Soldiers from Garrison Headquarters and Headquarters Company, the Fort Belvoir Chaplains Office and the 212th Military Police Detachment learned about leadership while enhancing their mind, body and spirit during the Headquarters Battalion's Leadership Development Practice event at Mount Vernon Friday.
The Soldiers attended a lecture about George Washington's leadership skills, his humility (despite his uniquely large physical stature for that time) and his ability to surround himself with people who were strong in areas where he was weak. The goal is to teach Soldiers why Washington was an effective leader and to build resiliency.
"We wanted to keep Soldiers informed of the history of the Father of our Nation," said Lt. Col. Brian P. Zarchin, Headquarters Battalion commander. "The second reason is to break up the monotony and promote resiliency. I hate to say that word, again, but that's the underlying tone of this event. We want to get Soldiers out, and inform them about activities in the D.C. area that can break up the monotony and enhance resiliency."
After a tour of Washington's house, Soldiers sat on the lawn behind the home and listened to a lecture on Washington given by Capt. Ryan Goltz, 212th MP Det. commander.
Goltz shared that, despite being 6 feet 2 inches tall when the average height for men in the 18th century was 5 feet 4 inches, Washington displayed humbleness and did not bully his Soldiers into doing what he wanted. He took the time to get to know them and find out what their strengths were.
Washington also knew what his weaknesses were and found Soldiers who were strong in those areas to provide him help.
"I think the key takeaway from all that is, even though he had an impressive physical prowess, the reason he is remembered is for his character, morality, humility and ultimately for his unbelievable leadership," said Goltz. "His larger than life stature contributed to his ability to do that."
Having his physical prowess, but still possessing the character traits he had is memorable, according to Zarchin, as is the respect Washington's Soldiers had for him.
It's said that one of Washington's Soldiers said you couldn't come up to him with anything but respect, which Zarchin said should be every Soldier's goal.
"Everybody that's in a uniform is a leader whether they have the rank to show it or not," said Zarchin. "Less than one percent of the population serves in the military, so, the people walking around here seeing us in uniform, they don't care what rank we are. But, the way the Soldiers carry themselves and behave is reflective of the Army and the nation."
Having the opportunity to speak to Soldiers about leadership and have a setting like Mount Vernon to give his words context is exciting, according to Goltz.
"It's a once in a lifetime opportunity to learn about something and at the same time actually have something tangible you can take away and leaves a lasting impact," he said.
More than 200 years after his death, Goltz added, Washington should still be remembered not only for his leadership ability, but his vision for the country.
"His character is invaluable," said Goltz. "He's the father of our country. The decisions by one man shaped where we've gone in several centuries and where we are headed in the future."
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