FORT HUNTER LIGGETT, Calif. -- Col. Donna Williams assumed command of the U.S. Army Garrison Fort Hunter Liggett today as Col. James Suriano retired from the Army. Maj. Gen. Reuben Jones, deputy commander for operations of the Army Installation Management Command, presided over the ceremony at the Fort Hunter Liggett Post Theater.
"How can they find someone to continue with the great things your outgoing commander has done?" Jones asked in his remarks. "Donna Williams is the right person for the right time to continue those efforts."
Turning to the new commander, he added, "This organization is going to set a new standard under your command."
In her own remarks, the new commander said, "I sincerely promise members of this command my total commitment, support, and fidelity. I am extremely excited and look forward to working with each of you as we continue to move this installation and organization to the next level, in achieving the mission: excellence."
Distinguished guests in attendance included Maj. Gen. Michael Schweiger, Fort Hunter Liggett's senior commander, from the 63rd Regional Support Command at Moffett Field, Calif.; U.S. Army Reserve Ambassador and retired Col. Daniel Furtado; King City Mayor Rob Cullen; Brig. Gen. Jon Lee, commander of the 91st Training Division at Fort Hunter Liggett; Brig. Gen. Joe Chesnut, commander of the Fourth Brigade, 75th Combat Training Division in Birmingham, Ala.; Col. Joel Clark, garrison commander at the Presidio of Monterey; and Col. Ernest Parker, director of public affairs for the U.S. Army Reserve Command at Fort Bragg, N.C.
Williams was the Force Management Division Chief for the United States Army Reserve Command at Fort Bragg, N.C., before her assignment to Fort Hunter Liggett. She is a native of Vicksburg, Miss., and earned her commission through the Army ROTC Early Commissioning Program at Jackson State University in Jackson, Miss., where she also received a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science.
Before she entered the Active Guard and Reserve program in 1990, she served as a Civil Engineer in the 412th Engineer Command. She deployed to Baghdad as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom from May 2006 to May 2007, serving as the Army Sustainment Command's Logistics Civil Augmentation Program Support Officer.
Her assignments in the AGR program include serving as Operations Officer, Executive Officer, and finally Commander of the 926th Engineer Battalion in Birmingham, Ala.; Engineer Organizational Integrator and Branch Chief of the Army Reserve Command in Atlanta; Commander, Company A and Company B of the 411th Engineer Battalion in Maui, Hawaii; and Operations Officer of the 493rd Engineer Group in Dallas, Texas.
She holds a Master of Business Administration Degree in Information Technology and Military Management from Touro University, and a Master's of Strategic Studies from the Army War College. Her military education includes Engineer Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, Adjutant General Basic Course, Senior Transportation Qualification Course, Combined Arms and Service Staff School, Army Force Management Qualification Course, Army Command and General Staff College, U.S. Air Force Air War College and Army War College.
Folowing the ceremony, Williams was welcomed to her new command with a reception at the historic Hacienda Milpitas.
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