U.S. ARMY GARRISON HUMPHREYS, Republic of Korea (Dec. 17, 2009) -- Army Chief of Staff Gen. George W. Casey Jr. visited Humphreys Garrison Wednesday and brought with him messages of praise, pride and encouragement.
Addressing a crowd of nearly 150 Soldiers, family members and Army civilians, Casey said that he was proud of their service and the sacrifice they make so far from home.
Casey touched on a number of subjects including the state of the Army, the Year of the Noncommissioned Officer and the Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program.
He and the Army leadership recognize the toll the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have taken on Soldiers and their families, Casey said.
The Chief of Staff assured the assembled group that the Army can meet the requirements of the new Afghanistan strategy without going to 15-month tours, and without going below 12-months at home between deployments and without changing the plan to end stop-loss by Jan. 1, 2010.
Casey also discussed the Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program which will help develop resiliency in Soldiers, families and civilians.
"It will help them to be as resilient as they can be," Casey stressed. "We want to bring mental fitness up to the same level as physical fitness."
The Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program will be part of every Army training program from basic training up to the War College, Casey said.
"Every Army School will teach a course on resilience," Casey said. We'll have master resilience trainers, just as we had master fitness trainers."
Casey next spoke of the Army's Year of the Noncommissioned Officer.
"The Year of the NCO recognized the contributions of our NCOs, he said. "The Secretary of the Army and I believe NCOs provide the glue that hold the force together and we wanted to let the American people know that," Casey said.
Casey said that President Barack Obama spoke highly of the Year of the NCO when he presented the Medal of Honor to the family of Sgt. 1st Class Jared C. Monti in September.
According to Casey, Obama praised Monti and all NCOs for their dedication, commitment and warrior ethos.
"I feel pretty good about what we've done to recognize all of our NCOs," Casey said. "Thank you very much for what you do to hold us together."
Casey took questions from the audience on subjects ranging from the lack of spouse employment opportunities at Humphreys to revising the Army's Physical Fitness manual to a potential drawdown of the Army when the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are over.
Regarding spouse employment and other quality of life issues at Humphreys, Casey said that it's clear to him that "...we've created expectations that we need to realize faster than by 2013."
By 2013 many of the new facilities should be coming online as Humphreys grows and transforms, according to current plans.
Casey offered a last bit of praise for all telling them that they are "...part of an Army that is the greatest force for good the world has ever seen. You need to know that is recognized by your country and your president."
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