Commander's Blog

I hope everyone had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend, and that you were able to enjoy quality time with family and friends. Most importantly, we all should take time to give thanks to those who served and gave the greatest sacrifice for our country. It's really important that we keep in mind our fallen warriors, not only on Memorial Day but all throughout the year. It's because of them, and all of our military Service Members, that we continue to live free in our great nation. And if you haven't been to Arlington National Cemetery, especially during the Memorial Day holiday, with all of the grave flags in place, you really should spend some time walking the grounds – it's truly an inspirational sight.

As Memorial Day begins the unofficial start of the summer season, most neighborhoods and families will have their pools open and ready to go, so please remember to stay safe in the water. Keep in mind the safety tips I mentioned in my last blog, and add to these boating, fishing and tubing safety, as many will be out on the lakes and rivers enjoying these sports. And always remember to be smart when mixing alcohol with any outdoor sport, especially those involving the water. Tragedies can happen in an instant, and you are much too valuable to your families, and to our organization, to be injured by this type of accident. A little common sense can certainly go a long way in keeping everyone safe and sound all throughout the year!

Coming up this week on May 31, the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command will be redesignated as the U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command, and the organization will transfer under the Army Futures Command. Brig. Gen. Michael J. Talley has been identified as the next commanding general of the USAMRDC and Fort Detrick, and he will assume responsibility from Maj. Gen. Holcomb on July 24 during a ceremony on post. Brig. Gen. Talley is a former commander of the 6th Medical Logistics Management Center, so he knows Fort Detrick well. We're all looking forward to his arrival as we continue to do great things in support of our Warfighters throughout the world.

Although this past year has been full of significant changes for our organization, and throughout the Army, we must remain focused on our important mission and our ongoing projects. Some of these projects in our Neurotrauma and Psychological Health Project Management Office involve critical research in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury, and as May is National Mental Health Month, we continue to make great strides in helping to treat those with PTSD and TBI, both military and civilian. And speaking of our PMOs, please keep in mind the names of these offices will be changing as of May 31, and we have already sent out correspondence to provide the details and the new names. But while the PMO names may be changing, our mission still remains the same – and our Service Members are counting on our continued support!

Finally, as many of you know, we are preparing for our USAMMDA Change of Command ceremony that will take place on Wednesday, June 26. So much goes into the many details for this event, and I'd like to thank everyone involved in planning this year's ceremony. It truly is a herculean effort, and I know that Col. Adam is certainly inheriting a wonderful, dedicated team here at USAMMDA!

Always remember that we’re saving lives with everything we do here at USAMMDA!

COL Ryan Bailey