Fort McCoy community members gathered April 23 at McCoy’s Community Center to celebrate the 118th birthday of the U.S. Army Reserve, honoring more than a century of service by the Army’s Citizen-Soldiers and recognizing the Reserve’s enduring importance to national defense and military readiness.
The celebration, organized by Fort McCoy’s Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation (DFMWR), included remarks from installation leaders, a ceremonial cake-cutting, and free food for attendees following the ceremony.
The event marked another milestone for a force whose origins date to April 23, 1908, when Congress established the Medical Reserve Corps — the official predecessor to today’s Army Reserve. Over the past 118 years, the Army Reserve has evolved into an essential component of the Total Army, providing trained and ready forces for overseas combat operations, homeland response missions, disaster support, and countless other operations around the globe.
Scott Abell, director of Fort McCoy’s DFMWR, opened the celebration by highlighting the Reserve’s long legacy and its connection to Fort McCoy’s mission.
“It’s an honor to stand before you today as we celebrate the 118th birthday of the United States Army Reserve, a force whose legacy of service, sacrifice, and unwavering commitment has shaped the strength of our Army and the safety of our nation,” Abell said.
Abell noted Fort McCoy’s especially close relationship with the Army Reserve as one of the Army’s premier training installations.
“Here at Fort McCoy, the Army Reserve plays an especially significant role,” Abell said. “As a premier training installation and a hub for Reserve component readiness, Fort McCoy supports thousands of Army Reserve Soldiers each year, providing the facilities, ranges, and resources they need to maintain combat readiness and operational excellence.”
He added that Fort McCoy’s role goes far beyond simply serving as a training location.
“This installation is more than just a training ground,” Abell said. “It’s a launch pad for deployments, a site for vital joint exercises, and a critical asset in preparing our Reserve forces for the challenges of today and tomorrow.”
Col. Sheyla Baez Ramirez, commander of U.S. Army Garrison-Fort McCoy, also addressed attendees, speaking on behalf of herself and Fort McCoy Senior Commander Maj. Gen. Joseph Ricciardi, commanding general of the 88th Readiness Division.
“Thank you for joining us as we celebrate the 118th birthday of the United States Army Reserve,” Baez Ramirez said. “Today, we honor the enduring legacy of the warrior citizen.”
Referencing this year’s Army Reserve birthday theme, Twice the Citizen, Baez emphasized the unique dual role of Reserve Soldiers.
“A fitting tribute to the remarkable individuals who expertly balance their civilian careers, their family life, with dedicated service to our nation,” Baez said. “The theme connects today’s Soldiers to the 118 years of dedicated service and contributions to our nation.”
She noted that since the Army Reserve’s founding, more than 1.3 million citizen-Soldiers have answered the nation’s call.
“They have deployed to every major combat operation around the world,” she said. “They have responded to natural disasters here in the homeland and also abroad, and they have demonstrated unwavering commitment whenever the Army needs them.”
Baez also underscored the modern Army Reserve’s continued relevance in an increasingly complex global environment.
“The U.S. Army Reserve is an essential part of the Total Army force,” she said. “They are the teachers, the nurses, the engineers, the cybersecurity professionals whose civilian skills are carried into their military formations, making the entire workforce stronger and more adaptable.”
She said that same adaptability has defined the Army Reserve throughout its history.
“As we celebrate our history, we also are transforming the future,” Baez said. “In an era of continuous transformation, the Army Reserve is actively adapting the way we train, the way we equip, the way that we organize to meet the threats of the future.”
That ability to evolve, she said, is exactly what has sustained the force for 118 years.
“The same adaptability has defined our force for 118 years, and it’s precisely what will carry it forward,” she said.
The ceremony concluded with a traditional birthday cake-cutting ceremony, a longstanding military custom symbolizing continuity between generations of service members, followed by food and fellowship among attendees.
For Fort McCoy, the celebration served as both a tribute to Army Reserve history and a recognition of the installation’s continuing partnership with the Reserve force.
As one of the Army’s most significant training and mobilization platforms, Fort McCoy remains deeply connected to the Army Reserve mission — helping prepare citizen-Soldiers to answer the nation’s call whenever and wherever needed.
Fort McCoy’s motto beginning in 2026 is “Training the Total Force and Shaping the Future since 1909.”
The installation’s mission: “Fort McCoy strengthens Total Force Readiness by serving as a training center, Mobilization Force Generation Installation, and Strategic Support Area enabling warfighter lethality to deploy, fight, and win our nation’s wars.”
And Fort McCoy’s vision is, “To be the premier training center supporting the most capable, combat-ready, and lethal armed forces.”
Located in the heart of the upper Midwest, Fort McCoy is the only U.S. Army installation in Wisconsin. The installation has provided support and facilities for the field and classroom training of more than 100,000 military personnel from all services nearly every year since 1984.
Learn more about Fort McCoy online at https://home.army.mil/mccoy, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” on Flickr at https://www.flickr.com/photos/fortmccoywi, and on X (formerly Twitter) by searching “usagmccoy.” Also try downloading the My Army Post app to your smartphone and set “Fort McCoy” or another installation as your preferred base. Fort McCoy is also part of Army’s Installation Management Command where “We Are The Army’s Home.”