The 44-Year Military Career of Master Sgt. Mark McDaniel

By Maj. William Carraway

Historian, Georgia Army National Guard

 

Master Sergeant Mark McDaniel's career in the Ga. ARNG began in Co A, 1-108th Armor and concluded with a ceremony
at the Clay National Guard Center Nov. 6, 2021.

Family, friends and fellow service members of Master Sgt. Mark McDaniel gathered in the drill hall of the Clay National Guard Center to celebrate his nearly 45-year career during a retirement ceremony Nov. 6, 2021.

McDaniel enlisted in the United States Army Dec. 14, 1976. He completed initial training as a track vehicle repairer and was assigned to duty stations at Fort Riley and Manheim, Germany.

Leaving the Army in 1981, McDaniel enlisted in the Georgia Army National Guard and was assigned to Company A, 108^th Armor Regiment in Rome, Ga. He was employed fulltime as a mechanic at Field Maintenance Shop Calhoun where he would remain form more than 40 years rising to the position of shop supervisor.

Field Maintenance Shop Calhoun in 2017. Photo by Capt. William Carraway

McDaniel was mobilized with the 48^th Brigade in response to Desert Storm., In recognition of outstanding performance of duty McDaniel was recognized with the Army Commendation Medal. In 1993 while assigned as a maintenance supervisor with Company A, McDaniel was ordered to state active duty in response to a severe winter storm which impacted north Georgia. Through his efforts, the unit established an operation center at Floyd Medical Center to coordinate with medical and law enforcement officials.

Transferring to Company B, 1-108^th in 1999, McDaniel was again mobilized from March to October 2001 as part of the Stabilization Force in Bosnia-Herzegovina. While stationed at Camp Comanche near Tuzla Bosnia, McDaniel, as battalion maintenance sergeant, supervised a maintenance section of 44 Soldiers responsible for more than 300 pieces of rolling stock. Upon his return to Georgia, McDaniel transferred to the Calhoun-based Headquarters Company, 1-108^th Armor. By 2004, McDaniel was the recognized maintenance expert in the battalion and received the Meritorious Service Medal in recognition of his leadership and technical skill in keeping battalion assets fully mission capable during the annual training and G8 conference, both conducted in 2004.

McDaniel kept the 1-108th Armor rolling from Bosnia to Iraq. 

McDaniel deployed to Iraq with the 108^th Armor in 2005. On June 26, 2005, a fire erupted on FOB Mahmudiyah where the 108^th was stationed. McDaniel rushed to the scene and entered the structure going room to smoke-filled-room to ensure all personnel had evacuated. Upon determining that all personnel were safe, McDaniel, realizing that the fire threatened supplies and ammunition stores, mounted a forklift began transporting storage containers away from the conflagration. Through his example, other Soldiers joined in the effort using an M88 recovery vehicle and M1923 five-ton truck to move more than 20 large military storage containers away from the approaching flames. For his actions, McDaniel was recognized with an Army Commendation Medal with V Device.

Achieving the rank of master sergeant in 2007, McDaniel was appointed 1^st Sgt. of Company D, 148^th Brigade Support Battalion and deployed with the company to Afghanistan from 2009-2010 in support of Task Force 108. For his service as the security forces first sergeant for Task Force 108^th at Camp Blackhorse near Kabul, McDaniel was awarded the Bronze Star Medal.

From 2013 to 2017 McDaniel served as first sergeant of Headquarters Company 148^th

BSB in Macon, Ga. McDaniel ultimately served as a company first sergeant for a combined nine years and received his third Meritorious Service Medal in recognition for services rendered as first sergeant.

In his final assignment with the Georgia Army National Guard, McDaniel served as part of the maintenance assistance and instruction team passing along the knowledge he accrued over four decades of service. In recognition of his contributions to the Georgia Army National Guard, Col. Roger Dillard, deputy chief of staff for logistics, presented McDaniel with the Legion of Merit. The award was followed by presentation of gifts from long-time colleagues and friends in the maintenance, logistics, transportation and ordnance fields.

In his farewell remarks, McDaniel acknowledged service members who had influenced him over the years and expressed gratitude for the gifts before presenting one of his own. Calling on Harriet Morgan, Georgia National Guard Family Support Foundation, McDaniel extolled the work of the organization in helping Soldiers and Airmen of the organization in times of crisis. As a final gesture to an organization to which he had given nearly 45 years of service, McDaniel presented the FSF with a contribution thanking Morgan for the efforts of the FSF in helping Soldiers and Airmen.

“It was the E-4s and below got me where I am,” said McDaniel. “When they became E-5s and E-6s, they got the job done. These are the Soldiers that make you what you are. They make you or break you.”

Citizen-Soldiers of 202nd Ordnance Company add to long history of Waynesboro Guard units

By Maj. William Carraway

Historian, Georgia Army National Guard

 

Left: Guidon of the Waynesboro, Georgia-based 202nd Ordnance Company. Right: Flames erupt from the muzzle of a Georgia Army National Guard
self-propelled howitzer of Battery C, 1-214th Field Artillery at Fort Stewart March 16, 2016. Photos by Maj. William Carraway

Families and friends of the Georgia Army National Guard’s 202^nd Ordnance Company gathered at Burke County High School in Waynesboro, Georgia for a farewell ceremony heralding the unit’s upcoming overseas deployment. The Citizen Soldiers of the 202^nd will join more than 500 Georgia National Guard Soldiers and Airmen presently deployed to five geographic combatant commands across the globe.

Captain Richard Henry, commander of the Waynesboro-based 202nd Ordnance Company stands before his Soldiers during a departure ceremony
at Burke County High School Oct. 16, 2021. Photo by Maj. William Carraway

“Today we not only honor the Soldiers of the 202^nd Ordnance Company, but we honor fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, sisters, brothers, friends, and employers,” said Lt. Col. Trevis McCullough, commander of the 265^th Chemical Battalion addressing the Soldiers and family members. “Know that you are a vital part of our team and our ability to execute this mission rests in your commitment.”

Lieutenant Colonel Trevis McCullough, commander of the 265th Chemical Battalion, praises the Soldiers of the 202nd Ordnance Company during a
departure ceremony at Burke County High School Oct. 16, 2021. Photo by Maj. William Carraway

In addition to McCullough, several key leaders of the Ga. National Guard gathered to witness the departure including Maj. Gen. Tom Carden, Georgia’s Adjutant General; Brig. Gen. Dwayne Wilson, commander of the Ga. ARNG and Col. Shane Strickland, commander of the 201^st Regional Support Group. In addition, several state and community leaders witnessed the departure ceremony to include Bill Tinley of the Waynesboro City Council who commanded the Georgia National Guard unit in Waynesboro when it was designated Battery C, 1^st Battalion, 214^th Field Artillery.

The Soldiers of the 202^nd are capable of eliminating explosive hazards such as improvised explosive devices. To become an explosives ordnance disposal specialist, Soldiers must complete nearly one year of specialized training covering chemistry, robotics and methods used to detect and neutralize explosive threats.  For the deployment, the 202^nd completed an aggressive pre-mobilization schedule.

“The 202^nd conducted 65 days of EOD operations training for deployment,” said Strickland. “They worked with the EOD National Guard community across six states and seven different units during their train up to help cross training and fully certified three new team leaders in six months.”

A Georgia National Guard Soldier of the
202nd Ordnance Company, 201st Regional
Support Group reels out detonation cord
 during an exercise at the Redstone Arsenal, Ala.
June 28, 2014. Photo by Staff Sgt. Mike Perry.

Since its organization in 1987 under the 78^th Troop Command[1], the 202^nd has built a robust training and mission resume. In 1990, personnel of the 202^nd were placed on alert and mobilized to Fort Drum, New York, in support of Operation Desert Storm. The unit served on active duty at Fort Drum until May 20, 1991.[2]

In March 1999, the 202^nd conducted a two-week overseas mission in Panama where it helped clear unexploded ammunition from small-arms and artillery ranges.[3] In December 2002, the 202^nd entered federal service for Operation Noble Eagle and served on active duty through June 15, 2004, in support of security operations in the United States. Upon its demobilization at Fort Bragg and subsequent return to Georgia, the 202^nd relocated from Forest Park to Marietta.[4]

When the 78^th TC received the Region IV Homeland Response Force mission assignment in 2010, the 202^nd capabilities augmented the mission of saving lives in the event of a domestic terrorist or natural emergency.[5] The 202^nd participated in a series of exercise beginning with a joint exercise at Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Florida, in Feb. 2010.[6] The unit mobilized to Afghanistan in 2011, where its skillset helped protect coalition forces and Afghan civilians from the threat of unexploded IEDs and mines. A 2013 reorganization of the Georgia National Guard resulted in the transfer of the 202^nd from the 78^th TC to the Marietta-based 201^st Regional Support Group. In March 2019, the 202^nd was assigned to the 265^th Chemical Battalion, part of the 201^st RSG.[7]

Georgia Army National Guard Soldiers of the Marietta-based 202nd Ordnance Company prepare for a mission to support local and state law enforcement
agencies during demonstrations in Atlanta May 31, 2020. photo by Spc. Tori Miller.

On March 27, 2020, the 202^nd moved to its current armory in Waynesboro, Georgia.[8] Since that time personnel of the 202^nd supported the state’s coordinated response to the COVID-19 pandemic, augmented law enforcement in response to civil unrest and mobilized to Washington D.C. to support security operations for the presidential inauguration.

An M-109 Howitzer of the Waynesboro-based Battery C, 1st Battalion 214th Field Artillery maneuvers at Fort Stewart in this undated image.
Georgia National Guard Archives.

Waynesboro has been home to a Georgia National Guard unit since it welcomed the Burke Infantry Feb. 5, 1890.[9] The Waynesboro unit mobilized to the Mexican Border in 1916 as Company E, 1^st Georgia Infantry Regiment and served with the 118^th Field Artillery, 31^st Division in World War I. The unit again mobilized as Battery A, 118^th Field Artillery during World War II serving with the 30^th Division in the European Theater of Operations. Reconstituted as Battery A after the end of World War II, the unit underwent a series of reorganizations representing air defense artillery, signal and infantry units until Jan 1, 1968 when it was designated Battery C, 1^st Battalion 214^th Field Artillery Regiment.[10] For more than more than 50 years, the Waynesboro unit fielded the massive 155 mm self-propelled howitzer. Battery C mobilized to Iraq in 2007 and in 2013 deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

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[1] OA 79-87 June 1, 1987.

 

[2] PO 044-006

 

[3] “EOD is an Explosive Business.” The Georgia Guardsman. Summer 1999, 8.

 

[4] OA 181-04 September 24, 2004.

 

[5] Tekoa Burns. “Not Just Another AT for JTF 781.” The Georgia Guardsman.  Vol 1 No. 6 2009, 14.

 

[6] Jerry De Avila. “Georgia CBRNE Unit Participates in Florida Exercise.” The Georgia Guardsman.

 

[7] PO 234003 August 22, 2019.

 

[8] PO 87-002.

[9] Ófficial Register of the National Guard of Georgia for 1917. (Atlanta: Georgia National Guard, Jan. 1, 1917) 83.

[10] RA 71-67 Dec 14, 1967.