FORT JOHNSON, La. — Maj. Gen. David W. Gardner relinquished command during a ceremony held at the Joint Readiness Training Center and Fort Johnson June 6.
The audience, filled with Fort Johnson leadership, state and local representatives, Soldiers, Department of the Army civilians, friends and Family, looked on as the command and colors were passed to Post Command Sgt. Maj. David Hanson for safe keeping until Brig. Gen. Jason A. Curl assumes command.
Lt. Gen. Stephen G. Smith, deputy commanding general, U.S. Forces Command, was the reviewing officer.
Smith said it was a pleasure to be here to honor this command team (the Gardners) who have led the national treasure that is JRTC and Fort Johnson.
“Thank you for being a wonderful Army Family,” he said.
Fort Johnson is about forging the warrior spirit.
“That’s exactly what happens in these pine forests, swamps and drop zones,” Smith said. “It is clear this warrior spirit matters in our formations. The most important thing we do when we aren’t at war is to train for war. There’s no better place to do this than JRTC and Fort Johnson.”
Smith said it takes a special type of leader to guide this organization.
“The last two years that leader has been Dave Gardner. As the Army updated all of our doctrines, he and his team started the process of cementing them into our formations. You have to build those skills in our Soldiers. Dave has done that in spades,” Smith said.
Smith said in addition to training, as senior commander, Gardner, along with his Garrison command team and local, state and federal leaders, had to ensure this very complex and dynamic premier training platform was the right place to train, raise a Family, deploy from and come home to.
“He didn’t do it by himself. He did all this with teamwork and in harmony with the many other organizations you see here today. That’s just the special type of leader he is,” Smith said.
As Gardner relinquished command of JRTC and Fort Johnson, he reflected on his time here and gave credit to Fort Johnson’s leadership, Soldiers and Department of the Army civilians for the many successes and responses to challenges during his time at Fort Johnson.
“I am filled with immense gratitude to have been a part of something so special in our Army. This is a place where excellence is not just an aspiration, but a daily reality,” Gardner said. “JRTC is a great place to train, live and deploy from because of the exceptional Soldiers, civilians and Families who live and work here.”
JRTC and Fort Johnson is a premier combat training center focused on preparing America’s Soldiers for the complexities of modern warfare.
In Gardner’s time here, training has pushed 10 to 11 rotations a year with brigade combat teams, special forces groups, rangers, functional brigades and battalions and division headquarters in the training audience.
“You have led them through force on force, live fires and constructive wraps under the 21st Airborne Division here or from their home station,” Gardner said. “You’ve helped stand up the Joint Pacific Training Center by forming a teammate relationship with the 196th Infantry Brigade during rotations in Alaska and Hawaii. You’ve pushed the rotational units with realistic employment of electronic warfare, information operations, unmanned system and artificial intelligence, but you didn’t hold on to your operations like they were trade secrets, rather you shared them broadly with the Army in a large scale combat operations symposium and every day in every rotation, giving more than 1,000 Army junior leaders an opportunity to learn. You helped units come here and beat us at our own game so they would be better prepared to defeat our enemies. I am proud of you all.”
Beyond the training, Fort Johnson has made strides in the installation’s quality of life for Soldiers and Families.
Ribbons were cut on four refurbished barracks, the North Fort Fire Station, Play Town & Café, Toledo Bend renovations and more, not to mention breaking ground on the largest consolidated child development center in the Army and the new Joint Operations Center.
“In the last two years, you have planned, executed and overseen $220 million of construction projects, readied us to withstand Louisiana storms and worked with local first responders and the National Guard to protect our communities and prevent the loss of a single life during wildfires. You did an excellent job.”
Gardner said it was sad day for him and his Family as they said farewell.
“It has been an honor and privilege to be Warrior 6.”
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