SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Hundreds of soldiers, civilians and family members from the US Army Reserve-Puerto Rico, gathered at the Puerto Rico's Convention Center to celebrate the command's 2013 Awards Banquet, Sept. 14.
The event served to recognize several units and soldiers for their hard work and dedication during the last 12 months.
The Headquarters, headquarters detachment, 166th Regional Support Group, the 756th Engineer Company and the 393rd Combat Sustaintment Support Battalion were recognized as the best units across the command, during the training year 2013.
Maj. Gen. Mark. J MacCarley, deputy chief of staff, Army Training and Doctrine Command, was the keynote speaker for the night, who addressed the effects of the fiscal constrains in the future of the U.S. Army.
"We are now moving to what the chief of staff of the Army calls the Army of preparation. That means we will spend more time at home station, putting equipment back together, filling our formations and training to respond to anything from counterinsurgency to cyber attacks or combined operations," said MacCarley during his speech.
The officer also explained the way to keep an operational force, despite the fiscal challenges.
"Good leaders will find innovative ways to seize those limited resources and to inspire soldiers to accomplish the mission. We also have to establish partnerships with institutions willing and able to help our soldiers," added MacCarley.
During the event, Brig. Gen. Fernando Fernandez, commanding general 1st Mission Support Command, U.S. Army Reserve-Puerto Rico, recognized Pedro Pierluisi, Puerto Rico's resident commissioner in the U.S. Congress, with the Commander's Award for Public Service, for his support to the command.
"It is an honor to receive this recognition from the U.S. Army Reserve in Puerto Rico, the largest federal U.S. Army command in the Caribbean region. I am committed with the men and women of the military," said Pierluisi shortly after receiving the award.
With approximately 5,000 soldiers and hundreds of civilian personnel, the U.S. Army Reserve injects more than $145 million in the local economy, placing the island in the top 14 U.S. jurisdictions that receive economic investment from the Army Reserve across the United States.
The U.S. Army Reserve forces in Puerto Rico have become an essential part of the total force, with streamlined, deployable forces and citizen-soldiers who embody the warrior mindset and spirit.
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