|
SUMTER, S.C. (January 31, 2010) - The stars
lined up at the Chamber of Commerce retreat on Sunday, as Lt. Gen.
William G. Webster, commander of the Third Army/U.S. Army Central,
described the mission of Third Army, along with an overview of
recent activity.
Third Army is the U.S. Army's
component command for U.S. Central Command. It comes under the
command of Gen. David Petraeus and operates heavily in Afghanistan
and Iraq.
Last year, Webster said, Third Army
conducted training and military cooperation in 18 of U.S. Central
Command's 20 countries. Only Iran and Syria were the
exceptions.
"One of the most important things we
do, in addition to supporting the force in Iraq and Afghanistan, is
to ensure that we keep the friends we have, bring new friends into
the group, and make no new enemies," he explained. "Building our
partner nations' capacities helps bring peace and stability to a
region that has known persistent conflict for ages."
Third Army is currently supporting
the 30,000 troop increase in Afghanistan, and they are leading a
massive refurbishment and repair program for military vehicles in
Kuwait and Qatar. Of the Army's 250,000 soldiers deployed
worldwide, Third Army supports approximately 140,000 in the
USCENTCOM area of responsibility. They distribute approximately 2.2
million gallons of fuel and serve 800,000 meals on an average
day.
"(That's) enough to feed every
resident of Sumter County about seven times in a single day," the
general quipped.
At ARCENT's main command post in
Atlanta, about 1,400 personnel comprise the headquarters staff.
Among them are 1,100 active Army, Army Reserve and National Guard
soldiers; about 100 Department of the Army civilians and 200
civilian contractors.
Third Army began its official
integration into the Shaw community in August, with a
groundbreaking ceremony for the new command and control facility.
The 321,234 square foot headquarters building will officially open
in the summer of 2011, along with a 25,888 square foot headquarters
company facility and a 14,980 square foot motor pool for vehicle
maintenance and storage.
"What we are talking about is more
than a few buildings, though," Webster said. "It's a team that is
thrilled to be joining your community as friends, neighbors, and
colleagues. It's a partnership. Many of you in this audience were
there at that ground-breaking ceremony, and we're happy to see you
again. Many others among you have not met us yet, but we cannot
wait to get to Sumter County to meet all of you."
Webster estimated that about 1,000
active duty members would come to Sumter County by September 2011,
for a total of about 2,000 people moving into the
Sumter-Columbia-Camden area.
Three staff members have already been
assigned to Shaw. They will be joined by 22 more in July.
"Last August, we estimated
approximately $150 million in immediate economic impact as a result
of our upcoming move to Shaw Air Force Base," he said. "We view
this move as a significant and positive change in all our lives,
and we look forward to joining this growing military-civilian
community here at Shaw Air Force Base and in Sumter County...We are
thankful for the welcome we continue to receive, and we look
forward to continuing our work with everyone: we cannot do it
without you. Your support enables our soldiers to continue to look
forward, focusing on the mission from our new headquarters,
continuing to train our people and prepare them for what they must
do, and continuing to expand our teamwork in the military and
civilian communities."
|
