Eric Heist

Eric Thomas Heist

June 27, 1968 - December 16, 2025

Colonel Eric Thomas Heist passed away after a brief illness on December 16th, 2025, at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. He was 57 years old. Eric was a beloved husband, father, son, brother, soldier, peacemaker, and friend.

Eric graduated from Washington University in St. Louis as an Army ROTC Distinguished Military Graduate. He was commissioned as an Army officer in February 1992 and earned his Air Assault Badge, Parachutist Badge, and Ranger Tab before joining his first unit, 3-62 Air Defense Artillery Battalion, at Ft. Drum, NY. Within a week of arriving at Ft. Drum Eric was on a plane to Somalia to join his platoon in Baledogle where they were serving as door gunners on Black Hawk helicopters. It was quite an introduction to his new career. He went on to serve 30 years on active duty, 26 of those in military intelligence. He truly believed every day in the Army was a great day. Eric had operational and combat deployments to Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan. He held a variety of duty positions including Platoon Leader, Battery Executive Officer, Battalion Intelligence Officer, Brigade Intelligence Officer, Company Commander, Force Protection Officer, Analysis and Control Element Chief, Battalion Operations Officer, and Military Intelligence Lieutenant Colonel Assignment Officer. He commanded Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) and Task Force Gladiator supporting Combined Joint Task Force-101 in Afghanistan as part of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM. He also served as the Executive Officer to the Commanding General of the US Army Intelligence and Security Command and as the Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence at Allied Land Command, North Atlantic Treaty Organization in Izmir, Turkey. He commanded the 513th Military Intelligence Brigade (Theater), where he supervised intelligence support to U.S. Central Command and U.S. Army Central. Eric was the Military Assistant to the Assistant Director of National Intelligence for Partner Engagement at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. He also served as Director, Enterprise Task Force at the U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command and then finished his military service as the Deputy Director of the Operations and Integration Directorate in the Army G-2. Eric's military awards include the Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit with one oak leaf cluster, Bronze Star Medal with one oak leaf cluster, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, and the Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters.

After retiring from active duty in March 2022, Eric was appointed as a Department of the Army Civilian where he served as the primary advisor and leader for Army Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) and All Source Intelligence. He developed and oversaw implementation of strategy, plans, policy, and programming. Eric truly loved going in to work every day and interacting with colleagues and teammates.

Eric met his wife Amy at Wash U in 1990. They married in 1994 and went on to have three wonderful children: Declan in 1998, Thomas in 2001, and Ella in 2006. They would also move ten times, survive four year-long deployments as well as others of shorter duration, and spend as much family time together as they could. Eric volunteered for his children's schools whenever possible, doing everything from chaperoning trips to chairing fundraising events. In recent years he took on volunteer leadership roles at Wash U, co-chairing the Defense, Aerospace, and National Security (DANS) alumni network, as well as becoming a parent volunteer at the University of Rochester.

In everything he did, Eric was patient, kind, and endlessly optimistic. He was always quick to smile, eager to laugh, and had an enduring humility and gentleness that seemed at times incongruous for a man with such a long and successful military career. Eric cared deeply for everyone around him and was always interested in finding what motivated people. More important than any medal or award, Eric felt the greatest achievements in his career were the times he helped others find success in the things that mattered most to them. He lived by the mottoes "teach, coach, mentor" and "teach, learn, clarify." Eric strongly believed that everyone wants to do the right thing, and that frequently a person's initial failure to do so was due to a lack of understanding or clarity. He believed that leadership is at least as much about listening as it is about talking.

In his wallet, Eric carried a card on which he had hand written his "Leadership Behaviors":

1. Always do what's right

2. Cherish time every day for the 4 Fs (be fair, be factual, be firm, be friendly)

3. Lift up and respect others

4. Help others improve themselves

5. Unite diverse people to achieve more

On the other side of the card he had written his "Core Purpose":

Live an optimistic, exemplary life helping others achieve their full potential.

Eric wanted everyone to be able to work in a supportive environment. He believed that diversity is our strength, in society, in the workplace, and in life. The workplace program "Your Voice, Your Story" that he created, which invited speakers to share their experiences as minorities in the armed forces or federal civilian workforce, was an enormous source of pride.

Eric's life centered around his love for his family. He loved spending time with his kids at all stages of their lives - being silly and playing make believe when they were little, building Lego sets or crafting with paper as they grew older, and playing games or exploring the world of whisky together as they became adults. He loved learning about the things that were important to them, and was so happy that they were all in such good places in their own lives. He and his wife Amy were delighted to discover that there were, to their surprise, good things about having an empty nest, and they were really enjoying the time they were spending together.

Eric was preceded in death by his in-laws, Nancy and Scott Chapline. He is survived by his wife Amy; his children Declan (Destiny Andrews), Thomas, and Ella; parents Esther and Edward Heist; siblings Brent Heist (Darla), Bethany Ryan (Steve, Jr.), Matthew Heist (Erin McCarthy), Andrea Heist; sister and brother-in-law Jana and Kent Chapline; and many nieces, nephews, and great nieces.

A memorial service for Eric will be held on March 9th, 2026, at 1:00 PM at

Fort Myer Memorial Chapel, Building 480

101 McNair Rd

Fort Myer, VA 22211

Followed immediately by a reception at

Spates Hall

214 McNair Rd

Fort Myer, VA 22211

All Non-DoD ID Cardholders are required to have a Pass to access Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall.

For more information and to apply for the pass please click on the below link

https://pass.aie.army.mil/jbmhh