SCHOFIELD BARRACKS -- Col. Danielle Ngo relinquished command of the 130th Engineer Brigade to Col. Geoffrey Van Epps in a change of command ceremony attended by Soldiers, families, and friends of the brigade, here on Hamilton Field, July 10.
Col. Richard A. Ellis, 8th Theater Sustainment Command Deputy Commanding Officer, officiated the ceremony and expressed his pride in the unit's accomplishments under Ngo's leadership. Before the ceremony, Ellis presented the Legion of Merit award to Col. Ngo and also awarded her sister, Lan-Dinh Ngo with the Army Engineer Association's Essayons Award, which honors family members who made significant contributions to the morale, welfare, and spirit of engineer units and organizations.
Ngo, born in Vietnam and raised in Massachusetts, handed off the brigade's colors after serving as the commander for two years. Under her command, the brigade provided construction, combat, geospatial, dive and general engineering support to the Pacific theater area of operations.
The ceremony coincided with the brigade's 75th Anniversary Week. Brigade alumnus and spouses traveled far and wide to celebrate the brigade's birthday and attend the change of command ceremony.
"You will see during the next two years in this storied Brigade and from the history of our esteemed Alumni here, that you are among the finest Soldiers past and present standing before us," said Ngo in her closing remarks.
The 130th Eng. Bde. traces its lineage back to the 1303rd Engineer General Support Regiment, which was activated in July 1943 and was shortly after that deployed in support of both the European and Pacific Theaters in World War II. The unit also served in Operations Joint Endeavor, Desert Shield, Desert Storm, Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom.
As the largest engineer unit in U.S. Army Pacific, the 130th Engineer Brigade is comprised of two battalions: the 84th Engineer Battalion (Construction Effects) and the 11th Engineer Battalion (forward stationed in Korea), which are called upon consistently for engineering support across the Pacific region.
"The Officers, Noncommissioned officers, and Soldiers of this brigade have set a high standard to live up to," said Van Epps. "And I'm honored to join this great unit."
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