Enaineer Memoirs
commander's support, but I certainly didn't need any distractions. I indicated my hope that
the Army staff would support us in our initiatives to keep this mission with the Army for the
good of the Army. Otherwise, I'd appreciate it very much if they would refrain from making
adverse comments and just let me fight my own battles in my own way.
I was extremely pleased and relieved when every senior general in the Army supported the
Corps' keeping the civil works mission. I had some concern that the Army leaders and the
staff would not understand the value of the civil mission to the Army. I soon realized the
senior people in the Army did understand. General [Robert] Shoemaker, Forces Command;
Kroesen, Vice Chief of Staff; and General [John] Vessey, CG VIII Army, had seen the Corps
at work and knew the Corps' efforts in the public arena and how well we had handled
ourselves with the leaders of communities.
response and that of al 1 commanders was
most supportiv and valuable . No doubt there are problems at the colonel, 1 ieutenant colonel,
or maybe the brigadier general level, but not to the senior people who've seen the Corps at
work nationally.
After the meeting, I was walking down the hall with General Rogers to thank him for letting
me have a chance to make the pitch. Also, I wanted to review the Army's position. In the
course of that discussion, he indicated he felt the Corps should be a major command and
asked my thoughts. I agreed and was asked to put together a recommendation.
By this time, we had established the Resource Management Office as a general officer
position. I wanted a general in there, so I'd brought in somebody I thought would be a
general, and that was Morelli, Don Morelli. Don was an excellent commander and overall
an outstanding Corps of Engineers officer. He'd been a district engineer and a regimental
commander at Fort Leonard Wood. He was a go-getter, highly regarded, had a lovely wife
and beautiful family. Morelli was given the job of putting together the paperwork necessary
to get the Army's approval to make the Corps of Engineers a major command.
Ultimately, I had to go see General Kroesen, Vice Chief of Staff. This process took quite a
few months. General Fritz Kroesen asked me, "Do you really want to do this?" I said, "Yes."
He asked, "Why?" I said, "Well, I've given it a lot of thought and I think there's more pluses
than there are minuses." I said, "It may be a little awkward at first because the Army's got
to accept this, but in the long run it recognizes the fact that the Chief of Engineers is a
commander and gives him a clearer voice within the Army where he needs it." He approved.
Then we had to develop command insignia. Also, we needed a crest. We had a contest for
the crest, and after a lot of disappointments, a handicapped employee from the Kansas City
District came in with a proposal. It was beautiful, and we adopted it.
the
We had a lot more trouble getting the patch worked out, though. I gave General
job. He developed a family of patches. Ernie Graves had moved up to be deputy, so this was
during late summer 1977, and I gave them to Ernie to look over. I didn't especially like any
one of them, but I didn't want to disapprove them out of hand, so I asked Ernie if he'd take
a look at them. About ten minutes later he came back in with a design he had drawn up and
which we adopted. That was quick.
There was one thing, however, about the patch. It looks a lot like the 20th Brigade patch. As
you recall, I'd commanded the 18th Engineers, and for a moment my reaction was to make
it look less like the 20th Brigade patch. I decided I shouldn't get personal about this thing so
I left it alone. I did, however, mention to Ernie that he obviously had been in the 20th
Engineer Brigade.
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