Colonel Hector E. Topete was born in Mexico and immigrated to the United States with his parents at the age of eight. His family settled in Weed, California. After turning 18, he became a naturalized U.S. citizen and received an appointment to West Point. He graduated in 1976 and began his career as a military officer in the U.S. Army. Most of his assignments were as an Army pilot, commander and staff officer. He commanded at the company, battalion and brigade levels. Colonel Topete is a rated military pilot in helicopters and airplanes, a civilian commercial pilot and flight instructor and a qualified military paratrooper and Army Ranger. He retired on July 1, 2006 after 30 years of continuous active duty military service.

Colonel Topete is a graduate of various military and civilian institutions of leadership and higher learning. Among these are the U.S. Army Flight Programs for helicopters and airplanes, the Army Command and General Staff College, the Army War College and the Army Inspector General School. He received a Bachelors degree from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and a Masters from Central Michigan University. As a Senior Service Fellow in Washington, D.C., Colonel Topete researched and published the report titled, “Under Representation of Hispanic-Americans in the U.S. Army’s Officer Corps: A Study of an Inverse Dynamic.” The report received Nation-wide acclaim among senior leaders within military, Congressional and educational circles.

Colonel Topete has served in numerous command and staff positions. Some of these include Tank Company Commander, Aviation Company and Battalion Commander, Comptroller, Liaison Officer to the Government of Mexico, Brigade Commander and Inspector General for the state of California. He has served in units such as the 82nd Airborne Division, the 1st Cavalry Division, the U.S. Army in Europe and the Pentagon.

Colonel Topete is the recipient of various military and civilian awards. He was named the U.S. Army’s winner of the 2000 “National Image Meritorious Service Award.” Among his military awards are the Legion of Merit, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Humanitarian Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Overseas Service Ribbon and the Master Aviator Badge.

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