WINCHESTER – Hundreds of well-wishers gathered Thursday at the headquarters of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Middle East District to mark a change of command.
Col. Patrick V. Kinsman formally took over the district from retiring Col. Vincent B. Quarles, who had been in charge since March 31, 2014.
Kinsman was previously chief of staff for the Corps’ Transatlantic Division, which is also located in Winchester and a step above the Middle East District in the Army’s organizational chart.
Kinsman put members of the audience, many of them members of the Corps of Engineers, on notice that he saw himself as an agent of change.
“I believe in you,” Kinsman said. “I trust in you, and I’m excited to work with you in the coming months.”
The Middle East District is responsible for designing and building a variety of projects throughout 20 countries in the Middle East, Arabian Gulf and Central Asia. Some of the work is done directly for the U.S. military; other initiatives involve foreign customers.
The projects include housing and administrative buildings, clinics, barracks, dining facilities, fuel storage, control towers and runways.
Workplaces are changing, Kinsman said, “from hierarchy to community, commanding to coaching, from instruction to dialog, from control to empowerment.”
He added: “Leaders can and should disrupt their organizations internally in order to drive needed change. ‘Oh, oh,’ they say. But if not, what should we expect? We should expect to be disrupted externally at a time that is not opportune for us. And we should expect seriously painful changes, so it’s better to disrupt and drive change from within.”
Quarles in his farewell remarks thanked those present for the support he received during his tenure. He said the Corps’ “partners in private industry” played an important part in the success of its various missions.
“I’ve enjoyed getting to know many of you in the room here today and so many others who have supported us so well for so many years,” Quarles said.
Quarles also thanked his wife for supporting him throughout his career, a message underscored by the presentation of 30 roses she received from him, one for each year of his service in the Army.
Contact staff writer Joe Beck at 540-465-5137 ext. 142, or jbeck@nvdaily.com
