JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas (May 3, 2022) -- Command of the Mission and Installation Contracting Command contracting office at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, changed hands during a ceremony April 29.
Lt. Col. Erica Chin assumed command of MICC-Fort Belvoir from Lt. Col. Haneda Garner during a ceremony officiated by Col. Toney Stephenson, the director of the MICC Field Directorate Office at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, Texas.
Chin joins the command following a tour as a special assistant to the director of the Army staff in the office of the chief of staff of the Army.
“She is a true Soldier and acquisition professional. I am confident that Erica’s professionalism and business acumen will serve her well as she works with customers in the capital region,” Stephenson said during remarks. “The men and women of MICC-Fort Belvoir have built a solid reputation for delivering acquisition excellence and readiness for its customers. It is your task now to lead and take this exceptional organization to accomplish its contracting mission while remaining focused on our top priority -- people.”
Chin initially commissioned into the Army Quartermaster Corps and served as a maintenance officer and maintenance platoon leader as well as an executive officer. She later deployed as a battalion adjutant before commanding a distribution company in Iraq and at Fort Hood, Texas. After assessing into the Army Acquisition Corps in 2011, Chin was assigned as a contracting officer and team leader at the MICC-Fort Carson contracting office in Colorado before deploying to Afghanistan where she served as the deputy chief of the regional contracting office.
“The mission of the MICC impacts every Soldier in the Army, and I am delighted to rejoin the MICC family. I look forward to working with the outstanding professionals at MICC-Fort Belvoir and all that we will accomplish together,” Chin said, while also committing to strengthening the organization’s relationship with its supported mission partners and installation community.
Chin’s acquisition assignments also include a variety of positions with increasing responsibility with the Army Contracting Command in Orlando, Florida, Operational Test and Evaluation Command at Fort Hood, and Defense Contract Management Agency in Dallas and Fort Lee, Virginia. Her operational deployments include two tours to Iraq in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom as well as to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from Tarleton State University and Master of Arts in Acquisition and Procurement from Webster University. Chin is Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act certified Level III in contracting, Level II in program management and Level II in test and evaluation.
Garner retires from the Army after 20 years of active-duty service. Stephenson shared during the change of command some of Garner’s accomplishments while leading the MICC-Fort Belvoir contracting office. They included successfully partnering with more than 200 separate Army and joint organizations including five garrison commands throughout the Military District of Washington and its joint task force headquarters as well as Arlington National Cemetery. In addition to providing acquisition support for the planning and execution of the 59th presidential inauguration, Garner oversaw more than 4,000 contract actions totaling more than $400 million in support of customers throughout the National Capitol Region.
“There is no doubt that Haneda has given the best she has. As the Army No. 1 priority, people is at the forefront of everything we do. Haneda and MICC-Fort Belvoir have delivered for our Soldiers and civilians in helping the entire Military District of Washington succeed and win every day,” Stephenson said to those in attendance before turning to address Garner directly. “It is the devotion of our Army families that enable our Soldiers and our Army to remain ready and strong, and I thank you for all the sacrifices and your support that you have given.”
Following the presentation of retirement orders to Garner, she spoke on the Army renewed focus to take care of its people.
“During my time at Belvoir, I have learned that taking care of people is an action phrase. It requires action and work,” Garner said. “This office has an important mission, but the people who execute the mission are the most important. Remember who your people are.”
About the MICC
Headquartered at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, Texas, the Mission and Installation Contracting Command consists of about 1,300 military and civilian members who are responsible for contracting goods and services in support of Soldiers as well as readying trained contracting units for the operating force and contingency environment when called upon. As part of its mission, MICC contracts are vital in feeding more than 200,000 Soldiers every day, providing many daily base operations support services at installations, facilitate training in the preparation of more than 100,000 conventional force members annually, training more than 500,000 students each year, and maintaining more than 14.4 million acres of land and 170,000 structures.
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