Photo By Sgt. April York | Command Sgt. Maj. Ralph Delosa, command sergeant major of 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th...... read more read more
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KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - John Quincy Adams once said “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.” The soldiers of 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, have such a leader, and his former unit soldiers would agree.
Command Sgt. Maj. Ralph Delosa, command sergeant major of 2nd BCT, 4th Inf. Div., is the former command sergeant major for 3rd Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, out of Fort Drum, N.Y., and now they will serve under him again for Operation Enduring Freedom 2011-2012.
“It was great to see 3-71 attached to us. It was like a storybook ending to my career,” Delosa said. “Having the unit I stood up being attached to me as a brigade command sergeant major- it’s perfect!”
“Initially I joined the team for 3-71 Cav. as the operations sergeant major in December 2004,” Delosa said. “I was their first operations sergeant major and I was there for three years.”
During those three years the brigade deployed to Afghanistan for 16 months in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in 2006-2007.
Midway through the deployment he made the list for command sergeant major and instead of moving on to another unit he decided to remain with 3rd Sqdn., 71st Cav. Reg., to become their command sergeant major upon redeployment.
“I elected to stay there because I felt like I was part of a family,” he said.
His Soldiers thought highly of him as well.
“I think he is a stellar (noncommissioned officer); he always took care of us guys,” said Sgt. Aaron Church, a sniper with Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 3rd Sqdn., 71st Cav. Reg., who was a member of Delosa’s Personal Security Detachment when they were deployed again for OEF 2009-2010.
Delosa joined the Warhorse team in April 2010 after returning from Afghanistan. Leaving was bittersweet, he said.
“But, I’ve been here for over a year now and I do have a great relationship with all the soldiers and senior leaders in the brigade,” Delosa said.
Like his previous unit, the Warhorse soldiers look up to their command sergeant major.
“He’s a pretty cool guy; he expects his soldiers to perform to the utmost standards,” said Staff Sgt. Michael Miles, an infantryman with HHT, 2nd BCT, who is the platoon sergeant for Delosa’s PSD.
“When I sit down with him at the end of the day, he gives me purpose and direction, things I can work on.”
Delosa has great pride in his work.
“I love being a command sergeant major, because it’s job satisfaction every day,” Delosa said. “You feel like the father of the unit; you’re the senior enlisted guy who tries to get everyone back home safely.”
He also spoke about the progress he’s seen in Afghanistan.
“I think we have really made a difference,” he said.“We’ve come a long way. The ANA has done a 180 since 2005. The ANP are being respected as an actual police force, and I think with more training and a little bit more mentoring they will be ready to take over.”
Not long after returning to Afghanistan for his third tour, Delosa took time out of his busy schedule to visit with 3rd Sqdn., 71st Cav. Reg., at Forward Operating Base Terra Nova.
“It was like I never even left,” he said. “The guys still look the same and they were happy to see me. It was a homecoming -a family reunion.”
Soldiers from 3rd Sqdn., 71st Cav. Reg., are excited to serve with Delosa once again.
“The squadron as a whole did great things under his watch on our last deployment, and I look forward to serving under him again,” said Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Rhodes, the plans and logistics noncommissioned officer in charge, with HHT, 3rd Sqdn., 71st Cav. Reg. “It’s great to have him here.”
| Date Taken: | 06.30.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 07.05.2011 01:47 |
| Story ID: | 73219 |
| Location: | KANDAHAR, AF |
| Web Views: | 432 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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