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Friday, September 7, 2018 Volume 11, Issue 32 Published for members of the SHAPE/Chièvres, Brussels and Schinnen communities Benelux News Briefs Post Offices On Sept. 14, the blue postal letter drop boxes on SHAPE near building 210 and 318 will be removed. To drop off outgoing letter mail, custom- ers may continue to use the outgoing letter box inside the SHAPE Post Office with 24/7 access. On Chièvres, the letter dropbox in front of the Com- missary will be relocated to the Barracks to allow service members living there easier access to mail outbound let- ters. In the future, the brand new Chièvres Post Office will have an outgoing letter box located inside with 24/7 ac- cess. In the meantime, the let- ter dropbox on Daumerie will remain in use until the move to Chièvres. Office Hours for Veterans An accredited veterans ser- vice officer will have office hours Sept. 14 at the Ameri- can Legion Office in Brussels Bldg. 3 to help all veterans with their VA Disability claims and other benefits. Contact serviceofficer.arc.be@gmail. com or flanders.fields.post. [email protected]. Table of Contents IMCOM welcomes new commander News..............................2-6 Outgoing U.S. Army Installation Management Command Lt. Gen. Kenneth R. Dahl passes the guidon to Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army Gen. Mark A. Milley during the ceremony where Lt. Gen. Bradley A. Inside the Gate.............7-10 Becker took command Sept. 5, 2018 at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. (U.S. Army photo by Susan A. Merkner) Outside the Gate........11-13 See Page 3 September 7, 2018 Schinnen DPW employee to compete in the 2018 Invictus Games By Frits Verschuure and Rita Hoefnagels It only happened to a selected few Dutch military veterans, and Henry van Diesen was one of them. Van Diesen, employed at the Directorate of Public Works Operations and Maintenance Division in Schinnen, was invited to participate in the 2018 Invictus Games in Sydney. Van Diesen is a former improvised explosive device expert with the Dutch 11th Air Mobile Brigade. During one of his deployments in Afghanistan, he was badly injured. He had to go through several years of recovery and switched to civilian life. This switch was not easy, but after he was offered a job in Schinnen, life started to look up again for him. Van Diesen is a staunch cyclist which helped him during his recovery. His training and athleticism was noticed by the Dutch Ministry of Defense. It resulted in him being selected for the Dutch Invictus team. The Dutch team consists of 24 veterans who will compete in different sports. Van Diesen will participate in two different speed cycling disciplines, two athletics disciplines and one driving challenge with off-road 4x4 vehicles. The Invictus Games were founded by His Royal Highness Prince Harry of the United Kingdom. During his deployments as a military officer, he noticed how hard and difficult it was for veterans to pick up their life again after returning home injured, either physically or mentally. He started the Invictus Games to bring veterans together from around the globe to compete, and most of all, to give them self- esteem, motivation and life. This year’s games are held Oct. 20 to 28 in Sydney. Teams from 17 countries, among U.S. and Canada, will participate in the games. Van Diesen is a well-liked colleague, and the entire O&M team in Schinnen is extremely proud to see him travel Henry van Diesen, employed at the Directorate of Public Works’ Operations to Sydney soon. The O&M team says that they will support and Maintenance Division in Schinnen, prepares to participate in the 2018 and motivate Van Diesen in every way possible. u Invictus Games in Sydney. (Courtesy photo) To submit or subscribe, email [email protected] The Gazette is an unofficial publication published under the provisions of AR 360-1 for members of the Commander....................Col. Sean Hunt Kuester Department of Defense. Contents of The Gazette are not necessarily the official views of, or endorsed by, the U.S. Government, Department of the Army or the USAG Benelux. The Gazette is a free weekly publication Public Affairs Officer.....Marie-Lise Baneton distributed via email every Thursday, except when that day is an American, Belgian or Dutch Holiday, then The Gazette is published on Wednesday. The editorial content of this publication is prepared, edited, provided, Editor.............................Christophe Morel approved and published by the USAG Benelux Public Affairs Office, Unit 21419, APO AE 09708. Telephone (0032) 068-275419/DSN 361-5419. Everything advertised in this publication will be made available for purchase, Staff Writers..................Rita Hoefnagels use or patronage without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, physical handicap, Julie Piron political affiliation or any other non-merit factor of the purchaser, user or patron. If a violation or rejection of this Jessica Ryan equal opportunity policy by an advertiser is confirmed, the publisher will refuse to print advertising from that source until the violation is corrected. The appearance of advertising in this publication, including inserts or supplements, does not constitute endorsement of the products or services advertised by the U.S. Army. Submit content or story ideas to [email protected] by Monday at 3 p.m. [2] September 7, 2018 IMCOM welcomes new CG Becker By Susan A. Merkner U.S. Army Installation Management Command Lt. Gen. Bradley A. Becker took command of United States Army Installation Management Command in ceremonies Sept. 5 at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. Becker was promoted to lieutenant general immediately before the ceremony by Gen. Mark A. Milley, Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army. A change of command ceremony for Installation Management Command Becker replaces Lt. Gen. Kenneth R. Dahl, who had was held Sept. 5, 2018 at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. (U.S. Army photo served IMCOM since November 2015. by Susan A. Merkner) During Becker’s promotion ceremony, Milley said the new IMCOM commander was talented and humble, a man Col. Yvonne Hudson. who “is not afraid to speak truth to power. We want servant- IMCOM Command Sgt. Maj. Melissa A. Judkins participated leaders in our generals.” in the guidon exchange ceremony with the three generals. At the change of command ceremony, Milley praised The traditional presentation of flowers was held to honor IMCOM and its employees, thanking them for generating the outgoing and incoming commanding generals’ wives. Army readiness by supporting Soldiers, their families and Prior to taking command of IMCOM, Becker was chief, Office civilians. “Readiness is much more than manning, equipping of Security Cooperation-Iraq, U.S. Central Command, Iraq. and training. Soldiers can’t focus exclusively on their combat He was commander of the Joint Force Headquarters — mission if they think their family is in lousy housing, or National Capital Region and the U.S. Army Military District has inadequate medical care, or unsafe schools for their of Washington. He previously served as the commanding children,” he said. general, U.S. Army Training Center and Fort Jackson, South "Of the Army’s 1.1 million Soldiers, 60 percent are married Carolina. He has had several joint assignments and has and most have at least two children," Milley said. served in Iraq and Korea, as well as at Schofield Barracks, Under Dahl’s leadership, IMCOM reduced 1,000 positions Hawaii, and Fort Lewis, Washington. “which allowed us to apply those resources to build an SFAB Becker’s awards include the Distinguished Service Medal (Security Force Assistance Brigade) which is in Afghanistan (second award), the Defense Superior Service Medal, the today,” Milley said. Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, “Every base and installation is important, both in the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Meritorious Service CONUS and overseas,” Milley said. “Every single Solder in Medal with four Oak Leaf Clusters, the Army Commendation the Army passes through IMCOM at some point, and IMCOM Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, and the Army Achievement Medal is responsible for the readiness of today’s Army.” with three Oak Leaf Clusters. He has earned the Combat Dahl was the first commanding general of IMCOM who Action Badge, Parachutist and Air Assault identification was not dual-hatted as the Army’s Assistant Chief of Staff for badges, and is Ranger qualified. Installation Management. During his remarks at the ceremony, Becker was commissioned as a second lieutenant in Dahl thanked the command’s 50,000 employees for their the field artillery upon graduating from the University of role in providing continuity in the Army’s 75 installations. California at Davis in 1986 with a bachelor of arts degree Despite budget cuts and doubling down on multiple in political science. He also holds a master’s degree in jobs, IMCOM employees are dedicated professionals who political science from Auburn University. keep the day-to-day operations going, providing facilities, IMCOM became an independent command reporting utilities, security and recreational opportunities, he said. directly to the Chief of Staff of the Army in the fall of 2015. “IMCOM provides platforms for readiness, so our Soldiers Its geographic regions in the continental United States are fit, trained and ready for combat,” said Dahl, who will (CONUS) were reorganized into three directorates based be retiring from active service later this month. on function — Readiness, Sustainment and Training — and Becker thanked family and friends for their support and co-located with their supported Army commands (Forces said Dahl built a great team at IMCOM. Command, Army Materiel Command, and Training and “IMCOM touches the lives of every Soldier, civilian and Doctrine Command, respectively).

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