Dental Health Command-Pacific change of command ceremony, Tomsett takes command

By Kayla Overton, Regional Health Command-PacificJune 29, 2020

Passing the colors
Brig. Gen. Jack M. Davis passes the unit colors to Col. Kelley Tomsett during the Dental Health Command-Pacific change of command ceremony, June 24, 2020. (Photo Credit: Kayla Overton) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT SHAFTER, Hawaii - During a change of command ceremony held June 24, Col. David Mott relinquished command of Dental Health Command-Pacific to Col. Kelley Tomsett.

Mott commanded DHC-P for the first time from 2016 to 2019. He stepped up to take command for a second time in April 2020, when the then-commander of DHC-P departed unexpectedly for personal reasons. Between his time as the DHC-P commander, Mott provided patient care at Bhaskar Dental Clinic on Fort Shafter, Hawaii, and also mentored dental residents at Schofield Barracks.

“There was no question in my mind that he was the natural choice to fill in during this difficult time,” said Brig. Gen. Jack M. Davis, commanding general, Regional Health Command-Pacific. “That’s what we do in the military, we step-up, we reach out and we help our buddy up.”

Mott is retiring after 37 years in the Army. As he heads on to his next career, he will be the Department Chair at Meharry Medical College’s School of Dentistry in Nashville, Tenn.

Tomsett has served our nation for more than 18 years, including four years on active duty as an enlisted Dental Laboratory Technician before attending dental school. She has spent the past two years as the commander of Dental Health Activity-Hawaii.

“This is an incredible team, and I’ve had the privilege and honor to work with them the last couple of years and they’ve proven themselves over and over,” Tomsett said. “I look forward to joining the headquarters team and continuing the strong work and the support of the DENTACs in Alaska, Hawaii, Japan, JBLM and Korea.”

DHC-P provides theater-level dental health care to more than 74,000 beneficiaries across the Pacific.