By Dawn Arden
Public Affairs Office
The U.S. Army’s Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School held a ceremony June 11 on the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence Plaza, promoting both Jesse Deberry and Robert Lockwood to chief warrant officer 3.
Immediately following the promotion, Deberry relinquished responsibility as the Chemical Corps’ Regimental Chief Warrant Officer to Lockwood, making him only the third individual to hold this position, which was established in 2011.
“This is a very significant day for our regiment and of course the Deberry and the Lockwood families,” said Brig. Gen. Antonio Munera, USACBRNS commandant. “I can’t think of a better time to celebrate this significant event as we approach not only the 100th year of Dragon Soldiers serving our nation, but also the centennial celebration of the inception of the Warrant Officer Corps in our Army.”
Munera said both leaders embody the attributes of warrant officers and Dragon Soldiers, and have demonstrated they are the “best of the best.”
“I could not be more proud of these two warrant officers and their demonstrated potential to lead this corps and the Army into the future,” he said. “I’m counting on both of you to continue to pave the way for the future of warrant officers in our regiment, and most of all, always embody attributes of a Dragon Soldier by remaining competent, bold, ready and on point for our nation.”
Munera said Deberry excelled in all tasks given and proudly represented the CBRN School in multiple functions.
“I want to personally thank you for your service to our regiment,” Munera said. “It’s not an easy task.”
Deberry said the Army is transitioning from counter-insurgency to large-scale combat operations, and that the Dragon Soldier will be at the helm of preparing the Army for the next fight.
“For the past 24 months I’ve focused efforts on optimizing warrant officer sessions, assuring CBRN warrant officers are trained and proficient; advanced trouble shooting of CBRN systems; sustainment of CBRN systems during semiautonomous operations; and CBRN information preparation on the battlefield,” he said.
He then thanked installation and community leaders for creating “a great command and community climate.”
“Fort Leonard Wood is by far the most family- and team-oriented installation I’ve ever served on,” Deberry said.
Welcoming Lockwood to the team, Munera described the new leader as having the right balance of operational and technical experience to help execute his vision.
Lockwood addressed the audience and said he is looking forward to getting to know those he has yet to meet.
“You may be wondering what to expect of me and thinking ‘who is this guy?,’” he said. “To that, I’ll tell you — read the third stanza of the Ranger’s Creed. It will tell you everything you need to know. It is the standard by which I measure myself; it is my pledge to you and you do not deserve, nor should you expect, anything less than that.”
