Photo By Pfc. Benjamin Hale | Retired U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Andy Hilmes, left, retired Brig. Gen. Larry Burris and...... read more read more
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FORT STEWART, Ga. – Good leadership is a skill that is ever evolving and improving in order to meet the needs and requirements of the situation, and in the Army, good leadership could mean the difference between completing or failing a mission.
As part of 3rd Infantry Division’s (3rd ID) Salute to Summer event, several distinguished visitors from the Marne community led a series of leader professional development seminars, providing an opportunity for Dogface Soldiers to gain valuable insight and experience in a multitude of leadership attributes.
The first seminar, led by Brig. Gen. William Glaser, director of the Synthetic Training Environment Cross Functional Team, featured an analysis of “Thunder Run” [Battle of Baghdad] with an emphasis on company and small unit leadership.
“Mission command doesn’t work unless you have the right culture present within the organization… the most important combat multiplier is trust throughout all levels of your organization," said Glaser.
Retired Brig. Gens. Andy Hilmes and Larry Burris, both veterans of the Battle of Baghdad also spoke at the LPD. Hilmes and Burris emphasized that the ability to trust is incredibly important because it allows members at all levels of command to focus on their jobs and know that other members of the organization are doing their part.
“I think that trust is everything in having a well built team that trains and lives together, and at this point we had fought together for three weeks,” Hilmes said. “While the pucker factor was high, I would say the confidence level was equally high.”
Having a high level of trust and understanding within an organization encourages Soldiers to go above and beyond to accomplish the mission, such as Staff Sgt. Stevon Booker and Sgt. 1st Class Paul Smith, both Dogface Soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice to protec their troops.
“When you lose people like that, who gave their lives in a very extraordinary manner trying to save other people, that has a huge impact on people in both positive and negative ways.” said retired Gen. David Perkins.
While Soldiers in a unit are directly affected by the deaths of their fellow Soldiers, they also have Families back home who are often left wondering if their Soldier is while deployed overseas
A military spouse leadership professional development seminar was also held to help Fort Stewart spouses learn how to tackle challenges faced by the community, and form meaningful support groups to help each other.
“On the 7th of April 2004 the news came across the bottom of the screen that the 2nd Brigade [2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team], 3rd ID tactical operations center had been hit,” said Kathy Glaser, wife of Brig. Gen. William Glaser. ”Because we knew all the people we had a good network of spouses, we really didn’t want anyone to be alone, and it was all we could do to be with the spouses at that time and to comfort them.”
Events like the Salute to Summer professional development seminars not only help Soldiers learn from their predecessors, but also prioritize the development of the overall military Family, and is one of the many ways 3rd ID is working to put people first and stay combat ready.
| Date Taken: | 06.18.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 06.20.2024 11:52 |
| Story ID: | 474316 |
| Location: | FORT STEWART, GEORGIA, US |
| Web Views: | 24 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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