December 18, 2013 -- Editor’s note: Article provided by Organizational Development Office, Marine Corps Logistics Command.
Marines, civilian-Marines, family and friends welcomed back two Marine Corps Logistics Command Marines - Lt. Col. Danny Ledford and Maj. Darrell Robinson - from an Afghanistan deployment, Dec. 12.
The two Marines concluded a seven-month deployment and received a hero’s welcome in front of LOGCOM Headquarters.
Maj. Gen. John J. Broadmeadow, commanding general and Col. Yori R. Escalante, chief of staff, both with LOGCOM, greeted the Marines when they returned.
“We are proud of the work that Marine Corps Logistics Command (Forward) accomplished under Lieutenant Colonel Ledford's leadership,” Escalante said. “With the transition from recovering the surge equipment to planning for the end of the mission in Afghanistan, his expertise lent to developing a cohesive plan for Marine Corps Logistics Command (Forward) and Marine Corps Logistics Command as a whole.”
Ledford, the commander of LOGCOM (Forward), brought a unique understanding of the requirements in Afghanistan, having previously served on multiple deployments in support of operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom, as the redeployment, retrograde, reset and reconstruction officer-in-charge/executive officer, LOGCOM (Forward). His knowledge of the R4 process made it a smooth transition during his time as commanding officer.
When Ledford took command on May 30, he shared his vision.
“I believe we are doing something that is absolutely critical to the future success of our Corps,” he said. “If we mess this up, reset of the Marine Corps’ ground
equipment is in jeopardy. Ultimately that means the young Marines in our Corps will not have the gear they need, or it will not be ready when they need it, to execute the next mission of responding to a crisis or prosecuting combat operations. So I am here to ensure that we do everything in our power to help set the conditions for success of our fellow Marines.”
Looking back over this tour, Ledford expressed his sentiments.
“I am amazed by and extremely proud of the work that has been done by our Marines and contractors during my tenure as the commanding officer of LOGCOM (Forward),” he said. “I was fortunate to fall in on a unit full of professionals (who) worked hard every day to execute retrograde operations in support of reset efforts back in (the continental United States). These folks made it happen every day, despite working in one of the harshest environments found on earth. And when Rotation 4 Marines arrived, they did not miss a beat. The handover of corporate knowledge was flawless. The Marines ‘passed the baton’ and kept pace. I could not be more pleased with the level of effort put forth and the results achieved.”
“I (handed) over the reins to Lieutenant Colonel Joshua Kissoon, December 10,” he said. “We served together training recruits at Parris Island, (South Carolina), many years ago. He is an outstanding officer and I have no doubt he will lead the team to even greater success.
“In addition to the Marines and civilians forward deployed, I also want to thank the families and friends in the community here that supported us in Afghanistan,” Ledford added.
Robinson, the operations officer for LOGCOM (Forward), was directly responsible for supply, maintenance and transportation sections, consisting of more than 50 Marines and more than 90 contractors from Honeywell Technology Solutions Inc.
Robinson served as the single point of contact within LOGCOM (Forward) for all units assigned to Regional Command (Southwest) including II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward), Retrograde and Redeployment in support of Reset and Reconstitution Operations Group, 2nd Marine Air Wing, Combat Logistics Regiment 2 as well as U.S. Marine Forces Central Command and contracted organizations.
Robinson ensured all of these units were coordinating their individual efforts with LOGCOM (Forward) and those efforts were synchronized with the operational requirements of off-ramping and enduring units.
Both Ledford and Robinson will return to positions in the Operations Directorate of LOGCOM.
131212-M-UF252-001
Nathan L. Hanks Jr.
Maj. Gen. John J. Broadmeadow, commanding general, Marine Corps Logistics Command, welcomes home Lt. Col. Danny Ledford, commander, Marine Corps Logistics Command (Forward), Dec. 12 from a seven-month deployment in Afghanistan.
131212-M-UF252-002
Nathan L. Hanks Jr.
Maj. Gen. John J. Broadmeadow, commanding general, Marine Corps Logistics Command, welcomes home Maj. Darrell Robinson, operations officer, Marine Corps Logistics Command (Forward), Dec. 12 from a seven-month deployment in Afghanistan.