Veterans day may have been last week, but at the Rolla Area Chamber of Commerce monthly luncheon, held at Matt’s Steakhouse, soldiers took center stage with its keynote speaker Brig. Gen. Gregg F. Martin.
Martin came to the chamber to update business and city leaders on new developments going on at Fort Leonard Wood.
“I would love to set up tours at Ft. Leonard Wood and show you around,” he told the audience.
The reason for his enthusiasm was all the projects and changes that were taking place at the Fort, he said.
Among those projects was $200 million worth of capital investments to the Fort over the past year and another $149 million in investments that are expected to come in the next five years.
Some of the new construction at the base focuses on single soldier barracks, a new chapel, expanded training areas, and a new child development center, according to Michael Alley, the external communication chief for the Fort.
The base is also training 10,000 more troops in the next several years, going from 78,000 to 88,000, according to Martin.
The additional troops are due to several companies and military training schools that will be moving to the Fort, increasing the number of initial entry training soldiers.
With the Army growing, it’s growing in the areas where Fort Leonard Wood focuses on, added Alley Wednesday evening.
Another aspect that had Martin excited was the 4th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, he said. The brigade allows soldiers in the area to gain some stability in their station, setting up “roots” as Martin said.
“This allows people to go into their training program, go on deployment, and come back,” Martin said.
Martin made it a point to tell those in attendance that they were a key element in the Fort’s plans.
“You are a part of the family, you are the extended family,” he told the crowd.
Martin brought along videos to demonstrate what training was like on the base.
“I get to jump out of the back of a completely good helicopter into the Lake of the Ozarks,” Martin told the crowd.
Not all the focus was on capital improvements, troop increases and action videos at the luncheon.
Staff Sgt. Sean Westerman received the MANSCEN & FLO NCO of the Third Quarter award at the beginning of the luncheon.
Westerman has been serving for 10 years and has received numerous military honors, including a Purple Heart.
“This is new to me,” Westerman said. “Everywhere I have been I haven’t seen community support like this.”
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Veterans day may have been last week, but at the Rolla Area Chamber of Commerce monthly luncheon, held at Matt’s Steakhouse, soldiers took center stage with its keynote speaker Brig. Gen. Gregg F. Martin.
Martin came to the chamber to update business and city leaders on new developments going on at Fort Leonard Wood.
“I would love to set up tours at Ft. Leonard Wood and show you around,” he told the audience.
The reason for his enthusiasm was all the projects and changes that were taking place at the Fort, he said.
Among those projects was $200 million worth of capital investments to the Fort over the past year and another $149 million in investments that are expected to come in the next five years.
Some of the new construction at the base focuses on single soldier barracks, a new chapel, expanded training areas, and a new child development center, according to Michael Alley, the external communication chief for the Fort.
The base is also training 10,000 more troops in the next several years, going from 78,000 to 88,000, according to Martin.
The additional troops are due to several companies and military training schools that will be moving to the Fort, increasing the number of initial entry training soldiers.
With the Army growing, it’s growing in the areas where Fort Leonard Wood focuses on, added Alley Wednesday evening.
Another aspect that had Martin excited was the 4th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, he said. The brigade allows soldiers in the area to gain some stability in their station, setting up “roots” as Martin said.
“This allows people to go into their training program, go on deployment, and come back,” Martin said.
Martin made it a point to tell those in attendance that they were a key element in the Fort’s plans.
“You are a part of the family, you are the extended family,” he told the crowd.
Martin brought along videos to demonstrate what training was like on the base.
“I get to jump out of the back of a completely good helicopter into the Lake of the Ozarks,” Martin told the crowd.
Not all the focus was on capital improvements, troop increases and action videos at the luncheon.
Staff Sgt. Sean Westerman received the MANSCEN & FLO NCO of the Third Quarter award at the beginning of the luncheon.
Westerman has been serving for 10 years and has received numerous military honors, including a Purple Heart.
“This is new to me,” Westerman said. “Everywhere I have been I haven’t seen community support like this.”
