FORT EISENHOWER, Ga. - Army Cyber Command (ARCYBER) conducted a change of responsibility ceremony as outgoing Command Sgt. Maj. (CSM) Jack Nichols passed the ARCYBER colors to incoming Command Sgt. Maj. Jebin R. Heyse here, Sept. 6, 2024.
“We are here to say goodbye to a very humble but outstanding servant leader in Command Sgt. Maj. Jack Nichols and will also welcome another great servant leader in Command Sgt. Maj. Jebin Heyse,” said ARCYBER commander Lt. Gen. Maria Barrett in her opening speech. “If CSM Nichols taught us anything, it is that we have to recognize the people that make it happen.”
"You were relentless in your commitment to this command," Barrett told Nichols, crediting him with driving the command's greatest improvements in readiness; building relationships with his counterparts in U.S. Cyber Command to tackle relevant issues; relentlessly enforcing standards; and being an approachable leader who engaged with and supported people at all levels wherever he went.
Barrett then spoke about Heyse's nearly three-decade Army career, his key assignments and many deployments. She said what made him the right person in the right place at the right time to be ARCYBER's next senior enlisted leader is his dedication to the mission, his agility, his care for others, and a "commitment to doing the right thing always."
Heyse said he is proud and thankful to be selected to serve in ARCYBER, encouraged by the teamwork he has seen in the command, and will always be open to the team and look out for their best interests.
"I am thoroughly impressed," he said. "I have met many of you already ... and I have heard time and time again about the great work you and your teams have been doing here at Army Cyber. I am truly inspired, excited to join the team, and looking forward to learning more and working alongside you."
During a change of responsibility ceremony, it is tradition for the outgoing command sergeant major to hand over the unit colors to their incoming counterpart, but this ceremony also marked Nichols’s last in the U.S. Army. On the day of his upcoming retirement, he will have served for 35 years, four months and 15 days.
“What a team…the NCOs, officers, junior enlisted (Soldiers), civilians, contractors and the ARCYBER families,” said Nichols during the ceremony. “Thank you. You have made me feel welcome, you have given this old Soldier a tremendous sendoff. You truly are awesome and made me proud to come to work every day.”
“As I reflect on my time as the ARCYBER CSM, I can attest that the Army is doing it right,” he said.
In a recent interview, Nichols talked about his upbringing and connection to the military from a young age.
Nichols’s stepfather was a retired Military Intelligence (MI) sergeant major and had a few things to say about his stepson’s first choice of an Army Military Occupational Specialty.
“I ended up taking 31 Charlie, which was a Single-Channel Radio Operator, and I remember getting back to the house and my dad, being an MI sergeant major, was like, ‘Why that?’ said Nichols with laughter. “What were you thinking? You’re going to go in the woods a lot.”
He said his career has taken him to many places, including Korea, Fort Liberty, and eventually to Fort Eisenhower, where in 2013 he was given an opportunity to make an impact and grow what we know today as the Army Cyber Protection Brigade (CPB).
“About 2013, I got this call from General Gallagher, who was a senior communicator out there,” reminisced Nichols. “I think he was at NETCOM (the Army Network Enterprise Technology Command) at the time, and he reached out to me, as well as Sergeant Major Gerald Williams, who was the CSM from NETCOM, and they said, ‘Would you be willing to come out of your space to come help us put together defensive cyber operations and a unit that is brand-spanking new?’ And that’s how it all started for me with what later became the CPB.”
In his interview, Nichols reflected on his Army service and his impact on others.
“I’ve appreciated what I’ve done in the Army. I’ve had the opportunity to do great things,” Nichols said. “I look at it from the service member’s perspective. I haven’t always been excited about the assignments or my leaders. But you know, you can make lot of those changes [yourself].
As I look at my service, if people ask me ‘Why did you stay for 35 years?’ I would say I looked at it for the opportunities; it’s the opportunities to do great things and to be amongst the heroes.”
Read Command Sgt. Maj. Jebin Heyse’s full biography at https://www.arcyber.army.mil/About/Leaders/Biography/Article/3881619/command-sgt-maj-jebin-r-heyse/
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