Joint Base San Antonio, Texas (May 11, 2018) -- The former Army Medical Command Sgt. Maj. Gerald C. Ecker retired at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, on May 3. During his remarks, he reflected on his career and reminded those in attendance to always remember why they serve.
"I believe it's important to ground ourselves every so often by remembering why we serve. It conditions our endurance and resolve to remain dedicated and passionate about what we do and why we do it," said Ecker.
Ecker's family has a long line of military service -- his grandfather served in World War II as a litter-bearer and sacrificed his right arm in the Ardennes Forest of France during the Battle of the Bulge. Although he only saw him in photos, his service made a lasting impression on him.
"My family's honorable service and sacrifice had a lot to do with my own desire to serve as a Soldier. As a young boy I had so much admiration, respect and love for them, they were very much like superhero's to me," said Ecker.
His uncle, Ronald Abrahamson, served in Korea as an Army Ranger with the 3rd "Dogface Soldier" Infantry Division and died in May of 1953, just before the Armistice was signed. His other uncle, Maurice Northrup, shaped Ecker's view of paratroopers before deploying to Vietnam with the 327th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, and losing his life 1968.
Ecker's Uncle, John Abrahamson, was wounded twice in Vietnam and served as an Infantryman with the "Old Reliables" of the 9th Infantry Division.
"He bore the scars of his wounds for many years after his service to our country and admitted to having difficulty in watching me deploy to the Middle East throughout my career. His tales of his two young infantry platoon leaders that were killed in Vietnam, and the two brave platoon medics that saved him and countless others, only to never make it back home alive themselves, inspired me over the years as a medic," said Ecker.
Command Sgt. Maj. Gerald C. Ecker served as the MEDCOM Command Sgt. Maj. since 2014 and previously served as the U.S. Army Public Health Command and U.S. Army Medical Department Center and School Command Sgt. Major.
Reflecting on his career, Ecker stated that he enjoyed the camaraderie, the esprit de corps, and the teamwork. "Our Army is a great brotherhood of dedicated professionals willing to say "This We'll Defend". I also loved the aspect of helping people as a medic."
Ecker first realized he would make a career out of the military when he was a senior line medic in an Airborne Infantry Rifle Company in the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment. He loved the responsibility and freedom to practice medicine and mentor junior medics while taking care of a company of paratroopers.
"As Soldiers, we are often asked to "rise to the occasion" -- our creeds, beliefs, values, and training enable us to do so," said Ecker. "Never compromise your character or standards and always be ready and willing to lead."
For the next generation of military leaders, Ecker advises leading by the Golden Rule of rendering respect and receive respect. Be tough, but be fair and always train like someone's life depends upon it.
He advised, "Have presence. Begin the day by leading by example at [physical readiness training] PRT. Know your mission, your people and know yourself. Discern the fine line between your professional self-confidence and your humility. Never stop preparing yourself. Caring is training. Finally, love your Families as much as your Soldiers and vice-versa."
One of the harder lessons Ecker learned as a leader was, you should keep the plan, "by the book until the enemy, weather, or terrain dictates otherwise."
"When you're unsure what to do in a tough situation, conduct a movement to contact and develop the situation. Be mindful always, but beware of overthinking it," said Ecker.
During his 31 years in the Army, the greatest change has been the changes in technology. Individual weapon target acquisition improvements, GPS navigation applications, and communications equipment has changed how we conduct missions. However our leaders and Soldiers should not depend on it with their lives. Ecker feels that Soldiers shouldn't depend on batteries and satellites, they should learn how to shoot with iron sights and navigate with an M2 compass, map systems, and various terrain and movement technique pace-counts.
"Our Army must be self-reliant and that means the individual Soldier is a master of basic field-craft tasks and survivability techniques," said Ecker.
Ecker described what motivated him during his career as, "The great love for my country, Soldiers, and my family kept me focused, but mostly my Lord's love for me kept me on a path of service -- I believe it was the love of God that compelled me to serve for over 31 years as a Soldier and a medic," said Ecker.
Ecker is planning to study theology and has been accepted at Concordia Theological Lutheran Seminary in Fort Wayne, Indiana after retirement.
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