SMDC Deputy Commander for Operations joins general officer ranks

FORT CARSON, Colo. -- The U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command deputy commanding general for operations promoted to brigadier general during a ceremony at Fort Carson, Colo., on May 9.

Brig. Gen. Donald K. Brooks, who most recently served as the Space and Missile Defense Center of Excellence commandant, joined the general officer ranks shortly after assuming the DCG-O duties from outgoing deputy commanding general for operations, Brig. Gen. John L. Dawber, on March 20. As DCG-O, Brooks is SMDC’s highest-ranking senior officer in Colorado Springs to assist Commanding General Lt. Gen. Sean A. Gainey.

"None of us arrives at a moment like this alone,” Brooks said. “This is a product of inspirational leaders who demanded more of me, noncommissioned officers who gave me tough love, teaching me how to truly lead, Soldiers who placed their trust in me, and those peers that never let me coast and made me better every day. Whether it was during long nights in the field, sharing hardships in combat or the quiet work of preparing the next generation, you all played a role in who I am today. Each assignment, each team and each challenge was a forge, and like the Proverb says, iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. You sharpened me.”

Brooks also thanked his wife, Patti, and son, Camden, for their support and resilience in his military journey.

“You've made this journey worthwhile and your strength gives me the strength that I need every day to continue to fight,” he said. “No title or rank will ever mean as much to me as being called a husband and father.”

Brooks’s wife, son and retired Maj. Gen. Tim C. Lawson, former mobilization assistant to the commander, United States Space Command, pinned on his new rank.

Brooks then took the oath of office administered by Gainey and unfurled the one-star flag presented by Master Sgt. Daniel Huddleston, SMD CoE senior enlisted leader. Brooks was also presented with his promotion certificate and a one-star belt, and retired Command Sgt. Maj. Michael James presented him with the symbolic general officer M-17 sidearm produced exclusively for general officers.

During his time as the SMD Center of Excellence commandant, Brooks was responsible for oversight and integration of the Space and Missile Defense School and the Army Space Personnel Development Office, which is the personnel proponent for the Army’s Functional Area 40. Brooks spearheaded the initiative to establish an Army space branch and enlisted space military occupational specialty and developing the Army space training strategy.

Brooks graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1999 and commissioned into Field Artillery. In his early career, he was assigned as a platoon leader, battery executive officer and battalion S1 in the III Corps Artillery at Fort Sill, Okla., and later served various operational roles with the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, at Fort Stewart, Ga.

Brooks, who designated as a space operations officer in 2008, commanded the 1st Space Battalion at Fort Carson, Colo., from 2017 to 2019, then moved to Tampa, Fla., to establish the U.S. Space Command’s Joint Integrated Space Team at both U.S. Special Operations Command and U.S. Central Command before returning to Colorado to command the 1st Space Brigade from 2021 to 2023. He assumed the role as the SMD CoE commandant in August 2023.

In his remarks, Gainey emphasized his confidence in Brooks and the pivotal role Brooks has played in recent years to help “define Army space” for the space and missile defense community and the Army as a whole.

"I couldn't think of a better officer to step into the DCG-O office and help this command continue to move further, especially in a time of change and transition, and Don's going to help drive that for this command,” Gainey said. “Again, I can't think of a better officer to be promoting to brigadier general today.”

Brooks is the 17th officer to hold the position of deputy commander for operations since its creation in 2002.

“We don't get to choose the conditions in which we lead, but we do get to choose the character with which with which we lead,” Brooks said. “I will do so with humility, courage and with the honor to shape generations of Soldiers and leaders to protect and defend our great nation.”