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Fairfield High grad becomes Army vice chief of staff
U.S. Army Gen. John Campbell assumes duties as the 34th Army Vice Chief of Staff during a ceremony at the Pentagon Auditorium Mar. 8, 2013 in the Pentagon, Va. (U.S. Army photo)
FAIRFIELD — Gen. John Campbell, a 1975 graduate of Fairfield High School, was sworn in Friday as the Army’s 34th vice chief of staff by Secretary of the Army John McHugh at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., according to the Army’s Public Affairs Office.
Campbell was nominated by President Barack Obama in February and confirmed March 5 by Congress to succeed Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III. Austin was nominated in December by the president to take the reins of the joint U.S. Central Command, which overseas all military operations in the Middle East and Afghanistan.
Most recently, Campbell served as deputy chief of staff, and before that as commander of Combined Joint Task Force 101 during Operation Enduring Freedom.
Just prior to Campbell’s swearing in as the Army’s vice chief of staff, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno and Campbell’s wife, Ann, replaced his three-star shoulder boards with those of a full general.
“As we continue to move forward with this great Army of ours, it’s important that we pick the right leaders as we go forward as we address these challenges in the Army,” Odierno said, according to an Army press release. “John Campbell is one of those leaders I want by my side as we navigate these very difficult times. He will be the one who helps me and the secretary as we reshape the Army of the future.”
After presenting his wife with flowers, Campbell took center stage, pledging “to do everything I can with the tools I have to support our great Army – I look forward to the challenges ahead,” he said., according to the press release.
Campbell graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 1979. His service includes deployments to Afghanistan as a brigade commander early in the war. He later served as the deputy director of regional operations for the Joint Staff’s director of operations.
Reach Ian Thompson at 427-6976 or ithompson@dailyrepublic.net. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ithompsondr.
Ian Thompson
Discussion | 1 comment
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Rich GiddensMarch 12, 2013 - 9:24 am
I know his father who is a retired Air Force Master Sergeant and a former janitor for FSUSD. The son of a lowly janitor. His mom worked for IASCO helping JAL with their flight training. I've been pestering Ian for 3 years to do a story on Gen. Campbell. I predict he will become the next chief of staff because he's the right man at the right place at the right time. Gen. Campbell originally wanted to serve in the Air Force but was denied entry into the AF. Academy and was accepted at West Point instead. Gen. Campbell also taught at UC Davis. Gen. Campbell was at the Pentagon on 911.
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