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The Soldiers and civilians of the 21st Theater Sustainment Command welcomed a special guest Nov. 4 as they paid tribute to the 21st TSC’s fallen warriors with a wreath laying and retreat ceremony on Panzer Kaserne in Kaiserslautern.
Sgt. Maj. of the Army Kenneth O. Preston, the highest ranking enlisted Soldier in the Army, was the guest speaker and also took part in the ceremony, which was attended by more than 300 Soldiers and civilians.
“He is a leader who visited the warriors of 21st TSC multiple times just to be sure they were well trained. I couldn’t think of a better leader in the Army or the Department of Defense to speak to us today about our fallen,” said Command Sgt. Maj. James Spencer, the command sergeant major of the 21st TSC.
While addressing the Soldiers at the ceremony, Sergeant Major Preston spoke about deployments and thanked all the Soldiers who had been deployed. He spoke about the sacrifices the Soldiers made while fighting for the U.S. and the 21st TSC’s role in the ongoing war on terrorism.
“Our Army would not be able to fight and win our nation’s wars without the 21st TSC and all of its subordinate units,” he said. “At the end of the year, the 21st TSC will have conducted 25 operations in 13 countries with almost 2,000 Soldiers and civilians.
“21st TSC units are forward deployed in Kuwait, Afghanistan and Iraq and continue to do a superb job providing explosive ordnance disposal, maintenance, military police and hundreds of other missions tasked to the command,” Sergeant Major Preston continued.
After his speech, Maj. Gen. Patricia E. McQuiston, the commanding general of the 21st TSC, Sergeant Major Preston and Command Sergeant Major Spencer placed a wreath at the 21st TSC’s Fallen Soldiers Memorial to honor the 21st TSC warriors who lost their lives while deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The names of three 21st TSC Soldiers, who died in the past year supporting OEF, were added to the memorial, which already lists the names of 18 other fallen warriors from the 21st TSC. The three names added were Staff Sgt. James Ide V, who was assigned to the 18th Military Police Brigade, and Staff Sgts. Derek Farley and Anton Phillips, who were both assigned to the 16th Sustainment Brigade.
After the ceremony, Sergeant Major Preston took time to recognize various Soldiers for their hard work as he presented them with sergeant major of the Army coins.
The day spent with the 21st TSC was a part of what is scheduled to be Sergeant Major Preston’s final visit to U.S. Army Europe as the sergeant major of the Army.
During his visit to the 21st TSC, Sergeant Major Preston also participated in an office call with General McQuiston and Command Sergeant Major Spencer and attended the re-enlistment ceremony of a Warrior Transition Unit Soldier.
“It’s an honor to speak at an event that honors those who sacrificed so much for our country,” Sergeant Major Preston said. “America owes each of our fallen and wounded warriors a debt of gratitude for their bravery, commitment and their selfless sacrifice.”
