FORT RILEY — Brig. Gen. Patrick D. Frank and his wife Jennifer, a respected Manhattan attorney, made sure to receive every hug, handshake and kind word Tuesday afternoon following the Victory with Honors Ceremony for the departing Acting Senior Commander of the 1st Infantry Division and Fort Riley.
The line of well-wishers for the Franks — Fort Riley officials, local and state leaders, families and soldiers — extended far in front of the Big Red One headquarters building, but an hour later, all had their chance to say goodbye.
“Those people who came through the line today, their all the supporters of the 1st Infantry Division,” Frank told reporters after the ceremony. “So all of our families that live off post, our soldiers who live off post, they take care of them. They bring them into their communities. They make them feel like they’ve been neighbors there for 20 years.
“That’s why it’s important for to tell the community how much they mean to this division.”
Frank, who took command duties in Oct. 2016 after previously serving as the deputy commanding general for support for the 1st Infantry Division,will next serve as the deputy commanding general of the Army Cadet Command in Fort Knox, Kentucky.
Taking his place as the acting senior commander will be Brig. Gen. William A. Turner, who is the deputy commanding general for sustainment for the Combined Joint Forces Land Component Command in Baghdad, Iraq, as a part of Operation Inherent Resolve.
“He has a way of very gently reminding anyone of us that doesn’t wear the Big Red One patch, that in many ways we are lesser mortals for not having the opportunity,” British Army Maj. Doug Chalmers joked.
Chalmers’ full remarks can be listened to below:
Chalmers, the III-Corps Deputy Commanding General in Fort Hood, Texas, spoke highly of the Franks. He commended Frank for his intellect and that he was the right man for the job during such a busy time for Fort Riley.
“Now being British, and those of you who know us, we’re not really given to overstating or giving too much pleasantries,” said Chalmers, who serves the U.S. Army through an exchange partnership between both countries. “So please do understand when I say that Fort Riley simply could not have been better served when Pat was announced as the senior acting commander. I really mean that. I really do mean that.”
In his remarks to the large crowd, with representatives of the post’s many divisions behind him, Frank said the Big Red One is a substantial part of his identity.
“I am a New Yorker, but I consider myself a Kansan,” he said. “Because it is here in the Flint Hills that Army values meet Kansan values.”
Frank’s full remarks can be listened to below:
Later, Frank said what moves him most is seeing reunited families.
“There is nothing stronger than an Army family,” he said. “And nothing more moving than watching children at an welcome home ceremony rush the floor to hug their dad or mom in formation.”
