By Maj. Al Hing
2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Public Affairs Office
CAMP TAJI, Iraq – One Warrior was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel and a fellow Warrior was promoted to chief warrant officer five, the highest level of warrant officer, in front of the headquarters of the 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team "Warrior," 25th Infantry Division, Multi-National Division – Baghdad on Camp Taji, northwest of Baghdad, Sept.1, 2008.
Col. Todd McCaffrey, a native of Hudson, Ohio, the 2nd SBCT commander, promoted Chaplain Mark Knox from major to lieutenant colonel.
"In the Army, Chaplain Knox exemplifies the best of all chaplains," said McCaffrey. "The duty of care for the living, nurture the injured and honor the deceased – he does it all with the air of a quiet professional. The [special forces] tab on his shoulder of the quiet professionals is merely an indicator of this chaplain's quiet professionalism."
Knox said he saw the promotion as an opportunity to continue his service to Soldiers.
"I want to say that when I was told that I was promotable, all I thought was one thing: 'God is good,'" said Knox, a Lewistown, Mont., native. "This promotion gives me the opportunity to serve the Army just a little longer."
Knox said the timing of his promotion, when looked at in retrospect, proved to be the best thing for both him and his military family.
"If I had been promoted last year, I would not be here with this family – the Warrior family," he said. "The Lord works things out for good, and being here... is good. If you encounter hardship, there's a reason – and you grow – and I'm very pleased I'm here with you today."
During the second promotion, McCaffrey pointed out the significance of promoting Chief Warrant Officer Jullius Harris to the rank of chief warrant officer five.
"Warrants are commissioned officers who lead through technical specialty. This promotion is rare, and the level of significance is very high. You could compare it to being promoted to a command sergeant major, or more like the rank of a general. It is the mark of a true professional."
Although Harris' family could not join him here for his promotion, his "other family" was here with him, said Lt. Col. Mark Collins, a Phoenix, native, the commander of 225th Brigade Support Battalion "Mongoose," 2nd SBCT.
"While his wife and two children would have liked to be here for this promotion, chief is here with his 'other family.' Chief has done some amazing things, starting out with our training at the National Training Center. He took issues that could be simple solutions but took them higher for a long-term solution with Department of the Army as well as the Stryker project managers.
"His dedication ensures that others who follow [him] won't have to face issues he's worked so hard to solve. You can see the effects of his work – just look at the readiness of our equipment that stays at or above 98 percent."
Harris said he especially wanted to thank a couple very special people for this day.
"I want to thank my wife, Williemae Moses, for the rock that I'm founded on," he said. "Without her, I wouldn't be here. And there's another thanks, to my first wife who, without her pushing me, I would not be standing here for this promotion."
Harris credited his first wife, Sabra, for pushing him to turn in his promotion packet. Sabra passed away when he hit 20 years of service.
"We had considered [retirement], but it was just something that worked to the best," he said. "As they say, it was a big character builder – that's one of the things that seemed really bad, but things work out for the best."