Commissioner Pete Wheeler
Pete Wheeler is the Georgia Commissioner of Veterans Affairs.
He is an attorney and has been admitted to practice before all State and Federal Courts. The State Bar of Georgia recently honored him with a Certificate of Accomplishment, commemorating the completion of more than fifty years of service as a member of the Bar of the State of Georgia.
He graduated from the University of Georgia.
He is past president of the National Association of the State Directors of Veterans Affairs.
He served in the Army Infantry between 1942 and 1946 and continued to serve in the Georgia Army National Guard until July of 1978 when he retired as a Brigadier General.
He served as a member of the U.S. Veterans Advisory Commission.
He began his service as Commissioner of Veterans Affairs in 1949 and has served the State more than fifty years under eleven governors.
Since 1954, Commissioner Wheeler has served as Georgia Chairman, National Veterans Day committee.
He was appointed as Chairman of the National WW II Memorial Advisory Board by the President of the United States, and actively served in that capacity until the dedication of the memorial in May 2004.
A few of the highlights of his career include:
- Recipient of the Silver Helmet Award, presented by AMVETS
- Recipient of Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge George Washington Honor Medal
- Recipient of the American Legion Gold Honor Medal
- Recipient of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Silver Medal of Merit
Honored with "Play it Again Pete", which is an annual golf tournament sponsored by the Atlanta VA Medical Center to raise money for homeless veterans.