Colonel (Ret) Art Hotop was commissioned as an Armor Officer in 1965. He served Armor tours in Germany and Vietnam for the next several years.

After Command and General Staff College then Major Hotop was selected to become a Middle East Foreign Area Officer and served follow on tours in Morocco and Oman. He was selected to be the G-5 of Vii Corps based on his Middle East background and served as the Corps G-5 throughout Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm.

Colonel Hotop retired from the Army in 1992 and subsequently served in the Department of the Army and the Department of Defense managing Foreign Military Sale Programs.

His combat awards include the Silver Star, the Bronze Star with two Oak Leaf Clusters and the Purple Heart.