Photo By Patrick Adelmann | Col. Calvin Kroeger, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Fort Worth District commander,...... read more read more
For many long-serving U.S. Army Corps of Engineers employees, retirement is a bittersweet moment. On one hand, there is a sense of pride and accomplishment in having served the nation and contributed to important infrastructure projects. On the other hand, there is a sense of loss in leaving behind the camaraderie and a sense of purpose that comes with being part of a military organization.
Retirement from USACE is also a time to reflect on the legacy one leaves behind. Retirees can take pride in the impact they have had on the nation's infrastructure and the communities they have served. Their dedication and hard work have helped to build and maintain critical infrastructure projects, both military and civilian, that can benefit the country for generations to come.
For Robert “Bob” Morris Jr., who came to the Fort Worth District as an Army Lt. Col. in the role of deputy commander in 2002 and then transitioned to federal service as a Department of the Army civilian, reflecting on more than 22 years of service with the district, seems almost like yesterday.
I sat down with Bob as he reminisced about his career.
Pat Adelmann: How did you first come to work at the Fort Worth District?
Bob Morris: As I approached retirement from the active-duty Army, I reflected on a promise I made to my wife when we got married. That is, once I retired, I'd go where she wanted go. Since she was born in Cleburne, Texas, she wanted to come back to the Dallas-Fort Worth area. In 2002, I started looking at opportunities for the Army to move down here. That would give me some time to get acclimated to the area and start networking before retirement. I saw that the military deputy’s position was going to rotate the summer that I was scheduled to leave my instructor position at West Point. The commander was Col. Gordon Wells, who I knew while I was a cadet at the academy. So I flew down here for office call with Col. Wells. We talked a little bit and he put in a by name request for me to fill the deputy commander position. That's how I got to the district in June of 2002. I stayed in that role until I retired from the active Army in December 2005. But I actually started working as a civilian while I was on my terminal leave.
PA: What position did you hold when you started working as a civilian for the district?
BM: Col. John Minahan was the district commander and Mike Mocek was the deputy district engineer and chief of programs and project management, at the time. They offered me the program manager position for BRAC, Base Realignment and Closure, 2005. So, in November 2005, I was hired to oversee a $5 billion program at Joint Base San Antonio. We were coordinating the medical education training campus back then. It included the modular dorms, Tri-Services Research Lab, the Battlefield Health and Trauma Lab, and the expansion of the San Antonio Military Medical Center ambulatory care clinic on Lackland Air Force Base.
PA: What was your next role with the district?
BM: Troy Collins was the deputy district engineer at the time, and he left to go over to Afghanistan. The district put out an announcement for the position as a temporary fill. I applied for and was selected to fill the position. I think it was 2011. I did that for a year and a half, and then, when they finally advertised it for a permanent fill, Peggy Grubbs, a future distinguished civilian inductee, got the position. She asked me what I wanted to do next, whether I wanted to go back to program manager, and I said ‘no, I want your job’, to be the deputy chief, Programs and Project Management Division. So, we flipped positions.
PA: As the deputy for PPMD for the past 13 years, what do you see as one of your legacies?
BM: The opportunity to mentor our people. Typically, you have folks in the leadership development program, LDP 2 and 3, coming for mentoring sessions. It's one of those things that once you start with mentoring somebody, it may initially start off as a short-term arrangement or a limited term arrangement. But as people move around and up in the organization, you become a strategic asset for them down the road. One of the major things that all employees should do is have those mentors check in with them throughout their careers.
PA: What do you see as one of the biggest challenges of your career?
BM: I would say probably the post-COVID era. I think we successfully navigated COVID. But coming out of COVID, we have experienced angst while adapting to the hybrid work environment. I feel that exacerbated the differences of generational interactions. I'm old school, I like to see people face to face. But some employees prefer to communicate with email or Microsoft Teams, but others respond to text messages. So, I think we're dealing with a lot more personal preferences in communication styles as well as the folks that prefer to work from home. I have always worked in the office. Even through COVID I came in every day. I work better that way. I had our admins coming in every day because we needed to be able to support the folks that are working from home. It's hard to answer the phones if nobody's at the phones. There also might be requirements, perhaps a project manager is going to a meeting with the city of Dallas and needs something printed out for the meeting. The project managers don’t have printers at home so they send it to the office, we can print it out for them, and they can pick it up on their way to the meeting. So that's why we need an element in the office for that kind of support.
PA: Looking back on your career with the district what do you feel is your biggest accomplishment?
BM: I liked what I did at JBSA. To be able to go on the base and know that I had a hand in getting those improvements. It was medical heavy, and that's where the district ended up gaining expertise on hospitals, and we used that expertise with the Fort Bliss hospital, along with Darnell on Fort Cavazos.
PA: What does the next chapter of your life hold for you?
BM: I grew up as an Army brat and did a lot of traveling and living in different places. Between that, my own career, and marrying a flight attendant, travel plays a big role in what we will do. So, we've already got a couple of big trips planned for next year. A trip to France to see the Normandy beaches and stuff, if the good Lord allows us to still be in good health and moving forward. But the other piece really ties back to why I joined the military in the first place and then continued to stay with the Corps afterwards and that is service. I've always been engaged in volunteer activities. Whether it's the Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Sea Scouts, or Coast Guard auxiliary. I look forward to being able to do more volunteer activities where I can give back to our community.
A Fond Farewell; as the district bids Bob a fond farewell, he will move on to the next chapter of his life, retirement from USACE. This is a moment to reflect on the legacy he leaves behind. He can take pride in the significant impact he had on the nation's infrastructure and the communities he served. His dedication and hard work helped build and maintain critical projects that will benefit the country for generations. It's time to celebrate his accomplishments and sacrifices made during his tenure in the Corps of Engineers, and to look forward to new opportunities and challenges. Retirement offers a chance to relax, reflect, and enjoy the fruits of his labor, while also leaving a lasting legacy of service to the nation.
| Date Taken: | 12.11.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 12.11.2024 12:39 |
| Story ID: | 487198 |
| Location: | TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 175 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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