FORT CARSON, Colo. — U.S. Army Garrison Fort Carson hailed Command Sgt. Maj. Jason R. Mortensen as its new senior enlisted leader during a change of responsibility ceremony May 25, 2023, at Founders Plaza.
Outgoing Command Sgt. Maj. Marcus W. Brister II relinquished responsibility as he passed the garrison organizational colors to Col. Sean M. Brown, garrison commander, who, in turn, handed the colors to Mortensen entrusting him with the health, welfare and readiness of Soldiers and Families who make up U.S. Army Garrison Fort Carson.
“No stranger to the Fort Carson community, I trust Command Sergeant Major Mortensen will pick up where Command Sergeant Major Brister left off and continue the legacy of enabling readiness and dedicated support to our Soldiers and their Families,” Brown said.
Mortensen joins the garrison team after serving with several 4th Infantry Division units on the Mountain Post. He most recently served as the command sergeant major for the 1st Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, and previously served with the 4th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd ABCT, 4th Inf. Div.; and with the 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, and 1st Battalion, 41st Infantry Regiment, both with the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team.
Mortensen pledged his commitment to the entire Fort Carson community.
“To the Mountain Post, the ‘Ivy’ Division and our mission partners, I am truly honored and blessed with the opportunity to continue to serve on this installation and will work tirelessly on all endeavors to support you and our community,” he said.
“To Colonel Brown and to the USAG team, I look forward to serving alongside you as we take care of our Mountain Post family, strengthen installation readiness, support modernization and enhance warfighting readiness,” he said. “We are the ‘Best Hometown in the Army,’ we are the home of America’s best, and we are Mountain Post READY.”
During his 25 years of service, Mortensen has served as a team leader, squad leader, section leader, platoon sergeant, senior small group leader, first sergeant, senior military science instructor, operations sergeant major and command sergeant major.
Brown had high praise for Brister, who assumed responsibility Jan. 5, 2021.
“In my time as garrison commander, I have witnessed no better advocate for discipline across this installation and no fiercer champion for Soldiers and their Families,” he said. “Command Sergeant Major Brister has always enthusiastically jumped in to do the hard work of peeling apart complex problems to identify root causes and to apply common sense solutions to make the lives of our Soldiers and their Families better. Whether it was tackling tough housing-related issues or marshaling support from within our eager community, Command Sergeant Major Brister tirelessly worked to enrich the lives of those who serve.”
But his efforts were not limited to serving Soldiers and Families, Brown noted.
“Keenly intelligent and process-oriented, Command Sergeant Major Brister familiarized himself with the entirety of every garrison system so that he could provide sound and reasoned advice on process improvement, and in doing so … enabled readiness across the entire Fort Carson enterprise. The expertise he has provided the entire garrison team … will be sorely missed,” he said.
Brister thanked the Front Range community for its ongoing support to the Mountain Post.
“I’d like to say a special thanks for always being there to support our Soldiers and Families; for helping bring together resources and events to support Families in need; and to help build the ‘Best Hometown in the Army,’” he said.
He commended brigade command teams for their efforts to identify and provide the support necessary to build a holistic readiness across the installation, before turning his attention to the civilian employees who support the installation from the garrison and other organizations across Fort Carson.
“You are all heroes to me,” he said. “For every issue that we faced together, I thank you for your support, your hard work, your candor and for putting up with my good ideas, even if they weren’t always that good.”
Brister concluded his remarks noting his time as the garrison senior enlisted leader was the perfect ending to his nearly 24-year Army career.
“It has been the honor of my life to be a part of the USAG Fort Carson team and to lead America’s sons and daughters for our great country,” he said.
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