WASHINGTON — Command Sgt. Major Shawn Klosterman is the United States Army’s senior enlisted military police (MP) serving the over 38,000 Soldiers and civilians of the MP regiment. As the sergeant major of the Office of the Provost Marshal General (OPMG) and command sergeant major of the Army Corrections Command, he spends his days drafting policies, plans, programs, and oversight for the Army’s policing functions, while ensuring other military senior leaders know the stories from the regiment. It was his own grandfathers’ military stories he listened keenly as a child that inspired his life of service.
A young Shawn spent a lot of time with both sets of his grandparents during his childhood. He’s always viewed Grandpa Buzzy and Grandpa Bob as hardworking men dedicated to their respective families and community. As the time passed and Shawn got older, the two gentlemen opened up and began to share their stories of military service.
Grandpa Buzzy was U.S. Army Cpl. Lyle Klosterman, who joined in 1951 as a combat engineer and served in the Korean War. After leaving Korea and military service, he returned to South Dakota as a volunteer first responder, eventually becoming the fire chief of the New Underwood Fire Department. He enjoyed life with his wife Pauline DeGeest of nearly 49 years — Shawn knew her as Grandma Pauline. The Klostermans grew their family with the birth of their two sons; then welcoming grandson Shawn and two others, and a host of great-grandchildren. Grandpa Buzzy eventually relished the retired life as a small business serial entrepreneur and an avid golfer until his death in 2003. Grandma Pauline passed away in 2010.
Grandpa Bob is retired U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Robert Brooks. During his military service, he honed his craft as an electrician serving in the Regular Army, Army National Guard, Navy Reserve, and Air Force Reserve. Brooks deployed in support of Operation Desert Storm. He married Lorraine Brech — Grandma Lorraine as Shawn knew her — in 1957. The two travelled the country as Robert constructed powerlines. They eventually settled back in South Dakota where he contributed an additional 26 years of service as an Air Force Civilian head electrician. The couple enjoyed 60 years of marriage, their four children, Shawn and nine other grandchildren, and 20 great grands. Grandma Lorraine passed away in 2017. Grandpa Bob continues to live in South Dakota.
Command Sgt. Maj. Klosterman recalls copious fond memories and family engagements with his grandparents. He shared, “I came to understand that their respective service gave them a foundation of dedication, hard work, and tought the importance of a team.”
The grandparents had several nicknames for the command sergeant major and shared the vast benefits of their Army life that eventually motivated his decision to join. “Since I looked up to them so much, I too felt that if I would follow in their footsteps, I might have a chance to add to those attributes I so admired in them.”
Shawn joined the Army on September 11, 1996. As he grew in the ranks, his grandfathers’ stories and traits guided his own career path and leadership model. In his introductory letter to the MP corps as the OPMG sergeant major, Shawn shared that he strives to be “the best servant leader [he] can and will not lead based off the piece of cloth [he wears], but from the heart carried underneath it.”
Grandma Lorraine had a mantra that very well stirred Shawn’s prudent servant leader approach:
“It takes one minute to make someone’s day. It takes one word to destroy someone’s life.”
As Shawn approaches his twenty-eighth year in the Army, he still considers Grandpa Buzzy and Grandpa Bob as some of the toughest, resourceful, motivated, and focused men he’s met yet. And not to forget his grandmothers who equally contributed wisdom, knowledge, and stability. “There is no doubt in my mind that my grandparents’ examples helped shape me into the man I am today; especially, now that I’m a senior military leader.” Shawn continued, “Their examples impressed my thoughts, how I lead, how I care for Soldiers, and how hard I work for others. Their faith in the services was inspirational and surely is what motivates me to follow in their footsteps.”
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