PC native Henderson leaves behind secret legacy
Jan. 10—Major Larry Edwin Henderson passed away last week at the age of 71. Not one to brag about his accomplishments, Henderson kept a low profile and his family was unaware of the magnitude of his military success until late in his life.
Major Henderson was a member of the VIP Unit in Fort Knox and was able to attend two Presidential inaugurations. He even worked security for Presidents of the United States, which allowed him to travel all over the United States.
He worked under Jimmy Carter and was there to witness the president's infamous 1979 jogging fall.
After his military career, he came back to Pulaski County and worked five years as the State Fire Marshall. Afterwards, he joined the Kentucky State Police as a Bomb Squad Commander. He taught many classes to Kentucky Police Officers.
He was voted Officer of the Year from Kentucky in 1994 and second in the nation in 1995.
Despite all these accomplishments and recognitions, his family was all but totally unaware of how prolific his time in the military was. His wife of 50 years Eula Henderson and his family discovered a volume written about Pulaski County veterans and had to find out from this book how distinguished her husband military career truly was.
Eula and Larry Henderson met on Major Henderson's graduation night. They were at the drive-in, and he approached her car and introduced himself. He walked away and told his friends "I'm gonna marry that girl."
"It was love at first sight," said Mrs. Henderson.
Major Henderson was a hard worker, according to his wife. He started out on a dairy farm and was already driving a tractor at five years old.
"He milked the cows before he went to school and milked them again when he got home," said Mrs. Henderson.
A year before he married his wife, Major Henderson joined the military. He was an "enlisted guy" in the Army, but he was told that he was wasting his time in that position and was sent over to become a non-commissioned officer.
"He was so smart. He didn't need to be just an enlisted guy. He needed to be an officer so he could teach and train," said Mrs. Henderson.
He worked to disarm explosives in the military and his wife claims that when he was discharged he started the bomb squad for the state of Kentucky.
"When the [bomb disposal] robot first came to Kentucky, he's the one who brought it here," said Mrs. Henderson.
One of the many things he did once he was out of the military was start L-Tech Enterprises, which invented weapons and ammunition. Many of his company's inventions are still in use in the military today.
His wife told of a special type of ammunition that could be fired into an explosive and "disrupt it before it had a chance to blow up."
He worked until the day he died, according to his wife. Despite his workaholic nature, he knew how to spend his leisure time. He and his wife travelled all over the world, favorites of which were Rome and Israel. The Hendersons also loved spending time with their grandchildren.
"The world will never know how he secured the world," said his wife.
