Photo By Esther Garcia | Sgt. Jared Stenger presents a bouquet of yellow roses to Patricia Rubenstein on behalf...... read more read more
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Maj. Gen. David Rubenstein, who most recently commanded the Army Medical Department Center and School, and was concurrently the Chief of the U.S. Army Medical Service Corps, retired after 35 years of service with Army Medicine at a June 1 ceremony at MacArthur Field.
His guests attending included his 1977 classmates from Company D-1, Texas A&M University Corps of Cadets and this 1989 classmates from the U.S. Army’s Baylor University graduates program in Health Administration.
A bouquet of yellow roses was presented to Patricia Rubenstein on behalf of AMEDDC&S and the Army Medical Corps in recognition of her contributions throughout the years. Rubenstein’s children, Sarah and William, also received special gifts on behalf of their dad for their support.
“David is a true servant-leader. He chose to serve first and out of that choice he became a greater leader as well,” said the ceremony’s host, Lt. Gen. Patricia Horoho, Army Surgeon General and commanding general of U.S. Army Medical Command.
“As a servant-leader, he excelled at being a teacher, a historian, a scholar, a communicator and a mentor,” Horoho added. “As a commander of more than 2,700 soldiers and civilians at the AMEDDC&S, David instituted additional requirements for flight medics.
“He started a short course in health care administration for soldiers and civilians training in running a clinic and he directed the staff to redesign a deployable combat support hospital to make it more flexible and adaptable.”
Prior to commanding the AMEDDC&S, Rubenstein was the Army deputy surgeon general and before that, the commanding general of Europe Regional Medical Command and command surgeon for U.S. Army Europe and 7th Army.
His other assignments included leading the 30th Medical Brigade; Landstuhl Regional Medical Center; 21st Combat Support Hospital and Task Force Med Eagle while deployed to Bosnia and Herzegovina; 18th Surgical Hospital (MASH); and Headquarters and Support Company, 307th Medical Battalion (Airborne), 82nd Airborne Division.
“Parting is a little like dying … that is how I feel this morning,” said Rubenstein as he began his remarks.
The general reminisced about his career, pointing out the buildings where he first began his training here on post, the various incidents throughout his assignments and the people he met from generals to privates who inspired him. He also thanked the federal civilians and his family.
“Retiring from the Army seems to me to be a lot like finishing a very good book,” Rubenstein said. “You relunctantly put it on the bookshelf and move on to the next book or the next activity, but you do so knowing it is always there to take down on occasion to review or skim through, to look for a passage or a memory scene, or to look for a vaguely remembered fact.
“I have carefully packaged all my wonderful memories into that book, and I’ve titled it my Army career and placed it on my mental bookshelf. I’ll go there, take it down every now and then, open it and fondly remember an event, occasion or lesson.
“Mostly, I will remember the people. For now it is time for Pat and me to go on another adventure.”
| Date Taken: | 06.01.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 06.12.2012 13:53 |
| Story ID: | 89840 |
| Location: | SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 543 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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