy addition to our ranks. Scotty excelled at being a cadet and an athlete, but more importantly, he excelled at being a friend to all.”
But then, after successful treatment and through sheer determination, Scott became the first cadet ever readmitted to West Point after cancer. He re-enrolled with the Class of 1973, graduated and joined the Armor branch as Second Lieutenant Marcy.
Scott completed Ranger training at Fort Benning, GA and the Armor Officer Basic Course at Fort Knox, KY before being assigned in May 1974 to 3rd Squadron, 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment in Amberg, Germany, tasked to maintain security of the Czechoslovakian border. Over his five years there he served as a cavalry platoon leader, tank company executive officer, operations officer and armored cavalry troop commander.
In 1979 Captain Marcy left Germany to complete an MS in organizational research at the University of Washington-Seattle. It was there that he met and married Dr. Suzanne K. Macy, a fellow graduate student. In 1981, they moved to West Point, where Scott taught leadership at USMA for three years. In 1984 they moved to Fort Polk, LA for Major Marcy to serve with the 5th Infantry Division as brigade operations officer and battalion executive officer. In 1987 Scott attended the Armed Forces Staff College before being assigned to the Directorate of Operation Plans and Interoperability (J-7) on the Joint Staff in the Pentagon, serving as action officer with the JROC secretariat and executive assistant in J-7.
In June 1990, Lieutenant Colonel Marcy took command of 3rd Squadron, 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment, Pond Barracks, Germany, his dream assignment. Six months after taking command Scott’s squadron was alerted for war and tasked as the 2nd Cavalry main effort in defensive and offensive cover for VII Corps in the Persian Gulf War; his squadron was embroiled in the Battle of 73 Easting and took out the elite Iraq Tawakalna fighting forces.
After deactivating the squadron in Germany, Colonel Marcy attended the Army War College, 1992-93. He returned to the Pentagon as Deputy Director of Training (G-3), managing a $48 billion training budget until 1996.
In January 1995, Scott and Suzanne’s son, Preston, joined the family. Scott sought a final assignment in Alaska for the sake of his family and became advisor to the Army National Guard. Scott, Suzanne and Preston moved there in the summer of 1996.
But when the need arose, Scott was pulled back into action to serve as the Director (J-5) of Strategy, Plans and Policy in Naples, Italy for a 35,000 person U.S. Joint Task Force NOBLE ANVIL with Allied Forces Southern Europe in the War for Kosovo.
On his return to Alaska, Scott retired in 2000 after serving 27 years in mechanized infantry and armored cavalry. He began his civilian career as a defense contractor in Alaska from 2000 to 2006, serving as director of Alaska operations for the ground-based missile defense program.
Scott returned to DC with Suzanne in 2006 to serve as operations manager for the MPRI law enforcement program, embedding veteran organized crime investigators into Army and Marine tactical units in U.S. Forces Iraq and Afghanistan.
Asked to serve as a senior lecturer at the Naval Postgraduate School, he moved to Monterey, CA in 2010 to lead the CCMR Defense Institution Building programs in security cooperation for military education and training, traveling to work with the defense ministries of Ukraine, Bulgaria, Estonia, Russia, Republic of Georgia, Yemen, Colombia, and Cambodia.
Later, working from Alaska, Scott served as faculty in leadership at Alaska Pacific University and Dickinson College and published articles on operational art, training and decision making. Scott settled in Alaska with Suzanne and Preston, but spent part of his time in Conneaut. Scott fully retired in 2013 to enjoy fishing, boating, traveling, canning elderberries and pickles, singing, making sauerkraut, and visiting friends. Scott continued serving his country and his planet through active participation in environmental issues.
His awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Joint Meritorious Unit Award, Valorous Unit Award, North Atlantic Treaty Organization Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Kosovo Campaign Medal, Army Staff Badge, Overseas Service Ribbon, Southeast Asia Service Medal with Bronze Service Star, Army Service Ribbon, Kuwait Liberation Medal-Government of Saudi Arabia, Joint Chiefs of Staff ID Badge, and Ranger Tab.
— Suzanne K. M. Marcy, Ph.D., CPC, CEF and Larry MacPhee, classmate