New commander takes charge of Special Operations Command South during ceremony

Photo By Sgt. Maj. Alejandro Licea | Army Brig. Gen. Sean P. Mulholland, the commander of U.S. Special Operations Command South addresses the audience after assuming command from Navy Rear Adm. Thomas L. Brown II, who served as the SOCSOUTH commander since September 2010. During his remarks, Mulholland thanked Brown for his advice and said he looks forward to working with nations across the Western Hemisphere. SOCSOUTH is responsible for all U.S. Special Operations activities in the Caribbean, Central and South America; it serves as a component to U.S. Southern Command.  

HOMESTEAD, FL, UNITED STATES

10.02.2012

Story by Sgt. 1st Class Alejandro Licea 

Special Operations Command South

HOMESTEAD, Fla. - Soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and civilians assigned to U.S. Special Operations Command South welcomed Brig. Gen. Sean P. Mulholland, who assumed command of SOCSOUTH, based at Homestead Air Reserve Base, Fla., during a change of command ceremony, Oct. 2.

Air Force Gen. Douglas Fraser, the combatant commander of U.S. Southern Command, presided over the ceremony.

In his remarks, Fraser praised outgoing commander Navy Rear Adm. Thomas L. Brown II and talked about the accomplishments achieved under his command.

Fraser acknowledged the following accomplishments: Building partner nation capacity in order to improve security from transnational organized crime throughout the Western Hemisphere; the international success of Exercise Fuerzas Comando, an annual Special Operations skills competition with more than 20 participating nations across the region; and hundreds of deployments that focused on establishing partnerships with nations from the Caribbean, Central and South America.

During his remarks, Brown talked about his experience during his two-year tenure as the commander of SOCSOUTH.

“Where we saw opportunities for improved relationships, we created ownership of such in our regional engagement branch and country officers,” said Brown. “Where before we emphasized the scheduling of events, we developed, published, and lived a new strategic plan and became an outcome-driven enterprise.”

During his speech, Brown also thanked the men and women of SOCSOUTH, along with local community leaders for all their support throughout his two-year command. Brown took command of SOCSOUTH in September of 2010.

“Homestead has been a great place to live and work,” added Brown. “I see concerned, engaged, generous citizens who understand the sacrifices that the military and families make which is a cause for great civic pride.”

Before completing his closing remarks, Brown welcomed Mulholland and his family to the SOCSOUTH organization and expressed to him that the members of SOCSOUTH stand ready to support him.

Mulholland arrives at SOCSOUTH after serving as the deputy operations director at U.S. Special Operations Command.

"I want to continue to building partnerships and relationships with our partners across the region and continue to grow the great lineage of SOCSOUTH,” said Mulholland.

• Date Taken: 10.02.2012
• Date Posted: 10.07.2012 11:03
• Story ID: 95825
• Location: HOMESTEAD, FL, US