VICENZA, Italy – U.S. Army Garrison Italy honored four retiring Soldiers and one Army civilian during a July 20 ceremony.
Col. Matthew Gomlak shared stories about each of the retirees during the quarterly retirement ceremony, held at the Golden Lion on Caserma Ederle. The retirees included Chief Warrant Officer 3 Brandon Bell, 1st Sgt. Darryl Griffin, 1st Sgt. Terry Chavis, Master Sgt. Sean Jackson and Robin Gonzales. Together, they served the nation with a combined 133 years of service.
“Their service has been invaluable and deeply appreciated and we recognize them for their numerous contributions to the U.S. Army,” Gomlak said.
More than 100 people attended the event that was also broadcast via livestream. Sgt. Luis Guillen, a noncommissioned officer from the 173rd Airborne Brigade, offered stunning renditions of the U.S. and Italian national anthems. Maj. Gen. Todd R. Wasmund, U.S. Army Southern European Task Force-Africa Commander, attended the event with Command Sgt. Maj. Charles W. Gregory Jr.
Bell, a military criminal investigator, was joined by his family on stage. He retires after 35 years of service, where he most recently was Vicenza’s CID agent in charge. Griffin, a noncommissioned officer with the 522nd Military Intelligence Battalion, served 20 years and was most recently the battalion’s operations NCO. Jackson, who was joined by his wife, served 22 years, most recently as the SETAF-AF senior network operations NCO. Chavis, whose wife and four children were also honored, served 22 years, most recently at the 79th Theater Sustainment Command’s operations sergeant.
A U.S. Air Force veteran, Gonzales served in several Army civilian positions and oversaw many community events during the recent year of his 44-year career. His wife and children took part in the ceremony.
Each military retiree received a U.S. Army service award, a certificate of appreciation signed by the President, an Army certificate of retirement and American flag, as a symbol of appreciation for their sacrifice and service to the nation. They also received certificates of appreciation from the command team of Southern European Task Force, Africa.
Command Sgt. Maj. Jonathan Dyon, the senior enlisted leader at U.S. Army Garrison Italy, assisted the commander with the presentation of awards. The ceremony concluded with the playing of the Army Song and Auld Lange Syne.
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