The first time I met Col. Pendleton Woods I was judging a high school history event at Oklahoma Christian University in the early 2000s. It was a crowded room, but Pendleton spotted me from a distance and walked over to introduce himself.
Born in 1923, Pen was almost 80 years old at the time. He knew of me because I had been a Business News reporter at The Oklahoman throughout the 1990s before taking a 3-year sabbatical at OC beginning in 2000.
Anyway, Pen introduced himself, and as I looked up from my seat I noticed he was wearing a plaid jacket. tie and a pair of slacks. There was one other detail that stood out.
His fly was open.
I later talked about meeting Pen with my friend Mike Osborne, who also worked at OC at the time. Mike had one question.
“Was his fly open?”
The knowing question made me laugh out loud, and I still smile at the memory today. But I grew to love Col. Pendleton Woods, and slowly came to know his story.
Turns out he was born and raised in Fort Smith, Ark., which is also my hometown. Pen graduated from the University of Arkansas with a journalism degree.
But that’s only the start. He was a military hero from The Greatest Generation.
Pen served in World War II with the 99th Infantry Division and was captured on a reconnaissance patrol on Dec. 10, 1944, during the German build-up to the Battle of the Bulge. He remained a prisoner until he and others escaped after Russian artillery shelled the compound shortly before the war in Europe ended on April 20, 1945.
Pen also served in the Korean War with the 45th Infantry Division of the Oklahoma National Guard. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Military Hall of Fame in 2002.
After his service in WWII, Pen settled in OKC and worked for Oklahoma Gas and Electric for years. He eventually joined the staff at Oklahoma Christian University and worked there until late in his life.
As a longtime OKC resident, Pen was an incredible community servant, volunteering for the Boy Scouts, helping bring the National Cowboy Hall of Fame to OKC, serving as executive director of the OKC Bicentennial Commission and many, many other endeavors. He authored 15 books.
After I returned to The Oklahoman in 2003, Pen would call me on a regular basis, either to pitch a story or just to catch up for a few moments.
Pen died on Dec. 1, 2014 and left a massive legacy in our local community and beyond. Read his obituary here.
I’ve written all of this about Col. Pendleton Woods because of something that happened this week. I was working on a special project for a friend at a busy local coffee shop when I happened to look down.
My fly was open.
Pen Woods was the first thought that ran across my mind after quickly closing the barn door.
Then I smiled to myself at the memory.
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