Photo By Sgt. Cameron Hermanet | U.S. Marine Corps Col. Christopher Steele, right, the outgoing commanding officer of...... read more read more
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U.S. Marine Corps Col. Christopher Steele turned over the Marine Corps’ most decorated regiment on June 23 to Col. Brian Mulvihill following two years of achievement, development, and success.
Family, friends, and fellow Marines gathered on Friday to honor Steele’s success and to formally welcome Mulvihill. Also in attendance was Maj. Gen. Benjamin T. Watson, the commanding general of 1st Marine Division, and honored members of the 5th Marines family.
Watson delivered opening remarks reflecting on the regiment’s history and commending Steele’s legacy.
“They fought through the fields of Belleau Wood, the mountains of Guadalcanal, made the landing at Inchon, Hue City, Fallujah, and Sangin. This is a regiment whose history is extraordinary,” said Watson. “Under Colonel Steele, they added pages to this storied legacy.”
As the commanding officer for 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Steele led the unit through historic deployments and wide-ranging support to the service and to the joint force. Steele and the 5th Marines team notably led Marine Rotational Force - Darwin 2022 as the first regimental command element in the deployment’s history, further advancing the Marine Corps’ and I MEF’s posture and readiness in the Indo-Pacific.
Steele proudly served the “fighting fifth” while in garrison, forward deployed, and through a time of high-paced change throughout the Corps. He describes the regiment as a family that welcomed him with open arms, and one he will miss everywhere he goes.
“This place, San Mateo, is our home and the home of our regiment,” said Steele. “The environment and culture existed well before I got here, over 100 years. They make it hard to leave.”
Steele is continuing on to serve as the Chief of Staff for the Office of Legislative Affairs in Washington, D.C.
Closing his speech, Steele thanked his family, friends and Marines alongside him for their never-ending support and reflected on his two years as commanding officer. “The greatest honor of my professional life has been to walk alongside the thousands of Marines and Sailors of this regiment.”
Accepting the challenge of leading 5th Marines is Col. Brian Mulvihill. Mulvihill is coming from the assistant chief of staff, operations position for Marine Corps Forces, Europe and Africa. Leading 5th Marines, Mulvihill will be responsible for the readiness of the regiment to deploy as a ground combat element in support of crisis response operations and providing mission capable battalions at a moment’s notice.
After taking command of 5th Marine Regiment, Mulvihill explained his excitement and his readiness to dedicate himself to the regiment.
“5th Marine Regiment is the only regiment to serve in every major campaign of the Marine Corps,” exclaimed Mulvihill. “I’m honored and humbled to serve alongside you.”
Mulvihill said he plans to build on the successes of Steele and to continue strengthening the greatest regiment in the Marine Corps.
| Date Taken: | 06.25.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 06.26.2023 19:02 |
| Story ID: | 448019 |
| Location: | CAMP PENDLETON, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Hometown: | FAYETTEVILLE, GEORGIA, US |
| Hometown: | QUEENS/NEW YORK, NEW YORK, US |
| Web Views: | 687 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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