Louis "Lou" O. Treadway (LTC US Army, Ret.), age 82 of Orlando, passed away Friday, January 10, 2014. He was born in Orlando, Florida August 31, 1931 to Clayton Louis Treadway and Hattie May Sumner Treadway.
He entered the Army in 1952 and was assigned to the 82nd Airborne division in 1954. In early 1962, he was assigned to the 1st Special Forces Group on the island of Okinawa where he commanded a Special Forces operational "A" team that he took to the Vietnam Mekong Delta region.
In 1968 he attended the University of Nebraska to complete his undergraduate degree. He was later assigned to Fort Benning, GA and returned to Vietnam for a second tour of duty. He earned his Masters Degree from Auburn University in 1972. He retired from the Army as Lieutenant Colonel in 1972.
Mr. Treadway worked for Ronald Reagan's first presidential campaign in 1975 and later ran for Orange County Commission in 1980 and won. He served as an Orange County Commissioner until 1988. His past affiliations include:
-Past Chairman, County Watch, a bipartisan organization that monitors county government.
-Lifetime member, Vietnam Veterans of Central Florida
-Lifetime member, Special Forces Association
-Member, 82nd Airborne Division Association
-Member, Retired Officers Association
-Member, Board of Directors, The Lois Holt Foundation
He is survived by his wife, Doris Treadway; daughters, Sydney Treadway-Haskell, Cindy Plante and Stacy Jones; grandsons, Aaron Sincoski, Chris Elliot, Colton Powell and Chris Plante.
Visitation will be held from 5PM-7PM Thursday, January 16 at Newcomer Funeral Home, Orlando. Funeral services will be held at 12PM Friday, January 17 at the funeral home. Internment with military honors will follow at Woodlawn Memorial Park, Orlando.