Stephen Redman, Pine Bluff Arsenal's Directorate of Public Works, chief of the Engineering Plans and Services Division, retired on Dec. 7 from the Arkansas Army National Guard. A ceremony was held at Robinson Maneuver Training Center in Little Rock.
Redman, who has been at the Arsenal since 2005, started with the National Guard in 1981. He retires with the rank of colonel after a 31 year career. "It has been good for all kinds of reasons," he said. "The last deployment in Afghanistan was a big deal to me."
He enlisted as a microwave radio operator with the B/212 Signal Battalion in Benton, Ark., and graduated from Harmony Grove High School in Benton in 1982. Redman was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Signal Corps in 1985, and graduated from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville in 1988 with a Bachelor of Science degree in chemical engineering.
"The Guard has been a major part of mine and my family's lives, and I believe we are in a better place for the experience," said Redman in his remarks during the Dec. 7 ceremony. "I will always be proud of having been a part of the National Guard. I have led a blessed life."
Throughout his Guard career, Redman has served in a variety of command and staff positions including positions with the Guard's 212th Signal Battalion, 39th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 142nd Field Artillery and the 87th Troop Command and the Arkansas ADT Team 1. He served in Operation Iraqi Freedom II in Iraq during 2004 and Operation Enduring Freedom where he commanded the state's First Agriculture Business Development Team, which deployed to southern Afghanistan in 2010.
Redman's awards during his career include the Bronze Star, Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Army Reserve Component Achievement Medal and the Afghanistan Campaign Medal. During the ceremony, he was presented with the Legion of Merit, Arkansas Distinguished Service Medal, National Guard Bureau Certificate of Service, State of Arkansas Certificate of Appreciation and the Army Lapel Pin.
"It has been an amazing experience and I am a better man for it. It has been my humble honor," said Redman, in his retirement speech.
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