Brian Hill

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (January 26, 2023) — Col. Sean Crockett, U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School commandant, was promoted to brigadier general during a ceremony on Tuesday in Lincoln Hall Auditorium.

The presiding officer for the ceremony was Lt. Gen. Maria Gervais, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command deputy commanding general and 28th Chief of Chemical, who thanked the Fort Leonard Wood community for their support and said it was great to be back at “the home of the regiment.”

“The support for what we do here in the military, and what we do in support of our Army, our nation, is just incredible — and it’s unmatched,” she said.

Gervais highlighted some of the attributes that make Crockett an exceptional Army leader.

“We know that he will lead with distinction,” she said. “He has the right traits; he has the right character; and he has the right emotion and passion for serving as a general officer, and leading, what I have said, are the best trained, the best led, the best equipped, the most respected and the most feared Army in this world.”

Gervais said a general officer is “built” during the brigadier general promotion ceremony — which includes the presentation of a general officer flag, belt and pistol — but “the actual building of this general, to get him to this point, happened because of so many people that supported him every single step of the way.”

“All of the experiences that he had, and those that impacted him, personally, developed him into the leader that he is today,” she said.

Crockett, Gervais noted, comes from a family with a history of military service — his grandfather served in World War II, and his father served in the Navy. It was his upbringing, however, that made him the great leader he is today, she said.

“We want to thank you very much for sharing your son with us, and for the great values that you instilled in him, and also the sense of service,” Gervais said to Crockett’s parents at the ceremony.

Promotion to general officer is more than an acknowledgement of one’s past accomplishments, Gervais added.

“It is really the potential; the potential that he has to serve at the highest ranks in our Army,” she said. “He has the character — the personal traits that we desire in our senior leaders.”

After his family — including his wife, Natalie, his daughter, Savannah, and his son, Colin — pinned on his new rank, the new general officer called his family “the reason I do what I do every day,” and thanked everyone who has helped get him to this point. He also explained the moment he knew he would serve in the military — when his grandfather told him the story of being a fighter pilot and getting shot down over Normandy, France, in June 1944.

“He told me that story for the first time when I was 13 years old in Yorba Linda, California, and I knew at that moment that this is what I was going to do,” Crockett said.

A 1995 graduate of Auburn University, in Auburn, Alabama, Crockett received his commission into the Chemical Corps on March 17, 1995. He said he showed up for CBRN training at Fort McClellan, Alabama, three days later, “and I’ve been serving this proud regiment ever since.”

“What a tremendously rewarding experience it has been,” he said, noting he and his family’s 28 years of service at 18 duty stations.

Crockett called his current position “the assignment of a lifetime, with some of the finest officers, noncommissioned officers, Soldiers, civilians and community members and leaders on the planet.”

“Nat and I appreciate the enduring support and assistance this community has provided our family over the years we have served here,” he said. “As many of you know, Fort Leonard Wood is our Army home, and it has been my greatest privilege to continue our service here at the home of the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and our CBRN Regiment.”

Of note, Crockett has a bachelor’s degree in Aviation Operations Management and master’s degrees in Business Organizational Security Management and Strategic Studies. He is also a graduate of the Chemical Officer Basic Course, Airborne Course, Chemical Captains Career Course, Combined Arms Services Staff School, Technical Escort Course, the Command and General Staff Officers Course, and the Army War College.

His awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit (with one oak-leaf cluster), Defense Superior Service Medal, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal (with three oak-leaf clusters), Army Commendation Medal (with two oak leaf clusters), Army Achievement Medal (with three oak-leaf clusters), Army Superior Unit Award, National Defense Service Medal with Bronze Star, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terror Service Medal, Parachutist Badge, and the German Efficiency Badge (Gold). He wears the Multi-National Corps Iraq as his combat patch.

More photos from Crockett’s promotion ceremony are available on the Fort Leonard Wood Flickr page.

Col. Sean Crockett, U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School commandant, has his brigadier general rank pinned on by his wife, Natalie (left), and his daughter, Savannah, during a promotion ceremony on Tuesday in Lincoln Hall Auditorium. (Photo by Dawn Arden, Fort Leonard Wood Public Affairs Office)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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About Fort Leonard Wood

Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post 80 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains nearly 80,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps Detachment and Air Force Squadron on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.

More information about Fort Leonard Wood is at: https://home.army.mil/wood/index.php/about/mission