What It Means To Be A Warrior

FORT BENNING, Ga. -- Six Soldiers from Army Reserve Medical Command and 12 Soldiers from 3rd Medical Command (Deployment Support) arrived at their infantry barracks on March 1st, prepared to compete in the command-level Best Warrior Competition for 2017 held 1-5 March at the intellectual center of the maneuver force -- Fort Benning, Georgia.

ARMEDCOM is the Army Reserve's premier medical command, providing enhanced medical skills that serve as a force multiplier delivering vital medical capabilities essential to the total force, but each medical professional within the command is a Soldier first, and it is those basic Soldier skills that were tested throughout the competition.

Cmd. Sgt. Maj. Robert Boudnik, 3rd Med. Cmd. (DS) command sergeant major, welcomed the competitors and set the stage for what each Soldier should anticipate from the competition.

"You will be challenged physically every, single day of this competition. You will be challenged mentally every day. Technically and tactically, your Army skills will be challenged every, single day. If you came prepared for that? This competition will be too easy," said Boudnik.

The competitors soon discovered what the 3rd Med. Cmd. (DS) command sergeant major was preparing them for. Over the course of four days, competitors were evaluated in a variety of areas to include the Army Physical Fitness Test; the Nuclear, Biological, Chemical chamber; numerous obstacle and confidence courses; a written exam and essay; weapons qualifications; day and night land navigation courses; a six-mile road march; combat life-saver response; hand-to-hand combat drills; and a host of other Soldier tasks culminating with an Army appearance board which convened on the evening of Mar. 4th.

The Best Warrior Competition recognizes Soldiers who demonstrate commitment to the Army values, embody the Warrior Ethos, and represent the force of the future.

As the competitors from 3rd Med. Cmd. (DS) and ARMEDCOM gathered together on the final morning of the joint ARMEDCOM / 3rd Med. Cmd. (DS) Best Warrior Competition on Mar. 5, they were left reflecting on what the term 'warrior' meant for each of them as they awaited the final results to be announced for the winner in the Non-Commissioned Officer and Enlisted category for each of the commands.

Before results were announced, guest speaker for the event, Purple Heart recipient Lt. Col. (Ret.) Kevin Butler, addressed the competitors on their accomplishments throughout the week.

"For a warrior, it's not just about being physically fit, it's not just about being proficient with their weapon system, and it's not just about being disciplined… Those three things in and of themselves, or even in some combination, don't necessarily make you a warrior. What makes you a warrior is the willingness to engage. A willingness to test yourself and not necessarily worry about the outcome, just willing to go forth and put yourself out there with the confidence that you're going to prevail," Butler said.

"Regardless of how you end up placing in this competition, you are a warrior. You earned that title because of what you went through this weekend. Not just the competition, but all the time, energy and effort you put into preparing for this weekend…. those are the things that really make you a warrior," concluded Butler.

The warriors selected to go on to the next level to represent ARMEDCOM at the Army Reserve Best Warrior Competition held at Fort Bragg, North Carolina in June of 2017, are Spc. Lucas A. Ivarie, assigned to 7225th Medical Support Unit; and Sgt. Terrelle T. Fields, assigned to 7250th MSU.

The warriors selected to represent 3rd Med. Cmd. (DS) at the Army Reserve Best Warrior Competition are Spc. Katie Nadeau assigned to the 405th Command Support Hospital; and Cpl. Carlo DelDonno assigned to Headquarters, Headquarters Company of the 804th Medical Brigade.