Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Brian Scott | From left to right: Lt. Gen. Mick Bednarek, commanding general, First Army, Col....... read more read more
McGREGOR RANGE, N.M. - The commanding general of First Army paid a special visit to leaders and soldiers of First Army, Division West’s 5th Armored Brigade, “Dagger” and the 402nd Field Artillery Brigade, “Roughrider,” here and on McGregor Range April 27-28.
Traveling from the division headquarters in Fort Gillem, Ga., recently assigned First Army Commanding General Lt. Gen. Mick Bednarek visited the sister brigades in order to introduce himself to leaders and soldiers, tour training areas, provide information on the future of First Army-led enduring mobilization training centers and share camaraderie with the brigades’ troops.
The “Dagger” and “Roughrider” Brigades, charged with operating the enduring mobilization training center here, train more than 10,000 war fighters annually from all branches of the service to prepare them for combat operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and other contingencies worldwide.
The visit began with a tour of the 5th Armored Brigade’s premier detainee operations training area run by Task Force Outlaw, on McGregor Range, N.M., to include a walk-through of the replicated Detainee Facility in Parwan and Guantanamo Theater Internment Facility, followed by a review of the Contingency Operating Location Westbrook. The tour was led by 5th Armored Bde. Commander Col. William J. Schafer and 402nd Field Artillery Bde. Commander Col. Kirk Nilsson.
The visit continued with a question and answer session for both brigades’ and battalion leaders at the brigades’ mobilization and demobilization operations center, where the general shared his command philosophy, inspiring the listeners to strive for excellence and making them aware their opinions are important.
“Good ideas have no rank,” the general said. “Thinking is hard; that is why not many people do it.”
The general said he supports the concept of using the right soldier for the right mission, regardless of component – whether an active Army soldier or mobilized Army Reserve soldier - especially important in these two multi-component brigades during evolutionary times.
The following day, the general participated in a combined physical training session with both brigades, that began with the new physical readiness training preparatory drills, then led into a two-mile run. After recovery drills, the general took charge of the mass formation and led the brigades through some spirited, vigorous exercises to include 150 four-count flutter kicks – non-stop.
“It’s not every day you see a ‘three-star’ take a formation like that,” exclaimed Sgt. 1st Class Donald Mays, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 5th Armored Brigade, and co-PT instructor that day. “It’s motivational.”
PT ended with the general sharing his command philosophy with the formation and congratulating them for the hard work they do every day in training America’s forces for deployment success.
The visit ended on a very positive note, with the general touring many offices in both brigades’ headquarters on Fort Bliss, allowing more soldiers to meet their new First Army commander in a down-to-earth way.
| Date Taken: | 04.28.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 05.03.2011 13:29 |
| Story ID: | 69783 |
| Location: | MCGREGOR RANGE, NEW MEXICO, US |
| Web Views: | 279 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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