ROCK ISLAND ARSENAL, Ill. -- After being named the Army Sustainment Command Noncommissioned Officer of the Year and then repeating the accomplishment as the Army Materiel Command NCO of the Year, life has been a whirlwind for Staff Sgt. Andrew Gregory.
Gregory, a transportation management coordinator with the Installation Logistics Directorate within ASC's Field Support Directorate, has returned from Fort Lee, Va., where he was one of 12 NCOs Armywide to compete in the 2013 Department of the Army Best Warrior Competition Nov. 19-22.
Sgt. 1st Class Jason Manella of Fremont, Calif., Army Reserve Command, won Non-Commissioned Officer of the Year. The second- and third-place NCO winners are, respectively: Staff Sgt. Cory M. Schmidt, U.S. Army Forces Command, and Staff Sgt. De Gosh Reed, U.S. Army Pacific Command.
Gregory took the time to answer some questions about his experience.
Question: What was it like to gather with the Army's top NCOs (your peers) and the Sergeant Major of the Army and other top sergeants major?
Gregory: I expected to be more intimidating but Sergeant Major of the Army [Raymond] Chandler really took an NCO leadership/mentorship position. It wasn't like he was just giving orders or directing things. It was more like a camaraderie/mentorship type of situation. For example, we did the PT [physical training] test in the Army Combat Uniform which is something I have never done before. He knew that threw people off and they did not do as well as they might have otherwise. After that, when we gathered for the 18-mile march, He said "You might not have done as well as you normally do on the PT Test, but that is only one event. You, as an NCO, need to be able to push through and continue to persevere." It was inspiring to realize that he understood our challenges and was encouraging us to excel, especially when confronted with the unexpected.
Q: What was it like to appear on a board consisting of the Sergeant Major of the Army and other top sergeants major??
Gregory: Actually, they were quite gracious. Prior to the board they did a general introduction and explained who they were and what command they represented. It was pretty intimidating to see the top NCOs from the entire Army world-wide sitting in front of you. I know when I started this entire process I never imagined I would, some day, be sitting in front of a who's who of today's Army.
Q: Tell us about the competition.
Gregory: First of all, we all assumed the competition would be like the ones we participated in previously with our sponsors beside us, but that all changed when we inprocessed. We were told, "You won't see your sponsors for the next day and-a-half. You are going out to a simulated installation in a combat zone and you will get further information from there."
We competed in the usual events like PT test, road march, appearance board, warrior tasks and battle drills, but there were a few curve balls thrown in to keep us on our toes. We were literally told to gather our gear and we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. We had no idea what the plan was for the day. We didn't know the order of the events was going to be, so we just adapted on the fly.
The competition was grueling. I can honestly say I've never been so tired in my life. I think throughout the entire competition, I lost about 14 pounds.
Q: How would you assess your performance?
Gregory: I was very comfortable with my performance. I know that I left absolutely everything out there. I could not have done more to place any higher.
Q: What are your thoughts about overall experience?
Gregory: Well, this was the opportunity of a lifetime. I am honored to have been able to represent my career field, Army Sustainment Command and Army Materiel Command at such a high level. I met a lot of exceptional NCOs and overall, it was a truly inspiring experience.
Q: So, what's next for you?
Gregory: I'm looking forward to spending some time with my family and getting back into a routine at work. I also look forward to participating in community relations and mentorship/training opportunities in the Quad Cities area.
For more Q&As from Gregory, go to:
http://www.army.mil/bestwarrior/2013/warriors/gregory.html
For more on the 2013 Army Best Warrior Competition, go to:
http://www.army.mil/bestwarrior/2013/index.html
Related Links:
Army Sustainment Command homepage
Army Sustainment Command Facebook page
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