FORT DRUM, N.Y. (July 22, 2025) -- Between change of command ceremonies, award presentations and training events, Sexton Field has been a rallying point for 10th Mountain Division (LI) Soldiers since its establishment nearly 40 years ago.
Located behind the 10th Mountain Division (LI) headquarters building, it is named after the division’s second senior enlisted adviser following its reactivation at Fort Drum in 1985.
Command Sgt. Maj. Robert C. Sexton enlisted in the Army in January 1963, and he served with the 6th Special Forces at Fort Benning, Georgia. In 1964, he joined the 101st Airborne Division (Artillery) at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, where he was assigned to Alpha Battery, 377 Field Artillery.
Sexton deployed to Vietnam in 1967 as section chief in the 2nd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery, 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, during which time he earned the rank of staff sergeant and received the Bronze Star.
Following his service in Vietnam, Sexton contributed greatly to field artillery units overseas and stateside while performing the duties of chief surveyor, intelligence noncommissioned officer and reenlistment NCO. He served as first sergeant in six field artillery batteries.
Upon completion of training at the U.S. Army Sergeant Major Academy in 1984, Sexton was assigned to 3rd Battery, 8th Field Artillery, at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. In 1985, he moved to Wurzburg, Germany, to serve as senior enlisted adviser with the 103rd Military Intelligence Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division.
Sexton arrived at Fort Drum in 1987 and assumed responsibility for the newly activated 1st Battalion, 7th Field Artillery. The 10th Mountain Division Artillery reactivated in May 1987, and Sexton became its command sergeant major the following year. In July 1990, he succeeded Command Sgt. Maj. Southern W. “Buddy” Hewitt, as division senior enlisted adviser.
During his time at Fort Drum, Sexton helped guide the division in its move from World War II-era buildings into the modern Army installation during the latter phase the $1 billion expansion project. He was instrumental in developing light infantry Soldiers who were highly-training and ready to rapidly deploy when needed – a capability on which the 10th Mountain Division (LI) soon built its reputation.
Sexton deployed with the division throughout the world, to include the humanitarian relief efforts in South Florida after Hurricane Andrew, and during Operation Restore Hope in Somalia.
Sexton died on May 11, 1994, from heart failure. He had led a morning physical training run on May 4 with his Soldiers on post when he suffered a heart attack and was taken to a local hospital.
Fort Drum and 10th Mountain Division (LI) Soldiers and community members attended a memorial service in his honor on May 13, 1994, at Soldiers Gym (today’s Magrath Sports Complex). Maj. Gen. David C. Meade, the division commander at the time, described Sexton as a Soldier’s Soldier who took a personal interest in the lives and careers of the enlisted men and women at Fort Drum.
“You inspired a level of dedication and commitment in others that will live on,” he said. “A generation of Soldiers has learned from you and is passing that knowledge along right now to another generation. This will be your most enduring Army legacy.”
Following the ceremony, several Soldiers and members of the Sexton family attended a plaque unveiling at division headquarters. Meade announced the initiative to name the division parade field after Sexton, noting that it was only months earlier when the two had cross-country skied across the terrain.
On June 30, 1995, 10th Mountain Division (LI) Soldiers and invited guests joined Sexton family and friends for the dedication of Sexton Field.
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