Lt. Col. Felix Rodriquez passed command of the battalion to a former RRB deputy commander, Lt. Col. Patrick Pelletier.
As Rodriguez said his goodbyes, he looked forward to his next assignment where he will assume duties as the deputy commander of the 50th Regional Support Group and Deputy G-1 in St. Augustine, Florida.
“I would like to thank the organization for this opportunity with a special thanks to my family for their support throughout my career, especially over the past two years,” said Rodriguez.
Rodriguez believes unit strength and personnel readiness are paramount to success and he intends to bring these initiatives to his new command. He then went on to say he will do everything he can to help Pelletier be successful in his new position.
Pelletier, whose career began in 1991,when he enlisted in the Florida National Guard as a Private First Class, went on to Officer Candidate School where he received his commission in 1994 from the Florida Military Academy.
“I’m very excited about the challenge and the opportunity this unit brings,” said Pelletier. “The only things that will match my tenacity and agility in aggressively executing this units mission is the energy and advocacy that I will dedicate to the soldiers of this battalion,” said Pelletier.
Command Sgt. Maj. Donald R. Hicks of the RRB said that Pelletier has knowledge of how the RRB works and will take what Rodriguez has put into place and bring it to the next level.
“I think he is transparent, what you see is what you get. I think he has good vision, leadership skills, focus and drive,” said Hicks.