It’s normal for unit leadership teams to change every two years, but usually not at the same time.
The combined change of command and change of responsibility ceremony for the Leader Training Brigade bucked that trend.
Col. Eric B. Alexander and Command Sgt. Maj. Michael F. Johnston took command and responsibility for the unit from Col. Kenneth Dwyer and Command Sgt. Maj. Jon Otero during a ceremony held June 25 at Victory Hall.
Dwyer would preside over the change of responsibility before handing off LTB command to Alexander.
“We pass the torch between two great Army leaders and great warriors,” Dwyer said during the first half of the ceremony.
He added it was a “great blessing” to work every day with Otero for the past two years because of his “every day strength and calm.”
“You made the Leader Training Brigade a better place,” Dwyer concluded.
“This was an incredible two years,” Otero said, “I’m glad I could serve it with you.”
Dwyer also spoke to Johnston saying the noncommissioned officer would do well in his new role.
“The Army most certainly got it right selecting you to be the big CSM at the Leader Training Brigade,” he said. “Your passion, drive and infectious energy make it clear to me that you were the right noncommissioned officer to continue to take care of the Soldier and civilians in this formation.”
Johnston said he was looking forward to working with Alexander and the LTB.
In the second half of the ceremony, Maj. Gen. Daryl O. Hood received the unit colors from Dwyer and passed them to Alexander signifying the transfer of command.
Dwyer took the podium again to thank those who helped make his tenure a success.
“To the Soldiers and civilians of the Leader Training Brigade, every day you made the magic happen,” he said. “And I am so proud to have been on your team for the last two years.”
Alexander is the right person at the right time to lead the unit, said Dwyer, who is headed to Fort Bragg, North Carolina, to take command of the Joint Special Forces Medical Training Center.
In return, Alexander thanked Dwyer and the team for welcoming him and remarked on the importance of LTB’s mission.
“I’m flabbergasted, amazed,” he said. “I can’t use another adjective for the mandate that this brigade has across the Army … We train the people that take care of our nation’s sons and daughters, and that’s a huge responsibility.”
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