AG Corps Hall of Fame inducts eight

By Wallace McBride, Fort Jackson LeaderJune 7, 2012

HoF
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT JACKSON, S.C. -- Fort Jackson welcomed eight men into the Adjutant General Corps Hall of Fame last week during a special reception at the Soldier Support Institute.

The program honors leaders from the Army's human resources ranks, known as the Adjutant General Corps, and recognizes persons who have made positive, lasting and significant contributions to the corps.

All inductees are honored with a permanent photo display in the AG Corps Hall of Honor at the Adjutant General School.

"Our AG Soldiers and HR professionals need to have role models, no different from any of the other corps," said Col. Robert Manning, commandant of the Adjutant General School. "We made the selection criteria tough. With this class, we got it right."

This year's inductees will join those from past years with displays on a kiosk inside the school where students can view them.

"We want our students to study and research our inductees," Manning said. "To place themselves in their shoes and view the Army though a different lens."

Inducted during Friday's ceremony were:

Major Gen. Thomas Sikora

Described by Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf as "a superb commander and firstrate Soldier," Sikora was commander of 10th Personnel Command during Operation Desert Shield/Storm, which evolved into the largest human resources unit ever deployed in support of ground combat operations since World War II. Sikora went on to serve as commanding general, 1st PERSCOM, Germany; deputy chief of staff for personnel, U.S. Army Europe; and as the director of military personnel management, Army G1, The Pentagon. He was the only Adjutant General officer assigned as the information architect in the newly formed Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff, Information Management and is the recipient of two Horatio Gates gold medals and one bronze medal.

Col. Ward Nickisch

Nickisch assisted in the oversight and management of The Adjutant General Directorate, implementing personnel programs, services and systems to support the readiness of Army units. He also assisted the Physical Disability Agency and the Army Institute of Heraldry. As commander, 18th Personnel and Administration Battalion for Fort Bragg, N.C., his units provided human resources management support to non-divisional Soldiers and their family members at locations around the world. He established the first CONUS-based operation of a U.S. Post Office on Fort Bragg, providing Soldiers with unprecedented, realworld postal operations training. He is the recipient of two Horatio Gates gold medals and one bronze medal.

Col. Paul Proffitt

In 1993, Proffitt took command of one the first personnel services battalions in the Army. He used what he learned about PSB structure and operations and applied them to the Adjutant General School to identify structural and doctrinal changes, which were later implemented across the Army. Proffitt led the Adjutant General School's Concept and Doctrine Division from 1997 to 1999.

Col. Edward Strong

Strong is a former battalion personnel sergeant, personnel staff officer at the division level, major command level G1 adviser to a Vietnamese division, and adjutant general of an Airborne brigade in combat. While on the staff of the DCSPER, USAREUR, Strong designed and established a new replacement system to expedite the flow of replacements from the processing center at Fort Dix, N.J. As part of the Army of Excellence initiative in the 1980s, Strong analyzed the work requirements of the battalion S1. He reviewed all battalion S1 administration, with support from the Army's top leadership.

Chief Warrant Officer 5 Daniel Logan Jr.

In 1981, Logan was assigned to the 5th Infantry Division where he served as chief, Officer Records Branch, then chief, SIDPERS Interface Division, and finally as assistant G1 for officer management. His efforts resulted in the 5th Infantry Division consistently exceeding all standards fort timeliness and accuracy in maintaining personnel records and data. Logan was the second warrant officer to serve in the General Officer Management Office and he established procedures to support the Army General Officer Life Cycle Management process. In 1985, he was selected to serve as assistant executive officer to the Army vice chief of staff, and in 1999 as assistant executive officer to the chief of staff of the Army. In 2002, Logan was appointed as the first senior warrant officer adviser to the chief of staff of the Army.

Chief Warrant Officer 5 David Ratliff

Ratliff led Army bands in performances for countless military and civilian dignitaries on three continents. His active duty culminated with his assignment as the Army Bands Proponency officer, where he was responsible for accessions of band warrant officers of all components. He is a founding member of the Army Band Steering Group, which represents senior band leaders of each Army component. Because of Ratliff's efforts, Army Bands XXI became the most significant change in the Army band structure in more than 50 years and is the current structure of today's Army bands.

Command Sgt. Major Michael Armstead

From 1996 to 1999, Armstead served with distinction as the battalion command sergeant major, HQs Command, U.S. Army Garrison, Fort Belvoir, Va. He later served in a joint assignment as the command sergeant major, Eastern Sector, U.S. Military Entrance Processing Command, North Chicago, Ill., until June 2001. Until his retirement in 2004, Armstead served as the Adjutant General Corps regimental command sergeant major at the AG School. After the Army G1 and the Army G1 sergeant major were killed in the Sept. 11 attacks, Armstead filled the enlisted HR leadership void and brought the Corps' NCOs together quickly through communication with MACOM Corps and Division G1s, PERSCOMSs and Personnel Groups and Battalions. Since 2008, Armstead has served as Honorary Sergeant Major of the Regiment for the Adjutant General's Corps.

Command Sgt. Major John Gathers

Gathers served as the command sergeant major for the 101st Air Assault Soldier Support Battalion, Fort Campbell, Ky. During his tenure, Gathers was instrumental in the deployment of three AG/FM Task Forces in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. While assigned as brigade command sergeant major at 1st PERSCOM from 2002 to 2005, Gathers renewed the USAREUR AG Regimental Association Program while serving as the president of the Rhine Neckar Chapter. From 2005 until his retirement in 2011, Gathers served as the longest-tenured command sergeant major with six years in the Army's Human Resources Command. Gathers played an instrumental role in manning the Army at war while supporting an Armywide transformation effort during a time characterized by a historic Soldier shortfall.