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The 40th Military Police Internment and Resettlement Battalion welcomed a new commander Jan. 26.
Lt. Col. Bob Willis Jr. replaced Lt. Col. Erica Nelson, who recently returned from a yearlong Iraq deployment with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 40th MP I/R Battalion. Nelson has been battalion commander for two and a half years, beginning when it was stood up in 2009. The battalion’s stateside mission is care and custody of inmates and operations of the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks.
During Nelson’s tenure, the 40th was reactivated alongside the existing 705th Military Police Internment and Resettlement Battalion, and their brigade, the Army Corrections Brigade, became the 15th Military Police Brigade. Also, the Joint Regional Correctional Facility opened on post.
Col. Eric Belcher, commander of the 15th Military Police Brigade, praised Nelson’s leadership.
“You have led this battalion in peacetime and in war with skill, patience and strength,” Belcher said. “Your Soldiers have benefited immensely from your knowledge, skill and savvy operational prowess. You have expertly trained and employed personnel in the USDB, you trained personnel to go to war and you’ve led your unit in Iraq in support of Operation New Dawn.”
Belcher and Nelson both praised Command Sgt. Maj. Donald Wallace, scheduled to retire in May. Wallace also deployed recently with the battalion. His wife, Master Sgt. Tabrina Adams, is expecting and is also scheduled for a tour at the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy.
“You are the senior noncommissioned officer who consistently put his troops and the mission before himself,” Belcher said of Wallace. “Thank you for the dedication to the Soldiers of the 40th, and for a job extremely well done.”
Nelson called Wallace the better half of her command team, saying that once they had coordinated their leadership plan, everything else fell into place.
“I could not have asked for a better teammate,” she said. “You have my utmost respect, admiration and friendship. You are the epitome of selfless service, and I thank you for senior enlisted leadership of these officers, noncommissioned officers and Soldiers and your wise counsel to me on a daily basis.”
Nelson also thanked her family, her husband Robert and daughter Briana, for their support during her command and deployment.
Willis’ previous assignment was deputy brigade commander of the 15th Military Police Brigade. He’s also been a rear provisional commander of the 705th and executive officer of the USDB, and has deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom twice. Willis and his wife Ivonne have two children, William and Charles.
“In Bob Willis, we get a very well-rounded senior officer who brings a wealth of energy, experience, knowledge and skills that will ensure the 40th MP Battalion continues to excel,” Belcher said.
Willis said although the word “elite” is often overused, it applies to the Soldiers in the 40th, one of only four active internment and resettlement battalions in the entire Army.
“This unit is charged with operating the Department of Defense’s only maximum security prison,” Willis said. “When deployed, you’re expected to operate up close and personal with our nation’s most dangerous enemies who continue their fight behind the wire. In my opinion, it takes an elite Soldier and an elite organization to meet these challenges.”
The 40th Military Police Internment and Resettlement Battalion welcomed a new commander Jan. 26.
Lt. Col. Bob Willis Jr. replaced Lt. Col. Erica Nelson, who recently returned from a yearlong Iraq deployment with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 40th MP I/R Battalion. Nelson has been battalion commander for two and a half years, beginning when it was stood up in 2009. The battalion’s stateside mission is care and custody of inmates and operations of the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks.
During Nelson’s tenure, the 40th was reactivated alongside the existing 705th Military Police Internment and Resettlement Battalion, and their brigade, the Army Corrections Brigade, became the 15th Military Police Brigade. Also, the Joint Regional Correctional Facility opened on post.
Col. Eric Belcher, commander of the 15th Military Police Brigade, praised Nelson’s leadership.
“You have led this battalion in peacetime and in war with skill, patience and strength,” Belcher said. “Your Soldiers have benefited immensely from your knowledge, skill and savvy operational prowess. You have expertly trained and employed personnel in the USDB, you trained personnel to go to war and you’ve led your unit in Iraq in support of Operation New Dawn.”
Belcher and Nelson both praised Command Sgt. Maj. Donald Wallace, scheduled to retire in May. Wallace also deployed recently with the battalion. His wife, Master Sgt. Tabrina Adams, is expecting and is also scheduled for a tour at the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy.
“You are the senior noncommissioned officer who consistently put his troops and the mission before himself,” Belcher said of Wallace. “Thank you for the dedication to the Soldiers of the 40th, and for a job extremely well done.”
Nelson called Wallace the better half of her command team, saying that once they had coordinated their leadership plan, everything else fell into place.
“I could not have asked for a better teammate,” she said. “You have my utmost respect, admiration and friendship. You are the epitome of selfless service, and I thank you for senior enlisted leadership of these officers, noncommissioned officers and Soldiers and your wise counsel to me on a daily basis.”
Nelson also thanked her family, her husband Robert and daughter Briana, for their support during her command and deployment.
Willis’ previous assignment was deputy brigade commander of the 15th Military Police Brigade. He’s also been a rear provisional commander of the 705th and executive officer of the USDB, and has deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom twice. Willis and his wife Ivonne have two children, William and Charles.
“In Bob Willis, we get a very well-rounded senior officer who brings a wealth of energy, experience, knowledge and skills that will ensure the 40th MP Battalion continues to excel,” Belcher said.
Willis said although the word “elite” is often overused, it applies to the Soldiers in the 40th, one of only four active internment and resettlement battalions in the entire Army.
“This unit is charged with operating the Department of Defense’s only maximum security prison,” Willis said. “When deployed, you’re expected to operate up close and personal with our nation’s most dangerous enemies who continue their fight behind the wire. In my opinion, it takes an elite Soldier and an elite organization to meet these challenges.”
