WASHINGTON - Four years of varied and successful domestic and foreign assignments concluded for the 35th Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. James F. Amos when he passed command to Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr. Oct. 17, at the Washington Marine Barracks.
More than 1,500 spectators entered the 8th and I gate for the Passage of Command, which doubled as a retirement ceremony for the outgoing Amos. Those in attendance included Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, Secretary of the Army John McHugh, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, congressmen, former Marine commandants, foreign service members and ambassadors.
At the barracks' center walk, Dunford accepted the Marine Corps battle color from Amos. Along with speaking to those in attendance following command transfer, the passage of command was one of the final acts of Amos' 44-year Corps career.
"I'm going to have to get used to that R-E-T thing on the backside of [my name]; that sounds a little bit strange," Amos said after formally being announced. "Ladies and gentlemen, Gen. Dunford and I are stunned by the amount of people who have come here today. Stunned. We want to thank you."
During the awards portion of the ceremony, Amos was presented a number of gifts including a folded American flag that flew over the Marine Corps Memorial and Henderson Hall's Headquarters and Service Battalion.
Hagel praised the outgoing commandant for his overseas deployments and the Amos family for being the foundation of a valiant Marine career.
"Over 44 years, you have managed 29 relocations and 25 different schools for your children," Hagel said to Amos' wife, Bonnie. "In addition to being a husband, father and grandfather, Jim has a long record of leadership and many impressive accomplishments. He helped make peace and keep it in the Balkans. He commanded Marine aviation in Iraq. He served in important positions of responsibility in NATO and at the Pentagon. But perhaps above all, Gen. Amos is a distinguished Marine fighter pilot...As commandant, Gen. Amos never forgot the men and women under his command."
The 36th Commandant of the Marine Corps, Dunford is a Boston, Mass. native and is a graduate of U.S. Army Ranger School, Marine Corps Amphibious Warfare School and the Army War College. His educational resume also includes a master's degree in government from Georgetown University. From February 2013 through August 2014, he was the commander of the International Security Assistance Force and the U.S. forces in Afghanistan. As he spoke on the front lawn of his new home, he mentioned that the custom was to keep his remarks short and he finished by setting his goals as the new commandant and explained he will continue Amos' march as U.S.M.C commandant.
"This morning, I'm not so much proud to be the commandant as I am simply to wear the cloth of the United States Marine...So I will simply close by telling you all how humbled I am to be the 36th commandant of our Corps," he said. "My focus in the coming years will be to take care of our Marines and their families and to ensure that our Corps remains the expeditionary force that our nation has come to expect."
Social Sharing