Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Tverberg | Brig. Gen. William Prendergast, U.S. Army Africa Deputy Commanding General, gives...... read more read more
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SALEM, Oregon -The Oregon Army National Guard welcomed a new Land Component Commander as Brig. Gen. William J. Prendergast IV replaced Brig. Gen. William J. Edwards during a change of command ceremony, August 4, 2018, at Camp Withycombe in Clackamas, Oregon.
The Land Component Command has oversight over the 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, the 82nd Brigade (Troop Command) and a number of other tenant units from other commands located in Oregon.
In his previous role, Prendergast served simultaneously as the Assistant Adjutant General-Army for the Oregon National Guard, and as the Deputy Commanding General and Army Reserve component integration advisor for U.S Army Africa (USARAF) and Southern European Task Force (SETAF), he also works full-time with a successful ‘local shoe company.’
It was while Prendergast was living in Freeport, Maine, that he began his career with Nike in 1989. Now with more than 25 years with the company, his current position is the (Nike) IHM Inc., director of operations Air manufacturing and innovations.
“I attended a small liberal arts college in Maine and enjoyed experiencing my academic life on the other side of the country,” Prendergast said. It was when he went home to Oregon that he began to feel a greater sense of wanting to give something back to the state and nation.
After graduating in 1990 with a Political Science degree from Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, he found that calling with the Oregon National Guard. He first joined the Oregon Army National Guard in 1992 as a combat engineer and then received his commission in 1994 from the Officer Candidate School at the Oregon Military Academy. Throughout his career, he has served as a mortar and infantry platoon leader, operations officer and executive officer. He served as a commander at the troop, company and squadron levels. He also commanded the 82nd Rear Operations Center, 249th Regional Training Institute, and the 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team.
Deployments to the Middle East in 2003 with 1st Battalion, 162nd Infantry Regiment, and in 2009 with the 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, fostered the ability to balance the dual missions at home and abroad. Balancing two demanding occupations concurrently keeps his itinerary filled.
“Time management is crucial for both jobs,” he elaborated. “Without the support at Nike, I would not be able to take on such an intensive work schedule and the military mission both here in Oregon and other (overseas) assignments.”
This hectic schedule kept Prendergast in Africa one week a month, visiting many of the 53 African nations that make up U.S. Africa Command (USAFRICOM) area of responsibility. USAFRICOM is responsible for operations and security cooperation and for maintaining and building relationships with nations on the African continent, its island nations, and surrounding waters.
“The U.S. plays a vital role in these partnerships by building interoperability with our African partners as we run exercises, which helps enhance security and protect susceptible residents,” Prendergast said.
In one of his first trips to South Africa last year, he participated in Exercise Shared Accord 2017, where more than 200 U.S. Soldiers and Marines joined roughly 830 members of the South African military in a combined field training exercise focused on peacekeeping operations.
“By 2025, one-fourth of the world’s population will be in the African continent,” Prendergast said. “Over the course of the next decade and into the future, the U.S. military will play a vital role in the stability and development in the (African) continent.”
Building relationships are critical to establishing and maintaining international partnerships. Prendergast reiterated how the ability to “understand the people one works with” is essential in these global interactions.
“It begins with our ability to integrate with our global partners and show our similarities,” he said. “Once this is established, we can learn from each other. This is the North Star, a reference point of trust that drives innovation.”
When describing these unique partnerships, Prendergast emphasized the U.S. military’s connection with USAFRICOM much like the National Guard’s State Partnership Program (SPP).
“Through our own involvement in the (Oregon) State Partnership Program with Bangladesh and Vietnam, we’ve learned a lot about assimilating with different cultures through a shared vernacular toward disaster recovery and human assistance preparation,” he said.
As the Land Component Commander, Prendergast oversees all Army operations for the state of Oregon and is responsible for more than 6,000 Oregon Army National Guard Soldiers.
“What I enjoy the most about being part of the National Guard is the opportunity serve and contribute at a very high level while giving something back to the state of Oregon,” Prendergast said. “Whatever the job or position, my expectation is to make it the best it can be.”
| Date Taken: | 08.30.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 08.31.2018 19:12 |
| Story ID: | 291031 |
| Location: | SALEM, OREGON, US |
| Web Views: | 380 |
| Downloads: | 3 |
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