Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Flor Gonzalez | A reconnaissance team leader from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., and a signal...... read more read more
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JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. – He’s known that he wanted to be a Soldier since he was a child, and now not only is he living that dream, but he’s proving to be one of the best Soldiers that the Army has to offer.
Staff Sgt. Peter Kacapyr, a ranger-qualified reconnaissance team leader with 2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, 3-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 7th Infantry Division, won the Forces Command Noncommissioned Officer of Year competition Aug. 28 at Fort Bragg, N.C., but remains humble and committed to his duty as a Soldier.
Kacapyr began competing in NCO competitions earlier this year and most recently claimed victory at the I Corps level before moving up to the FORSCOM competition.
“The competition at Fort Bragg was a lot harder than I was expecting,” he said. “They switched up the competition before I left and it was completely different than the other competitions that we’ve done.”
Kacapyr faced off against other top NCOs from around the country, all vying for the same title.
“There were a lot tougher competitors,” Kacapyr said. “This was the first time that I think I’ve gotten beat in a couple physical events.”
Kacapyr, who has competed in numerous competitions this year, noted that this one in particular was especially difficult.
Soldiers competing in these events normally take a physical fitness test on the first day when they are still fresh. This was not the case during this competition. The PT test was reserved for the last day after the Soldiers had spent numerous days going through obstacles courses, road marches, land navigation and mental challenges.
At the very end, candidates were evaluated in front of a board of senior Army leaders and tested on their knowledge of all things military.
“The board was the hardest; they kept us out in the field (beforehand) and we got a minimal amount of sleep,” Kacapyr said.
Despite the challenges, Kacapyr pulled ahead of the other competitors, which he attributes to his consistency, physical strength, and mental endurance.
“(I have) an ability to go through physical events and still have mental sharpness after the events and go into further physical events…I saw a big difference at the end of days two and three that my competitors didn’t have,” he said.
With the Forces Command-level competition over, Kacapyr still has one more challenge left to go. He is moving on to the Department of the Army NCO of the Year competition in Fort Lee, Va., in early October.
“That’s it. If I were to win that one I would be the NCO of the Year for the Army,” Kacapyr said.
Although Kacapyr has received a lot of congratulatory handshakes and back slaps from senior Army leaders, he’s worked hard to ensure that it has not altered his performance as a leader and mentor for his Soldiers.
“As far as on platoon level, it hasn’t changed much,” he said. “I came back and we jumped right into training, and I’m still busy like I was before I started the competition. If anything I’m little behind.”
He is also continuing to work closely with Pfc. Nicholas Jackson, one of his Soldiers who competed for the title of Forces Command Soldier of the Year, but ended up not winning.
“It really shows the rest of the Army that within one platoon of 31 dudes, you can have two of the best Soldiers in the Army, which really motivates everyone else to compete with these guys and really drives our standards higher,” said Sgt. 1st Class Sean McCartan, a Toledo, Ohio, native and the platoon sergeant for both Kacapyr and Jackson. “It’s been an exemplary performance by a dedicated NCO.”
Kacapyr has been making a lot of waves after winning these high level competitions, but what he really wants is to be the best Soldier and leader that he can, something he’s wanted to do since he was a child.
“It was something that I always found interesting since I was a kid,” said Kacapyr, a Candor, N.Y., native. “I graduated high school and attended college for a year and found that it definitely wasn’t for me. The more I looked into the Army I knew that I would like that type of job set.”
Kacapyr wasn’t looking for the traditional 9 to 5 job, but wanted something that would challenge him to his core.
“I wanted a high-level-of-stress job where you can make your own success,” he said.
Kacapyr enlisted with a clause in his contract that allowed him to attend Ranger school after successfully completing infantry one station unit training.
“I think because it was the hardest thing that I could find to do,” Kacapyr said. “It would be the biggest challenge for me.”
After qualifying as a Ranger, he spent time serving in a Ranger battalion where he deployed once to Iraq and twice to Afghanistan.
He then moved to 3-2 SBCT where he deployed again to Afghanistan and now serves as a team leader.
Although Kacapyr is glad to have competed he is looking forward to getting back to life as usual.
“Usually in the summers I go hiking, backpacking, shooting, skydiving, rock climbing, just stuff to keep myself outdoors, but obviously work has been in the way of that recently, so I’ll try to do that as much as I can before it’s winter time,” he said.
With one competition left to go and the title of Army NCO of the Year hanging in the balance, Kacapyr has a lot of work left to do, but he’s confident about his chances, and no matter how he does, he will still return as a leader and mentor to his Soldiers.
| Date Taken: | 09.09.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 09.10.2014 11:36 |
| Story ID: | 141660 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, WA, US |
| Hometown: | CANDOR, NY, US |
| Hometown: | TOLEDO, OH, US |
| Web Views: | 410 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
This work, Arrowhead Soldier claims victory at Forces Command NCO of the Year competition, by 1SG Justin A. Naylor, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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