Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Neil W. McCabe | The 2015 Army Reserve Medical Command Soldier of the Year Spc. Adam L. Job, a medical...... read more read more
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HELENA, Mont. - Two Montana Soldiers of the 4225th U.S. Army Hospital, based at the state's Fort Harrison, won the Army Reserve Medical Command's 2015 Best Warrior Competition. After the grueling five-day competition, Sgt. Stephen O. Powell was named the command's NCO of the Year and Spc. Adam L. Job was named the command's Soldier of the Year. Both men will go on to compete for the Army Reserve Command titles, which makes them eligible for the Army-wide competition.
The Army Reserve Medical Command held its 2015 Best Warrior Competition Feb. 22-27 in the harsh winter conditions on the mountain ranges of Fort Harrison, Montana, challenging 10 competitors, both junior enlisted and noncommissioned officers, from across the command.
The winner of the command’s 2015 Noncommissioned Officer of the Year title is Sgt. Stephen O. Powell, 24, a medical logistics specialist with the 4225th U.S. Army Hospital, a unit of the command’s Western Medical Area Readiness Support Group, who beat out six other sergeants and will go on to compete in the Army Reserve-wide competition this summer.
“If you are going to come and show up and compete, you’re going to go away at least learning something—and building up that ‘I can do it’ attitude,” said the graduate of Corvallis High School and native of Pinesdale, Montana. Powell is a student at Montana State University at Billings.
The competition included tests of endurance, agility and Soldier skills, such as a 10-kilometer ruck march, land navigation course on both mountain ranges and main grounds of the post. At the end of the competition, Soldiers stood before a board of senior noncommissioned officers, who inspected their uniforms and quizzed them on their knowledge of Army regulations, history and traditions.
The Commanding General of the Army Reserve Medical Command Maj. Gen. Bryan R. Kelly, said in his remarks at the awards ceremony that for him the Best Warrior Competition was about stepping out of the box.
“Getting out of the ‘Way of Comfort’ is something we ask of you regularly in the Army,” he said. “It is part of being a Soldier and doing what has to be done to complete the mission.”
The general said he was especially impressed that competitors not only balance their families, jobs and Army Reserve commitments, but above that were able to come to Montana for the Best Warrior Competition and excel.
“What you do is something few of our fellow citizens are able to do, and on top of all that, you volunteered to do it,” he said.
Powell, who competed in the 2014 competition that was also held at Fort Harrison, said it hurt not to win one year ago, but going through it all before gave him an advantage. “It is about pushing yourself to the limit and seeing what you are made of.”
The winner of the 2015 Soldier of the Year is Spc. Adam L. Job, 21, a resident of French, Montana, serves as a medical laboratory specialist with the 4225th USAH, WEMARSG, and is a 4.0 student at the University of Montana, majoring in Chemical Engineering.
Job said he did well in land navigation and had the best scores among all the competitors in marksmanship.
The terrain was also a key advantage, said the graduate of Hellgate High School.
It was not so much the cold, he said. But, the thin air in high altitudes took a toll on competitors not used to the 4,300 to 4,800 feet above sea-level ranges, where the competition events were held.
“The highlights for me—in this competition—will always be the people I’ve met and the people I’ve helped,” he said.
Command Sgt. Maj. Harold P. Estabrooks, command sergeant major for Army Reserve Medical Command, said he relished the effect of the harsh winter conditions for the competitors.
“The final competition is a cakewalk compared to this—they are dealing with temperatures, altitudes and exhaustion—so, what they are really dealing with is that I am over-training them,” he said.
“When they get to the finals and they are standing tall with their peers,” he said. “They’re going to be thinking: ‘I got this, this is easy.’”
To honor the 4225th USAH, the command sergeant major presented two letters of recognition one signed by himself and the other by the commanding general. Along with the letters on each man’s official stationery, the framed presentation included both the obverse and reverse of the command’s official coin.
The coin’s design is homage to the “Mission of Mercy” mural in the hospital’s battalion headquarters. The mural was painted over many years by then-Staff Sgt. Annie Tavary, who is a Veterans counselor, was assigned to the 4225th USAH during her service.
Tavary's continued involvement the 4225th USAH is a testament to the power of Soldier for Life ideal.
Estabrooks in his remarks at the awards ceremony singled out the Soldiers of the 4225th U.S. Army Hospital, for excellence. The hospital, based at Fort Harrison, just outside of Helena, is a battalion-level unit designed to deploy and fall in on an existing hospital in theater, and its Soldiers organized and ran the competition this year and in 2014.
“The 4225th U.S. Army Hospital is the best ARMEDCOM has to offer, bar none.”
The Army Reserve Medical Command is the Army Reserve’s elite organization of medical military professionals. Based in Pinellas Park, Florida and with subordinate units across the country, the Warrior Medic Soldiers of the Army Reserve Medical Command support the active-duty Army with training and personnel support.
| Date Taken: | 02.27.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 03.04.2015 10:53 |
| Story ID: | 155903 |
| Location: | HELENA, MT, US |
| Web Views: | 173 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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