BELLE CHASSE, La. - On Aug. 16, 2014, Soldiers of the 377th Theater Sustainment Command and honored guests gathered to celebrate one of the of the U.S military’s longest standing traditions; the change of command ceremony.
After 27 months of leadership, Maj. Gen. Peter S. Lennon of Newport News, Virginia, relinquished his command of the Army Reserve’s largest command.
“It’s a bittersweet day for me,” said Lennon. “These Soldiers have continually amazed me. We have become more expeditionary, more ready and relevant as a command.”
“General Lennon is a visionary,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Nagee Lunde, senior enlisted leader of the command. “He’s a great leader, a great sustainer, a great transporter and a general officer who really believes in Soldiers and their capabilities. He provided the vision and the Soldiers rose to the challenge.”
Assuming command of the 377th will be Maj. Gen. Leslie J. Carroll of Covington, Georgia.
During Lennon’s command, the Army began transitioning from Army of operation to an Army of preparation, a path that will continue.
“There is no big direction shift,” said Carroll. "We are just going to keep transitioning and providing the level of readiness required.”
There is strong confidence in the direction of the command and the leadership of the future.
“General Carroll is the right guy,” said Lennon. “He’s got the right knowledge, the right connections, and a great way of dealing with people. The ship is on a good course, and he is going to go full throttle.”
The respect these two senior leaders hold for one another was evident throughout the ceremony. When Carroll took the podium, he commended his forerunner on a job well-done.
“Pete, I love you for passing on such a great legacy, and I hate you for doing such a good job,” said Carroll jokingly. “You will be hard to follow.”
While they are moving in separate directions, they are forever connected as one of the few who are able to realize, in the words of Lennon, “A sustainer's dream, a Soldier’s dream.”