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West Point will welcome Taylor A. Cathey as the new Garrison Command Sergeant Major during a change of responsibility ceremony at 10 a.m. Oct. 4 outside of Building 148, located adjacent to the Clinton parking lot, Trophy Point.
Cathey had time to speak about her new leadership venture at West Point, the importance of family as a Soldier, and how that translates to being the best leader possible for Soldiers and civilians.
Pointer View: How exciting is it to be stationed at West Point, a location with a rich history and being the oldest continuously operated Army post in the United States?
CSM Cathey: “My family and I are very excited to be here, and very excited to be part of the community. It wasn’t something on my thought list when I was looking at my preferences for my next job. It was surprising that they selected me to come here, but we’re happy … it’s definitely a different, unique place. We’re happy to learn all about (West Point).”
Pointer View: Coming in as the Garrison Command Sergeant Major, what are you looking forward to in your leadership role here?
CSM Cathey: “I’m looking forward to helping the team in any way that I can, taking on challenges that may have reached a stall point, or may have reached a roadblock and working through those roadblocks. I really want to be here for the Soldiers, the civilians and the families of West Point, and doing whatever I can to help make this an even better place than it already is.”
Pointer View: Family is very important as a Soldier, so how has your family helped you to be the best enlisted Soldier you can be?
CSM Cathey: “My family’s amazing. My husband’s (Andrew Flickinger) retired after just over 20 years in the Army as well. We met in the Army. When he got out, it really is what spurred our decision to have our daughter (Rylee) because we didn’t want to do it when we were dual military. The support that they give me, not only my husband, but my extended family from my parents and in-laws … has been amazing.
“They’re there for absolutely anything and everything that we need and have supported us through the best of times and the worst of times. I would not be here today if it was not for their love and support. All the praise should go to my husband, I wouldn’t be able to do this job without his support and him taking care of our daughter when I get called away last minute or late night, or whatever it may be or have to go out of town.”
Pointer View: Now being a parent, from a full perspective as a leader, how important is it to have empathy toward Soldiers with families when there is a job to be done?
CSM Cathey: “When I was a young leader and trying to work through issues or challenges that my Soldiers, who were parents, were having, I would do the best that I could, but really didn’t understand.
“You can’t truly understand what kind of position that puts you in and how it really tears at your soul to try to make those decisions until you’re in that position. Now having my daughter and having to make those tough, difficult decisions has really helped me progress as a leader.
“Trying to balance being there for a sick child and being there for work, meetings and those types of responsibilities, and understanding what that balance is has definitely changed my perspective a lot.
“As a battalion sergeant major, it made me a lot more relatable to my Soldiers. There’s something different about seeing a battalion sergeant major in his or her office doing his or her thing, and then your Soldiers seeing you at the park around town with your daughter who is one to two years old ... they start to see a human aspect of you where that is usually easy to lose.
“Don’t lose the idea that they’re actually people, too, with their own problems, their own challenges and their own good days and their own bad days … it’s about people being there for people, and the more you take care of the people around you, the more they’re going to take care of the mission.”
Cathey joins us from Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division, at Fort Liberty, North Carolina.
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