The U.S. Army’s 7th Signal Command (Theater) held a change of command ceremony on June 22, 2022 as Brig. Gen. Mark D. Miles relinquished command to Brig. Gen. Charles R. “Rob” Parker at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland.
Presiding over the ceremony virtually was Maj. Gen. Christopher L. Eubank, Commanding General of United States Army Network Enterprise Technology Command (NETCOM). In a speech at the ceremony, Eubank remarked that Miles took over command at a time of many challenges and changes within the 7th Signal Command.
“Immediately upon taking command, Mark was faced with transitioning the 7th’s command and control responsibilities to its new headquarters at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland. Mark kept the team together, informed and most importantly synced as the 7th ran split operations during the move from Fort Gordon; a most remarkable team achievement.” said Eubank.
The Department of Defense approved the move of the 7th Signal Command (Theater) to Fort Meade in January 2021, following the relocation of Army Cyber Command (ARCYBER) from the National Capital Region (NCR) to Fort Gordon GA, in June 2020. The move allows the 7th Signal Command to better coordinate and synchronize its efforts with its counterparts and stakeholders in the National Capital Region.
Brig. Gen. Miles leaves the 7th Signal Command (Theater) to become the J-6 at the United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM), headquartered in Hawaii. Brig. Gen. Miles, who was promoted from the rank of Colonel June 21 in a ceremony on Fort Meade, said what he is most proud of during his tenure was the beginning of a paradigm shift as 7th began to operationalize the network as a warfighting platform.
“We are changing the culture from a compliance based security to an active, agile and data focused security,” said Miles. “That is bad news for our adversaries and I’m excited to see where we grow from here.”
Assuming command is Brig. Gen. Charles R “Rob” Parker, whose most recent assignment was as Deputy Director, J-6 on the Joint Staff at the Pentagon. Eubank welcomed Parker, along with his wife, Pam, and their two children. “Rob has all of the tools and experience needed to command 7th Signal Command (Theater) and he is the right leader, teammate and communicator to continue to move the ball down the field with team 7th. I have all the confidence in the world that Brig. Gen. Parker will continue the tradition of excellence, but more importantly, the tradition of taking care of the Soldiers and civilians of the 7th,” said Eubank.
In his remarks, Brig. Gen. Parker thanked Brig. Gen. Miles and his family for his outstanding efforts during his time as commander.
“You had a very hard task and I hope that you and Melissa walk away knowing the foundation you set here is the exact foundational element that we need to stand on as we continue to grow the command as we move in to future missions,” said Parker.
Brig. Gen. Parker said that under his command, the 7th Signal Command (Theater) will continue leading efforts within the Army to build the capacity, security, reliability, and resiliency required in the future Unified Network.
“I’m more than confident the 7th Signal Command (Theater) has the right professionals, in the right place at the right time, to meet these challenges head on and accomplish what must be done.”
The 7th Signal Command conducts DoD Information Network (DODIN) Operations in CONUS to enable all warfighting functions for the Army and Joint Force. Its three subordinate brigades are the 93rd Signal Brigade headquartered at Fort Eustis, Virginia; 106th Signal Brigade at Fort Sam Houston, Texas; and the 21st Signal Brigade at Fort Detrick, Maryland. The CONUS Theater Network Operations and Security Center (2nd Signal Center) stationed at Fort Huachuca, Arizona, and the South Theater Network Operations and Security Center at Fort Gordon, Georgia are also assigned to the 7th Signal Command.
The 7th Signal Command was activated on 1 July 1975 at Fort Ritchie Maryland, and was tasked to oversee and support all CONUS signal operations, complementing 5th Signal Command in Europe and 6th Signal Command in the Pacific. The command provided communications, automation, visual information, printing and publications, and records management services to CONUS army units.
The 7th Signal Command was deactivated on 1 October 1993 and its functional support components were redistributed to Fort Detrick, Maryland and several other posts. On July 22, 2008, the 7th Signal Command was reactivated at Fort Gordon, Georgia as part of the “Grow the Army" initiative. On September 2, 2021, the Command uncased its flags at Fort Meade, Maryland, establishing a second headquarters element. The Command now executes split-based operations with intelligence, operations, planning and select special and personal staff functions at Fort Meade, Maryland. The personnel, acquisition, and resource management functions remain at Fort Gordon, Georgia.
Social Sharing