FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (June 14, 2024) – Fort Leonard Wood celebrated the Army’s 249^th birthday today, with a cake cutting on the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence Plaza.

The cake cutting ceremony brings together the oldest and youngest members of the mess. Their presence together symbolizes a record of past service and the promise of future endeavors as an army and a family.

The oldest Soldier, Maj. Anne Jeanette Sheahan, 1^st Battalion, 48^th Infantry Regiment, and the youngest Soldier, Pvt. Sophia Vishneski, Company B, 31^st Engineer Battalion, joined Maj. Gen. Christopher Beck, MSCoE and Fort Leonard Wood commanding general, and Command Sgt. Maj. Jorge Arzabala, in cutting a cake.

The longest tenured civilian, Joyce Waybright, Bruce C. Clarke Library, and the shortest tenured civilian, Annika James, 43^rd Adjutant General Battalion, joined Douglas Babb, MSCoE and Fort Leonard deputy to the commanding general, in cutting a cake.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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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 more than 75 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains more than 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.