Grinder
12 August 2003, 14:26
ARNEWS
New chief of staff takes office
WASHINGTON (Army News Service, July4, 2003) - In a small, inconspicuous
Pentagon ceremony Gen. Pete Schoomaker came out of retirement Aug. 1,
and swore to uphold the duties as the Army's 35th chief of staff.
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld was the first to make remarks
during the ceremony, which was held in the office of Les Brownlee, the
acting Army secretary. More than once Rumsfeld thanked Schoomaker and
his wife, Cindy, for returning to duty.
"I'm absolutely delighted that General Schoomaker is going to undertake
this responsibility," Rumsfeld said. "It's an enormously important one
-- not just for the Army but for the country."
Before retiring in August 2000, Schoomaker served 31 years in the
military. He said that he knows this Army is very different from the
one he entered.
"I truly feel blessed to be part of the Army's future," Schoomaker
said. "I have the opportunity to contend and help the Army as it
becomes more relevant and ready."
Schoomaker will lead the Army on the heels of retired Gen. Eric
Shinseki, the former chief of staff of the Army. Shinseki started the
move toward Transformation and later oversaw an Army transforming while
at war.
The War on Terror is not a new war, according to a statement Schoomaker
released shortly after his swearing-in ceremony. Twenty-three years ago
in the Iranian desert during Operation Desert One, Schoomaker said he
lost eight of his comrades.
Schoomaker said he knew grief, but he didn't know that he was in the
opening engagements of this country's long struggle against terrorism.
"Our enemies have been waging [this war] for some time, and it will
continue for the foreseeable future," according to the statement. "As
the president has stated, 'This is a different kind of war, against a
different kind of enemy.' It is a war we must win, a war for our very
way of life."
Schoomaker's vast experience in both conventional and special
operations, along with his genuine care and concern for soldiers and
their families qualifies him to lead the Army at a very critical time
in history, Brownlee said in a press release.
The Army's newest chief of staff is the first retired four-star officer
ever to be called back to serve as the U.S. Army chief of staff. He and
his father are also one of the few father-and-son teams to serve in the
Office of the Chief of Staff of the Army.
His father, Fred Schoomaker, who also had a long-standing military
career, was the assistant to Army Chief of Staff Gen. Harold Keith
Johnson from 1964-1968.
Schoomaker comes from a household of career military men. His younger
brother, Brig. Gen. Eric Schoomaker, is the chief of the Southeast
Regional Medical Command.
Before hanging up his uniform in 2000, Schoomaker spent three years as
commander-in-chief of the U.S. Special Operations Command at MacDill
Air Force Base, Fla. Prior to that he commanded the Joint Special
Operations Command, United States Special Operations Command, Fort
Bragg, N.C. Then he became commanding general of the United States Army
Special Operations Command at Fort Bragg until October 1997.
New chief of staff takes office
WASHINGTON (Army News Service, July4, 2003) - In a small, inconspicuous
Pentagon ceremony Gen. Pete Schoomaker came out of retirement Aug. 1,
and swore to uphold the duties as the Army's 35th chief of staff.
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld was the first to make remarks
during the ceremony, which was held in the office of Les Brownlee, the
acting Army secretary. More than once Rumsfeld thanked Schoomaker and
his wife, Cindy, for returning to duty.
"I'm absolutely delighted that General Schoomaker is going to undertake
this responsibility," Rumsfeld said. "It's an enormously important one
-- not just for the Army but for the country."
Before retiring in August 2000, Schoomaker served 31 years in the
military. He said that he knows this Army is very different from the
one he entered.
"I truly feel blessed to be part of the Army's future," Schoomaker
said. "I have the opportunity to contend and help the Army as it
becomes more relevant and ready."
Schoomaker will lead the Army on the heels of retired Gen. Eric
Shinseki, the former chief of staff of the Army. Shinseki started the
move toward Transformation and later oversaw an Army transforming while
at war.
The War on Terror is not a new war, according to a statement Schoomaker
released shortly after his swearing-in ceremony. Twenty-three years ago
in the Iranian desert during Operation Desert One, Schoomaker said he
lost eight of his comrades.
Schoomaker said he knew grief, but he didn't know that he was in the
opening engagements of this country's long struggle against terrorism.
"Our enemies have been waging [this war] for some time, and it will
continue for the foreseeable future," according to the statement. "As
the president has stated, 'This is a different kind of war, against a
different kind of enemy.' It is a war we must win, a war for our very
way of life."
Schoomaker's vast experience in both conventional and special
operations, along with his genuine care and concern for soldiers and
their families qualifies him to lead the Army at a very critical time
in history, Brownlee said in a press release.
The Army's newest chief of staff is the first retired four-star officer
ever to be called back to serve as the U.S. Army chief of staff. He and
his father are also one of the few father-and-son teams to serve in the
Office of the Chief of Staff of the Army.
His father, Fred Schoomaker, who also had a long-standing military
career, was the assistant to Army Chief of Staff Gen. Harold Keith
Johnson from 1964-1968.
Schoomaker comes from a household of career military men. His younger
brother, Brig. Gen. Eric Schoomaker, is the chief of the Southeast
Regional Medical Command.
Before hanging up his uniform in 2000, Schoomaker spent three years as
commander-in-chief of the U.S. Special Operations Command at MacDill
Air Force Base, Fla. Prior to that he commanded the Joint Special
Operations Command, United States Special Operations Command, Fort
Bragg, N.C. Then he became commanding general of the United States Army
Special Operations Command at Fort Bragg until October 1997.