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FORT WADSWORTH, N.Y. – In 2015, After 29 years of serving in the U.S. Army Reserves and approaching his mandatory removal date a then Lt. Col. Glenn A. Goddard received a call that he would be the next commanding general for the 353rd Civil Affairs Command.
Following his acceptance of the position, the battle-tested officer reflected on his career and was thankful to be given an opportunity to continue to serve.
“I’m not ready to hang it up yet,” Brig. Gen. Glenn A. Goddard, commanding general of the 353rd CACOM, remembered saying, “This allows me to keep going on for a while because I love the missions, Soldiers, and challenges so bring it on.”
Goddard said the 353rd CACOM has done a great job of supporting U.S. Army Africa Command and U.S. Army European Command missions in the past, but he’s looking forward to making his unit the top civil affairs unit everyone calls for world-wide missions.
“I would like to take us to the next step and part of that is putting us on the speed dial with AFRICOM and EUCOM,” Goddard said. “When they have a problem that can be addressed by civil affairs, I want them to call us and say ‘I need your help’. It’s all about getting that face time with key personnel and staff leaders who we can convince them that we have the capability to solve their problem.”
Maj. Gen. Daniel R. Ammerman, commanding general of the U.S. Army Civil Affairs & Psychological Operations Command (Airborne), said Goddard is taking over a command with a great reputation and after deploying together in the past knows Goddard is an example of what a successful leader is.
“Then Lt. Col. Goddard was one of my battalion commanders when I was a brigade commander in Iraq,” Ammerman said. “I know him to be a leader that cares for the development and well being of his Soldiers. Having started as a private first class, Goddard hasn’t forgotten his roots and has the initiative, adaptability, and strategic perspective that will enable him to succeed. I believe that the most successful leaders are able to communicate their vision and intent while fully supporting their subordinate leaders.”
Ammerman was the previous commander of the 353rd and became USACAPOC(A)’s commander in June 2014. The two-star general said his previous experience as a CACOM commander helps him recognize the importance of the civil affairs mission as battle spaces are expanding.
Goddard said 77 percent of civil affairs Soldiers belong to the U.S. Army Reserves, but most commands rely on the active-duty component, which has fewer Soldiers with civil affairs field experience. Goddard hopes to help the Army recognize how Reserve Soldiers are the best available to deploy since he believes his Soldiers possess various elite special skill sets.
“What we do is a mental challenge because if I’m an infantry officer, I can look up a field manual and A, B, C and D will tell me how to take the hill,” Goddard said. “There is no book for what Soldiers in civil affairs do because this job requires a great deal of brain power and innovation.”
Goddard said he wants to build the 353rd into a command that is always ready to apply their civilian specialties in the filed because he believes it’s the key to getting the most challenging missions within the Army Reserve.
“Not only have I issued my command philosophy, but I will come by each unit once or twice a year to see that it’s filtering down and that every private is getting my message,” Goddard said. “When that word comes down we have to make sure that we’re ready to deploy and prove to the active that it’s no different than calling on an active-duty unit.”
Ammerman offered some words of advice to the new commander being familiar with the difficulties and challenges Goddard will face leading two brigades, eight battalions, and more than 200 Soldiers who staff the command itself.
“My advice to Brig. Gen. Goddard is to develop leaders, increase readiness, and support the success of his subordinate commands because as the world grows in complexity, there will always be a high demand for our skills by the Army.” Ammerman said. “USACAPOC(A) is only as good as its subordinate commands so with the 353rd being one of it’s commands, I feel that we’re in a good position to meet the needs of the Army. I don’t think there is any question that civil affairs is relevant to the missions in Europe and Africa today.”
As the Army continues to send Soldiers to Africa and Europe, Goddard said he hopes to do his part in making sure the Army and general public realize how important the civil affairs mission is.
“As far as the public goes, we need to get our message out there and explain what we do,” Goddard said. “I’ve never had a conversation with a civilian and explained what civil affairs Soldiers do and they didn’t think wow that’s fascinating. Civil affairs is going to go back to what it was in the 1990s, which was an elite unit that guys were lining up around the block to join because we do the cool stuff.”
| Date Taken: | 10.19.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 01.27.2015 23:19 |
| Story ID: | 152915 |
| Location: | FORT WADSWORTH, NEW YORK, US |
| Web Views: | 4,836 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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