FORT LEAVENWORTH, Kan. – Lt. Gen. Milford H. “Beags” Beagle Jr. stood on the stage in Eisenhower Auditorium, his voice catching as he glanced toward his wife. For a man who had delivered countless speeches inside this building, this one was different. It was personal.
“I’ve been that turtle,” he told the audience, recalling an old saying that a turtle on a fence post didn’t get up there on its own. “People lifted me up and showed me what was possible. Progress may be slow, but with help, you can get there.”
The image projected on the screen of a lone turtle on a fence post was simple, but for Beagle it captured a lifetime of leadership, mentorship and service. After 35 years in the Army, the commander of the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center, or CAC, was retiring, closing a chapter that stretched from platoon leader to three-star general.
His career carried the weight of family history. His great-grandfather, Pvt. Walter Beagles, trained at the former Camp Jackson in South Carolina during World War l, when Black soldiers were segregated and relegated to labor battalions.
A century later, Beagle returned to those same gates as commanding general of Fort Jackson. “The gates my great-grandfather came through are the same gates I came through,” he told Army Times in 2019. “You’re standing on somebody’s shoulders.” Those shoulders elevated him to make his own history when he became the first Black commanding general of CAC and Fort Leavenworth in 2022.
But his journey almost started differently. As a teenager, Beagle was ready to enlist right out of high school at the age of 17. His mother, however, had other plans. She insisted he attend college first. He listened, enrolling at South Carolina State University, where he eventually joined the Reserve Officer Training Corps. That decision set him on a path that not only fulfilled his mother’s wish but also led him to commission as a second lieutenant in 1990.
Beagle later earned master’s degrees from Kansas State University and the U.S. Army School of Advanced Military Studies. Over the decades, he commanded the U.S. Army Training Center at Fort Jackson, led the 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) and Fort Drum, N.Y., deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, served in South Korea and held a staff assignment at the Pentagon.
Through it all, his wife, Pam, was beside him. Raised in Blackville, South Carolina, she said the Army gave her opportunities she never imagined. “Being from a very small town, I never saw myself doing the things I’m doing now,” she said.
“This journey gave me personal growth — learning resilience, raising our kids, supporting him through it all.” Another role, she added, was supporting others. “I hope I made a difference by sharing my experiences with other spouses. Sometimes support means just being there.”
Those who served with Beagle said his authenticity set him apart. Lt. Col. Joshua Mendoza, Beagle’s executive officer, said his first impression was of a leader who lived up to his reputation. “He is exactly who people say—an authentic leader who puts others and their time before his own,” Mendoza said. He recalled Beagle’s practice of writing hundreds of personal notes, a tradition that continued throughout his command.
“That resonated across CAC,” Mendoza said. “Genuine care and concern for the team will go further toward progress than any other action.” Mendoza said Beagle’s leadership style could be summed up in one word: empowering. “He trusted his team,” Mendoza said. “He’d say, ‘less follow up and more follow through.’ That trust inspired us to give our best.”
The sentiment was echoed by Gen. Gary Brito, commanding general of U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, who presided over the retirement ceremony. “You will not find a more genuine, authentic, caring and talented leader,” Brito said. “He always delivered a steady hand, steady leadership and good ideas. Most importantly, he invested in others.”
When Beagle spoke about his family, his voice broke again. He told the audience how his father, a truck driver sparing with praise, once shook his hand after a promotion and, for the first time, said he was proud. “That moment drove me to always tell my boys how proud I am of them — and how much I respect them,” Beagle said.
He turned to Pam with emotion. “You are the love of my life, my greatest blessing,” he said. “Spouses don’t volunteer for the Army. They volunteer for us. And I appreciate every spouse in this room, but especially mine, for all she’s given.”
Beagle closed with another metaphor, comparing his career to the growth of a Chinese bamboo tree, which shows no growth for years before suddenly sprouting 90 feet in a week. “That’s what investment looks like,” he said. “Legacy is not what you give to someone — it’s what you put in someone. That’s what matters.”
From his great-grandfather’s segregated service to his own rise as a three-star general, Beagle’s story is one of perseverance and progress. “Retirement is a reward, not a risk,” he said. “Taking off the stars doesn’t define me. My purpose is still my purpose — helping others, mentoring, giving back. A change of clothes won’t take that away.”
As the audience applauded a tremendous career, Beagle reflected on the next chapter. “As I walk away from this journey that I absolutely love, I have no regrets,” he said. “I don’t know what I want to do next, but it’s going to be epic.”
| Date Taken: | 09.06.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 09.17.2025 01:53 |
| Story ID: | 548353 |
| Location: | FORT LEAVENWORTH, KANSAS, US |
| Hometown: | ENOREE, SOUTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 17 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, A legacy in care: Lt. Gen. Beagle retires after 35 years of service, by SFC Summer Woode, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
