U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground honors late Technical Director

U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground (YPG) renamed its Range Operations Center (ROC) after late Technical Director Larry Bracamonte in an outdoor ceremony on March 24.

Now called the Bracamonte Range Operations Center (BROC), a sign with the new name and a plaque with Bracamonte’s image and a narrative about his impact on YPG were unveiled at the ceremony.

Bracamonte’s widow Matilda Lugo and multiple other family members joined well over 100 members of the workforce, local dignitaries, and former commanders Robert Filbey and Ross Poppenberger at the emotional lunchtime event.

“He was basically a legend around here,” said Col. John Nelson, YPG Commander. “His 37 years of service established a legacy and culture that is still here today.”

“I think it is a very special and well-deserved tribute,” added Julio Dominguez, Bracamonte’s predecessor as YPG Technical Director. “He was all about the mission: there was nothing I ever asked of him that he couldn’t do.”

A Yuma native whose father worked at the proving ground, Bracamonte showed interest in mechanics at an early age. After graduating from Yuma High School in 1981 he went to the University of Arizona and majored in mechanical engineering. Degree in hand, he returned home in 1987 and started at YPG testing tank ammunition. As the years progressed, Bracamonte was promoted from team leader to branch chief, then division chief. In 2011 he was inducted into the Honorable Order of Saint Barbara, an honor society for those associated with artillery in the United States Army and Marine Corps. He attended a prestigious course of study at Cranfield University at the United Kingdom’s Royal Military College of Science, then became the director of YPG’s Ground Combat Systems Directorate and finally technical director, the post’s highest-ranking civilian position. Just prior to that, he worked a detail as the Associate Director of Test Management at the Army Test and Evaluation Command, YPG’s senior command.

“Larry cared deeply about the welfare of every single member of this workforce,” said Nelson. “He always placed their needs above his own, like a true leader. He was mentor to me and left an everlasting impression on anyone who encountered him.”

A significant portion of his time at the proving ground was during the direst days of combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, where Soldiers and Marines saw threats first from rockets and mortars, then from devastating improvised explosive devices. The Department of Defense rapidly tested technologies to defeat these threats and rapidly fielded armored vehicles to mitigate their destructive power: YPG testers and supporting personnel routinely worked 60 and 70-hour work weeks over the course of years to meet or exceed the critically tight schedules.

“He believed wholeheartedly in the mission of YPG, that the work down here today could make the difference out there tomorrow,” said Elizabeth Johnson, Bracamonte’s niece, in remarks at the ceremony. “He’d be heartened to know that the mission here continues and I encourage all who enter here continue to strive for excellence and the legacy of hard work that he would be so proud of.”

As technical director, Bracamonte oversaw YPG’s successful navigation of the COVID pandemic as it simultaneously hosted the capstone event of the Army Futures Command’s Project Convergence in both 2020 and 2021, the latter iteration of which was the Army’s largest capabilities demonstration of the preceding 15 years, drawing multiple visits from the highest-ranking military and civilian leadership of the Army and Department of Defense. The post also hosted the Future Vertical Lift Cross Functional Team’s Experimental Demonstration Gateway Event in 2023 and 2024.

The BROC’s sign and plaque were installed by Pilkington Construction, whose president has a special connection to the building.

“My first job at 19 years old was here in what was formerly the ROC Building,” said Clint Harrington, president. “I love to see it rebranded and dedicated to Mr. Bracamonte.”