A highly-decorated Marine colonel who spent thirty years participating in operations around the world has left some parting words of wisdom in his obituary: Northern Virginians, learn to drive.

The thoughts of Col. Robert F. Gibson, who died in Annandale last year the day after Christmas, were made clear this week ahead of his funeral.

“A native of Northern Virginia for the last 30 years of his life, he hated how all of you were incapable of driving competently,” the obituary reads.

The 77-year-old spent “thirty proud years” serving as a Marines officer, deploying twice to Vietnam during the war there and also “wrote doctrine that became the foundation for the Marine Air Command and Control System,” it adds.

Gibson, nicknamed “Falcon”, served in Honduras, Beirut, Norway, the Philippines, Kuwait and Operations Desert Storm. From his service, he went on to win awards such as the Legion of Merit with Gold Star and the Bronze Star with Combat Distinguishing Device.

But one of his biggest pet peeves was something going on at home – the drivers clogging the busy roads heading in and out of the nation’s capital.

"It’s a general sentiment a lot of folks have," his widow, Barbara, told NBC Washington. "He traveled on the Beltway, and traffic is horrendous."