FORT Huachuca, Ariz. – Three Soldiers with a combined service of 66 years officially retired from the Army in a ceremony Jan. 19 at Brown Parade Field.
Chaplain (Col.) Paul R. Jaedicke, Network Enterprise Technology Command (NETCOM) Command chaplain & Fort Huachuca senior command chaplain, served a total of 26 years in the Army; Maj. Kelvin T. Tooke, deputy division chief, Ground Sensors Division, Army Capability Manager – Intelligence Sensors; and Sgt. Maj. Ryan J. Sweet, chief Signal NCO, Headquarters & Headquarters Company, NETCOM, each served 20 years.
Maj. Gen. Christopher L. Eubank, commanding general, NETCOM, addressed the audience, thanking the Soldiers and their families for their years of service.
“Our families are the foundation and strength of every servicemember and Department of the Army civilian,” Eubank said. “Each of you have given so much of yourselves to your loved ones and their careers. Without your support, love, and belief in what we do, many of us could not achieve true successes in our endeavors. For that, you deserve our deepest and sincerest thanks and appreciation.”
Sweet agreed that one of the best things in his time of service was the support of his family.
“There is nothing like the support of a military family to help you through the day when there seems to be no end,” he said.
Cooke said one of the things he was looking forward to in retirement was the chance to simply be a support to his spouse, who is also a major in the military. He says he looks forwards to being able to finally be able to attend a ceremony, not as a military leader, but simply as ‘the spouse.’
Eubank said when these Soldiers decided to put on a uniform, “There was a commitment made, not only to this great nation and its citizens, but to your families and to yourself. A commitment to be part of something bigger.”
That is something Jaedicke knows very well. He joined the military as an officer right out of college and served in an engineer battalion. After completing his four-year service obligation, he left the Army to follow God’s call into Christian ministry. But then came the terror attacks of 9/11 and, after a 15-year break in service, Jaedicke decided to re-enter the Army in 2002 as a chaplain, where he served for another 22 years.
Eubank encouraged the three Soldiers and their families to embrace the changes that come with retiring and starting new.
“Many think that retirement represents an end,” he said, “but I would say it is more like the start to a new chapter or new book in your lives. It is a change of mission.”
“Stepping off into the unknown can be scary, but you have faced difficult challenges in the past. This new mission will be an exciting new chapter in your story. Today you become one of the elite – a Soldier for Life.”
(Editor's note: For the complete photo album visit 2024-01-19 Quarterly Retirement Ceremony | Flickr.)
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Fort Huachuca is home to the U.S. Army Intelligence Center of Excellence, the U.S. Army Network Enterprise Technology Command/9th Army Signal Command and more than 48 supported tenants representing a diverse, multiservice population. Our unique environment encompasses 946 square miles of restricted airspace and 2,500 square miles of protected electronic ranges, key components to the national defense mission.
Located in Cochise County, in southeast Arizona, about 15 miles north of the border with Mexico, Fort Huachuca is an Army installation with a rich frontier history. Established in 1877, the Fort was declared a national landmark in 1976.
We are the Army’s Home. Learn more at https://home.army.mil/huachuca/.
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