First Army Division East cases colors prior to headquarters move

By Staff Sgt. Nazly Confesor, First Army Public AffairsDecember 10, 2015

First Army Division East cases colors prior to headquarters move
1 / 2 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Maj. Gen. Brian McKiernan (right), First Army Division East commanding general, and Command Sgt. Maj. Donald Rose, First Army Division East command sergeant major, furl the division colors during a casing ceremony in the Fort George G. Meade Museum a... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
First Army Division East cases colors prior to headquarters move
2 / 2 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Maj. Gen. Brian McKiernan (right), First Army Division East commanding general; Command Sgt. Maj. Donald Rose (second from right), First Army Division East command sergeant major; and Command Sgt. Maj. Sam Young, First Army command sergeant major, st... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT GEORGE G. MEADE, Md. -- First Army Division East cased its colors in a ceremony at the Fort George G. Meade Museum here Dec. 9.

Soldiers and civilians from First Army watched as Maj. Gen. Brian McKiernan, Division East commanding general, and Command Sgt. Maj. Donald Rose, Division East command sergeant major, furled the division colors.

"First Army Division East, under the guidance of First Army, was activated on March 7, 2007, here to provide training and readiness oversight and mobilization operations for Army Reserve and Army National Guard units in an area of responsibility of 27 states and territories east of the Mississippi River," McKiernan said.

The casing of Division East's colors signified the move of its headquarters from Fort Meade to Fort Knox, Kentucky, in accordance with First Army's Operation Bold Shift, a major transformation in personnel and mission focus that began last year.

Division East has five brigades and 52 battalions located throughout the eastern United States. At the height of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Division East operated three mobilization training centers at Camp Atterbury, Indiana; Camp Shelby, Mississippi; and Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey.

"The multicomponent division comprises 6,000 active-duty, Army Reserve and National Guard Soldiers and civilians," McKiernan said. "We should take pride and never forget that, over the past 12 years, our nation has fought with an all-volunteer force that includes significant contributions from the Reserve Component: our citizen-Soldiers and National Guard."

From 2007 to 2013, the division played a vital and essential role in mobilization and pre-deployment training for hundreds of thousands of Army Reserve and National Guard Soldiers, he added.

"Division East wouldn't be the successful organization it is now without the commitment, the expertise and professionalism of our division's Soldiers, Civilians and Family members who were vital members of the team," he said.

McKiernan thanked Division East personnel for supporting the Army and its Reserve Component.

"Thanks to our efforts, servicemen and -women deployed successfully. First Army Division East's mission will continue to be to provide essential training."

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