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CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait – A Transfer of Authority ceremony between Detachments 6 and 7 of the 3rd Medical Command Deployment Support (Operational Command Post) took place Thursday at the 452nd Combat Support Hospital. This officially marks the first day of mission control for Detachment 7 and the long-awaited end of a deployment for many of Detachment 6.
The colors for 3rd MCDS OCP was passed forward by Col. Raymond Murray, Detachment 6 commander, to Maj. Gen. Darrell K. Williams, commander of 1st Theater Sustainment Command. Col. Lisa Doumont, Detachment 7 commander, received the colors to officially begin the detachment’s nine-month deployment.
Detachment 6 members have been in theater for nine months, but for several, including Murray, this has been an 18 month wait. Those several were members of Detachment 4, the previous detachment, and continued the mission by staying in Kuwait to be part of Detachment 6.
“I think it was a unique opportunity starting off with Det. 4, being identified in February 2012 that I would be coming over with what was called Det. 38 at that time and was changed to Det. 4,” explained Murray. “I had an opportunity to put together an outstanding team with Det. 4. There was a change and I was asked to consider staying for a second nine-month period, and I said “Yes” after I got an approval from my wife, of course.”
Murray was actually able to keep about a third of his Detachment 4 staff to form his Detachment 6 staff.
“For the first time the 3rd MCDS had a significant amount of continuity,” said Murray. “It definitely helped us when it came to our TSC missions and Key Leader Engagements because we were known. We didn’t have to get reintroduced. We just kept going and that expanded our opportunities.”
Those several who stayed behind to help keep that continuity numbered at 13, meaning that those 13 Americans told their friends and family that they decided not to come home in order to support 3rd MCDS OCP mission and ARCENT mission for another nine months.
When speaking about the highlights of Detachment 6’s deployment, Murray said, “The most important piece was to bring on soldiers that had a fire for success and watch them grow, and watch them do things above and beyond what they ever thought they could do.”
Murray sent as many of his soldiers as he could to about eight or nine different countries to “interact, represent and export professionalism,” as he put it. This was the “icing on the cake” for Murray’s deployment.
Col. Murray is originally from Riverton, R.I., and will return to Bristol, R.I., where he is a pharmacist and works for the CVS Caremark corporation.
Sgt. Maj. Valerie Corser, the senior enlisted advisor for Detachment 6, was one of the soldiers who stayed for 18 months and traveled throughout the region.
“Kuwait is our primary residence, but we have a medical logistics unit in Qatar. There’s about 89 people there combined with the 6th MLMC. I have also been to Jordan and to Afghanistan twice,” Corser mentioned of her travels.
There have been talks and coordination for the 3rd MCDS OCP to take mission control of the medical forces in Afghanistan. “One of the challenges was getting a plan to manage these people from a distance, and one of my trips to Afghanistan was to meet the soldiers that are there,” said Corser.
The highlight for Corser was her visits to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. “We had two great opportunities where we did medical seminars with the Royal Jordanian Medical Services, with all of the women in the Medical Corps,” said Corser. “I worked with some real smart women who are reaching out to improve their country. They run a women’s health clinic that goes out into the community.”
Corser adds, “The Jordanian people are great people and very welcoming.”
Sgt. Maj. Corser, is from Athol, Mass., and is a military technician for the Army Reserve.
As Murray and his team begin to return home, Col. Doumont is looking forward to Detachment 7’s nine-month deployment.
Doumont has complete confidence in her team, and has goals that are similar to the success that Detachment 6 had. “I want to develop everybody. They’re here because they are very talented, willing and able,” she said. “But one of my goals is to continue their development; professional, personal and leadership especially.”
The Detachment 7 commander expects all of her members to be soldiers first, and secondly being a leader. “If they have a certain rank they’re expected to earn that rank every day, and to use it to the best of that rank’s ability.”
Doumont is from Winchester, Va., and works as a logistician for FEMA.
| Date Taken: | 03.11.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 03.12.2014 10:51 |
| Story ID: | 121884 |
| Location: | CAMP ARIFJAN, KW |
| Hometown: | CAMP ARIFJAN, KW |
| Hometown: | ATHOL, MA, US |
| Hometown: | BRISTOL, RI, US |
| Hometown: | TIVERTON, RI, US |
| Hometown: | WINCHESTER, VA, US |
| Web Views: | 518 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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