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Col. Seth Hible, of Winfield, Illinois, assumed command of the Illinois National Guard’s 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) from Col. Michael Eastridge on Jan. 8 at the Illinois National Guard Readiness Center in Urbana.
“Colonel Eastridge did an outstanding job moving the 33rd IBCT forward during the COVID-19 pandemic, a very challenging time for maintaining training and readiness,” said Brig. Gen. Rodney Boyd, the Assistant Adjutant General – Army of the Illinois National Guard and Commander of the Illinois Army National Guard. “I am confident that Colonel Hible is the right officer to continue the unit’s legacy of excellence.”
With more than 3,500 Soldiers, the 33rd IBCT is the largest brigade in the Illinois Army National Guard and has units with lineage dating as far back as the Black Hawk War in 1832. Both Hible and Eastridge are traditional National Guard officers with full-time civilian jobs along with their part-time military duties. Eastridge, a native of Wheaton, Illinois, who now lives in Northville, Michigan, is the marketing and sales support manager for Mercedes-Benz Financial Services USA. Hible, who grew up in nearby Danville, Illinois, is now a high school teacher at Lake Park School in Roselle, Illinois.
Eastridge took command of the brigade in 2020 during the peak of COVID-19.
“Colonel Eastridge has been a phenomenal leader across the board,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Michael Kelly, the brigade command sergeant major. “He came in at a time of COVID. COVID made things more difficult, but he powered through that. Even when we were operating at minimal staff, his leadership was instrumental to the organization and kept it going in the right direction.”
Completing the mission and Soldier care were his highest priorities, Eastridge said. “I established a diversity and inclusion council to ensure we are offering opportunities for all our Soldiers to develop in the organization. Additionally, I set up a program called Adapt, Innovate and Motivate to help further develop leaders within the organization. Both the diversity and inclusion initiatives and the leadership development program support Soldiers and ultimately mission success.”
After approximately three years of leading the 33rd IBCT, Eastridge hopes that he is leaving a positive impact.
“I had a platoon sergeant that mentored me during my enlisted time,” said Eastridge. “I look back at that as what an NCO should be doing and how that impacted me. That NCO and my enlisted time helped me to better understand the need for mentorship. The mentorship and guidance by that E-7 helped me get to where I am today and I hope I have done the same thing for the Soldiers I have worked with in the brigade.”
Hible brings decades of key command and staff experience. His last position was the Chief of the Illinois National Guard Joint Staff where he led domestic operations, international cooperation, as well as interagency and intergovernmental coordination. Hible said that helped prepare him to command the 33rd IBCT. Part of his job as the Chief of the ILNG Joint Staff was to translate objectives from the strategic or operational level for implementation at the tactical level. “To do this you have the responsibility to take care of both the mission and the people in your care,” Hible said.
Hible said essential part of his plan is to focus on the mission essentials, let “leaders lead” and prioritize Soldier and noncommissioned officer care. “For years, I was told, officers plan and NCOs execute, but the truth is, the NCOs help build the plan,” he said. “The NCO’s are what allow the vision to succeed or fail.”
“My hope is that I will leave the brigade with a plan on how to continue to develop leaders,” Hible said. “I want the brigade to have a sense of its history. I want a Soldier to be able to leave the brigade knowing their place in history. I want the Soldiers to feel like they are a part of something else. They are part of a legacy.”
| Date Taken: | 01.08.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 01.10.2023 18:31 |
| Story ID: | 436554 |
| Location: | URBANA, ILLINOIS, US |
| Web Views: | 617 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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