Photo By Spc. Anthony Martinez | Distinguished guests Honorable Jennifer Gonzalez, Resident Commissioner of Puerto...... read more read more
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FORT BUCHANAN, Puerto Rico – Minuteman Terrace, Double Eagle Avenue and Citizen-Soldier Way are the new names floating across Fort Buchanan as part of the U.S. Army Reserve 109th Birthday commemoration held on April 21, 2017.
The celebration for the USAR birthday began with the dedication of Bowling Center Deck that oversees the baseball field which will now be known as “Minuteman Terrace.”
“This dedication serves as a remembrance of former Citizen-Soldiers in the American colonies who volunteered to fight against the British Regulars during the American Revolution and today’s Citizen-Soldiers who continue to answer the nation’s call,” said Col. Michael T. Harvey, U.S. Army Garrison Fort Buchanan commander.
In the 18th Century, there was a decided difference between the terms “militia” and “minuteman.”
“Militia were men in arms formed to protect their towns from foreign invasion and ravages of war,” said Harvey. “Minutemen were a small hand-picked elite force which were a highly mobile and rapidly deployed force that allowed the colonies to respond quickly to the threat of war.”
Minutemen were better organized and battle-tested than any other part-time military. “They were a vital and necessary force not only in the Revolutionary War, but in earlier conflicts and continue to play a vital role today,” he continued.
“We are here to dedicate a symbol of our heritage,” said Harvey. “Symbols are one of the most powerful communication tools that have ever existed. In celebration of the 109th Birthday of the U.S. Army Reserve, I’d like to highlight the fact that just like the military during the American Revolution, the nation continues to rely on the Army Reserve, today’s minutemen, as a key part of the operational force to accomplish missions and deploy rapidly when required, in a minute’s notice.”
After the dedication of Minuteman Terrace, Service Members and Civilians gathered in front of the Fort Buchanan Garrison Headquarters for the retirement of Crane Loop and unveiling of Double Eagle Avenue.
Before unveiling the new street sign, Harvey asked the guests present, “What is a double eagle?”
He briefly describe the U.S. Army Reserve Command patch, a disc divided vertically blue and scarlet with a yellow border, two white eagles’ heads conjoined back to back.
“The Double Eagle represents the Army Reserve motto, ‘Twice the Citizen’,” said Harvey. “The term twice the citizen has been attributed to Winston Churchill who spoke highly of Soldiers who serve the nation as both civilians and military.”
Following the unveiling of Double Eagle Avenue, guest moved to Plaza PRimeros at the 1st Mission Support Command Headquarters building. In honor of the many Citizen-Soldiers that work, reside and visit Fort Buchanan, Wilson Road which is directly in front of the 1st Mission Support Command Headquarters building, will now be known as Citizen-Soldier Way.
“The renaming of the retired Wilson Road as Citizen Soldier Way reaffirms the proud military history of the Reserve component in Puerto Rico and their service to our nation,” said Harvey.
“The majority of the Army Reserve Soldiers in Puerto Rico are under mission command of the 1st MSC,” said Harvey. “The 1st MSC units support the Army forces within the area of operations that encompasses Central, South America and the Caribbean in shaping securing environments, reassuring partnerships with Latin America and deterring aggression from U.S. enemies.”
Harvey emphasized that Citizen-Soldiers are the epitome of the integration of both military and civilian. “Their skills as citizens are an asset to the Army Reserve,” he continued. “Their skills as Soldiers and a well-trained team are important to our nation in order to keep decisive advantages over our enemies.”
Together, all distinguished guests helped unveil the new road sign including the Honorable Jennifer Gonzalez, Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico, Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Felix Santoni, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army, Mr. Luis Soto, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army, Brig. Gen. Alberto C. Rosende, 1st Mission Support Command commanding general, Mr. Horacio Cabrera, U.S. Army Reserve Ambassador, and Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Victor Perez.
Harvey thanked Rosende on behalf of the Garrison Command for everything that the 1st MSC does and the great partnership they share.
“I know that we are all one team,” said Rosende. “I know I get to stand up here and be the spokesperson for the “Garita Warriors” and that encompasses over 4,000 Soldiers that live across Puerto Rico and approximately 300 Soldiers that are in transition to return from deployment, head to deployment and are currently deployed.”
“We do a great job here working with Garrison to do what we can for Puerto Rico and our nation,” continued Rosende. “It is a really an honor to stand here with our teammates and recognize the Army Reserve birthday.
To culminate the festivities, a traditional cake cutting ceremony was conducted. Standing with tradition, the youngest Soldier present and the oldest Soldier present, stood hand in hand with the distinguished guests as they held on to the sabers and cut the cake together.
“It is such a privilege knowing that over 4,000 Puerto Ricans form part of the Army Reserve and have a double role as both citizens and Soldiers,” said Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico, Jennifer Gonzalez. “They serve in the capacity of their civilian occupation and taking care of their community and family while always maintaining their readiness to answer the nation’s call of duty.”
“Our Puerto Rican Soldiers have been deployed consistently and they do it with pride,” she continued. “Today is a day of celebration and commitment to the collaboration of finding the needs of the base which I am committed to helping with 200% so that our Soldiers can have the proper tools to help defend our nation.”
“While they are deployed and away from their families, we are here keep them in prayer and ensure they have the proper tools and training to complete their mission successfully,” she continued. “While they are away defending our freedom, we are here defending them.”
Created in 1908 as the Medical Reserve Corps, today's Army Reserve is a key complimentary operational force that supports the entire U.S. military in training and combat.
The federal government created the Organized Reserve Corps in the National Defense Act of 1920, due to the success of the Medical Reserve Corps, and a growing need for a high-quality, skilled reserve force.
Today's Army Reserve consists of more than 200,000 "citizen-soldiers," with more than 10,000 deployed around the world, providing life-saving and life-sustaining forces for Joint Force operations.
| Date Taken: | 04.22.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 04.22.2017 10:04 |
| Story ID: | 231222 |
| Location: | PR |
| Web Views: | 367 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Celebrating 109 years of U.S. Army Reserve history, by LTC Ruth Castro, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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