Photo By 1st Sgt. Jessica Barnett | As commander of the 3rd Infantry Division Band and Trumpet player, Chief Warrant...... read more read more
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CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE SPEICHER, Iraq -- Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jonathan D. Ward, a native of Lincolnton, N.C., is serving his first deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom with the United States Army at Contingency Operating Base Speicher, near Tikrit, Iraq. Ward is a trumpet player and the commander of the 3rd Infantry Division Band, out of Fort Stewart, Ga.
The son of R. Calvin and Anna V. Ward of Lincolnton, N.C., Ward is a 1987 graduate of the Lincolnton Sr. High. He graduated from North Carolina School of Arts with a Bachelor's of Arts in music performance, in 1993, after transferring from Lenoir Rhyne College, Hickory, N.C., where he was awarded a full music scholarship. His wife, Jocelyn L. Ward, and daughter, Hannah Marie Ward, currently reside in Augusta, Ga., where they await his safe return.
As a civilian, Ward performed as trumpet player for the Western Piedmont Chamber Orchestra, the Winston-Salem Piedmont Triad Symphony Orchestra and the Winston-Salem Piedmont Triad Opera Company, prior to enlisting into the military Sep. 1994, according to the 3rd Infantry Division Band Web site.
After completing basic training, Ward graduated from the U.S. Army Element School of Music at Little Creek Naval Air Base, Norfolk, Va., for training as a trumpet player.
"I have been playing music since I was 12 years old," said Ward. "I never considered another profession."
To complete his transition from enlisted to warrant officer; Ward attended the Warrant Officer Candidate School and the U.S. Army School of Music's Army Bandmaster/Warrant Officer Basic Course in 2004.
"My first Warrant Officer and commander inspired me to become a Warrant Officer," shared Ward. "I saw what he did for the band. I admired the way he led the band, so I always wanted to put myself in the position."
As a trumpet player, Ward has an opportunity to play along with his Soldiers, when he is not conducting. As part of the Task Force Marne Jazz Combo, Ward played a gig at the Green Beans Coffee shop, located at the Post Exchange shopping complex, for Soldiers at COB Speicher, March 14.
While working so closely with their Soldiers is such a rare experience for other commanders, Ward enjoys the opportunity.
"We [the leadership] have a unique opportunity as musicians to showcase our skills in a way that the Soldiers don't get to see in other units like a cavalry," stated Ward, 3rd Infantry Division Band Commander. "An infantry commander or platoon leader won't go out and qualify and show off his/her infantry skills to their Soldiers the way we do. It offers the Soldiers an opportunity to see us [leadership] doing what they do every day. It also gives us an opportunity to play together. For us it is team building at its highest form."
 
| Date Taken: | 04.01.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 04.01.2010 04:35 |
| Story ID: | 47515 |
| Location: | CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE SPEICHER, IQ |
| Web Views: | 376 |
| Downloads: | 243 |
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