The U.S. Army promoted a Fayetteville, N.C., native to major general during a family-focused ceremony recently at Fort Bragg, N.C.
Army Maj. Gen. Clement S. Coward, commanding general of the 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command (AAMDC), received his two-star rank from U.S. Army Forces Command Commanding General Gen. Michael Garrett as well as members of the Coward family during a formal ceremony at the Marshall Hall headquarters of FORSCOM on Fort Bragg. Maj. Gen. Coward's wife, children and the general's parents joined friends and FORSCOM staff members as part of the promotion ceremony. The newly promoted general also re-affirmed his Oath of Service during the event.
Garrett recognized the Coward Family -- including the major general's parents -- and reflected on the importance of "living up to dad's expectations." Maj. Gen. Coward's father is an Air Force retired master sergeant. Gen. Garrett also noted that Maj. Gen. Coward's two children also are living up to their dad's expectations. "This promotion ceremony is as much about those who raised Clem and those who support him," Gen. Garrett said.
"Maj. Gen. Coward is one of three senior air defense officers in the Army," Gen. Garrett said. "That is a huge accomplishment. Not only has he done everything that we ask our leaders to do in the U.S. Army, he's done it to a very high standard."
"My father is retired Air Force and we moved to Fort Bragg and Pope Air Force Base in 1974 … and we really never left," Maj. Gen. Coward said. "I grew up around here," he said, reflecting on past locations, nearby schools, churches and neighborhoods. Maj. Gen. Coward and his wife were married at Pope Chapel.
He thanked his entire Family and the dozens of friends who attended the promotion ceremony, as well as the FORSCOM leadership team and the 32nd AAMDC Soldiers and Families. Maj. Gen. Coward emphasized that they are key "foundations" in his life.
The 32nd AAMDC is based at Fort Bliss, Texas, and falls within the authority and under the operational control of U. S. Forces Command. The 32nd AAMDC is a theater-level Army air and missile defense multi-component organization with a worldwide, 72-hour deployment mission. The 32d AAMDC consists of four brigades: 11th Air Defense Artillery (ADA), 31st ADA, 69th ADA and 108th ADA.
Maj. Gen. Coward is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, N.C., where he holds a Bachelor of Arts in Speech Communications. He has a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College and a Master of Science in Strategic Studies from the Army War College.
He is the former Deputy Director for Force Protection (DDFP) on the Joint Staff J-8 as well as the former Director, Joint Integrated Air and Missile Defense Organization (JIAMDO), and the former Director of the Joint Requirements Office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Defense (JROCBRND).
The General's operational assignments include: Platoon Leader and Battery Executive Officer with 4th Battalion, 43d Air Defense Artillery, Giessen, Germany, including Operation Desert Storm, Israel, and Operation Determined Resolve, Saudi Arabia; Battery Commander for 1st Battalion, 43d Air Defense Artillery, Fort Bliss, Texas; Senior Air Defense Coordinator, V Corps, Heidelberg, Germany; S3 and Executive Officer for the 5th Battalion, 7th Air Defense Artillery, Hanau, Germany and Operation Enduring Freedom, Israel; Operations Officer, Standing Joint Forces Headquarters, Joint Forces Command, Norfolk, Virginia; Battalion Commander of the 3d Battalion, 43d Air Defense Artillery, Fort Bliss, Texas; Secretary of the Joint Staff and Chief of Operations, United States Forces Iraq, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn; Brigade Commander, 11th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, Fort Bliss, Texas, and Operation Enduring Freedom; and Deputy Commander, 32d Army Air and Missile Defense Command, Fort Bliss, Texas.
General Coward's principal staff positions include: Aide-de-Camp to the Commanding General, Fort Bliss, Texas; Small Group Instructor, Air Defense Artillery Center, Fort Bliss, Texas; Assignment Officer, Human Resources Command, Alexandria, Virginia; Assistant Executive Officer to the Assistant of the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, Pentagon; Deputy TRADOC System Manager for Lower Tier Missile Defense, Fort Bliss, Texas, Chief of the Secretary of the Army's Strategic Initiatives Group; and Director, Business Operations, Office of Business Transformation, Office of the Under Secretary of the Army.
General Coward's military awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Humanitarian Assistance Medal, Parachutist Badge, and the Army Staff Identification Badge.
The 32nd AAMDC is the Army Forces and Joint Forces Land Component Commanders' organization that performs critical theater air and missile defense planning, integration, coordination, and execution functions. The 32nd AAMDC coordinates and integrates the four operational elements (or pillars) of theater missile defense: passive defense; active defense; attack operations; and battle management/command, control, communications, computers, and intelligence (BM/C4I) to protect contingency, forward deployed, and reinforcing forces, as well as designated theater strategic assets.
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