79th IBCT holds "Change of Responsibility" during artillery live-fire

Photo By Maj. Jason Sweeney | Incoming Command Sgt. Maj. Rodney Plamondon salutes and takes responsibility for the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team at Camp Roberts on Aug. 3. (Photo by Capt. Jason Sweeney, 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team)  

CAMP ROBERTS, CA, UNITED STATES

08.07.2019

Story by Capt. Jason Sweeney 

79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team

As artillery shells detonated on the hillsides behind them, Command Sgt. Maj. Rodney Plamondon took the NCO sword from outgoing Command Sgt. Maj. Andrew McKindley during a Change of Responsibility Ceremony for the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) Aug. 3 at Camp Roberts. The passing of the sword signified the transfer of responsibility for the Brigade from one command sergeant major to the other.

“Command Sgt. Maj. McKindley is a phenomenal NCO, definitely a Soldier’s leader,” 79th IBCT Commander Col. Richard Mifsud said. “Now I’m looking forward to this next chapter in working with Command Sgt. Maj. Plamondon.”

Soldiers from all six of the Brigade's battalions were in formation with their battalion colors during the ceremony, which took place while the 1-143rd Field Artillery Battalion was conducting a live-fire exercise behind them. McKindley's son Ethan played the Star Spangled Banner on the electric guitar while artillery shells from M119A3 and M777A2 howitzers exploded on the hillsides.

Plamondon’s previous assignment was at the Cal Guard’s Joint Force Headquarters where he worked for the last two years in Joint Staff Plans and Operations (J-3). He has 32 years of service, starting with the regular Army’s 7th Infantry Division. He served in the Army Reserves as a drill sergeant before joining the Cal Guard in the mid-90s, serving first with the 1-140th Aviation Regiment.

“But my true love and calling is with the infantry, so when the 1-184 Infantry went from mechanized to Air Assault that’s where I moved to as a young E5,” Plamondon said. “I served in every company in that battalion and went from sergeant to command sergeant major, making every deployment with them along the way.”

Plamondon said taking over as the brigade command sergeant major is daunting. “But it’s a challenge I’ve been looking forward to since I left battalion. I got a lot of good experience on my two deployments working at the strategic level and have an understanding of the big sky picture of where we’re at. I want to bring that experience back down to our NCOs, getting them trained and looking forward to the future. Retention is the biggest thing we’ve got to focus on. That’s always going to be there—just getting this brigade ready to fight. This challenge is something I’ve been looking forward to and I asked for, so here we go.”

“Command Sgt. Maj. Plamondon brings to the brigade leadership experience that he has gained through all those years of service,” Mifsud said. “This is a great day. Command Sgt. Maj. Plamondon and Command Sgt. Maj. McKindley are two strong professionals. Command Sgt. Maj. McKindley is going on to bigger and better things in the near future. It’s been an honor to work with him.”

McKindley moves on to become the command sergeant major for the 224th Sustainment Brigade.

“I’ve been in the 79th pretty much my entire National Guard career,” McKindley said, adding that he served in the 1-18th Cavalry Regiment, the 1-184th Infantry Battalion and Headquarters Company, deploying multiple times.

“It’s definitely bittersweet,” he said of leaving the 79th. “I’m sad because I’m leaving. I’m leaving 3,500 great Soldiers behind. Seeing them out in formation was a great reminder of what we do, being servants for the Soldiers underneath us. It was bittersweet to know that I’m leaving, but it’s outstanding to know that Sgt. Maj. Plamondon, a great leader, is coming in behind me. I know he’s going to do an outstanding job, take care of the Soldiers, as well, if not better, than what I did.”

• Date Taken: 08.07.2019
• Date Posted: 10.04.2019 18:58
• Story ID: 346132
• Location: CAMP ROBERTS, CA, US