FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. — Maneuver Support Center of Excellence senior leaders hosted the fiscal year 2022 Commanding General’s MSCoE Retention Recognition Ceremony Nov. 21 in the Command Briefing Room.

The host of the ceremony, Maj. Gen. James Bonner, MSCoE and Fort Leonard Wood commanding general, thanked the Soldiers and civilians who “do such a great job” making the retention program successful here each year.

“It’s good to see the team effort required to keep good folks in the Army,” he said. “We do this every year — we do such a great job — and it’s all the folks here in this room together looking out for our Soldiers, so I thank you so very, very much.”

According to Master Sgt. Claire Wood, MSCoE and Fort Leonard Wood Command Career Counselor, the awards represent a lot of hard work by a dedicated team of career counselors and retention NCOs, who demonstrated excellence throughout the year in retaining the Army’s greatest asset — its Soldiers.

“Each one exceeded their mission in their respective category,” Wood said, noting this year’s retention goals here were met two months early. “It’s a testament to the command climate of the MSCoE command teams, all the way down to the companies, that Soldiers want to stay a part of the Army team. It doesn’t matter if they’re going to reenlist and stay here, or they’re going to go somewhere else, but they had such a good experience here that they’ll continue to serve and stay with the Army team.”

Wood said there are three distinct retention awards — Top Production, Early Bird and Excellence in Retention for units and individuals.

As the title of the award suggests, the unit Excellence in Retention Award is given to the brigades and direct reporting units that completed the assigned retention mission in all categories and demonstrated excellence in their retention program.

This year’s award was presented to the 14th Military Police Brigade, the 43rd Adjutant General Reception Battalion and the MSCoE NCO Academy.

Additionally, Staff Sgt. Christopher Henderson, from the MSCoE Career Counselor team, received the Excellence in Retention Career Counselor Award for his work with the 14th MP Bde.

The Early Bird Retention Award is given to the brigade and battalion that first completed the retention mission in all categories.

This year’s award was presented to representatives from the 3rd Chemical Brigade and the 2nd Battalion, 10th Infantry Regiment.

Additionally, the Early Bird Career Counselor Award was presented to Staff Sgt. Stephanie Rojas, from the MSCoE Career Counselor team, for her work with the 3rd Chem. Bde.

The Top Production Retention Award is given to the brigade and battalion with the highest aggregate on retention mission accomplishments in all categories.

This year’s award was presented to representatives from the 1st Engineer Brigade and the 2-10 In. Bn.

Additionally, the Top Production Career Counselor Award was presented to Staff Sgt. Daniel Parker, from the MSCoE Career Counselor team, for his work with the 1st En. Bde.

The Heavy Hitter Award is presented to the career counselor with the highest number of retention actions during the fiscal year.

This year’s award was presented to Henderson.

Also recognized for their work in assuring the success of the MSCoE retention mission were Sgt. Shantel Harris, with the 787th Military Police Battalion, Staff Sgt. Thalia Jaimes, with the 2-10 In. Bn., and Sgt. Gered Doughty, with the 554th Engineer Battalion.

In addition to recognizing the work of career counselors and retention NCOs here, two individuals, who were called integral to the success of the retention program, were presented with the Excellence in Retention Support Recognition Award.

This year’s award was presented to James Crone, a MSCoE Security Specialist, and Michael Reynolds, with the MSCoE Protocol Office.

Wood, who has been a career counselor for about 11 years, said working to meet the Army’s needs while also getting Soldiers what they want is a rewarding job.

“I love it — absolutely love it,” Wood said. “There are some long days and long nights, but if I can help keep the Army strong while also representing the Soldiers and what’s good for them and their families, too — because it’s not just the Soldiers reenlisting; it’s the families as well — then I’ve done my job.”

Photos from the ceremony are available on the Fort Leonard Wood Flickr page.