KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan — U.S. Army Corps of Engineers districts do not have two commanders. Today an exception was made at the Afghanistan Engineer District-South when Air Force Col. Benjamin Wham, the district commander, promoted Navy Lt. Cmdr. Hallock Mohler to the rank of commander.
“It is always a pleasure to promote the folks who work for me; it is even better to promote them while we are deployed,” said Wham who deployed from Charleston, S.C. “As the chief of our human resources office, Commander Mohler has been instrumental to the success of the district’s mission, and I am happy to share the title of ‘commander’ with him - but just for a second,” he added with a touch of humor.
Mohler, who deployed from Norfolk, Va., has served in the U.S. Navy more than 30 years and said this is his last deployment. “I promised my wife that when I come home this time, it will be for good. I just wish my wife and my daughter were here to share this milestone with me.”
Military service members from all branches of service are eligible to deploy with the Afghanistan Engineer District-South. Since its inception in 2009, members from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines have deployed and served as engineers, contracting officers, area and resident office officers in charge, MRAP vehicle team members, and staff officers in the district’s human resources, logistics, operations, and intelligence offices.