My Promotion to CW4 on April Fools Day
My promotion ceremony was supposed to be held at the National Archives in front of the US constitution, but life had other plans. Since I was unable to thank everyone in a nice speech, I will use this forum. For me, the best part is I can now take time to ensure I thank everyone instead of rushing so the audience doesn’t get bored of hearing me talk.
First, I want to thank SFC James and SFC Sweeney (yes, I know he retired as a MSG, but I knew him as a SFC). For me, these two NCOs personified what an NCO should be. They pushed their soldiers to be better, took care of their soldiers, counseled their soldiers when necessary (I know this first hand), and lived up to the NCO creed of accomplishing their mission and the welfare of their soldiers. I tried to live up to their standard when I was an NCO, and I judge NCOs but the standard these two set. The officers I have worked with who have had my back and given me the freedom to succeed. From LTC Moore, LTC Flentie, COL Lee, COL Conkle, COL Frost. Every one of you placed your trust in me and helped me to see the “bigger Army”. Thank you, your leadership has been critical to my success.
The soldiers I have had the privilege to work with. You are the ones who take my great ideas and make them a reality. Brian Rood, Art Hoffman thank you for being patient with me while I was trying to figuring out how to lead a team. Thank you to all the soldiers at the 101st, you confirmed my belief that if a leader takes care of the solider the soldier will take care of the leader. You guys consistently made me look good. Thank you.
As a Warrant Officer, I have learned a great deal from the cohort, and there is no way for me to list everyone that has helped me, but I will try. Sean Smith, who taught me how to work with single sources and helped me to understand the basics of imagery. Ray Joyce, who always made me laugh. I still think about the day the imagery section chased you out for calling their work “looking at polaroid’s”. John Hare, who taught me Warrants work, how to interact with officers, and also threatened to punch me if I called him sir again. Brian Clifton, Joe Koschmeder, Paul French, Tony Woodmance, Jim Ford, and the rest of the team. Working with you as been one of the highlights of my career. Thank each one of you for helping make me a better Warrant Officer. To the WOTB team, Eric Shneiderhan, Brian Myer, Dawn Gaunt, Sara Sewall, Keven Browning thank you for your support and sometimes just listening to me complain. This was a demanding assignment and TRADOC can be its own beast. Thank you for helping me during that time.
To the CW5s, CW5 Boughton and CW5 Martin, your guidance and mentorship have been the best of my career. Your ability to see the Army through a wide lens and project the second and third-order effects is something I am continuously striving for. I think I might be up to second-order effects. Each one of you has placed trust in me, from training new 350F Warrant Officers to developing Army Intelligence Data Science. I take these jobs seriously and will continue to do my best and provide my insights to the process.
Lastly to my family. Thanks to my mom, she raised me by herself. I know as a single mom and a teacher things were not always easy. Thank you for instilling in me a solid work ethic and an internal desire to do better.
To my kids, thank you for supporting me. I know it is tough to pack up your life and move every couple of years. Your resiliency is astounding, and you have helped me to be a kinder and more compassionate person.
To my wife, thank you for well everything. You uprooted your life to move around the globe, have raised our family while I have been gone on three deployments and countless TDYs. Thank you for being my sounding board when I am ranting about work or describing some coding problems. You have always supported me. From when I was promoted to SFC, to when I decided to drop a Warrant Officer application, to when I applied for the Data Science program, you have always encouraged me to go after what I want. I absolutely would not be where I am today without you. I love you.